Most business owners glance at their processing statement, confirm the total came out of their account, and file it away. That's understandable — the documents are dense, full of codes and acronyms, and structured in a way that discourages scrutiny.
But if you don't understand your statement, you can't tell whether you're being overcharged. And most businesses are. Here's how to actually read it. If you'd rather have us do it, send it over and we'll break it down for free.
The one number you need to know: your effective rate
Your effective rate is the single most useful number on your statement. It tells you what percentage of your total sales volume went to processing fees.
Find it yourself: total fees ÷ total volume = effective rate. For example, if you processed $50,000 and paid $1,200 in total fees, your effective rate is 2.4%.
Benchmarks: For in-person businesses on interchange-plus pricing, 1.7%-2.3% is typical. For online businesses, 2.3%-2.8% is reasonable. If your effective rate is significantly higher, you're overpaying somewhere. High-ticket businesses — like automotive dealers and repair shops or medical and dental practices — often discover they're overpaying significantly when they run this calculation for the first time.
Section by section: what to look for
Summary section
Usually on the first page: total sales, total transactions, total fees, and net deposit. This gives you the headline numbers. The detail is in the pages that follow.
Interchange fees
The largest portion of your processing costs. These are fees paid to card-issuing banks, set by Visa and Mastercard. On an interchange-plus statement, each transaction type is listed separately — Visa Credit, Mastercard Debit, Amex, etc. — with the interchange rate and dollar amount for each. On a flat-rate or tiered statement, interchange is bundled into your overall rate and not broken out.
Assessment fees
Small fees paid directly to the card networks (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, Amex). These are typically 0.1%-0.15% of volume and are non-negotiable. On an interchange-plus statement, they're listed separately. On tiered/flat-rate, they're bundled.
Processor markup
This is what your processor charges on top of interchange and assessment fees. On an interchange-plus statement, it's visible — usually a per-transaction fee and a percentage. On flat-rate, you can't see it because it's buried in the combined rate. The markup is the one thing that's negotiable.
Monthly and miscellaneous fees
Listed separately from transaction fees: statement fees, PCI fees, gateway fees, batch fees, equipment fees. This is where junk fees hide. Review each line and question anything you can't explain.
Downgrade fees
When a transaction doesn't qualify for the standard interchange rate — because it was keyed in manually, used a rewards card, or wasn't settled on time — it "downgrades" to a higher rate category. On tiered statements, these show up as "mid-qualified" or "non-qualified" transactions. On interchange-plus, they appear as individual line items with elevated interchange rates.
Red flags to look for
- →Effective rate above 2.5% for in-person transactions
- →Monthly fees you can't identify or explain
- →A "PCI non-compliance" fee (fix your compliance and this disappears)
- →Equipment lease charges of $30+ per month
- →A line item called "regulatory fee," "network access fee," or similar — ask what it covers
- →High percentage of "non-qualified" or "mid-qualified" transactions on a tiered plan
What to do if something looks wrong
Call your processor and ask them to explain the specific charge. Reputable processors can justify every line item. If they can't — or if the answer is vague — that's a strong signal you're being overcharged.
You can also send your statement to us. We'll review it and tell you exactly what you're paying, what's inflated, and what you'd pay with Clearo's transparent interchange-plus pricing. It takes us 1-2 business days and costs you nothing. Browse our case studies to see examples of real businesses that went through this process and what they saved.
Want us to read it for you?
Send your statement and we'll identify every fee, flag the ones that don't belong, and show you what the numbers should look like.
Get Your Free Statement Review