This is version 0.1 of the card processing model, and it's a draft: the weights are waiting for an outside review and we're still verifying the processors' data. The tables below come from the model itself, so their weights are always the ones we use.
The score weighs the real cost of a typical restaurant's card sales over a year (each channel and card type at the processor's rate, with interchange and network fees when the processor prices that way, plus its monthly, yearly and per-device fees), what leaving the contract costs in its first year, the term, equipment leases and automatic renewals, how prices can change during the contract, how much of the pricing is published, how fast deposits arrive, support, and whether it works with restaurant POS systems. High-risk specialists and online gateways are listed with the same template, without a score.
With a published dual pricing or cash discount program, card processing costs your restaurant nothing on the cards it covers and what your customers pay is shown apart. A surcharge only covers credit cards, so your restaurant keeps paying on debit. Card network rules and state laws apply; see the rules by state before you use one.
In the Spanish edition, Spanish-language support, dashboard, contract, statements and website also count. In this English edition they aren't part of the score.
A rate or fee that isn't published counts as missing, never as zero. Third-party ratings, promotions and anything commercial never count in the score. A processor needs enough verified data before it enters any ranking. This is a comparison method, not financial advice.
Criteria and weights
Spanish-language criteria count only in the Spanish edition
These criteria count only in the Spanish edition of this site: support in Spanish, merchant dashboard in Spanish, contract or terms in Spanish, statements in Spanish, and US website in Spanish. In this English edition they aren't part of the score, and the weights in the table add up to 100% without them. So a processor can have a different RTC Score in each edition.
Listed, not scored
High-risk specialists and Online payment gateways: we list these products with the same template and sources, but we don't score them. They're bought differently, usually by quote, or they serve other platforms.
| Criterion | Pillar | Weight | What we measure | How it's scored |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12-month cost of the reference restaurant | Cost | 36.8% | 12-month processing cost | 12-month cost of the reference restaurant (card rates with interchange when it applies, monthly, yearly, per-device and per-batch fees; dual pricing at $0 for your restaurant, and with a credit card surcharge, debit at the vendor's rate and any part of the credit rate above the card networks' surcharge cap): full score at $2,000, zero at $12,000. If a fee isn't published the cost is missing, unless what is published already reaches $12,000: then it scores zero |
| Standard deposit speed | Getting your money | 10.5% | Standard deposit speed | By option: Same day → 10/10; Next business day → 8/10; Two business days → 5/10; More than two business days → 2/10 |
| What leaving in month 12 costs | Contract and exit | 9.5% | Early termination fee or liquidated damages the contract sets | What leaving costs in month 12 for the reference profile (early termination fee, liquidated damages): full score at $0, zero at $3,000. A fee only set in your application or quote leaves it missing |
| Price increases during the contract | Price stability | 8.4% | Price increases during the contract | By option: Prices locked for the term → 10/10; With notice, and you can leave without a fee → 7/10; Automatic yearly increase (e.g. CPI) → 4/10; With notice → 3/10; At any time → 0/10 |
| Published pricing | Published pricing | 7.4% | Published pricing (points out of 100) | Linear: full score at 100, zero at 0 |
| 24/7 support | Support | 6.3% | 24/7 support for merchants | Yes = 10/10, No = 0/10 |
| Contract term | Contract and exit | 4.2% | Contract term | By steps: Month to month → 10/10; 1–12 months → 7.5/10; 13–24 months → 5/10; 25 months or more → 2.5/10 |
| Support channels | Support | 4.2% | Support channels | By option: Phone → 5/10; Chat → 3/10; Email or form → 1/10; Text message → 1/10 |
| No equipment lease you can't cancel | Contract and exit | 3.2% | Equipment lease you can't cancel | Yes = 0/10, No = 10/10 |
| Works with restaurant POS systems | POS and programs | 2.6% | Works with these restaurant POS | By option: Toast → 1.7/10; Square → 1.7/10; Clover → 1.7/10; Shift4 POS → 1.7/10; SpotOn → 1.7/10; Lightspeed → 1.7/10; Others → 1.7/10; None → 0/10 |
| Automatic renewal | Contract and exit | 2.1% | Automatic renewal | By steps: Month to month → 10/10; 1–12 months → 5/10; 13 months or more → 2.5/10 |
| Equipment works with another processor | Contract and exit | 2.1% | Equipment only works with this processor | Yes = 0/10, No = 10/10 |
| Offers dual pricing or a surcharge program | POS and programs | 1.6% | Dual pricing or surcharge program | Yes = 10/10, No = 0/10 |
| Works without the vendor's own POS | POS and programs | 1.1% | Requires the vendor's own POS | Yes = 0/10, No = 10/10 |
The formula
Each criterion gives a partial score from 0 to 1. The RTC Score is 10 × the weighted average of the criteria we could verify, reduced when data is missing: × (1 − 0.5 × (1 − completeness)). Completeness is the share of the total weight we could verify.
Below 60% completeness, a processor is marked as not having enough data and isn't ranked. That check always uses the base weights, so a ranking by type of restaurant never includes a processor the overall ranking leaves out. A price the vendor doesn't publish counts as missing: it lowers completeness, and with too little data the processor isn't ranked.
Reference profile for cost
Reference: $30k/month in card sales, $35 average ticket, 90% in person, 1 terminal, 12 months: $30,000/month in card sales at an average ticket of $35; 90% in person, 5% online and 5% keyed in; 40% paid with debit cards (61% of them from large banks, regulated) and 10% with American Express; 1 terminal(s) per location for fees billed per device; over 12 months. Equipment isn't included.
Assumptions behind the cost criteria
- The cost adds, for each channel (in person, online, keyed) and card group (credit, regulated debit, exempt debit, American Express), the vendor's rate on that share of your sales, plus the monthly, yearly, per-device and per-batch fees, over the months compared.
- For interchange-plus and subscription pricing we add the interchange and card network fees of our versioned table (below) to the vendor's markup. Flat rates already include them.
- We estimate debit at 40% of card sales (the same estimate as our POS comparison, from public US payments data), 61% of debit on cards from large banks (Federal Reserve data) and 10% American Express. You can change them in the calculator.
- With a published dual pricing or cash discount program, card processing costs your restaurant $0 and what your customers pay is shown apart, never added. A surcharge only covers credit cards and, under card network rules, can't be more than 3% (Visa, in the US) or what the card costs you: your restaurant pays the vendor's rate on debit and any part of its credit rate above that. Fees that only exist with the program count only when it's on. Card network rules apply to the score; a state's law applies in the calculator when you pick your state. A revised Visa and Mastercard settlement got preliminary approval in June 2026; if it gets final approval, these rules would change and we'll update them.
- What leaving costs is the early termination fee the contract sets if you leave in month 12 of the reference profile, plus any fee charged whenever you close the account. A published "no early termination fee" counts as $0 even when the term itself isn't public. When the fee is the fees left in the term, they include your card rates on every sale, even if your customers pay them through a program. A fee only written in your application or quote counts as missing.
- A rate or fee the vendor doesn't publish is never counted as $0: the estimate is marked incomplete and the cost criterion counts as missing, unless what is known already reaches $12,000, where the criterion scores zero: then it counts as zero, because a missing fee can only add cost. Fees that only apply sometimes (chargebacks, PCI non-compliance, monthly minimums) are shown but not added.
- If you add equipment in the calculator, a lease you can't cancel counts with all the payments you commit to when we compare buying and leasing, and the payments left are added to the cost of leaving.
- Tiered pricing: 60% of in-person sales at the qualified rate and 25% at the mid-qualified rate (an estimate); online and keyed sales at the non-qualified rate.
- Promotions, like equipment credits or buyouts, are never subtracted from the cost or counted in the score; the calculator shows them apart.
Interchange table
Interchange is set by the card networks and paid to the bank that issued the card. These are the rates our estimates add to interchange-plus and subscription pricing, version 2026-10-02. Rows marked as estimates use an assumption or an older table. We'll read these sources again by Nov 15, 2026 (Visa and Mastercard publish new rates every April and October).
| Cards | Channel | Rate | How we got it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visa, Mastercard and Discover credit | In person | 2.18% + 4¢Estimate | Visa Restaurant 2 (2.60% premium, 2.10% other cards) and Mastercard Restaurant (2.00% + 10¢ premium, 1.85% + 10¢ World), weighted 60/40 Visa/Mastercard and half premium (our estimate). Mastercard's rates are its 2024-2025 table. |
| Visa, Mastercard and Discover credit | Online | 2.43% + 4¢Estimate | Visa Restaurant 1 for card-not-present sales (2.70% premium, 2.20% other cards) and Mastercard Full or Merchant UCAF (2.60% + 10¢ premium, 2.20% + 10¢ World), same weights. |
| Visa, Mastercard and Discover credit | Keyed in | 2.43% + 4¢Estimate | Keyed-in sales priced like card-not-present ones (Visa Restaurant 1, Mastercard Key-entered). A keyed sale that doesn't qualify can cost up to 3.15% + 10¢ (Standard / Non-Qualified). |
| Regulated debit (Reg II) | In person | 0.05% + 22¢ | Reg II cap for debit cards from large issuers: 21¢ + 0.05% plus 1¢ for fraud prevention (Visa pays it to issuers that certify), the same in every channel. |
| Regulated debit (Reg II) | Online | 0.05% + 22¢ | Reg II cap: 21¢ + 0.05% plus 1¢ for fraud prevention. |
| Regulated debit (Reg II) | Keyed in | 0.05% + 22¢ | Reg II cap: 21¢ + 0.05% plus 1¢ for fraud prevention. |
| Exempt debit | In person | 1.19% + 10¢Estimate | Visa CPS/Restaurant exempt debit and Mastercard Restaurant unregulated debit: 1.19% + 10¢ in both (Mastercard's from its 2024-2025 table). |
| Exempt debit | Online | 1.65% + 15¢Estimate | Visa CPS/Card Not Present exempt debit and Mastercard Full or Merchant UCAF unregulated debit: 1.65% + 15¢. |
| Exempt debit | Keyed in | 1.65% + 15¢Estimate | Visa CPS/Retail Key Entry exempt debit and Mastercard Key-Entered unregulated debit: 1.65% + 15¢. |
| American Express | In person | 1.72% + 0¢Estimate | Estimate that may be low: American Express doesn't publish its US rates, and they may be higher than its Canadian ones. We use its published Canadian rate for restaurants (1.60%) plus its program participation fee (0.12%). |
| American Express | Online | 2.02% + 0¢Estimate | Estimate that may be low (the US rates may be higher than Canada's): the Canadian restaurant rate (1.60%) plus the program participation fee (0.12%) and the card-not-present fee (0.30%). |
| American Express | Keyed in | 2.02% + 0¢Estimate | Estimate that may be low: same as online (a keyed charge isn't swiped, so the card-not-present fee applies). |
Card network fees added on top (not to American Express): 0.18% + 0¢. Card network fees paid by acquirers and merchants: about 0.18% of the sale (Federal Reserve 2023 debit data: $12.95 billion in network fees, 64.9% paid by acquirers and merchants, on $4.7 trillion). Visa and Mastercard don't publish their fees to merchants; we apply the same estimate to credit cards.
Assumptions used in the blends
- Visa's share of Visa and Mastercard credit card sales: 60% (estimate)
- Share of premium credit cards (Visa Infinite or Signature Preferred, Mastercard World Elite or World High Value): 50% (estimate)
Sources
- Visa USA Interchange Reimbursement Fees (rates effective 18 April 2026) (opens in a new tab) ·
- Mastercard 2024-2025 U.S. Region Interchange Programs and Rates (effective 12 April 2024), archived copy (opens in a new tab) · Mastercard's current table (April 2026) couldn't be read (access denied), so this is the latest version we could read.
- Regulation II, 12 CFR 235.3 and 235.4 (eCFR current as of 30 September 2026) (opens in a new tab) · Cap of 21¢ + 0.05% plus up to 1¢ for fraud prevention on debit cards from issuers with $10 billion or more in assets. A federal court in North Dakota ruled against the rule in 2025; the appeal is pending and the cap is still in force.
- 2023 Interchange Fee Revenue, Covered Issuer Costs, and Covered Issuer and Merchant Fraud Losses Related to Debit Card Transactions (opens in a new tab) ·
- OptBlue wholesale discount rates and network assessment fees, Canada (current as of 30 October 2024) (opens in a new tab) · American Express doesn't publish its US rates for merchants; its Canadian table is used as a stand-in, so the American Express rows are estimates and the US rates may be higher.
Interchange is set by the card networks and paid to the bank that issued the card. Your processor adds its own markup and fees on top. With flat-rate pricing it's all in one rate; with interchange-plus you see each part.
Weights by type of restaurant and volume
Rankings by type of restaurant and volume multiply some weights. The overall ranking always uses the base weights.
| Ranking | Adjustments |
|---|---|
| Food trucks | 12-month cost of the reference restaurant ×0.86 · What leaving in month 12 costs ×1.25 · Contract term ×1.25 · No equipment lease you can't cancel ×1.25 · Automatic renewal ×1.25 · Equipment works with another processor ×1.25 · Standard deposit speed ×1.2 |
| Small restaurants | What leaving in month 12 costs ×1.25 · Contract term ×1.25 · No equipment lease you can't cancel ×1.25 · Automatic renewal ×1.25 · Equipment works with another processor ×1.25 · Published pricing ×1.43 |
| Full service restaurants | 12-month cost of the reference restaurant ×1.14 · What leaving in month 12 costs ×0.9 · Contract term ×0.9 · No equipment lease you can't cancel ×0.9 · Automatic renewal ×0.9 · Equipment works with another processor ×0.9 · Works with restaurant POS systems ×1.4 · Offers dual pricing or a surcharge program ×1.4 · Works without the vendor's own POS ×1.4 |
| Bars and nightclubs | 12-month cost of the reference restaurant ×1.14 · What leaving in month 12 costs ×0.9 · Contract term ×0.9 · No equipment lease you can't cancel ×0.9 · Automatic renewal ×0.9 · Equipment works with another processor ×0.9 · Works with restaurant POS systems ×1.4 · Offers dual pricing or a surcharge program ×1.4 · Works without the vendor's own POS ×1.4 · 24/7 support ×1.2 · Support channels ×1.2 |
| High volume | 12-month cost of the reference restaurant ×1.29 · Published pricing ×1.2 · What leaving in month 12 costs ×0.8 · Contract term ×0.8 · No equipment lease you can't cancel ×0.8 · Automatic renewal ×0.8 · Equipment works with another processor ×0.8 |
| Multi-location | 12-month cost of the reference restaurant ×0.9 · Works with restaurant POS systems ×1.6 · Offers dual pricing or a surcharge program ×1.6 · Works without the vendor's own POS ×1.6 · 24/7 support ×1.2 · Support channels ×1.2 |
| If you already have a POS | Works with restaurant POS systems ×3 · Works without the vendor's own POS ×3 |
What never affects a score
Commissions, affiliate deals, sponsorships and price requests. The scoring engine has no access to them, and every vendor gets the same rubric.
Changelog
v0.1.0 ·
First draft, with the pillars and weights of our research (cost 35%, contract and exit 20%, liquidity 10%, support 10%, price stability 8%, published pricing 7%, POS and programs 5%; in the Spanish edition, Spanish-language criteria 10%, published pricing 5% and POS and programs 2%). Third-party ratings aren't scored; their 10% goes to support. Promotions are shown and the calculator applies them, but they aren't scored. With a published dual pricing or cash discount program, card processing costs your restaurant $0 on the cards it covers and what your customers pay is shown apart; a surcharge only covers credit cards, so debit stays at the vendor's rate.