The short version
A card processing statement answers four questions, whoever sends it:
- What did I sell?
- What was taken off?
- What was it made of?
- What is my effective rate?
This page is the US version of How to Read Your Merchant Statement, which uses a Canadian bank’s sample statements. Here, the line names come from Visa’s US rate sheet, and the provider examples come from what Stripe, Square and Helcim publish for US accounts.
A merchant statement answers four questions. Part 1, the summary of sales: what did I sell? Part 2, the summary of fees: what was taken off? Part 3, the fee details by card type: what was it made of? Part 4, your effective rate: total fees divided by total sales, which you work out from parts 1 and 2.
Question 1: what did I sell?
Every statement or report starts with sales: how many, how much, and refunds.
- Stripe says its Balance summary report “works like a bank statement”. It shows the starting and ending balance for the period, and a breakdown of “charges, refunds, disputes, other adjustments, and fees”.
- Square’s US pricing page describes a reconciliation report that “breaks down sales, refunds, fees, and deposits”.
A chargeback (Stripe calls it a dispute) is a sale reversed after the customer disputes it with their bank. It shows as money taken back, not as a fee line. Stripe US lists a $15.00 “dispute received fee” for each dispute. Helcim US lists chargebacks at “$15 USD or $0 per occurrence”, with the fee refunded if the chargeback is resolved in the merchant’s favour.
Question 2: what was taken off?
This depends on the pricing model.
On a flat rate, each sale has one published rate, and the fee comes off before the money is paid out. Square says its fees are “deducted before funds are transferred to your linked bank account”.
| Provider (US) | In person | Online | Manually entered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Square Free | 2.6% + 15¢ | 3.3% + 30¢ | 3.5% + 15¢ |
| Square Plus | 2.5% + 15¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ | 3.5% + 15¢ |
| Square Premium | 2.4% + 15¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ | 3.5% + 15¢ |
| Stripe | 2.7% + 5¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ | 2.9% + 30¢, plus 0.5% |
Sources: Square US pricing and Stripe US pricing, read 2026-10-13. Square Free, Plus and Premium are Square’s US plans. Stripe’s rates are “for domestic cards”.
Square’s help page says its rate “applies to every card brand at the same rate”. Both providers add a fee for cards from outside the US: 1.5% at Square and 1.5% at Stripe. Stripe adds 1% when currency conversion is needed.
On interchange plus, the statement lists interchange and network fees, and then the processor’s markup. Helcim’s US fee disclosure says: “All card association fees, network fees and interchange rates are passed onto the merchant directly. Helcim then adds its processing margin.” Its published markup:
| Helcim US tier (monthly card volume) | Card present | Card not present |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1: $0 to $50,000 | 0.40% + 8¢ | 0.50% + 25¢ |
| Tier 2: $50,001 to $100,000 | 0.35% + 7¢ | 0.45% + 20¢ |
| Tier 3: $100,001 to $500,000 | 0.25% + 7¢ | 0.35% + 20¢ |
Helcim says tiers are set from “a 3-month rolling processing average”. It also lists extra network fees on international cards, such as +1.45% + 4¢ for Visa.
Question 3: what was it made of?
This is the long part of an interchange plus statement. Each line is one kind of sale, with its own interchange rate. The names come from the card networks.
Visa’s US rate sheet (rates effective April 18, 2026) is where many of the names come from. Some examples for consumer credit cards:
| Line name on Visa’s US sheet | Traditional Rewards card | Visa Signature Preferred |
|---|---|---|
| Product 2 (in the card-present table) | 1.65% + $0.10 | 2.10% + $0.10 |
| Product 1 (in the card-not-present table) | 2.04% + $0.10 | 2.50% + $0.10 |
| Non-Qualified Consumer Credit | 3.15% + $0.10 | 3.15% + $0.10 |
Most rates on the sheet are a percentage plus a few cents. The same sheet has industry programs, such as “Supermarket Credit” and “Restaurant 2”, and a “Small Merchant” set of rates.
Debit is split in two. Visa’s US sheet has two columns for debit cards: “Exempt” and “Regulated”. For in-person debit:
| Visa US debit line | Exempt | Regulated |
|---|---|---|
| CPS/Retail, Debit | 0.80% + $0.15 | 0.05% + $0.21 |
| CPS/Supermarket, Debit | $0.30 | 0.05% + $0.21 |
Visa notes that issuers that meet its fraud-prevention standards receive an extra $0.01 on regulated cards. Visa’s sheet does not explain the split. The US federal rule on debit interchange is covered in US Debit Fees: Regulation II (Durbin).
Business cards have their own lines. Visa’s US sheet lists them separately, such as “Business Product 2” at 1.90% + $0.10 to 2.25% + $0.10 depending on spend tier. See Why Business and Corporate Cards Cost More to Accept.
On a flat-rate report, this part is short or missing, because one rate covers every card type.
Question 4: what is my effective rate?
Your effective rate is total fees divided by total card sales. It turns a statement or report into one number that can be compared from month to month.
On a flat rate, the effective rate can be higher than the headline rate, because the fixed cents on each sale add up on small sales. See Per-Transaction Fees: Why Small Sales Cost More.
When the money arrives
A statement or report also shows deposits, which providers call transfers or payouts.
- Square (US): payments taken before 5 PM PT “will be available in your bank account the next business day”. Instant transfers cost “a 1.95% fee per transfer”.
- Stripe (US): its payouts documentation lists a standard settlement timing of 2 business days for the US. It says the first payout is typically scheduled “within 7–14 days, depending on your industry, country of operation, and risk level”. Stripe lists Instant Payouts at 1.5% of the amount, minimum 50¢.
US lines that Canadian guides do not cover
| What you may see | What it is, per the source |
|---|---|
| “Regulated” and “Exempt” debit | Two debit columns on Visa’s US sheet, each with its own rates |
| “CPS/…” line names | Visa US program names, such as CPS/Retail and CPS/Card Not Present |
| “Product 1” / “Product 2” | Visa US consumer credit programs, in the card-not-present and card-present tables |
| “Non-Qualified” | A Visa US consumer credit program, listed at 3.15% + $0.10 |
| Surcharge disclosures | Visa’s rules have a section on credit card surcharges that covers the US |
Other US network fee names, such as Visa’s FANF and Mastercard’s NABU in the US, are not covered here yet, because we have not read the network’s own US description. See card processing in the United States.
Where to go from here
A US statement is easiest to read with the four questions in mind. For how the pricing models differ, see Flat Rate vs Interchange Plus vs Tiered and What Is Interchange?. More US pages: Visa Interchange Rates in the US, American Express in the US, Cash Discounts and Surcharges Under Visa’s US Rules, Switching Processors in the US and Square (United States). The glossary explains the terms. Want a partner to review your statement? We will put you in touch. Start the free statement review.