National Processing Review: Great Bare Bones Provider

Contents

1 Payment Solutions
2 Pricing
3 Customer Support & Satisfaction
4 Contract & Closing
5 My Impressions

National Processing offers competitive rates and fees with high-quality service. Standard accounts don’t come with all the trimmings, but it gets the job done and done well.

It is important to note that National Processing and National Processing Company (NPC) are two completely separate companies. NPC is actually now Vantiv. NPC had a horrible reputation for its service, while National Processing is the complete opposite. I flat out could not recommend NPC as a merchant account provider, but as you will see, there’s a lot to love about National Processing.

FEATURED IN CREDIT CARD PROCESSING

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Payment Solutions

Merchant AccountWeb Payment ProcessingMobile Payment ProcessingPoint of Sale

With a merchant account, you can increase your sales exponentially by being able to process credit card payments. An account with National Processing also features better tracking of your transactions and monthly statements which can be very helpful during tax time.

With an online store, you can advertise your products 24 hours a day to people all over the country, or even all over the world. What you need for a virtual storefront is a way to implement web payment processing.

National Processing offers an online payment solution so you can accept credit cards, electronic ACH check payments and electronic invoicing quickly and affordably. The service also features recurring transactions, anti-fraud products and help with chargebacks.

Collect payments on the go, from anywhere, simply with your smartphone. It’s a great option for merchants that don’t sell from a specific location. What’s more, mobile payment processing is fast and convenient for your customers.

National Processing features two POS systems: Poynt POS and Foundry POS.

Poynt. This all-in-one smart device sports dual-facing screens, an integrated printer and scanner and an app store to make Poynt a complete payment solution. It has the ability to manage your business and review analytics on your phone, terminal and computer, settle remotely via your Poynt HQ app and track sales in real-time.

Foundry. This Android tablet-based, all-in-one POS system has a simple plug and play setup. Its hardware includes a 13″ touchscreen, an integrated printer, scanner and cash drawer, and a customer-facing display. The software manages employees, analyzes data, displays live transaction activity and reporting, and manages and tracks inventory.

Pricing

National Processing offers interchange-plus pricing with no surprises and 100% transparency. The margins are fixed, so merchants get the best pricing possible with no hidden fees. In fact, if you process more than $10,000 per month, and it can’t beat your rate with your current provider, National Processing will give you a $500 Visa gift card.

Retail/Card Present
Monthly Fee	$9.95
PCI Compliance	$4.95/month
Margins	0.20% + $0.10
eCommerce/Telephone Order/Card Not Present
Monthly Fee	$9.95
PCI Compliance	$4.95/month
Margins	0.30% + $0.10
AVS Fee	$0.05/verification
Restaurant
Monthly Fee	$9.95
Monthly Minimum	$0
PCI Compliance	$4.95/month
Margins	0.15% + $0.07
Other Fees
ACH Rejection Fee	$15/instance
Batch Fee	$0.10/batch
Chargeback Fee	$15/instance
Retrieval Fee	$5/instance
Voice Authorization	$1.50/authorization
PIN Debit Fees	No markup

Customer Support & Satisfaction

National Processing offers a phone number, email address and contact form on its website. There is no FAQ section or knowledgebase to gather information from. Drawing from my research on the internet, most merchants report a good experience with National Processing’s support team.

Since 2008, National Processing has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and currently holds an A+ rating.

Contract & Closing

If you don’t require any free equipment at sign up, you should be able to get a month-to-month account with no cancellation fees. However, if you’re on a standard National Processing agreement, it includes a $295 termination fee. This fee will be waived under certain circumstances, including:

If your business is sold or closed, with receipt of appropriate documentation.
If National Processing can’t meet or beat a competitor’s rate, with submission of competitor’s contract and allowing time for National Processing to respond.

Although I would prefer to see no early termination fees whatsoever, the terms that National Processing outlines are fairly reasonable.

My Impressions

If you want low rates from a reliable company then consider National Processing. If you want all the bells and whistles to go along with your merchant account, like a POS, analytics and such, then you should move along to another provider.

Other pluses include a month-to-month option for merchants who don’t need free hardware and low-cost ACH payment processing.

Alternatives include Square for a good mobile credit card processor and Chase Payment Solutions for a full service processor.

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