How to read your merchant services statement (without getting a headache)
Date: 28/04/26
Your merchant services statement should make it clear what you’re paying, why you’re paying it, and whether you’re getting good value.
In reality, many business owners glance at the total, shrug, and move on even though card processing can quietly cost thousands of pounds a year more than it should.
If you’ve ever wondered “is this normal?” or “why am I paying this?”, you’re not alone. Merchant services statements are often overly complex, poorly explained, and full of jargon that hides the real picture.
Below we will walk you through:
- what charges are completely normal
- which ones are usually acceptable (but worth questioning)
- and the fees that should make you pause and take a closer look
No spreadsheets or finance background needed.
Start here: The "does this feel right?" check
Before diving into the line‑by‑line detail, take 30 seconds to look at three things on your statement:
- Your total card turnover — does it broadly match what you took through the till?
- Number of transactions — roughly what you’d expect?
- Total fees paid— not just the headline rate, but everything added together.
If the numbers don’t pass a quick sense check, that’s your cue to dig deeper.
Charges you should expect to see
Let’s start with the basics, the charges that almost every business accepting cards will have.
Merchant Service Charge (MSC)
This is the main cost of taking card payments. It’s usually shown as a percentage of your card turnover and sometimes includes a small fee per transaction.
For example, your statement might show:
- Card turnover: £12,000
- Merchant service charge: £144
That’s an effective rate of 1.2%.
Rates vary depending on turnover, card types, and how payments are taken (in‑person vs card‑not‑present), however for smaller or newer businesses, rates between 1.5% and 3.4% are fairly common.
Higher‑turnover businesses should typically be paying rates well below 1%, especially on debit cards. This is one of the most common areas where people unknowingly overpay.
Terminal rental or lease
If you rent your card machine, you might see a monthly terminal charge.
This is normal, but it’s worth checking:
- how much you’re paying
- whether it’s tied into a long contract
- and whether the terminal is supplied directly by your provider or a third‑party leasing company
A typical rental might be £15–£25 per month, but long leases can quietly become very expensive.
Premium card charges
Some cards cost more to process, things like business, corporate, rewards or international cards.
On many statements these appear separately under headings like “Premium Charges” or “Additional Card Fees”. That’s not unusual, but you should be able to clearly see how many premium transactions you’ve taken and what extra you’re paying for them.
If premium charges feel surprisingly high, it may be that they weren’t clearly explained upfront.
Charges that are common...but often overpriced
These next fees aren’t necessarily “unusual”, but they’re frequently inflated, duplicated, or unnecessary.
Minimum Monthly Service Charge
This sets a minimum amount your provider wants to earn from you each month, this is usually somewhere between £10 and £30.
Here’s a simple example:
- Your transactions generate £7 in fees this month
- Your minimum charge is £20
- You’re billed an extra £13 to make up the difference
Acceptable? Yes…but only if you were told about it clearly and it suits your trading pattern.
If you regularly take card payments, you may never notice this. But for seasonal businesses or those with low average transaction values, it can be a costly surprise.
Authorisation Fees
These are small charges (anywhere from 0.5p – 3p per transaction) applied every time a transaction is checked for approval. This is often charged even if the transaction is declined!
Often, you find that providers who are offering very low card rates, have a high authorisation fee that can cancel out the headline “saving” being offered.
On a statement, they might look insignificant, but they can add up quickly. They’re one of those charges that don’t get much attention individually but quietly inflate your costs.
PCI Compliance Fees
PCI compliance is mandatory…fees are not.
PCI is a set of security rules that all businesses accepting card payments must follow to keep customer card data safe. Some providers include this for free. Others charge a monthly or annual “PCI programme” fee.
Acceptable? Possibly…but what matters is:
- do you get help staying compliant?
OR
- are you just paying for access to a portal?
Which brings us neatly to…
Red flags to look out for
These charges often appear with little explanation and should prompt immediate questions.
PCI Non‑Compliance Fees
If a provider decides you’re “non‑compliant”, they may add penalty fees to your statement. PCI non‑compliance means your card provider believes your business hasn’t completed the required security checks to prove you’re handling card payments safely. If this happens, some providers add monthly penalty fees to your statement until compliance is confirmed, often without much warning or support.
We see these anywhere from £15 to £75+ per month but sometimes much more.
If you weren’t clearly told what you needed to do, or weren’t supported in staying compliant, these fees are a major red flag.
Statement & Reporting Fees
These would be additional charges for things such as paper statements, online dashboards, basic reporting tools or access to their platforms or client lines.
These fees may be charged monthly or annually, and the cost can vary quite considerably from supplier to supplier.
Accessing your own transaction data shouldn’t be an optional extra. If you’re being charged just to see your numbers clearly, it’s worth questioning.
Platform, Client Line or Membership Fees
These are often vague and poorly explained charges, sometimes branded as “platform fee”, “client line”, “membership fee” or “account fee”.
These rarely add genuine value and should be questioned or avoided entirely.
Unexpected Contract Exit Fees
Not always visible on monthly statements and often buried in terms and contracts you need to make sure you are aware of any additional charges to exit your contract early.
Some providers charge hundreds or thousands to exit early restricting your ability to switch providers with others auto‑renewing contracts without clear reminders!
If your statement includes exit‑related charges you didn’t expect, stop and investigate immediately.
What a Good Statement Feels Like
A fair, transparent merchant statement should:
- be easy to follow without specialist knowledge
- clearly separate transaction fees from extra charges
- make premium costs visible
- avoid surprise fees that weren’t properly explained
If you need to Google half the terms or phone support every month just to check what you’re paying…that’s not transparency.
Understanding Is Leverage
You don’t need to memorise every fee name or know every industry acronym.
You just need to understand what’s normal, what’s optional, and what’s unnecessary.
Once you do, you’re in a far stronger position whether that’s negotiating with your current provider or deciding if it’s time to look elsewhere.
