Free tool
Surcharge calculator
Surcharging rules cap what you may add and require you to charge no more than your actual cost of acceptance. This calculates both numbers.
Run your numbers.
Compliant surcharge
$3.00
Break-even would require 3.20%; the 3% cap allows 3.00%. Customer pays $103.00.
Your cost of acceptance
$3.20
Unrecovered after the cap: $0.20 on this ticket.
Understanding the result.
The two rules that matter
First, a surcharge may not exceed your actual cost of acceptance for that card. Second, card networks cap surcharges — commonly at 3% — and some jurisdictions prohibit surcharging entirely or impose their own limits.
Because your cost of acceptance includes a fixed per-transaction component, the percentage needed to break even is higher on small tickets and lower on large ones. On a low-value sale the cap can leave a shortfall you must absorb.
Disclosure obligations
Surcharges must be disclosed clearly before the customer commits — at the entrance and point of sale for in-person, and on the checkout page before payment for online — and must appear as a separate line item on the receipt.
Debit and prepaid cards generally may not be surcharged even where credit surcharging is allowed. Confirm the current rules for your market and networks before enabling it.
Questions about this calculator.
It is permitted in many markets with disclosure and cap requirements, restricted in some jurisdictions, and prohibited in others. Verify the rules that apply to you.
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