Skip to content
Honest Fees
Compare processorsPOS systemsFees explainedFee calculator See your real rate

12 providers compared · checked Oct 19

The best credit card processing for small business, by what you'll actually pay

Every payment processor's real rates and fees, taken from their own US websites and put side by side, so you can see which one costs least for a business like yours.

Find your best fit See your real rate

The short answer

  • Selling in person, with small or uneven sales? Pick a flat rate with no monthly fee. Square’s Free plan charges 2.6% + 15¢ per in-person payment. PayPal POS lists 2.29% + 9¢ with a free app. Either way, a slow month costs nothing extra.
  • Bigger and steady? Look at interchange-plus. You pay the card networks’ own fee (called interchange) plus a small published markup, instead of a flat rate set high enough to cover the priciest cards. Helcim’s markup is 0.40% + 8¢ in person, with no monthly fee.
  • Selling mostly online? Stripe charges 2.9% + 30¢ per online card payment with no monthly fee, and it plugs into most online checkouts.

Not sure which camp you’re in? Answer three questions.

Find your best fit

3 questions

1What kind of business?
2Card sales per month?
3Do you need POS software (menus, inventory, staff)?

Credit card processing for small business, side by side

In-person and online card rates from each provider's own US pricing page. Interchange-plus rows show the provider's markup only. Heartland's rate is a starting-at price.
  • Square

    Flat rate

    Visit Square
    In person
    2.6% + 15¢
    Online
    3.3% + 30¢
    Monthly
    $0 · Free plan
    Contract
    No contract
  • PayPal POS

    Flat rate

    Visit PayPal POS
    In person
    2.29% + 9¢
    Online
    2.99% + 49¢
    Monthly
    $0 · Free POS app
    Contract
    No contract stated
  • Stripe

    Flat rate

    Visit Stripe
    In person
    2.7% + 5¢
    Online
    2.9% + 30¢
    Monthly
    $0 · Reader bought separately
    Contract
    No contract
  • Helcim

    Interchange-plus

    Visit Helcim
    In person
    Interchange + 0.4% + 8¢
    Online
    Interchange + 0.5% + 25¢
    Monthly
    $0 · No monthly fee
    Contract
    No contract, no cancellation fee
  • Stax

    Membership

    Visit Stax
    In person
    Interchange + 8¢
    Online
    Interchange + 15¢
    Monthly
    Not published
    Contract
    Not published
  • Clover

    Flat or custom

    Visit Clover
    In person
    2.3% + 10¢
    Online
    By quote
    Monthly
    From $16 · POS plan
    Contract
    36-month hardware subscription option; terms vary by reseller
  • Shopify POS

    Flat rate

    Visit Shopify POS
    In person
    2.6% + 10¢
    Online
    2.9% + 30¢
    Monthly
    $39 · Basic plan
    Contract
    Monthly or yearly billing
  • Chase

    Flat rate

    Visit Chase
    In person
    2.6% + 10¢
    Online
    2.9% + 25¢
    Monthly
    Not published
    Contract
    Not published
  • Heartland

    Quote

    Visit Heartland
    In person
    From 2.6% + 10¢
    Online
    By quote
    Monthly
    From $89 · POS plan
    Contract
    Not published

Prices checked Oct 19, 2026 on each provider's own pricing page (how we check). "Interchange +" means the provider publishes only its markup. You also pay the card networks' interchange fee on top.

For Helcim and Stax, the number shown is their markup on top of interchange, so your total will be higher than it looks. That’s not a trick, it’s how interchange-plus works. Helcim says most of its merchants end up with a total in-person rate “near or below 2%” (their claim, not ours).

Stax adds no percentage markup at all, just 8¢ per in-person payment. But you also pay a monthly subscription: $99 a month for up to $150,000 a year in card sales, $139 for $150,000 to $250,000, and $199 or more above that. Run your own numbers in the fee calculator before you decide.

What is the cheapest credit card processing?

There is no single cheapest processor. It depends on how much you sell, how big each sale is, and whether you sell in person or online. Here’s one example, using each provider’s published flat rate.

Say you take $10,000 a month in card payments, in person, across 200 sales of about $50 each:

ProviderPublished in-person rateCard fees for the monthMonthly fee
PayPal POS2.29% + 9¢$247$0
Clover (Retail Standard bundle)2.3% + 10¢$250$180 for 36 months, hardware included
Stripe2.7% + 5¢$280$0 (reader bought separately)
Chase2.6% + 10¢$280“May apply”, amount not published
Square (Free plan)2.6% + 15¢$290$0

This is our estimate. It assumes every payment is a domestic card taken in person, and it leaves out hardware, chargebacks and keyed-in payments. Stripe doesn’t sell a POS plan, so in-person selling also needs a reader and POS software. Clover’s cheapest retail bundle charges 2.6% + 10¢, not 2.3%.

Two more things the table can’t show. PayPal’s fee page says it may raise the percentage part of its fees, up to 5.00% per transaction, after 30 days’ notice. And interchange-plus providers like Helcim and Stax can come out cheaper, but only your own card mix can tell you. The calculator does that math.

Three things that change what you really pay

1. Online and keyed-in payments cost more. The rate you see first is usually the in-person one. Square’s Free plan charges 2.6% + 15¢ in person but 3.3% + 30¢ online. PayPal charges 2.29% + 9¢ at its POS but 2.99% + 49¢ for standard online card payments. Typing a card number in costs more again: 3.5% + 15¢ at Square, 3.5% + 10¢ at Chase, and an extra 0.5% at Stripe.

2. Monthly and plan fees. A low rate with a high monthly fee can cost more than a higher rate with none. Square, Stripe, Helcim and PayPal POS charge no monthly fee to take payments. Square’s Plus plan is $49 a month per location. Shopify’s Basic plan is $39 a month, or $29 if you pay yearly. Stax starts at $99 a month.

3. The fine print.

  • Chargebacks (when a customer disputes a payment). Stripe charges $15, plus another $15 if you contest it. PayPal charges $20, plus a $15 dispute fee. Helcim charges $15, only if you lose. Square charges no dispute fee, but it keeps the processing fee on the payment.
  • Hardware lock-in. Toast says its services “may only be used on approved Toast hardware.” SpotOn says you can’t use your own POS hardware. Leaving means new equipment.
  • Contracts. Clover’s 36-month hardware subscriptions carry on at the same monthly charge unless you give 30 days’ notice. SpotOn’s All-In plan has a 2-year minimum. Square, Stripe and Helcim say there’s no contract.

Quote-only and starting-at providers

Some merchant services companies don’t publish a price you can plan on. That doesn’t make them bad, but it does make them hard to compare until you ask.

  • Heartland publishes only starting-at prices: 2.6% + 10¢ in person and POS plans from $89 a month. Heartland says it is “transitioning to the Global Payments brand.”
  • Clover is also sold by banks and more than 3,000 other financial institutions. Clover says the prices on its site “are only available on Clover.com,” and that contract terms and termination fees vary by who sells it to you.
  • Chase lists its rates but says monthly fees “may apply to certain products and pricing plans,” without saying how much.

If you get a quote, get it in writing, including the cancellation fee. Then check it against your real rate from the calculator.

Want the full breakdown?

Common questions

What is the cheapest credit card processing for a small business?

It depends on how much you sell and how. In our example of $10,000 a month in person, PayPal POS (2.29% + 9¢) cost the least of the flat rates, at about $247 in card fees. Larger, steady businesses should also price interchange-plus, such as Helcim or Stax, where you pay the card networks' fee plus a small markup.

How much does credit card processing cost for a small business?

In person, PayPal POS lists 2.29% + 9¢, Clover from 2.3% + 10¢, Square's Free plan 2.6% + 15¢ and Stripe 2.7% + 5¢. Online costs more: 2.9% + 30¢ at Stripe and 3.3% + 30¢ on Square Free. Some providers add a monthly fee, from $0 at Square, Stripe and Helcim to $99 or more at Stax.

What is the difference between a payment processor and merchant services?

A payment processor moves the money from your customer's card to your bank. Merchant services is the wider name the industry uses for everything around it: the processing, the merchant account your card sales pass through, the card terminal and sometimes a POS. Providers like Square and Stripe bundle these into one account instead of a separate merchant account.

Do I have to sign a contract for card processing?

Not always. Square, Stripe and Helcim say there is no contract, and Helcim says there is no cancellation fee. SpotOn's All-In plan has a 2-year minimum. Clover's 36-month hardware subscriptions carry on at the same monthly charge unless you give 30 days' notice. Heartland and Chase don't publish contract terms, so ask for them in writing.