Is dual pricing legal for my restaurant?

At a restaurant, diners often see the cash and card totals only when the check arrives, after they've eaten. In most states, dual pricing is legal for a restaurant, and it works differently from a surcharge. Here is what the rules say for menus, checks and receipts.

Is dual pricing legal for a restaurant?

In most states, yes, as long as the menu shows the card price and cash gets a real discount. Federal law bars Visa, Mastercard and the other networks from stopping you from offering a discount for cash.

That protection comes from 15 U.S.C. 1693o-2(b)(2). It covers discounts for cash, checks, debit or credit, as long as the discount doesn't favor one card brand or issuer over another. Where state law requires it, the discount has to be offered to everyone and disclosed clearly.

State laws add their own wording rules. Connecticut bans surcharges but says a business may offer a cash discount, including by listing a cash price and a credit card price. New York allows a "two-tier pricing system," meaning two prices posted side by side. Texas's surcharge law is unclear after a 2018 federal ruling. The State Law Library notes that cash discounts aren't surcharges under the statute's definition.

Puerto Rico is the exception to watch. Its consumer affairs department reads the law to forbid cash discounts too. Our state-by-state surcharge guide covers each state's status.

How is dual pricing different from a surcharge?

A surcharge adds a fee to the bill when a guest pays by credit card. Dual pricing never adds anything: the posted price is the card price, and cash payers get a discount off it.

That difference changes almost everything a restaurant has to do.

The debit rule matters at the table. A surcharge can only land on credit cards, so the terminal has to tell credit from debit on every check. Under dual pricing, every card pays the same posted price, and only cash pays less.

Can my restaurant call it a "non-cash adjustment" on the check?

No, not if the label adds a fee for paying by card. Connecticut's consumer protection department says a receipt charge called a "processing fee" or "non-cash adjustment" is a surcharge.

That is why wording matters as much as the math. Say the menu shows the lower cash price and the check adds a line for card payers. Connecticut would call that a surcharge, and card-brand surcharge rules would apply. Keep the card price as the posted price, and show the cash price as a discount from it.

For more on how the three options differ, see dual pricing vs. surcharging vs. cash discounts.

What has to be on my menu and check?

The menu needs the card price, and in many places both prices. The check and terminal should show both totals before the guest pays.

Here is what a clean restaurant setup usually covers:

• Menus and menu boards: card prices, or card and cash prices for every item
• Door and table signs: a short note that posted prices are card prices and cash gets a discount
• The check: a card total and a cash total, printed before payment
• The terminal: both totals on screen, so the guest picks before tapping
• Receipts: the cash discount as its own line on cash receipts

Online ordering pages and delivery menus need the same treatment. A guest who sees one price online and another at pickup has a fair complaint.

Do Florida, California or New York restaurants have extra rules?

Yes. These three states have rules aimed at restaurant fees and posted prices that go beyond the card-brand rules.

Florida. SB 606 took effect July 1, 2026. It covers any automatic fee a diner must pay, other than a tax, and Fisher Phillips lists credit card surcharges among them. Menus must state the fee's amount or percentage and its purpose, in type at least as large as item descriptions. Receipts must show it on its own line.

California. SB 478 requires advertised prices to include mandatory fees. SB 1524, signed June 29, 2024, carves out restaurant food and drink prices. The catch: service charges and other fees must be clearly displayed on the menu. California's older card-surcharge ban is a separate question, covered in our state guide.

New York. A business that surcharges must post the total credit card price, including the surcharge, and the surcharge can't exceed its card cost. Two-tier pricing, with the card price posted next to the cash price, is expressly allowed.

The FTC's national fee rule, effective May 12, 2025, covers live-event tickets and short-term lodging only. It doesn't apply to restaurants.

Example: one $80 dinner check, two ways

This is a hypothetical example, before tax and tip. It uses a 3.85% cash discount and a surcharge at Visa's 3% maximum.

Under dual pricing, the card guest pays exactly what the menu said. The cash guest saves $3.08. Under the surcharge, the credit card guest sees $2.40 that wasn't on the menu price, and debit guests don't cover any of the cost.

In New York, that surcharge menu would have to show the $82.40 credit card total up front. In Florida, it would need a menu notice in full-size type.

Why are restaurants moving to dual pricing now?

Card fees are a big line for restaurants. A National Restaurant Association spokesperson told Payments Dive in December 2025 that card fees are typically a restaurant's third-highest expense, after food and wages.

The same report said 16% of the association's members had surcharges in a 2024 survey, a figure that also counts large-party and delivery fees. The Texas Restaurant Association said hidden card fees rose more than 50% in five years.

If you'd rather not pass fees on at all, interchange-plus pricing lowers the cost instead. Our guide to card processing for restaurants and bars covers tips, tabs and pre-authorizations. If you run MICROS or Aloha, see keeping your POS on a new processor.

When BP Global Merchant Services fits

BP Global is a Dallas-based, independent Elavon Payments MSP. Most of our merchants run on dual pricing. We set it up on Valor PayTech and Dejavoo terminals, which support dual pricing. Restaurants that prefer to absorb the cost can use interchange-plus pricing. Funding runs through Elavon seven days a week, including weekends and holidays. To see both options priced against your current bill, start with the Free Statement Review.