By industry
How card costs work in different lines of business.
This section looks at how card fees work in different lines of business: restaurants, retail, salons and spas, auto repair, trades, dental and medical clinics, online stores, gas stations, grocery and convenience stores, and charities. It is for owners who want the parts of card pricing that apply to their own kind of business.
Card fees change with the type of business for a few reasons. Card networks give some categories their own interchange rates, based on the four-digit merchant category code (MCC). The average sale size changes how much a fixed cents-per-sale fee adds up to. And some businesses have their own patterns, such as tips in restaurants, deposits in the trades and holds at gas pumps.
Each page sets out the category rates that Visa, Interac and others publish for that kind of business, with sources. Two ideas come up on every industry page: interchange, the wholesale part of a card fee, and per-transaction fees, the cents charged on each sale.
Card Processing for Restaurants
Credit card processing fees for restaurants in Canada: tips, split bills, small sales, Interac tap and Visa's restaurant rates, from published rate sheets.
Card Processing for Retail Stores
Card fees for shops in Canada: the retail categories on Visa's and Interac's rate sheets, average sale size, and what Square and Helcim publish for retail.
Card Processing for Salons and Spas
Card fees for salons, barbers and spas in Canada: tips, deposits and no-show fees, Visa's Everyday Needs rates, and what Square Appointments publishes.
Card Processing for Dental and Medical Practices
Card fees for clinics in Canada and the US: larger bills, card-on-file and recurring payments, Visa's US healthcare rates, and what Canadian rate sheets list.
Card Processing for Trades and Contractors
Card fees for contractors and trades in Canada and the US: large jobs, invoices, deposits, business cards, bank payments, and Square, Helcim and Stripe prices.
Card Processing for Auto Repair Shops
Card fees at auto repair shops: large bills, business and fleet cards, deposits on parts and debit limits, with published Visa, Interac and provider rates.
Card Processing for Grocery and Convenience Stores
Card rate programs for grocery and convenience stores in Canada and the US: Visa's grocery and gas programs, Interac's tap tier, Mastercard supermarket debit.
Card Processing for Online Stores
Card fees for online sellers in Canada and the US: card-not-present rates, network fees on online sales, foreign cards, and Stripe, Square and Helcim rates.
Card Processing for Gas Stations
Card fees and rules at gas stations in Canada and the US: Visa's Gas program, fleet and fuel cards, pump holds, and Visa, Mastercard and Interac debit rates.
Card Processing for Charities and Non-Profits
Charity card rates from Visa, Mastercard and Interac in Canada and the US, who qualifies (category code 8398), and what Stripe, Helcim and Square publish.