Transactional Fees for E-Commerce Site

Hi,

You'll have to shop around for the lowest fees.

As a standard you have the "Discount Rate" - what the CC houses like Visa, MC, Amex & Discover charge you for the priviledge of accepting their cards.

You also have other fees like a "Per Transcation Fee" and a "Statement Fee" and a "Gateway" fee. At least, that's how it was when I had a merchant account some time back.

Visa and MC will charge you around a 2% Discount Rate. Amex is higher with around 4%.

Of course, this also depends on the nature of your business and where a customer lives.

For example, if you have an Internet business, you'll almost always wind up paying a few points higher. If you have a traditional "Brick and Mortar" biz, you'll usually pay less. If your customer lives in the U.S. - you'll pay less. If they live abroad - you'll pay more.

It all boils down to RISK - as in how risky is it for them to have you as a merchant. Normally, the less risk you pose for them, the less you'll pay.

Hope this helps.

- Jay

Thanks for that,

Just wondering how easy it is to be accepted for an Internet Merchant Account?

Thanks