Insights
with Optimized Payments
Cutting back on business expenses will always be a critical factor in profitability, and many credit card fees are not as inevitable as you may think. Optimized Payments provides expert advice and advanced analytics to leverage payment data for critical insights that lead to significant savings and maximized profitability.





How Do Credit Card Processing Fees Work?
Interchange Fees
Interchange fees are transaction fees that you pay to the card-issuing bank whenever a customer makes a purchase using a credit/debit card. Several variables are involved in calculating an interchange fee, including card type, transaction type, business type, and elements sent in the authorization and settlement messages. Interchange rates include a flat per item rate plus a percentage of the sales total. The average interchange fee equates to around 2% of the purchase amount, representing about 80% of the total cost of a transaction.
Assessment Fees
Assessment fees or network fees are charged by the card networks (e.g. Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express) to cover their costs of operating and maintaining their payment networks. These fees are typically charged to the acquiring bank or payment processor, which in turn usually passes them on to the merchant as part of their overall credit card processing fees. Assessment fees are charged for each transaction event like an authorization and settlement, and includes a fixed per item rate and percentage of the sales total.
These fees have grown both in the number of fees charged as well as the overall impact on the cost of payments, and sometimes are referred to as nuisance fees. Networks maintain all links to issuing banks and average about 16% of the total cost of a transaction. Here’s an exhaustive list of all network fees.
Acquiring Fees
How to Offset Credit Card Processing Fees
Interchange Optimization
Processor and Card Network Negotiations
Interchange and Processor Fee Audits
Payment Strategy
RFP Management
Debt Routing Strategies
Our Services

Our cloud-based, automated solutions help you consolidate all your card payment vendor data in one place and evaluate your transactions to reveal vital metrics and cost-saving opportunities.

With over 18 years of experience in the electronic payments industry, we provide valuable and actionable insights via web-based dashboards, automated email alerts, consulting recommendations, and ongoing support.



Why Optimized Payments?
There are several great reasons to choose Optimized Payments to help you eliminate and reduce credit card processing fees.
Independence
ROI
Experience
We’ve helped over 700 merchants (many in the Fortune 500), generating over $500M in savings to date.
Customer satisfaction
with Optimized Payments
Unlock the full potential of your business with first-class payment analytics and consulting services from Optimized Payments. Our experts can provide tailored solutions to optimize efficiency and profitability. Don’t wait any longer. Reach out today to get started!