Free guide
How to review your card-payment rate
As your card volume grows, your rate should fall, but providers rarely lower it unless you ask. To review it, work out your effective rate from your statements, compare it with published pricing for a business like yours, and ask your provider for a better deal with a competing quote in hand. MerchantHQ does not run rate reviews for you; this guide shows you how to do it yourself.
Four steps to review your rate
- 01
Work out your effective rate
Take your last three months of statements. Add up everything the provider charged (transaction fees, monthly fees, terminal rental, PCI and any other charges) and divide by your total card turnover. That all-in percentage is your effective rate. Our effective rate calculator (/tools/effective-rate-calculator/) does the sum for you.
- 02
Compare it with published pricing
Check your effective rate against what providers publish for a business of your size and trade. The 43 providers in our Card Acquirer Index (/acquirers/) and the fees calculator (/fees-calculator/) are a starting point. Note your card mix too: a debit-heavy business and a credit or commercial-card-heavy one price very differently.
- 03
Ask your provider for a review
Write to your provider with your current volume, your effective rate and any competing quote you hold, and ask for a better rate. Providers often improve on a competing quote rather than lose the account. Get any new rate confirmed in writing.
- 04
Decide whether to switch
If your provider will not move, weigh the saving against the cost of switching: exit fees, notice period, new hardware and set-up time. Our switching guide (/switching-help/) walks through it.
When to check your rate
Beyond contract renewal, these events are a good reason to look again:
- Annual card volume grew by 30% or more in the last 12 months
- Average transaction size shifted by 25% (typically a trade pivot)
- Card-mix changed materially (more commercial-card volume, more cross-border)
- Your provider raised your rate at contract renewal
- A new UK provider entered your sector with materially better pricing
- Your chargeback ratio has fallen and stayed low
In one sentence
Know your effective rate, and ask with a competing quote in hand.
Card pricing tends to stay at the rate you signed at, not the rate you should be on at today's volume. A competing quote is the simplest lever you have.
Get 2 to 3 matched quotesFAQs
Does MerchantHQ review my rate for me?
No. MerchantHQ does not run rate reviews or negotiate with providers on your behalf. This guide shows you how to do it yourself. If you want fresh quotes to compare against, send a quote enquiry: our card-payments broker partner works to return 2 to 3 matched quotes.
How often should I check my card rate?
There is no fixed rule. A sensible habit is to check at contract renewal and whenever your card volume, average transaction size or card mix changes materially. Some contracts include a scheduled review; if yours does, put the date in your diary.
Does asking my provider to match a competing quote hurt my relationship?
No. Renegotiation is a normal commercial conversation and providers expect it from merchants growing through the volume tiers. Keep it factual: your volume, your current effective rate and the competing offer.
What if my provider refuses to match?
Work out whether the saving outweighs the switching cost (exit fees, downtime, hardware swap, integration work). If it does, see the switching guide. If it does not, stay put and check again when your volume or contract position changes.
MerchantHQ is owned and operated by Best Business Loans Ltd, directed by Oliver Mackman. Last updated: