Mobile Credit Card Processors
Square: (Best Overall) New and small businesses wanting the best value mobile POS & payment processing
Paypal Here: Small and occasional sellers who want low rates and reliable processing
Dharma: Established businesses that want the lowest processing rates
Quickbooks Gopayment: Businesses that use QuickBooks
Square: (Best Overall) New and small businesses wanting the best value mobile POS & payment processing
Paypal Here: Small and occasional sellers who want low rates and reliable processing
Dharma: Established businesses that want the lowest processing rates
Quickbooks Gopayment: Businesses that use QuickBooks
Square: Best Overall Mobile Credit Card Processor
Square is a mobile credit card processing app that uses Android or iOS card readers that plug directly into your smartphone or tablet. Square is the best choice for small businesses because the free app is feature-rich, user-friendly, requires no application, and has competitive processing rates, especially for businesses with an average transaction below $20.
Square PricingSquare has no startup or monthly fees and supports both physical card swipes and keyed-in payments via its powerful mPOS app. You get a free magstripe reader for swiping cards upon sign-up. Additional readers, including options for processing EMV chip cards, are available for purchase.
Square mobile credit card processing fees include:
Square is a mobile credit card processing app that uses Android or iOS card readers that plug directly into your smartphone or tablet. Square is the best choice for small businesses because the free app is feature-rich, user-friendly, requires no application, and has competitive processing rates, especially for businesses with an average transaction below $20.
Square PricingSquare has no startup or monthly fees and supports both physical card swipes and keyed-in payments via its powerful mPOS app. You get a free magstripe reader for swiping cards upon sign-up. Additional readers, including options for processing EMV chip cards, are available for purchase.
Square mobile credit card processing fees include:
- Monthly fee: $0
- Swipe, chip, or contactless payments: 2.6% plus 10 cents per transaction
- Keyed-in payments: 3.5% plus 15 cents per transaction
- Magstripe reader: Free
- Chip and contactless reader: $49
Paypal Here: Best Budget Mobile Credit Card Processor
PayPal Here is a mobile credit card processor with very competitive flat-rate fees and a simple, user-friendly app. PayPal Here is not as feature-rich as Square, but is more affordable and equally quick to get started, making it the best mobile card processing option for any business that wants to accept PayPal payments.
PayPal Here Pricing
You can add PayPal Here to any PayPal business account, including their free PayPal Starter account. New users can get started with PayPal Here with no startup or monthly fees, similar to Square.
PayPal Here mobile credit card processing fees include:
PayPal Here is a mobile credit card processor with very competitive flat-rate fees and a simple, user-friendly app. PayPal Here is not as feature-rich as Square, but is more affordable and equally quick to get started, making it the best mobile card processing option for any business that wants to accept PayPal payments.
PayPal Here Pricing
You can add PayPal Here to any PayPal business account, including their free PayPal Starter account. New users can get started with PayPal Here with no startup or monthly fees, similar to Square.
PayPal Here mobile credit card processing fees include:
- Swipe, chip, and contactless payments: 2.7%
- PayPal payments: 2.7%
- Keyed-in payments: 3.5% plus 15 cents per transaction
- Chip and swipe reader: $24.99*
- Chip and contactless reader with charging stand: $79
Dharma: Best Low-cost Card Processing for Established Businesses
Dharma is a traditional merchant services provider that offers small businesses very low-cost, interchange-plus credit card processing. Dharma is selective in approving accounts, but it offers some of the lowest processing rates for businesses with an average transaction above $20, making Dharma the best mobile credit card processor for low-risk and established businesses.
Dharma PricingDharma offers interchange-plus pricing with a flat monthly fee of $20. Its fee is 0.15% plus 7 cents plus interchange, which for Visa credit cards, for example, equals a total of 2.01% plus 25 cents. The rate is even lower for debit card transactions.
Dharma’s prices are very low but are best suited for established businesses with higher average transactions because there is a monthly fee, and the cents per transaction charges can add up. PayPal Here is the most affordable option for businesses with average transactions below $20. However, if you are processing over $20, Dharma becomes the most affordable.
Dharma mobile credit card processing fees include:
- Swiped card payments: 0.15% plus 7 cents per transaction plus interchange
- Keyed-in payments: 0.2% plus 10 cents per transaction plus interchange
- Amex payments: 0.25% plus interchange
- Swipe and mobile reader: $99
- Monthly fee: $20
- MX Merchant mobile POS app: Free
- ACH payment processing: $25 monthly fee, 40 cents per transaction
Quickbooks Gopayments: Best Mobile Processor for QuickBooks Users
In order to use QuickBooks GoPayment, you need to have either a QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop account. Depending on which QuickBooks plan you choose, your rates can vary. Each type of QuickBooks account comes with different accounting and management features, so visit the QuickBooks website to see which specific product is best for your business.
Note: QuickBooks has several Desktop plans with different annual fees. In addition, lower rates are available for businesses processing over $7,500 monthly.
At a glance, GoPayment seems cheaper than other flat-rate options, like Square, because GoPayment only charges 2.4% on mobile transactions. However, the 25 cents-per-transaction fee quickly adds up in certain selling scenarios, especially if you have a low average order value.
QuickBooks GoPayment hardware fees for both plans include:
In order to use QuickBooks GoPayment, you need to have either a QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop account. Depending on which QuickBooks plan you choose, your rates can vary. Each type of QuickBooks account comes with different accounting and management features, so visit the QuickBooks website to see which specific product is best for your business.
Note: QuickBooks has several Desktop plans with different annual fees. In addition, lower rates are available for businesses processing over $7,500 monthly.
At a glance, GoPayment seems cheaper than other flat-rate options, like Square, because GoPayment only charges 2.4% on mobile transactions. However, the 25 cents-per-transaction fee quickly adds up in certain selling scenarios, especially if you have a low average order value.
QuickBooks GoPayment hardware fees for both plans include:
- Swipe and chip reader: First free, $19 per additional reader
- All-in-one contactless reader: $49