How much can I save per-transaction by switching from Stripe to an interchange-based provider?

By switching to an interchange-based provider, you could save between 0.5% and 2% per transaction.

If you’re using Stripe’s flat rate of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, you may be paying more than necessary, especially if most of your customers use debit or standard credit cards. Switching from Stripe’s flat-rate structure to interchange-plus pricing can save your business about 20 to 40% in overall processing costs.

With other solutions, like Fiska,  you can get transparent pricing, faster payouts, and a payments partner that helps you earn revenue from each transaction.

Why Stripe’s flat-rate pricing costs more than you think

Stripe is popular for a reason; it’s easy to use, developer-friendly, and quick to integrate. But that simplicity comes with a high cost.

Stripe’s standard fees:

• Online payments: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
• In-person (Stripe Terminal): 2.7% + $0.05
• Extra costs: International cards, currency conversions, and disputes

Flat-rate pricing charges one fixed fee for every transaction, regardless of whether your customer pays with a high-reward credit card or a low-cost debit card. That means you’re always paying the “worst-case scenario” rate, even when the real cost to process the payment is much lower.

How interchange-based providers help you save on costs

Since we’re writing this article, we’ll tell you a bit about ourselves and how we operate compared to Stripe. We aim to offer flexible payment structures for you to choose from, including flat rate, blended, or interchange plus (IC+). Interchange-plus pricing breaks down your processing costs into two transparent parts:

1. The interchange fee: set by Visa, Mastercard, and issuing banks. This varies based on the card type (debit, credit, rewards) and whether the payment is online or in-person.
2. The processor’s markup: a small, fixed addition (for example, 0.15% + $0.10) that payment providers keep as profit.

This separation means you only pay what each transaction truly costs. When customers use low-cost debit cards, your fees drop accordingly.

Even small percentage differences translate into big savings at scale; on a $1,000 sale, saving just 0.75% equals $7.50 retained profit.

Factors that affect how much you save per transaction

• Average ticket size: Small-ticket merchants benefit most from reduced per-transaction fees.
• Card mix: More debit cards = greater savings.
• Volume: Higher volume gives you leverage to negotiate lower markups.
• Transaction type: Online (card-not-present) costs more in interchange than in-person.

Why choose Fiska as your interchange-plus provider

Switching from Stripe’s flat-rate structure to Fiska’s interchange-plus pricing can save your business 0.5–2.0% per transaction, or roughly 20–40% in overall processing costs.

Fiska is ideal for SaaS platforms and vertical software providers integrating payments. There are no hidden fees or fixed charges: full cost transparency

FAQs

Is interchange-plus pricing always cheaper than Stripe?

Not always, but it often is for businesses with higher transaction volumes, larger average order values, or a strong mix of debit and standard credit card payments. Stripe’s flat-rate pricing is simple, but it means every transaction is charged at the same rate, even when the underlying card network cost is lower.

With interchange-plus pricing, your costs are tied more closely to the actual cost of each transaction. That means you can benefit when customers pay with lower-cost cards, while still seeing exactly what your processor keeps as markup.

When should a business move away from Stripe’s flat-rate pricing?

A business should consider moving away from Stripe’s flat-rate pricing once payment processing costs become a meaningful part of its margins. This often happens when transaction volume grows, average ticket sizes increase, or the business starts processing a large number of debit card payments.

At that stage, flat-rate pricing can leave money on the table. Interchange-plus pricing gives you more visibility into where your fees are going and can help reduce overall processing costs without sacrificing payment performance.

How does Fiska make money with interchange-plus pricing?

Fiska makes money through a transparent processor markup added on top of the underlying interchange cost. Instead of charging one flat rate across every transaction, Fiska separates the card network and issuing bank fees from its own margin.

This gives businesses clearer insight into their true payment costs. You can see what goes to the card networks, what goes to the issuing banks, and what your payment provider earns for processing and supporting the transaction.