Reference, verified June 2026

Topic guides

Every payment-gateway-cost topic and buying guide on the site, grouped so you can pick the right entry point. Vendor pages live under /vendors, head-to-heads under /compare.

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Buying guides (5)

The deepest cost reference and the by-company-size buying guides.

Ultimate guide 2026

Every pricing model, every published rate, every quote-only acquirer, with worked examples.

Buying guide

Step-by-step framework from volume profiling through RFP to contract signing.

Cost for SMB

Under $100K monthly: why flat-rate wins, when to switch to interchange-plus.

Cost for mid-market

$100K-$1M monthly: when Helcim wins, when to RFP quote-only acquirers, break-even math.

Cost for enterprise

Over $1M monthly: Adyen, Worldpay, Checkout.com, Fiserv, Chase. All quote-only.

Pricing models (3)

How payment gateways actually price, and who refuses to publish a rate card.

Interchange fees explained

What interchange is, how Visa and Mastercard publish it, why your fee is always interchange-plus-something.

How vendors price gateways

Cost stack from interchange through assessments and acquirer margin, why flat-rate works.

Quote-only vendors

Adyen, Worldpay, Checkout.com, NMI, Chase, Elavon, Global Payments, Fiserv. What is public, how to extract a quote.

Hidden costs and adjacent topics (10)

The cost lines that do not show up in the headline rate: chargebacks, FX, fraud, PCI, implementation, surcharging.

Hidden gateway costs

PCI non-compliance, account-updater, gateway fee, ETF, monthly minimum, chargeback handling.

Chargeback fees by gateway

Per-vendor fee table including Stripe two-tier ($15 receipt + $15 counter from 17 Jun 2025).

International and FX fees

Stripe +1.5% cross-border + 1% FX, PayPal +1.5%, Amazon Pay +1%, Mollie per-method.

3DS and fraud tooling

Stripe Radar $0.05/screen, Radar for Fraud Teams $0.07, Signifyd outcome-based, Sift volume-tier.

Implementation cost

Developer time, PCI scope, certification, sandbox testing, per-vendor go-live profile.

PCI compliance cost

Levels 1-4, SAQ vs ROC scope, where to source a QSA or ASV, per-gateway pass-through PCI fees.

Recurring billing cost

Stripe Billing, Chargebee, Recurly, GoCardless for direct debit. Subscription surcharge structure.

High-risk merchant cost

Premium over standard rate for CBD, supplements, adult, gambling, travel. Reserves and rolling holds.

Surcharging and cash-discount

Legal landscape by US state. Vendor support. Square cash-discount and Helcim surcharge programs.

RFP template

30-question framework for soliciting comparable interchange-plus quotes from quote-only acquirers.

Last verified June 2026. Next review September 2026. Rates change without notice; always confirm directly with the vendor before signing a contract.