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Pricing models · Glossary

Flat-rate pricing

Flat-rate pricing is a payment-processing model where every transaction carries a single all-in rate plus a fixed per-transaction fee, regardless of card type. Common for Stripe, Square, and PayPal. Simplicity-optimized; usually more expensive above $25,000 monthly volume than interchange-plus.

Example

Stripe's online flat rate is 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction.

Why this matters to merchants

Flat-rate pricingsits inside the broader system of U.S. payment processing economics that determine a merchant’s effective rate. Most operators encounter this term on their merchant statement without understanding what it controls, which is how the four hidden fees covered by our methodology slip past unnoticed.

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