This article will discuss PCI compliance, why it’s important, and how your merchant services provider treats it. We’ll look at the numerous ways in which providers charge (or don’t charge) for PCI compliance services and what kind of services you’ll receive. We’ll also discuss the dreaded PCI non-compliance fee and how you can avoid ever having to pay it.

If you want to sell online, you need a payment gateway. These days, small businesses have many options depending on how they run their business. Check out the best payment gateways for a variety of business types.

First Data Global Leasing has the dubious distinction of being among our rogue’s gallery of the processing industry’s worst credit card terminal leasing companies. While it offers high-quality products in the Clover line of terminals and POS systems, it’s disheartening that an industry leader such as Fiserv would condone awful business practices by a subsidiary.

Payment service providers (PSPs) streamline the process of obtaining credit card processing services by aggregating all users into a single merchant account. This eliminates the need for a lengthy underwriting process before a merchant can be approved for an account, but also increases the chance of a hold, freeze, or account termination. Your business will not receive a unique merchant ID number if you sign up with a payment service provider. Well-known PSPs include Square, PayPal, and Stripe.

With interchange++ pricing, your transaction statement will include three elements for each transaction: the interchange fee paid to the issuing bank, the card association fee paid to the card brand (e.g., Visa, Mastercard, etc.), and the processor’s markup fees. Note that card association fees are typically very low and do not constitute a significant portion of your credit/debit card processing fees.

If your business needs to send or receive online payments – either domestically or internationally – Payoneer’s payment services may come in very handy. While companies like PayPal offer similar capabilities, Payoneer has a stronger focus on international transactions and claims to offer lower overall costs than its competitors. Read our full Payoneer review for more details.

Free credit card processing sounds great, but the fact is, it’ll never be completely free. You’ll always have some fees to cover on your own, plus you need to consider whether it’s actually a good fit for your business model. Here’s what you need to look for.

Despite what Visa and Mastercard’s advertising would have you believe, most businesses accept American Express cards. However, for merchants looking to add Amex to their repertoire of payment options, the company has been a challenge. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at American Express’ fees and processing rates.

Soar Payments Review specializes in finding credit card processing homes for hard-to-place (that is, high-risk) merchants with refreshing transparency.

Easy Pay Direct is a payment gateway and merchant account provider that serves a wide variety of high-risk and low-risk industries.