Debt Free Resources

merchant accounts – what’s a good rate?

I’m currently looking to start accepting credit card transactions for my business sales, and there are PLENTY of options available. I’d rather use either Peachtree’s services (which integrate w/ my accounting software, and work with my bank), or… my bank. Peachtree’s rates are 2.43% of the sale, + .25 cents per transaction, plus a montly rate of 24.95. (they have lower rates for processing credit cards using a swiper, but I imagine most of my sales will be over the phone or online).

I concur with Jen (above). $24.95 per month is high. A more usual rate is about $10 per month. You need to do some analysis based on what you think your average sale will be and the number of transactions you’ll be doing each month. For example, suppose you figure on 20 sales per month at an average of $50 per sale. The math works out to a cost of about $2.70 per sale or 5.4% of each sale. If your cost per item is $30, the credit card charge amounts to 13.5% of your gross profit – a hugely expensive way to collect money!

Credit card companies usually have a policy against tacking on an extra charge for using a credit card but have no problem with offering cash discounts. The smart business person considers the $2.70 per sale to be like any other cost and would sell the item for $52.70 +/- and offer a discount for cash or check. This is fair because only those using a credit card should pay for the cost of using it.

CardKleen Presaturated Magnetic Head Cleaning Cards, 25/box $16.78 Presaturated cards instantly clean magnetic heads on point-of-sale credit card readers, access control/ID card readers and all open systems. Just swipe to clean. Nonabrasive. 25 individually wrapped cards per box. Global Product Type: Cleaners & Detergents-Electronic; Cleaner/Detergent Type: Electronic; Application: Access Control/ID Cards; Credit Card Readers; Applicable Material: Plastic….

SCM Microsystems USB Smart Card Reader (SCR3310) $9.99 USB smart card reader…

MagTek Mini USB Swipe Readers (Part# 21040110) $47.77 Receipt Printer (USB Interface, Dual Color Ink – Black & Red with Form Validation, Check Printing and Auto-Cutter. Power supply included.) – Color: Beige….

Minimag Magnetic Stripe Card Reader, USB $21.95 Add magnetic stripe card functionality to your point-of-sale or security system with a 3-track stripe reader. Swipe any magnetic stripe card through the slot and it translates the encoded data on the card into text, sending it to your applications as if typed. For custom applications, it can be configured and programmed with downloadable software. Includes hook-and-loop fasteners….

USB Triple Track POS Magnetic Stripe Card Reader $6.00 Easy to use card reading solution! This MSR250HK USB Triple Track POS Magnetic Stripe Card Reader is ideal for retail systems, security systems and other card reader applications. This Point of sale (POS) magnetic card reader can read up to 3 tracks of data and conforms to industry specifications including ANSI/ISO Standards 7810,7811-1/6 and 7813! The MSR250HK USB Triple Track POS Magnetic Stripe…