Stop absorbing credit card fees. Pass them to the card.
Credit card surcharging lets you add a small fee to credit card transactions — recovering up to 100% of your processing costs. Clearo sets it up properly so you stay compliant and your customers stay informed.
How surcharging works
When a customer pays with a credit card, you currently absorb the processing fee — typically 2-3% of the transaction. Surcharging lets you add that cost to the credit card transaction, so the customer who benefits from using their credit card (points, rewards, cashback) covers the cost of that convenience.
Customers who pay with debit, cash, or prepaid cards pay no surcharge. The fee applies only to credit card transactions.
This isn't new. Gas stations have done it for years with cash vs. credit pricing. Surcharging just makes it available to every business type.
What Clearo handles
Compliance
We configure your surcharge to comply with Visa and Mastercard network rules. The surcharge percentage is capped at your actual processing cost — you can't charge more than what you pay.
Disclosure
We set up the required signage for your storefront, configure receipt line items to show the surcharge clearly, and make sure your checkout flow communicates the fee before the customer completes the transaction.
Terminal configuration
Your terminals and payment gateway are programmed to apply the surcharge automatically to credit card transactions and exclude debit, prepaid, and cash payments.
Ongoing management
If your processing costs change, your rep adjusts the surcharge percentage to match. You never charge more than your actual cost.
Is surcharging right for your business?
Surcharging works well for businesses where credit card processing fees significantly impact margins — especially professional services, contractors, auto shops, medical offices, and B2B companies with high-ticket transactions.
It's less common in restaurants and retail where customer perception is more sensitive to visible fees. But even there, some businesses implement it successfully with clear communication.
There are restrictions by state. Surcharging is not currently permitted in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and a few other states. We'll tell you upfront whether it's available in your market.
Not sure? Book a call and we'll walk through the numbers. Sometimes a different pricing structure (like cost-plus or dual pricing) achieves the same goal without a line-item surcharge.
Read: Credit Card Surcharging Rules by StateLet's talk about your payments
Tell us a bit about your business and how you currently take payments. A Clearo rep will reach out within one business day with a personalized recommendation — no generic pitch, no pressure.
If we can save you money and improve your setup, we'll show you exactly how. If we can't, we'll tell you that too.