Visa's Small Merchant rates: lower interchange for stores under a cap
At $15,000 a month in card sales, the listed setups land between about $435 and $555 a month once monthly fees are counted [3][4]. Visa publishes a Small Merchant fee program for businesses whose gross Visa consumer credit sales stay at or under $280,000 [1]. In store, a basic Visa credit card costs 1.29% + 10¢ under that program, against 1.51% + 10¢ on Visa's standard card-present row [1]. Premium cards are higher in both programs.
| Card | Published rate | On $50 |
|---|---|---|
| Debit, large bank (regulated) | 0.05% + $0.21, plus $0.01 [1] | $0.25 |
| Debit, smaller bank (CPS/Retail) | 0.80% + $0.15 [1] | $0.55 |
| Basic credit, Small Merchant program | 1.29% + $0.10 [1] | $0.75 |
| Basic credit, standard rate (Product 2) | 1.51% + $0.10 [1] | $0.86 |
| Visa Infinite, spend qualified (Product 2) | 2.30% + $0.10 [1] | $1.25 |
On a flat rate you never see these differences, because every card costs the same. On interchange-plus pricing, your statement should show Small Merchant rows if you qualify. If it does not, ask your processor why.
Typed-in cards cost more, even debit
When a card reader fails and a cashier types in the number, the network treats the sale as riskier. Visa's table shows the jump clearly for debit from smaller banks: 0.80% + 15¢ when the card is read in store, 1.65% + 15¢ when it is key-entered [1]. On a $50 sale that is 55¢ against 98¢.
- Fix or replace a reader that fails often. Typing in cards is a cost, not a workaround.
- Square charges 3.5% + 15¢ for a typed-in card, against 2.6% + 15¢ tapped on its Free plan [3].
- Clover's retail bundles list 3.5% + 10¢ for card information typed in [4].
Sales under $5: Mastercard's small ticket rate
Convenience stores, newsstands and coffee bars ring up a lot of sales under $5. Mastercard publishes a small ticket rate that applies to transactions of $5 and below: 1.65% + 2¢ on Core cards up to 2.30% + 2¢ on World Elite cards [2]. Its regular card-present base rate is 1.65% + 10¢ to 2.30% + 10¢ [2].
One $4 sale on a basic Mastercard
Small ticket interchange: 1.65% x $4 + 2¢ = about 9¢ [2].
At the regular base rate it would be about 17¢ [2].
On Square Free's flat 2.6% + 15¢, you pay about 25¢, or 6.4% of the sale [3].
If many of your sales are under $5, a flat rate with a 10¢ to 15¢ per-sale fee is expensive. Interchange-plus pricing with a low per-sale markup lets the small ticket rate reach you.
What retail POS systems publish, and a month at $15,000
| System | In-store rate | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Shopify POS Basic | 2.6% + 10¢ [5] | $39, plus $89 per location for POS Pro [5] |
| Shopify POS Grow | 2.5% + 10¢ [5] | $105 [5] |
| Shopify POS Advanced | 2.4% + 10¢ [5] | $399 [5] |
| Clover retail Basic | 2.6% + 10¢ [4] | $16 for 36 months, or $349 once [4] |
| Clover retail Standard | 2.3% + 10¢ [4] | $180 for 36 months, or $1,899 + $84.95 [4] |
| Square Free / Plus | 2.6% + 15¢ / 2.5% + 15¢ [3] | $0 / $49 per location [3] |
| Setup | Processing | Monthly fee | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Square Free [3] | $435 | $0 | $435 |
| Clover retail Basic [4] | $420 | $16 | $436 |
| Shopify POS Basic [5] | $420 | $39 | $459 |
| Clover retail Standard, hardware bought [4] | $375 | $84.95 | $459.95 |
| Square Plus [3] | $420 | $49 | $469 |
| Shopify POS Basic with POS Pro [5] | $420 | $128 | $548 |
| Clover retail Standard, subscription [4] | $375 | $180 | $555 |
At this size the rates are close, and the monthly fee decides the order. Pay for a plan because you need its features (inventory, staff permissions, an online store), not for a tenth of a point.
Grocery, EBT and New Jersey's notice rule
- EBT: Square lists 1.8% + 5¢ for in-person EBT payments on SNAP-eligible items [3], well below its card rates.
- Debit at supermarkets: Visa's exempt debit rate for the supermarket category is a flat 30¢, while regulated debit is 0.05% + 21¢ [1].
- Surcharges: a New Jersey store that adds a credit card surcharge must post a sign at the point of entry and the point of sale, and keep the surcharge at or below its actual cost [6]. See merchant services in NJ.
New Jersey had 29,729 retail establishments with paid employees in 2023 [7]. BatchOut is our own processing service and works with retailers; if we show it to you, it is labeled as ours, next to other options.