Quick answer
Bank merchant services can include negotiated rates, terminal rental, settlement-account requirements, minimum monthly fees and bundled business-banking arrangements. Compare total annual cost rather than relying on one headline rate.
Use with caution
Published provider pricing can change and may not match your negotiated rate, industry, card mix, risk profile, hardware, gateway setup or contract. Use this page to structure questions, then confirm current terms in writing with the provider.
What to collect before modelling
- Two or three recent merchant statements or settlement summaries.
- Your card-present, online and invoice-payment split.
- Average transaction value and monthly transaction count.
- Terminal rental, gateway, software, chargeback and support fees.
- Any written provider notice about post-1 October 2026 surcharge or pricing changes.
Fee areas to compare
Headline transaction rate
Record the advertised or quoted percentage, but do not stop there. Compare it with the effective rate from your own statement.
Fixed monthly costs
Terminal, gateway, minimum, PCI, support and software charges can materially change the annual cost even when the percentage rate looks low.
Card-not-present treatment
Online, invoice, keyed and subscription payments can be priced differently from in-person EFTPOS terminal payments.
Questions to ask your bank or bank merchant-services provider
- What exact rates and fixed fees will apply to my account after 1 October 2026?
- Which costs are card-scheme/interchange related and which are provider service margin or software fees?
- How will any RBA interchange reductions be reflected in my monthly statement?
- Will my terminal, POS, gateway or ecommerce surcharge settings need to change?
- What settlement timing, dispute fees, hardware replacement rules and exit costs apply?
- Can I get the full quote and assumptions in writing before I model the scenario?
How to use FeeReady
Enter your current effective provider cost as the baseline, then create a scenario using the written your bank or bank merchant-services provider quote. Compare the annual impact, required price adjustment and provider questions before making a decision.
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