How to lower your credit card processing fees

1. Find your effective rate first

Total fees divided by total volume, times 100. That’s the percentage you actually pay on every dollar, and the honest way to compare any offer. Get this number first.

2. Move to interchange-plus pricing

On flat-rate or tiered pricing you can’t see the markup, so you can’t tell if it’s fair. Interchange-plus passes the card-brand cost straight through and adds a small, visible markup. Transparency alone often lowers your cost, because hidden markups tend to be higher.

3. Make sure Interac debit is priced like Interac

Often the single biggest quick win. Interac debit is a separate, lower-cost network, but flat-rate apps lump it in with credit and charge a credit-card rate on every debit tap. If your pricing doesn’t break out Interac on its own line, you’re almost certainly overpaying on it. The full picture: Interac and card fees in Canada.

4. Kill the junk fees

PCI non-compliance fees, statement fees, monthly minimums, padded regulatory lines: often avoidable or negotiable. Name each one on your statement and ask what it covers. If no one can explain it in a sentence, it’s worth removing.

5. Never lease your equipment

A lease is usually a separate contract from your processing, often four to six years with liquidated damages if you leave early, and it can cost thousands for a terminal that is out of date before the lease ends. If you’re in one, it’s among the biggest avoidable costs on the table. Rent month to month instead: you can stop when you need to, the terminal is replaced when it needs replacing, and the monthly price is typically lower.

6. Make sure your account is set up correctly

Misconfigured accounts cause downgrades, where transactions fall into expensive categories, and trigger fees like PCI non-compliance. A clean setup keeps your transactions qualifying at the best rate they can.

7. Consider surcharging only if it fits your province

A surcharge passes the credit-card fee to the customer who chooses to pay by card, which can reduce or even eliminate that part of your cost. Weigh it after the steps above, not as the first move. Firm limits in Canada:

• The surcharge is capped.
• It isn’t permitted in Quebec.
• It can never be applied to Interac debit.
• Rules differ by province and card brand, so it has to be set up correctly. Check what’s allowed in your province.

8. Get a second set of eyes on your statement

The fastest move is to have someone who reads statements all day go over yours with you. We do it free: we’ll name every fee, flag what should be lower, and tell you honestly whether switching is worth it.