How much are you overpaying in processing fees?
Enter three numbers from your last statement. We'll estimate your true effective rate and what you could save per year.
Your estimate
A payments specialist will review your actual statement and confirm your rate. Free terminal included with most new accounts.
How this calculator works
Your effective rate is the total you pay in processing fees divided by your card volume. Most statements bury this number under interchange, assessments, markups, and per-item fees. We compare your effective rate to an interchange-plus estimate so you can see what a transparent pricing model would cost for your card mix.
What the numbers on your statement mean
Interchange is the wholesale cost set by Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express and paid to the bank that issued the customer's card. It changes with card type, whether the card was present, and your industry, and no processor can discount it. Assessments are small percentages the card brands charge on every transaction. The markup is the only part your processor controls: a percentage over interchange, a per-transaction fee, and any monthly, statement, PCI, or batch fees. Flat-rate and tiered plans blend all three into one number, which is why two businesses with identical sales can pay very different totals.
To find your own effective rate, take the total fees line from your last statement and divide it by total card sales for the same month. If the result is above the industry average for your business type, the gap is almost always in the markup and the add-on fees, which is exactly what a statement review targets.
What is a good effective rate?
For most retail and restaurant businesses, an all-in effective rate below 2.3% is competitive. Card-not-present and high-risk businesses run higher because interchange is higher for those transactions.
Why does my business type matter?
Interchange, the portion paid to card-issuing banks, varies by industry and by whether the card is present. The calculator uses average interchange for your segment to estimate what a transparent interchange-plus rate would cost.
Is this a quote?
No. It is an estimate based on industry averages. For a real quote, a TouchSuite specialist will analyze your actual statement line by line, which usually finds savings this calculator cannot see, like PCI non-compliance fees and junk fees.
Does switching mean new equipment?
TouchSuite includes a free terminal with most new accounts and integrates with major POS systems, shopping carts, and gateways like Authorize.net and NMI.