Credit Card Processing for Small Business: 2026 Rates

Card fees look tiny until you run the same $100 sale through each processor. The headline rate is never the whole bill.

A simple $100 example

Most small-business processors still cluster around 2.6% + 10¢ to 3.5% + 15¢ for an online card. On $100 that is roughly $2.70 to $3.65 before refunds. In person (tap) is often a bit lower. Keyed-in or international cards are higher.

• Stripe: clear online pricing, extra for some international cards and Radar. Good if your site already takes payments.
• Square: simple for in-person plus a basic online checkout. Hardware is the lock-in.
• PayPal: customers trust the button. Fees and chargeback handling feel worse if you live in the PayPal app.

What actually changes the cost

Chargebacks, monthly gateway fees, PCI products you do not need, and “discounted” rates that only apply to a share of cards. Ask for the effective rate on last month’s volume, not the brochure.

On your website

You need HTTPS, a clear refund line, and a checkout that does not dump people into a mystery portal. Volnyn sites can take payments through the processors you already use. The website is the storefront. The processor is the till. Price the till on real volume, then pick the storefront that does not fight you.