Hub, tool, and related shop guides
Start here
Start with your monthly card sales, average ticket, and the share paid in person, keyed or card-on-file, and online. Enter each rate separately, then add every recurring and one-time cost. If a quote does not document a field, mark it unresolved rather than entering zero.
Split processing by how the card is accepted
A single blended rate can hide a costly payment mix. Ask for written rates and per-transaction charges for each channel you actually use.
- In-person card-present payments
- Keyed and card-on-file payments
- Online checkout and payment links
- Invoices and virtual terminal payments
- Debit, rewards, international, and premium cards
- Refund, chargeback, batch, gateway, and PCI charges
Count the complete monthly software stack
- Base POS subscription by location or register
- Inventory, purchase-order, and multi-location tier
- Online ordering or ecommerce plan
- Loyalty, gift cards, marketing, and customer messaging
- Payroll, scheduling, accounting, and delivery integrations
- Support, device management, and reporting add-ons
Turn hardware into a term cost
Separate purchased hardware from financed, leased, loaned, or processor-locked equipment. Compare the complete amount paid over the same 12-, 36-, or 60-month window.
- Registers, tablets, stands, and customer displays
- Readers and payment terminals
- Receipt, kitchen, and label printers
- Scanners, drawers, scales, displays, and mounts
- Network equipment, installation, shipping, and tax
- Spares, warranties, replacements, and return obligations
Read the exit before the introductory offer
- Initial term and automatic renewal
- Cancellation notice window and delivery method
- Early termination fee or remaining monthly payments
- Hardware return, lease balance, or processor restriction
- Data export access and cost after cancellation
- Gift-card, loyalty, deposit, and dispute transition
Use written quotes, not copied web prices
Official pricing pages are useful starting points, but plan requirements, negotiated rates, hardware bundles, reseller terms, promotions, and taxes can change the transaction. Save the dated proposal and agreement that actually apply to your account.
Link the calculator, worksheet, and demo scorecard
The decision pack is three connected steps: normalize both quotes with the same sales scenario, track contract and data-export evidence in the worksheet, and score the live demo with the vendor scorecard. None of these steps replaces the others.
- Enter documented rates in the quote comparison tool; mark gaps unresolved
- Use the printable worksheet for contract, support, data-export, and offline evidence
- Run the demo scorecard with the same basket for every seller
- Print the comparison and worksheet before signing
Sources to confirm before buying
Features, terms, support, and compatibility can change. These links are starting points; the written quote and agreement control the actual purchase.