By the numbers
Payment processing by the numbers
US merchants paid a record $198.25 billion in card fees in 2025, according to Beast Insights, which is why processor choice matters. This Avendo page collects the strongest published statistics on processing costs and approvals, each quoted as published with its source.
Last updated: November 2026Published by Avendo
How much do businesses pay in card processing fees?
In total, US merchants paid $198.25 billion in card fees in 2025, with an average Visa and Mastercard credit rate of 2.36%, per Beast Insights, "Payment Processing Statistics 2026". For an individual small business, JIM puts the range at 1.5% to 3.5% per transaction. None of these figures are Avendo's own results.
The statistics
Almost $2.0 trillion
Global payments revenue in 2025, per Boston Consulting Group.
Source: Beast Insights, "Payment Processing Statistics 2026"
$198.25 billion
A record in card fees paid by US merchants in 2025; the average Visa and Mastercard credit rate was 2.36%.
Source: Beast Insights, "Payment Processing Statistics 2026"
2.8% to 98%
Range of decline rates across 106 US dollar gateways in Spreedly’s 2023 data, so the processor you pick moves approvals.
Source: Beast Insights, "Payment Processing Statistics 2026"
About 20% vs 2%
Share of declines recovered by an instant retry on a different processor, versus the same merchant account (Primer).
Source: Beast Insights, "Payment Processing Statistics 2026"
1.5% to 3.5%
What small businesses pay per transaction, depending on card type, industry, and how the card is accepted.
Source: JIM, "Best credit card processing: a small business guide for 2026"
Roughly $50,000 a month
Below this, flat-rate wins on simplicity and predictability; above it, interchange-plus usually wins on total cost.
Source: JIM, "Best credit card processing: a small business guide for 2026"
$10,000 a month
Interchange-plus typically offers lower rates to companies processing more than this amount monthly.
Source: CO by U.S. Chamber of Commerce, "Best Credit Card Processors for Small Businesses"
2.9% + 30 cents
Cost of most payments processed through PayPal, and Stripe’s standard card rate.
Source: Tipalti, "Stripe vs. Square vs. PayPal" (updated October 9, 2026)
What these numbers mean for an online store
Two patterns stand out. First, cost depends heavily on volume and pricing model, so the cheapest option for a store selling $5,000 a month is rarely the cheapest for one selling $80,000. Second, the processor itself affects approvals: Spreedly's decline data shows wide variation between gateways, and Primer's data shows retries on a different processor recover far more declines than retries on the same account.
Both patterns point toward having more than one processor available. Avendo connects one checkout to multiple processors and routes each transaction to the best available rate in real time. Read how payment routing works or return to the best credit card processing companies guide.
Questions these numbers answer
- Why is everyone charging credit card fees now?
- Card acceptance costs have grown. Beast Insights reports that US merchants paid a record $198.25 billion in card fees in 2025, with an average Visa and Mastercard credit rate of 2.36%. Some businesses pass part of that cost to customers through surcharges, where allowed. Others work to lower the rate they pay.
- Why are some card payments declined?
- Declines happen for many reasons, including insufficient funds, suspected fraud, and issuer rules, and the processor itself matters. Beast Insights cites Spreedly’s 2023 data showing decline rates from 2.8% to 98% across 106 US dollar gateways. Review your decline reasons in processor reports before changing setups.
- Does retrying a declined payment on another processor help?
- Industry data suggests it can. Beast Insights cites Primer data showing an instant retry on a different processor recovers about 20% of declines, versus 2% on the same merchant account. That finding describes multi-processor setups generally. Ask Avendo directly which retry options apply to your account.
- What are typical rates for credit card processing?
- Published examples cluster around 2.9% plus 30 cents for online card payments. Tipalti lists that rate for Stripe and for most PayPal payments, and Memberful lists Stripe at 3.9% plus 30 cents for international cards. Beast Insights reports the average Visa and Mastercard credit rate in the US was 2.36% in 2025.
- Which is better, flat-rate or interchange-plus pricing?
- Flat-rate pricing charges one percentage plus a fixed fee on every sale, which is predictable. Interchange-plus passes through the card network cost plus a markup, which CO by U.S. Chamber of Commerce says typically offers lower rates to businesses processing more than $10,000 a month. Your monthly card volume is the deciding factor.