How a cash price and a card price let independent businesses offset credit card processing fees — what it is, how it compares to surcharging, whether it's legal, and how to set it up.
Dual pricing shows two prices for the same item — a lower cash price and a card price. Customers who pay with cash or debit pay the cash price. Customers who pay with a credit card see a slightly higher card price that reflects the cost of processing that card.
The result: the business offsets — or fully eliminates — the credit card fees it used to absorb, while pricing stays transparent and every customer keeps a choice. It is the same idea gas stations have used for decades.
Both prices posted up front. Illustrative only.
They sound alike, but they work differently — and the differences matter for compliance.
Two prices are posted up front — a cash price and a card price. The card price is the shelf price, not an added fee. Treated as a cash discount and generally simple to run.
A separate fee is added on top of the listed price when a customer pays by credit card. Card networks cap and regulate it, and it requires advance notice and specific signage.
A single (card) price is posted, and a discount is taken off at the register for customers who pay cash. Closely related to dual pricing — the two prices just are not shown side by side.
Dual pricing is widely used across the United States and, when it is set up correctly with clear signage and compliant receipts, is generally permitted.
Card-network requirements and state rules can vary and change over time, so the details matter. IpPayware configures your program to meet current requirements and gives you the signage, receipt formatting, and staff guidance to keep it compliant — so you are not left guessing.
Most small businesses pay an all-in effective rate of roughly 2.5%–4% of card sales in processing fees. Because the card price covers that cost, dual pricing offsets the bulk of it.
Your effective rate = total monthly fees ÷ total card volume. Many businesses are surprised how far above their quoted rate it lands once every fee is counted.
With the card price covering processing, most of what you used to lose to fees stays in the business — often the equivalent of 3%–4% of card sales.
Send us a recent statement and we will show your current effective rate and estimate your specific savings — no cost, no obligation.
We review a statement and confirm dual pricing is a fit for your business.
Your terminal or POS is set to display both the cash and card price at checkout.
We provide compliant in-store signage and receipt formatting so pricing is transparent.
Your team gets simple scripts, and you start keeping more of every card sale.
Running a restaurant or bar? See dual pricing for restaurants at our sister company Everything But The Food.
Dual pricing shows two prices for the same item — a lower cash price and a card price. Customers who pay by cash or debit pay the cash price; customers who pay by credit card see a slightly higher card price that reflects the cost of processing. It lets a business offset or eliminate its credit card processing fees while keeping pricing transparent.
No. Surcharging adds a separate fee on top of the listed price when a customer pays by credit card, and card networks cap and regulate it. Dual pricing instead posts two prices up front (a cash price and a card price), so the card price is the shelf price rather than an added fee. Dual pricing is generally simpler to run and is treated as a cash discount.
Dual pricing is widely used across the United States and, when set up correctly with clear signage and compliant receipts, is generally permitted. Rules and card-network requirements can vary by state and change over time, so IpPayware configures your program to meet current requirements and provides the signage and receipt formatting to keep it compliant.
Because the card price covers processing costs, most businesses offset the bulk of the credit card fees they used to absorb — often the equivalent of roughly 3% to 4% of card sales, depending on their current effective rate and card mix. IpPayware can run a free statement review to estimate your specific savings.
In practice, most customers accept dual pricing when it is posted clearly, because they keep the option to pay the lower cash price. Gas stations have used cash-and-card pricing for decades. IpPayware provides signage and staff scripts so the two prices are transparent and easy to explain.
Your POS or terminal displays both the cash price and the card price. When a customer pays, the receipt shows the price they paid and, where required, how the card price was applied. IpPayware sets up the POS, receipt formatting, and in-store signage so the experience is clear at the register.
They are closely related. A cash discount posts a single (card) price and takes a discount off at the register for cash payers. Dual pricing posts both prices side by side. Both approaches let a business pass along or offset processing costs; dual pricing simply makes the two prices visible up front.
Yes. IpPayware is an authorized Square reseller and can set up dual pricing alongside Square point-of-sale hardware and software, as well as other supported terminals and POS systems, so your pricing program and your checkout run together.
Send us a recent processing statement and we will show your real effective rate and estimate your savings — free, with no obligation. Prefer Square? We set that up too.
Request a Free Statement Review