summary
5/5
Best for
E-commerce companies, SaaS companies, "high-risk businesses", & established small/medium businesses ($500,000+ in annual sales)
Specializes in
Easy Pay Direct has unique gateway software and banking solutions to optimize payments for eCommerce, SaaS, information products, supplements, and CBD amongst other verticals.
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: $99
Monthly Fee: $24.95
Swipe Rate: 1.59% + $0.17
Keyed-in Rate: 2.39% + $0.29
Early Termination Fee: $0 (domestic accounts)
Contract Terms:
summary
4.8/5
Best for
Small businesses
Specializes in
Online, retail, service industries
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: $0
Monthly Fee: $20
Swipe Rate: Variable
Keyed-in Rate: Variable
Early Termination Fee: $0
Contract Terms:
summary
4.5/5
Best for
Dharma's website caters its services to small-sized businesses with up to twenty employees, in verticals such as restaurants, non-profits, and e-commerce platforms.
Specializes in
Dharma Merchant Services provides mobile phone processing and tablet-based POS options for merchants courtesy of Clover. Moreover, Dharma offers the Clover Mini station, which includes Clover's PRO software set. The company also resells the Clover POS solution, including a full cash drawer, built-in fingerprint scanner, and printer.
Pricing Summary
Setup Fee: N/A
Monthly Fee: $20
Swipe Rate: N/A
Keyed-in Rate: N/A
Early Termination Fee: None
Contract Terms:
Instant approval means that you’re basically automatically approved for a merchant account as soon as you apply for one. Though there are some companies out there that are faster than others at approving accounts, most are not instant.
If instant is what you’re looking for, you might be better served by considering a payment aggregator, though there are a host of reasons why you shouldn’t. We’ll get to those in a moment.
Every merchant services provider has its own underwriting process. But there are some that can offer approval on the same day, potentially allowing you to begin accepting payments very quickly.
There could be a few different reasons why a merchant might be interested in getting quick approval for their credit card processing services.
For instance, they may:
Sometimes business owners think that if they get approved for a merchant account quickly, that means they’ll get their funding quickly once they start processing payments.
Unfortunately, that’s not how it works.
Let’s talk about some of the things you may have seen.
If you have a merchant account that offers next-day funding, that means that the sales you make today will be paid out to you on the following business day.
Of course, there is a batching process that has to take place too. But for example, let’s say your processor has a 5 pm cutoff for batches for next day funding. As long as you batch by 5 pm, you’ll receive those funds the following day.
Some providers may also make deposits on Saturday and Sunday, but you’ll probably find most operate on regular banking hours (Monday through Friday).
Same day funding sounds great, but there is some fine print you’ll want to pay attention to.
Typically, credit card processors that offer same day funding will require you to batch out early in the day; for example, around 11 am. Once you do, they will send your funds to your business bank account, where you can access them.
A lot of businesses that operate overnight will choose providers that offer same day funding. But keep in mind that these accounts may have limits on the amount of money you’re able to access. The balance may only be available through next day funding.
Getting instant deposits sounds too good to be true, and there has to be a catch, right?
There is.
Instant deposits into your business bank account may come with a higher transaction fee attached to them. You also might not be able to get a service like this unless you go through a payment aggregator and not a merchant account provider.
Getting instant approval for your merchant account with a company like the ones we list above is different from working with a payment aggregator.
Payment aggregators are companies like Stripe, PayPal, and Square. These companies are often the first option for people who are new to processing payments for their businesses.
They do offer a lot of benefits, such as:
The problem is that they can also be quite volatile. At any moment, a payment aggregator can choose to freeze your funds or even close your account completely, and you may have little to no notice.
While there is no such thing as an instantly approved merchant account, it’s worth waiting a day or two to get your approval to lessen the strain on your business.
You think you have the basics down, and now it’s time to take a look at your options for payment processors.
As you do some research, you’ll find companies that go above and beyond to be transparent and those that offer promises that might not always be genuine. Here’s what you should consider before making a decision.
You will most likely have to sign a contract before you start working with any merchant service provider or payment processor. Many offer month-to-month contracts, but there is still some type of agreement in place.
It’s easy to get excited about being able to open up shop and start accepting payments, but take some time to carefully read any contract before you sign it. Here’s what you’re looking for:
One of the most important pieces of information you will learn is how much a company is going to charge you for transaction fees.
There are different ways that payment processing companies calculate these fees, and they are based on the pricing structure that is in place with that particular processor. Here is what you can expect to see:
There are also merchant account providers that offer cash discount programs or surcharge programs, which can offset the cost of your processing fees substantially.
If you decide on either of these programs, please be sure to read the fine print to ensure you’re getting a good deal.
Any merchant services provider you work with should have an excellent reputation among their customers. But please do your research before making a decision.
You can find out a lot of information on any business by checking their profiles on the Better Business Bureau website, Facebook, and Yelp.
If you see any red flags, such as a large number of customer complaints, then it’s best to find a provider that has happy customers.
It can be hard to wait for your merchant account to be approved so you can begin processing payments for your business. But there are a few things you can do to get things moving along as quickly as possible.
A lot of merchant account approvals get delayed because the processor doesn’t have all the necessary paperwork for underwriting.
You can get ahead of this problem by providing all of the needed documentation as soon as you submit your application.
Some of the items you might need to send in to underwriting are:
Honesty is always the best policy, and that adage is just as true in business as it is in your personal life.
Never hide anything from a merchant account provider when you’re seeking their services. If you do, and the truth is found out, it could cause serious harm to your business and to your ability to accept credit card payments.
For example, if you own a CBD store, the provider should know what products you sell. Payment processing for CBD is difficult to find, and some merchants try to get around paying for high-risk credit card processing by lying about their products.
That is a recipe for disaster, and it could land you on the MATCH list, which makes it impossible to find a processor that will work with you.
Your merchant account provider wants to offer you the best possible service they can, but if you’re dishonest about your business, their hands are tied.
Your merchant account provider will be checking your website before making a decision on your application. You want them to be happy with what they find there.
Make sure your website includes customer policies, that its products are up to date, and that offers visitors as much information as possible. This shows that your business is legitimate and that working with you is a reasonable risk.
Chargebacks are a real problem in the credit card processing industry, and they could cause a lot of problems for your business if you have too many of them.
A chargeback occurs whenever a customer disputes a credit card charge with their issuing bank (the credit card company). The best payment processors offer chargeback protection, and there are even ways to prevent them before they happen.
For example, let’s say a customer purchased a lamp from your online store but didn’t receive it in the mail. They can contact their credit card company and request a chargeback. But if you know that a chargeback is in progress because you were notified by your MSP, you can contact that customer and offer them a refund instead.
That will effectively keep the chargeback from going through and you won’t have to pay excessive fees to your processor.
Your provider’s underwriting department should be made aware of any potential high-value transactions that might occur before they happen.
This is especially true if you own a business that typically has low-value sales.
For example, if you’re in the business of selling perfume for around $100 a bottle, but a new brand is being released that costs $1,000 a bottle, you should let the processor know that higher-value transactions might be coming through.
If your business is considered high-risk, additional fees are a given. You might have to pay higher transaction fees each time you make a sale, but you may also need to have a rolling reserve in place.
When you have a rolling reserve, it means that a portion of your sales is set aside each month to cover the cost of any chargebacks you receive.
Many processors require this for high-risk merchants, and the money in reserves gets released after a certain period of time; usually six months.
You may not always need a rolling reserve, and eventually, that condition might disappear. But it’s something to keep in mind just in case it’s required.
Before you go, don’t forget to review our top picks for the best instant approval merchant accounts.