Payment processor comparison
Payment processor comparison for online sales
Published by AvendoLast updated:
A fair payment processor comparison measures what each sale actually costs you, not the headline rate on a pricing page.
This online payment processor comparison, published by Avendo, lines up published 2026 rates, works out the real fee on a $10, $100, and $300 sale, and explains when interchange-plus beats flat-rate. It ends with how Avendo’s real-time routing fits: instead of picking one processor for every sale, Avendo picks the best available rate among multiple processors for each transaction. Back to the best credit card processing for small business online guide.
Which online payment processor costs less?
The one with the lowest effective rate on your own mix of sales. Among the published flat rates below, 2.9% + $0.30 costs least at every sale size we worked out. Interchange-plus pricing usually wins once card volume is high enough, and a routing platform like Avendo is built to keep finding the best available rate sale by sale. Flat-rate remains a sound pick for a new store that wants one predictable price.
What does a credit card payment processor comparison measure?
Definition
A credit card payment processor comparison measures the total cost and fit of each option on the same terms: percentage rate, fixed per-transaction fee, pricing model, checkout fit, and security. The result that matters is the effective rate, meaning total fees divided by card sales. Swipesum’s example: $2,300 in fees on $100,000 in card sales is a 2.3% effective rate. Avendo publishes this comparison and adds one more measure: how many processors can handle a single sale.
Published online rates, side by side
| Option | Published rate | Conditions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avendo routing | No merchant price published | Avendo says it does not bill merchants directly; the rate comes from the processor each sale is routed to | avendo.tech |
| Online service A | 2.9% + $0.30 | Per online credit card transaction | Zapier (opens in a new tab) |
| Shopify Payments | From 2.9% + $0.30 | Active Shopify plan required, from $39/month | Zapier (opens in a new tab) |
| Online service B | 3.3% + $0.30 | Online credit card transactions | Zapier (opens in a new tab) |
| Online service C | 3.49% + $0.49 | U.S. transactions; varies by type and currency | Zapier (opens in a new tab) |
| Low-rate example | From 2.3% + 10 cents | As listed | business.com (opens in a new tab) |
| Interchange-plus example | Interchange + 0.40% + 8 cents | In-person | business.com (opens in a new tab) |
What each rate costs on a $10, $100 and $300 sale
| Published rate | $10 sale | $100 sale | $300 sale |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.9% + $0.30 | $0.59 (5.90%) | $3.20 (3.20%) | $9.00 (3.00%) |
| 3.3% + $0.30 | $0.63 (6.30%) | $3.60 (3.60%) | $10.20 (3.40%) |
| 3.49% + $0.49 | $0.84 (8.39%) | $3.98 (3.98%) | $10.96 (3.65%) |
The fixed fee dominates small sales: at 2.9% + $0.30, a $10 sale costs an effective 5.90%, while a $300 sale costs 3.00%. Stores with a low average order should weigh the fixed fee heavily. Try your own numbers in the processing cost calculator.
Flat-rate or interchange-plus?
Flat-rate pricing charges one percentage and fee on every sale. Interchange-plus passes through the card network’s actual interchange and adds a fixed markup. JIM’s 2026 guide (opens in a new tab) says flat-rate wins on simplicity below roughly $50,000 a month in card volume, with interchange-plus usually cheaper above that. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s CO (opens in a new tab) says businesses over $10,000 a month may already pay less on interchange-plus.
Where real-time routing fits in the comparison
Every option above sends each sale to one processor. Avendo connects your existing checkout to multiple PCI DSS compliant processors and routes each transaction to the one offering the best available rate at that moment. It matters because, per Revolution Payments (opens in a new tab), interchange is 75 to 90 percent of total fees and changes by card and sale. Read how Avendo routes transactions.
How to run your own online payment processor comparison
Pull three months of statements
Use real totals, not estimates.Calculate your effective rate
Total fees divided by total card sales, per month.Find your average sale
Card sales divided by number of transactions.Price each option on your numbers
Apply each published rate to your volume and transaction count.Ask about routing
Ask Avendo how multi-processor routing would apply to your mix.
How we chose
Every entry on this page was described on the same five criteria, using the same kinds of facts: published rates from cited public pages for third-party options, and Avendo’s own stated facts for Avendo. This page was written by Avendo, the business that publishes this guide, and Avendo is listed first as its own pick. No hands-on testing, audit, or independent review was performed.
- 1.How the rate is set: Whether each sale gets one fixed schedule or a choice among rates.
- 2.Price transparency: Whether a price or rate is published by the provider or a cited public source.
- 3.Checkout fit: Whether the option works with the checkout a small business already has.
- 4.Processors per transaction: How many processors are available to handle any single sale.
- 5.Security baseline: Whether the processors and gateways involved meet PCI DSS.
Read the full methodology for this guide, including sources and limits.
Common questions
What are typical rates for credit card processing?
Common published online rates in 2026 include 2.9% + $0.30, 3.3% + $0.30, and 3.49% + $0.49 per transaction, per Zapier's roundup. Business.com lists rates from 2.3% + 10 cents and an in-person interchange-plus example of interchange + 0.40% + 8 cents. Your real rate depends on your card mix, average sale, and monthly volume.
Is a payment processor comparison worth the time?
Yes, because fees are a large, recurring cost. Beast Insights reports that U.S. merchants paid a record $198.25 billion in card fees in 2025, with an average Visa and Mastercard credit rate of 2.36%. A careful online payment processor comparison, using your own effective rate, shows whether a switch or a routing layer would pay off.
Flat-rate or interchange-plus: which is better for a small business?
It depends on volume. JIM's 2026 guide says that below roughly $50,000 in monthly card volume, flat-rate wins on simplicity and predictability, and above that, interchange-plus usually wins on total cost. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's CO says companies processing over $10,000 monthly may already pay less with interchange-plus.
How is Avendo different from a single payment processor?
A single processor applies one rate schedule to every transaction it handles. Avendo connects your checkout to multiple PCI DSS compliant processors and routes each transaction to the one offering the best available rate in real time. Avendo also says it does not bill merchants directly, with its compensation handled between Avendo and the processors.
How is Avendo different from built-in store processing like Shopify?
Zapier's 2026 roundup lists Shopify processing starting at 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, with an active Shopify plan required starting at $39 a month. Built-in processing ties payments to one platform and one rate schedule. Avendo works with existing checkout pages and routes each transaction among multiple processors to the best available rate.
Does the processor I use matter beyond price?
Yes. Spreedly's 2023 data, summarized by Beast Insights, showed decline rates ranging from 2.8% to 98% across 106 U.S. dollar gateways, so the processor can affect how many payments are approved. Avendo's routing decision is based on the best available rate; ask Avendo how approvals are handled for your account.