ProMerchant Review 2023: Pricing, Features, Pros & Cons
This article is part of a larger series onPayments.
ProMerchant is a merchant services provider that offers interchange-plus pricing and surcharging without any long-term contracts or early termination fees. It supports high-risk merchants and offers free hardware, next-day funding, and a dedicated customer support team.
In our review of merchant account providers, ProMerchant earned an overall score of 3.13 out of 5. It does not publish its processing rates on its website and charges monthly and other add-on fees. Although it did not make our list of thebest high-risk merchant account providers, ProMerchant is still a decent option for businesses with high-risk products or services. It is also suitable for those with bad or limited credit ratings. Its pricing structure also makes it a good fit for larger-volume businesses that can negotiate lower rates.
When to Use ProMerchant
- If you are a high-risk merchant:ProMerchant accepts all kinds of businesses, even those considered to be in the high-risk category.
- If you are looking for zero-cost processing:If you want to pass on the processing fees to your customers, ProMerchant offers a surcharging plan.
- If you are a large-volume business looking for interchange plus pricing:Since ProMerchant offers custom pricing, large businesses can more likely negotiate lower rates.
Looking for the best high-risk merchant account provider? PaymentCloud tops our list. Read ourPaymentCloud review.
When to Use an Alternative
- If you don’t want to pay monthly fees:Merchants that do not want to pay any monthly fees can look for other options in our guide to thebest free merchant accounts.
- If you need an all-in-one solution:Small businesses that want to accept different payment types without worrying about add-on fees should consider other all-in-one options such as Square or Helcim.
Like many traditionalmerchant accountproviders, ProMerchant fees are not readily available on its website. This usually means that the fees are quoted depending on the type and size of your business.
One thing that is different with ProMerchant compared to other traditional merchant service providers is that it does not require long-term contracts or cancellation fees. These make ProMerchant worth trying out despite its monthly fees, especially if you are a high-risk business or if you are after zero-cost processing (surcharging). Next-day funding and a dedicated support team also make it a decent option for small businesses.
Although ProMerchant scored well for not having any long-term contract and cancellation fees, its monthly and undisclosed transaction fees cost it several points. While merchants can easily cancel without any costs, the monthly expense with ProMerchant can still be a huge drawback for many small businesses.
ProMerchant收取月费,但商人will need to request a quote to find out the exact amount they will need to pay.
There are two pricing options for payment processing:
Interchange Plus Fixed Rate Pricing
- The processing fee uses the interchange rate plus fixed percentage rate and transaction fee for every transaction
- Best for large businesses
Zero-Cost Processing
- Flat percentage processing fee is passed on to the customers, also known as surcharging
- Best for retail and restaurants
ProMerchant may charge additional monthly fees for some of its services, such as for the use of Authorize.net as its payment gateway and Clover for its point-of-sale (POS) system.
Contact ProMerchant and let them know which services you need to get an accurate quote of the monthly fees you can expect.
Small businesses that sign up with ProMerchant get a free card reader. There are two devices to choose from:
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Ingenico Desk 3500
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PAX A920
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Besides the two options above, ProMerchant’s mobile payment processing is offered through PayAnywhere. The app is free to use and comes with a free Bluetooth credit card reader
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PayAnywhere Bluetooth Card Reader
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For merchants that need a full point-of-sale (POS) system, Clover’s suite of POS products are provided. The monthly fees and processing fees associated with availing of Clover’s POS system through ProMerchant are not disclosed on ProMerchant’s website.
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Clover Flex
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Clover Mini
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Clover Station
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注册一个账户与ProMerchant开始by filling out the form on the website. You can expect a ProMerchant account manager to get in touch with you within 24 hours. Account approval can be as fast as the same day. Once approved, ProMerchant can help you get set up to start receiving payments in as little as a few hours.
Your account manager can help you choose the best processing solution based on your business type and size. Once your account is approved, your equipment will be shipped via overnight delivery, allowing you to start processing credit cards within 72 hours of your application submission. You may start online credit card processing via the virtual terminal or your website within a few hours after account approval.
ProMerchant also has a technical support team that can help you in setting up your hardware and integrations.
ProMerchant合同环比,芝加哥商业交易所hants may cancel at any time without paying any early termination fees.
Businesses that are considered high-risk because of their credit history or the nature of the products and services they offer may apply for an account with ProMerchant. If your business is considered high-risk, check thehigh-risk business types supported by ProMerchant.
When it comes to the availability of supported payment types, ProMerchant performs well. It accepts almost all the payment types we considered in our evaluation. However, there are additional monthly fees to use the payment gateway for ecommerce integrations and to use the POS system.
ProMerchant does not have a proprietary mobile application for payment processing. Instead, it utilizes the PayAnywhere app for merchants that need a mobile processing solution. The app is free to download and use and comes with a free Bluetooth credit card reader that can read magstripes, EMVs, and NFCs.
A different set of payment processing rates may apply for this service. Contact ProMerchant for specific processing fees for your business.
ProMerchant does not have a proprietary virtual terminal for mail and telephone orders. Instead, it offers its merchants two virtual terminal options: Payments Hub and Authorize.net. Between the two, Authorize.net offers better functionality. However, there is no monthly fee for using Payments Hub, while Authorize.net may incur additional monthly charges.
Aside from its virtual terminal, ProMerchant includes invoicing, recurring billing, automatic card updater, and QuickBooks syncing.
ProMerchant offers ecommerce integrations through Authorize.net. This includes shopping cart integrations, simple checkouts, and API integrations. Signing up for Authorize.net’s services comes with everything it has to offer, including the use of the virtual terminal, invoicing and recurring billing, customer information manager, account updater, and advanced fraud detection.
Additional monthly and processing fees may apply when you use Authorize.net through ProMerchant. Contact ProMerchant for an accurate quote.
ProMerchant offers the Clover suite of point-of-sale solutions. This requires a sign-up with Clover though ProMerchant reserves the right to charge a different set of fees than if a business signed up with Clover directly.
Want to learn more about Clover? Read ourClover POS review.
Merchants that need any other kind of integration that requires a payment gateway may use Authorize.net. This payment gateway charges a monthly fee. Since ProMerchant is considered a reseller of Authorize.net, the exact schedule of fees that will be applied will be set by ProMerchant.
Learn more about what Authorize.net can do for you in ourfull Authorize.net review. Authorize.net also topped our list of thebest payment gateways.
ProMerchant scored well for two major things we look at in this category—deposit speed and customer support. It offers next-day funding and provides a dedicated support team for every merchant. ProMerchant also earned good marks for offering free hardware. However, we docked points for the lack of other free business management tools and software.
Not a lot of merchant account providers offer support for businesses that are considered high-risk. ProMerchant accepts high-risk businesses, but they should expect processing fees to be higher compared to low- to medium-risk merchants. Its high-risk merchant services come with fraud mitigation tools to help lower chargebacks.
ProMerchant offers two pricing plans: interchange plus pricing and zero-cost processing. The zero-cost processing is also known as surcharging, where the processing costs are passed on to the customers. It is only available for retail and restaurant businesses.
With ProMerchant, a fixed flat rate is added to every transaction charged to your customers. Keep in mind that different surcharging laws apply in different states, and this option might not be available if surcharging is not legal where your business is located.
Learn more aboutcredit card surcharging.
ProMerchant offers next-day funding for transactions processed and settled by 8:30 p.m., Eastern time. There are no mentions of additional fees for this service, but ProMerchant’s website also mentions a standard deposit schedule of two business days, so it’s best to confirm with ProMerchant if there are additional fees for next-day funding.
A dedicated support team is assigned to every merchant starting from the sign-up process. Many online reviews express their satisfaction with ProMerchant’s customer support. For non-clients, there is a contact form on the website, and replies are usually sent within 24 hours. ProMerchant also has a toll-free number that handles quote requests and other inquiries.
ProMerchant earned decent scores in our expert evaluation. Although its pricing is not readily available on its website, it does not require long-term contracts, and merchants may cancel anytime without paying any fees. It offers almost all the payment types we considered but charges additional fees for some of them.
Interchange-plus pricing, which ProMerchant offers, is generally better than flat-rate pricing. However, there are other reliable providers that also use interchange-plus rates and even offer all-in-one solutions, such as Stax and Helcim. Helcim also provides automatic volume discounts, making it a better option for high-volume businesses.
For most of the good points for ProMerchant, there is a minor drawback or two that keeps its scores just within the middle range. Though ProMerchant is not exactly a bad option, there are better payment service providers for small businesses. This is particularly true for those whose businesses are considered high-risk. Depending on the specific quote provided by your ProMerchant account director, you might be able to get the best fees and rates for your high-risk business.
What Users Say in ProMerchant Services Reviews
We found very few negative reviews for ProMerchant in any of the review sites we checked. Users are generally happy with the customer support they receive, and the names of ProMerchant representatives are often mentioned in the reviews, which reflects their personal approach to helping their clients.
There is also no mention of expensive fees, which is a good sign considering that ProMerchant does not publish rates on its website. There are, however, a few complaints about changes in their account or rates after signing up.
- TrustPilot:4.9 out of 5 starsbased on 189 reviews
ProMerchant was established in 2018 and acquired by Waitr Holdings, an online ordering delivery platform, in August 2021. It is an A+ accredited business onBetter Business Bureau. Although there are no complaints on the BBB website, it only has one review, which rated it 1 out of 5 stars.
Below are the trends we noticed when reading through ProMerchant reviews:
Users Like | Users Don’t Like |
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Excellent customer service | Putting accounts on hold |
Easy sign-up and account set-up | Support representative not getting back on issues raised |
Quick approval | Being charged different rates |
Methodology—How We Evaluated ProMerchant
We test each merchant account service provider ourselves to ensure an extensive review of the products. We also took a closer look into pricing methods and identified providers that offer zero monthly fees, pay-as-you-go terms, and low transaction rates. Finally, we evaluated the range of payment processing features, scalability, and ease of use to compare the overall cost-effectiveness of each product.
The result is our list of thebest overall merchant services. However, we adjust the criteria when looking at specific use cases, such as for different business types and merchant categories. This is why every merchant services provider has multiple scores across our site, depending on the use case you are looking for.
Click through the tabs below for our overall merchant services evaluation criteria:
25% of Overall Score
We awarded points to merchant account providers that don’t require contracts and offer month-to-month or pay-as-you-go billing. Additionally, we prioritized providers that don’t charge hefty monthly fees, cancellation fees, or chargeback fees and only included providers that offer competitive and predictable flat-rate or interchange-plus pricing. We also awarded points to processors that offer volume discounts, and extra points if those discounts are transparent or automated.
30% of Overall Score
The best merchant accounts can accept various payment types—including POS and card-present transactions, mobile payments, contactless payments, ecommerce transactions, and ACH and echeck payments—and offer free virtual terminal and invoicing solutions for phone orders, recurring billing, and card-on-file payments.
25% of Overall Score
We prioritized merchant accounts with free 24/7 phone and email support. Small businesses also need fast deposits, so payment processors offering free same- or next-day funding earned bonus points. Finally, we considered whether each system has affordable and flexible hardware options and offers any business management tools, like dispute and chargeback management, reporting, or customer management.
20% of Overall Score
我们认为每个系统基于其整体定价and advertising transparency, ease of use (including account stability), popularity, and reputation among business owners and sites like Better Business Bureau. Finally, we considered how well each system works with other popular small business software, like accounting, point-of-sale, and ecommerce solutions.
Bottom Line
The main points for a small business to sign up with ProMerchant would be its support for high-risk merchants, personal customer support, and month-to-month contract. ProMerchant’s monthly and other add-on fixed fees may be higher than what a small business would expect to pay with other providers, but ProMerchant’s custom pricing with a personal approach will appeal to merchants that prefer in-depth human guidance from sign-up to onboarding. It’s best to request for a free custom quote to find out if they can provide your small business with the best pricing and customer support.