Methodology

Our recommendations are built around public pricing, fee model assumptions, and business-specific scenarios.

CardFeeCheck compares payment processors and POS systems by estimating total card processing cost under clearly stated assumptions. The goal is not to predict a custom quote exactly. The goal is to help business owners understand which pricing model may deserve a closer look.

Calculator inputs

The calculator estimates fees from monthly card sales, average ticket size, percentage fee, per-transaction fee, and monthly fixed fees. It calculates monthly transaction count, monthly fees, annual fees, and effective rate.

Provider rate assumptions

Provider estimates are stored in site data files with a pricing model, percentage fee, per-transaction fee, monthly fee, source URL, and last verified date. Public rates can change, and some processors use custom pricing by volume, risk profile, card mix, or industry.

How recommendations are framed

CardFeeCheck avoids treating the lowest modeled fee as the only answer. Ease of setup, POS workflow, hardware, reporting, support, contract terms, and business type can matter as much as the headline processing rate.

Editorial review

Content is reviewed for pricing claims, internal consistency, useful next steps, and affiliate disclosure. Pages are updated when pricing assumptions, affiliate status, or product positioning materially changes.