Average Credit Card Processing Fees for Restaurants

What Are Average Credit Card Processing Fees for Restaurants?

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Deciding to accept debit or credit cards as a form of payment in your restaurant is a key step for growth. After all, many of our personal expenses are paid with credit cards, so you should also let your customers do the same.

But learning to accept credit card payments at your POS system can get complicated, although it doesn’t have to. Hence, it’s imperative for you to understand the process before taking the leap.

We understand that paying credit card processing fees isn’t fun for a business owner like you. But if you can choose the best credit card processing system for restaurants, you’ll pay a very negligible amount.

So, to help you make better financial choices, we’ve curated this simple guide to credit card processing systems for restaurants.

What Is a Credit Card Processing Fee? 

Simply put, you, the business owner, need to pay these in order to accept credit cards as a form of payment in your restaurant. Although this sounds easy to understand, there are a lot of things involved in determining how much you will pay. Having said that, the term credit card processing fees can also refer to the various fees involved in the complete procedure of accepting credit cards in your business.

There are three main types of fees included in a credit card processing system:

1. Flat Fees: These are what you pay for working with a merchant service provider or a payment gateway. Typically, you pay these monthly.

2. Operational Fees: These are the fees you pay for every transaction processed with a credit card in your restaurant. The transactional fees consist of the assessment fee, interchange rate, and payment processor markup.

3. Incidental Fees: These are the fees you are charged by the payment processor as a result of incidences like non-sufficient funds or a chargeback.

The Simple (Yet Confusing) Path of Credit Card Processing of Payments 

Here is what happens when you accept a credit card payment in your restaurant:

  • The server swipes a credit card at your point of sale.
  • The restaurant POS then takes that credit card data and sends it off to another computer, which is called the payment gateway.
  • This payment gateway encrypts the credit card information and makes it secure.
  • Then the gateway sends that information to a credit card processing company.
  • The company connects with the bank in question to ensure the credit card is active and valid.
  • The confirmation is then sent back through the payment gateway to the restaurant POS, and the terminal prompts the server that the payment is accepted and approved.
  • Once the payment is validated, the terminal generates a receipt of the transaction and puts it into that night’s batch.
  • When the system batches out at the end of every night, the payment, along with all others in the batch, is sent back to the gateway. The credit card information is encrypted once again.
  • Once encrypted, the payment gateway sends the information from that batch to the processing company. The company then executes every single transaction and transfers the money to the restaurant’s bank account.

Here, it should be noted that the average processing fees will be different in the case of debit or credit cards. In most cases, customers pay with credit cards for larger transactions and with debit cards for smaller ones. Debit card interchange fees are generally less than that of credit cards.

So, now that you know how credit card processing happens, it’s probably time for you to accept credit cards in your restaurant. At Soft Tech Payment, we offer the best credit card processing for restaurants. We also offer protection against unauthorized purchases, strong protection against fraud, and many more services. Our easy restaurant POS system will help you meet all your business needs without breaking the bank. Get in touch with our team today to better understand our processes.