Credit Card Processing With a Rate You Can Actually See

Interchange Plus separates the actual network cost (set by Visa, Mastercard, and the other card brands) from Argent's markup, so both are visible on your statement. Multi-Tier groups transactions into pricing buckets like "qualified" and "non-qualified," which can be simpler to read but makes it harder to see exactly what you're paying for. We'll recommend whichever genuinely fits your card mix and volume, not whichever is more profitable for us.

There's no single number — your effective rate depends on your card mix, how sales come in (card-present vs. card-not-present), and your monthly volume. Most small businesses land somewhere between 1.8% and 3.5% once every fee is accounted for. Send a recent statement and we'll calculate your actual effective rate rather than quoting a generic figure.

Some accounts carry a modest monthly account fee; we disclose it upfront rather than burying it in a rate sheet. We don't charge a monthly minimum that penalizes you for a slow month, which is a common fee at other processors that catches merchants off guard.

Interchange itself can move, since it's set by the card networks twice a year and applies to every processor equally. Argent's own markup is fixed and disclosed in writing at signing, and we don't quietly raise it without telling you — if you ever see an unexplained increase, that's worth a call to your account contact.

We walk every merchant through their annual PCI Self-Assessment Questionnaire as part of onboarding, which keeps most accounts compliant and avoids the recurring non-compliance fee some processors charge by default. If your business does end up in a higher compliance tier due to volume, we'll explain exactly why before it shows up on a statement.

Often, yes. Many countertop terminals and POS-integrated card readers can be reprogrammed to run on Argent's processing instead of being replaced outright. Send us your terminal model and POS setup and we'll confirm compatibility before you commit to anything.

Most standard small business applications are approved within 24 to 48 hours. Specialized or higher-risk industries can take a bit longer while underwriting reviews additional documentation. Once approved, connecting your equipment or gateway is typically a same-day task.

Yes — card-present and card-not-present transactions run through the same processor and report into one dashboard, so you're not reconciling two separate systems for one business.

We coordinate a replacement or repair through our equipment partner so you're not stuck without a way to take payments. Depending on the issue, that might mean an express replacement unit or a guided fix over the phone.

No. Argent is month-to-month, with no long-term contract and no early termination fee. If you're currently locked into a multi-year agreement elsewhere, ask your current provider directly what leaving would cost — that number is often the real reason switching feels harder than it should.

You'll have a named point of contact on your account, not a rotating call center queue. For urgent issues, that means a real person who already knows your setup, not starting from scratch with a new agent every time.

Card data is encrypted in transit and tokenized immediately after capture, meaning your own systems never store the actual card number. Combined with PCI-compliant infrastructure, this is the same level of protection used for large enterprise transactions, not a scaled-down version for small businesses.

You'll be notified with the specific reason code and a response window, typically one to two weeks. We help you build evidence targeted to that exact reason — delivery confirmation, signed receipts, or communication records — rather than a generic response that's less likely to succeed.

Standard funding is typically one to two business days after your batch closes. Faster funding options are available for businesses where cash flow timing matters, usually for an added fee — ask your account contact what's available for your volume.

We handle the transition with minimal disruption — setting up your new account, testing hardware and gateway connections, and timing the cutover for a low-volume window before fully retiring your old provider. Most switches take two to four weeks from start to finish.