FAQ
Here are direct answers to the questions small businesses ask most about credit card processing, card fees, online payments, and getting started with Avendo.
The Avendo Merchant Hub collects 43 questions in 8 topics. Market figures are credited to their published sources. For legal and tax questions, check official sources for your state.
Last updated: November 2026
The best credit card processing for a small business is the setup with the lowest total cost that still fits how you sell. For online stores, Avendo connects an existing checkout to multiple processors and routes each sale to the best available rate in real time. See the comparison of processing options.
Credit card processing is the service that lets a small business accept card payments and receive the money in its bank account. A processor passes each transaction between the business, the card networks, and the customer’s card issuer, then settles the funds. Online stores do this through a checkout connected to a payment gateway and a processor.
A gateway securely captures card details at checkout and passes them on, while the processor moves the transaction through the card networks and settles the funds. Many providers bundle both. Avendo works exclusively with PCI DSS-compliant processors and gateways, and it connects a merchant’s checkout to more than one processor.
Credit card processing companies authorize transactions, send them through the card networks, settle money into the merchant’s account, and charge fees for that work. Some also offer gateways or reporting. Avendo plays a different role: it connects a checkout to multiple processors and routes each transaction to the one offering the best available rate in real time.
Because a large share of shoppers pay that way. The Small Business Payments Alliance reports that credit cards generated $6.5 trillion in purchase volume in 2024, and that industry estimates suggest nearly three-quarters of all nationwide retail sales come from credit card transactions. Not accepting cards means turning away many potential buyers.
Yes, an LLC can and usually should accept card payments, as long as the money goes to a business bank account in the LLC’s name. Processors typically ask for business details such as the legal name and tax ID during setup. Keeping business payments separate from personal accounts also simplifies bookkeeping. Confirm specifics with your processor and accountant.
Costs are usually a percentage of each sale, sometimes plus a fixed per-transaction fee. The Small Business Payments Alliance reports that retailers pay an average of 2.3% on each credit card transaction. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO cites an example of online store purchases costing 2.9% plus 30 cents. Your real cost depends on pricing model, volume, and card mix.
Many businesses add about 3% to offset what card acceptance costs them. Card fees commonly sit near that level: the Small Business Payments Alliance reports an average of 2.3% for retailers, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO cites 2.9% plus 30 cents as an example online flat rate. Passing the fee on helps protect thin margins.
The cheapest option depends on your volume and card mix, not on one universal provider. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO notes that companies processing over $10,000 monthly or negotiating interchange-plus pricing may pay lower fees. Avendo’s approach is to compare processors in real time and route each transaction to the best available rate instead of fixing one price.
For an online store, the lowest cost usually comes from matching the right pricing model to your volume and comparing processors. Flat rates, such as the 2.9% plus 30 cents example cited by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO, are simple but fixed. Avendo connects your existing checkout to multiple processors and routes each sale to the best available rate in real time.
No single company is least expensive for every business, because rates vary with volume, card type, and pricing model. A processor that is cheapest for one store can cost more for another. That is the problem Avendo addresses: it compares multiple PCI DSS-compliant processors and sends each transaction to the one with the best available rate at that moment.
Truly free processing is rare, because card issuers and networks charge fees on every transaction. Offers labeled free usually pass the cost to customers or recover it elsewhere. Avendo does not bill or charge merchants directly; its compensation is handled between Avendo and payment processors. Merchants still pay processing fees to the processor that handles each sale.
Interchange-plus pricing passes the card network’s interchange cost through to you and adds a set processor markup on top. It is more transparent than a single blended rate. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO notes that the interchange-plus model typically offers lower rates to companies processing more than $10,000 monthly.
Flat-rate processing charges the same percentage, often plus a fixed fee, on every transaction regardless of card type. It is easy to predict. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO gives the example of online store purchases costing 2.9% plus 30 cents, no matter what. The trade-off is that you may pay more than the underlying cost on some cards.
Avendo does not bill or charge merchants directly. Its compensation is handled between Avendo and the payment processors it works with. You still pay processing fees on each transaction to the processor that handles it, and Avendo routes every transaction to the processor offering the best available rate in real time. Contact Avendo to discuss your situation.
In general, the fees a U.S. business pays to accept credit cards are treated as an ordinary business expense, and many businesses deduct them. Tax rules depend on your situation and can change, so confirm with a qualified tax professional. Clear processing reports, like the ones Avendo provides, make these fees easier to total at year end.
In most of the United States, adding a credit card surcharge is legal when you follow card network rules and state law. Those rules usually cover disclosure to customers, caps on the amount, and keeping the fee at or below your actual cost. A few states restrict surcharges, so check your state’s current law and your processor’s guidance first.
Charging 3% is not illegal in most states if you disclose it clearly and it does not exceed your actual processing cost or the card network’s cap. Some states restrict surcharges altogether. Lowering your underlying processing cost, which is the purpose of Avendo’s real-time routing to the best available rate, can reduce the need for a surcharge.
Generally no, but it depends on where you operate and how the fee is applied. Most states allow credit card surcharges with proper disclosure, while a small number restrict or ban them. Card network rules generally do not allow surcharges on debit cards. Confirm with your state attorney general’s guidance and with your processor before adding a fee.
A small number of U.S. states restrict or prohibit credit card surcharges, and those laws have changed in recent years. Because the list shifts, this site does not publish one as settled fact. Check your state attorney general’s website or ask your processor for the current rules before adding a surcharge at checkout.
A short list of states has banned or limited credit card surcharges, and some of those rules have been changed by courts or new legislation. Since the list changes, verify the current law in each state where you sell, including where online customers live, using official state sources or your processor’s compliance team.
Credit card fee rules change at both the state and card network level, so there is no single new law that applies everywhere. Several recent state changes have focused on showing fees clearly before purchase. Check your state’s official guidance and ask your processor which current rules apply to your checkout and your customers.
The customer enters card details at your online checkout, a payment gateway securely passes them to a processor, the processor gets approval from the card issuer through the card network, and funds settle to your account. With Avendo, the checkout connects to several processors, and each transaction is routed to the one offering the best available rate in real time.
Often, yes. Online payments are card-not-present transactions, which generally carry more fraud risk and therefore higher interchange costs than in-person card payments. Flat online rates reflect this; the U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO cites 2.9% plus 30 cents as an online store example. Comparing processors for each transaction is one way to keep online costs in check.
No. Avendo works with existing checkout pages. It connects your current checkout to multiple payment processors and routes each transaction behind the scenes, so customers keep seeing the checkout they already know. The Avendo team confirms the technical details for your specific checkout during onboarding.
The best option keeps your total cost low while fitting your checkout and reporting needs. For small online stores, Avendo avoids tying you to one fixed processor: it connects your checkout to multiple PCI DSS-compliant processors, routes each sale to the best available rate in real time, and provides clearer pricing and processing reports.
Avendo provides credit card processing for e-commerce businesses, and its platform connects to online checkout pages. If your business sells only in person, a point-of-sale provider is the more direct fit. If you also sell online, contact Avendo to discuss how routing would apply to your online checkout.
Avendo’s platform connects your checkout to multiple payment processors and, for each transaction, automatically routes it to the processor offering the best available rate in real time. The decision happens per transaction rather than once at signup, so your sales are not locked into a single processor’s pricing.
Avendo provides merchants with clearer pricing and processing reports. The aim is that you can see what you paid to process transactions and where each one was routed, instead of piecing it together from several statements. Existing merchants review these details in the Avendo merchant dashboard after signing in.
Avendo says it does not bill or charge merchants directly. Its compensation is handled between Avendo and the payment processors it routes transactions to. For merchants, that means no separate Avendo invoice; processing fees are paid on transactions to the processor that handles each one, as they would be with any processor.
Your customers keep using your existing checkout page, because Avendo works with existing checkouts. Routing each transaction to the processor with the best available rate happens in the background. From the shopper’s side, paying looks the same as before, which helps avoid confusion at the moment of purchase.
Avendo serves e-commerce businesses from small businesses through enterprise organizations. Small online stores use it to avoid being tied to one processor’s pricing, and larger organizations use it to route transactions across multiple processors with clearer reporting. Businesses that only sell in person are a weaker fit, since Avendo focuses on e-commerce.
The best credit card processing for a small business is the setup with the lowest total cost that still fits how you sell. Flat rates are simple, interchange-plus can be cheaper above $10,000 monthly according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce CO, and multi-processor routing like Avendo compares processors on every transaction.
With one processor, every transaction pays that processor’s price. Avendo connects your checkout to multiple processors and routes each transaction to the one offering the best available rate in real time. It also gives you clearer pricing and processing reports across that setup, and you keep your existing checkout page.
They play different roles. All-in-one providers process payments themselves, often at a fixed rate, and may cover both in-person and online sales. Avendo connects an online checkout to multiple processors and routes each sale to the best available rate. Merchants who want one provider for counter and online sales may prefer an all-in-one option.
Yes. Avendo serves small businesses through enterprise organizations. Larger merchants and enterprise partners use the same core platform: connections to multiple processors, real-time routing to the best available rate, support for existing checkout pages, and clearer reports. Contact Avendo to discuss volume, integration, and partnership details.
Start by contacting Avendo through its contact page at avendo.tech/contact-us. The team reviews your current checkout and processing setup, connects your existing checkout to multiple PCI DSS-compliant processors, and turns on real-time routing. After that, you follow your costs in Avendo’s pricing and processing reports.
Have your business name and website, the checkout or e-commerce platform you use, your current processor, and a rough idea of monthly card volume. A recent processing statement helps explain your current costs. None of this is required just to ask a question, but it makes the first conversation faster and more specific.
Avendo describes its onboarding as fast, but the exact timeline depends on your checkout and processor setup, so this site does not publish a fixed timeframe. The quickest way to get an estimate for your business is to contact Avendo with your platform and current processor details ready.
Existing merchants sign in through the merchant dashboard login on the main Avendo website, at avendo.tech/sign-in-to-avendo-dashboard. The dashboard is where you review routing and processing reports. If you cannot access your account, contact Avendo through its contact page for help.
Use the contact page on the main Avendo website at www.avendo.tech/contact-us. Include your business name, website, and a short description of your question. For a payment issue, add example transaction dates and amounts, but never send full card numbers in a message.
Yes. Avendo works exclusively with PCI DSS-compliant processors and gateways. PCI DSS is the card industry’s data security standard, maintained by the PCI Security Standards Council, for organizations that store, process, or transmit cardholder data. Your own PCI responsibilities depend on your checkout setup, so confirm them with your processor.
Declines usually come from the card issuer, for reasons such as insufficient funds, suspected fraud, or mismatched details. First check the decline reason shown in your reports or processor dashboard. If a pattern appears across many customers, contact Avendo support with example transaction times and amounts so the team can investigate.
Statements often mix interchange, network fees, and processor markups under different names, which makes total cost hard to see. Avendo provides clearer pricing and processing reports for this reason. If you are evaluating a change, bring a recent statement when you contact Avendo so the team can explain how routing would apply.
Ask Avendo directly through its contact page. Include your business name and a short description so the team can answer quickly.