How do I choose a POS system and a card processor?

Your POS and your card processor are two separate choices, even when one company sells both. The POS shapes how your team works every shift, and your processing deal decides what each card sale costs you. Here's how to choose each one, and when to keep the system you already have.

What's the difference between a POS and a card processor?

The POS is the software and hardware that rings up the sale, and the processor moves the money to your bank account. Your POS runs your menu or item list, tickets, tips and reports. Your processor handles the payment and the deposit.

Several parties touch every card sale. A GAO report names them: the merchant, its bank (the acquirer) and processor, the card network, and the card's issuing bank. The networks set interchange rates and adjust them twice a year. The merchant's bank pays interchange to the card issuer. GAO adds that the networks generally set the largest of the fees merchants pay on each sale.

Merchants pay all of this through a "merchant discount," which Visa says is typically a percentage per transaction. On an interchange-plus statement, that cost is itemized as interchange, card-brand assessments and the processor's markup. Here's how to read your merchant statement line by line.

The split matters because processing scales with every sale. Example: if your software costs $100 a month and processing runs 2.7% on $40,000 in card sales, processing is $1,080. That's more than 10 times the software.

Does your POS come with its own payments?

Some POS systems include their own card processing, so choosing the POS also chooses your processor. That can keep things simple, but it ties your processing costs to your POS.

Other POS systems accept an outside processor. BP Global Merchant Services, which sells card processing, can run processing behind existing Oracle MICROS installs. It can also run interchange-plus processing behind existing NCR Aloha installs. Middleware such as Datacap's NETePay connects POS systems to processors.

How do POS and payment setups compare?

Setups differ in who processes your payments and how easily you can change that later. Because BP Global sells processing, this table compares setup types instead of ranking vendors.

What should you look for in a POS and processor?

Judge the POS on how well it fits your operation, and judge the processor on total cost, terms, funding and support. Work through this checklist:

• Business type. Shortlist systems built for how you sell, like table service, quick service, retail or appointments. See the industries we work with.
• Hardware. Ask whether terminals are bought, rented or leased, and what happens to them if you leave. Compare terminals before you commit.
• Integrations. List the tools you already run, like online ordering, accounting or e-commerce. Confirm each one connects to the POS and to payments. Review integrations for your setup.
• Pricing transparency. Know your pricing model. GAO describes flat-rate pricing as one uniform rate that blends credit and debit costs. Tiered pricing sets rates by risk factors and other requirements. Interchange-plus passes through interchange and network fees, then adds the processor's own fee. Dual pricing posts card prices and gives cash customers a discount. Compare pricing models and dual pricing vs. surcharging vs. cash discounts.
• Contract and equipment-lease terms. Ask about term length, early-termination fees and any equipment lease. Get every fee in writing.
• Funding speed. Ask exactly when deposits land, including weekends and holidays. Here's how merchant funding times work.
• Support. Find out who answers during a weekend rush and who fights chargebacks for you. Ask what comes with the account beyond processing, such as value-add services.
• PCI compliance. PCI DSS applies to any business that stores, processes or transmits cardholder data, even through a third party. Merchants still validate compliance, typically with a self-assessment questionnaire. Merchants should also check their provider's compliance status at least once a year.

How does a flat rate compare with interchange-plus?

A flat rate uses one formula for every sale, while interchange-plus tracks each card's cost, so your card mix decides which is cheaper. GAO notes that smaller merchants may pick flat-rate pricing to simplify managing card payments. The worked example below uses illustrative numbers, not a quote.

Example: A Dallas shop takes $40,000 a month in card sales across 1,000 in-person sales, a $40 average ticket.

• Example flat rate of 2.7% + 10¢: $1,080 + $100 = $1,180 a month, or 2.95% of sales.
• Interchange-plus with an example markup of 0.30% + 10¢: the markup is $120 + $100 = $220 a month. Interchange and network fees pass through at cost on top of that.
• Break-even: in this example, interchange-plus costs less only if interchange and network fees stay under $960 a month. That's 2.4% of sales.

Card mix decides which side of that line you land on. Here's one $40 sale at four published interchange rates, with the same example markup. The debit rates come from Visa's current table, and the credit rates from Mastercard's:

Regulated debit cards come from issuers with $10 billion or more in assets, which fall under the Federal Reserve's debit fee standard. Cards from smaller issuers are exempt. The debit rates are what Visa's current table lists, and they may change, so check our fees guide. Mastercard's rates took effect April 17, 2026. The interchange-plus column leaves out network fees. Issuers that certify fraud-prevention compliance to Visa also get one more cent on regulated debit sales.

In this example, debit and lower-rate credit sales cost less on interchange-plus, while the higher-rate credit sale costs more. Your statement shows your real mix, so bring it to a statement review before you compare quotes.

When should you keep the POS you have?

Keep your POS when it fits how you work and the real problem is processing cost or service. Changing systems can mean new hardware, rebuilding your menu or item list, and retraining staff. It can also mean ending a contract early or paying off a lease.

Sometimes only the processing needs to change. BP Global can run processing behind some existing POS installs. See the full list of POS systems we support.

Switch the POS when the system itself is the problem. That could mean missing features, a poor fit for your service style, or payments locked to one provider. If your POS requires its own payments, changing processors means changing the POS.

What should you ask before you sign?

Ask these questions, and get the answers in writing:

1. Is my pricing flat-rate, tiered or interchange-plus, and what's the exact markup?
2. Which monthly fees apply, such as software, PCI, statement or gateway fees?
3. How long is the contract, and what does it cost to leave early?
4. Is the hardware bought, rented or leased, and can a lease be canceled?
5. Can I use a different processor with this POS, and is there a fee if I do?
6. When do deposits land, including weekends and holidays?
7. Who handles PCI compliance, and what do I need to file each year?
8. Who answers at 9 p.m. on a Friday, and who fights my chargebacks?

When BP Global Merchant Services fits

BP Global Merchant Services is a Dallas-based, independent merchant services provider and an Elavon Payments MSP. We're system-agnostic, so we recommend the POS, terminal or gateway that fits your workflow. Choose interchange-plus or dual pricing, with Elavon funding 7 days a week. You also get managed PCI compliance, 24/7 support and a dedicated case manager who fights chargebacks. To see in writing what you pay now and what you'd pay with us, start with the Free Statement Review.