Helcim Fee Calculator (2026)
Helcim charges each card's interchange cost plus its own margin: 0.40% + 8¢ in person and 0.50% + 25¢ for keyed and online payments at up to $50,000 a month, falling in steps to 0.15% + 6¢ and 0.15% + 15¢ at $1 million or more. There are no monthly, signup, PCI or cancellation fees.
Enter your numbers above; results update as you type. Sales tax collected from the buyer is not included unless the platform charges a fee on it and the calculator has a tax field.
Helcim fees at a glance
| Fee | Rate | Applies to |
|---|---|---|
| Interchange (paid to the card's bank) | your chosen Interchange rate (%) + $1.00 × Interchange per-transaction fee ($) | transaction amount. The wholesale cost of the card, passed through by Helcim with no markup. Uses the rate and per-transaction fee you entered. |
| Card-brand fee | your chosen Card-brand fee (%) | transaction amount. The card network's fee, passed through at cost. Visa's is 0.14% in Helcim's table. |
| Helcim margin (in person) | 0.15%–0.4% by Monthly card volume + $0.06–$0.08 by Monthly card volume | transaction amount; How the card is taken: In person (tap, chip or swipe). 0.40% + 8¢ up to $50K a month, falling to 0.15% + 6¢ at $1M or more. |
| Helcim margin (keyed or online) | 0.15%–0.5% by Monthly card volume + $0.15–$0.25 by Monthly card volume | transaction amount; How the card is taken: Keyed or online. 0.50% + 25¢ up to $50K a month, falling to 0.15% + 15¢ at $1M or more. |
Worked example
A customer taps a basic Visa consumer credit card for $100 at a business processing under $50,000 a month. Interchange is 1.51% ($1.51) plus 10¢, or $1.61, and Visa's 0.14% card-brand fee adds $0.14. Helcim's in-person margin is 0.40% ($0.40) plus 8¢, or $0.48. Total fees are $2.23, so you receive $97.77; after the $40 the goods cost you, profit is $57.77.
How Helcim fees work
Helcim is a payment processor for small and mid-sized businesses that prices every card transaction as interchange plus. Instead of one flat rate, you pay the wholesale cost of the specific card, which is the interchange set for that card type plus the card network's own fee, and Helcim adds a fixed margin on top. Helcim's pricing page lists no account monthly fee, no signup fee, no PCI fee and no cancellation fee.
The margin depends on how the card is taken and on your volume. In person (tap, chip or swipe) it is 0.40% + 8¢ per transaction at up to $50,000 a month; keyed and online payments are 0.50% + 25¢. Both drop automatically as your average monthly card volume over the last three months grows: 0.35% + 7¢ and 0.45% + 20¢ from $50,000, then down in steps to 0.15% + 6¢ and 0.15% + 15¢ at $1 million or more.
Interchange varies by card. Helcim's Visa table lists a basic consumer credit card at 1.51% + 10¢ when the card is present and 1.90% + 10¢ when it is keyed, with rewards cards higher and regulated debit at 0.05% + 22¢. A $100 in-person sale on that basic credit card costs $1.61 in interchange, $0.14 in Visa's card-brand fee and $0.48 to Helcim, $2.23 in all. Helcim says that for most merchants the total in-person effective rate comes out near or below 2%.
- Interchange: passed through at cost and different for every card type. Helcim's Visa table lists CPS Retail consumer credit at 1.51% + 10¢, Rewards Traditional at 1.65% + 10¢, Signature Preferred and Infinite at 2.10% + 10¢, swiped consumer debit at 0.80% + 15¢ and regulated debit at 0.05% + 22¢. Keyed versions cost more: 1.90%, 2.05% and 2.52% + 10¢ for the three credit categories.
- Card-brand fee: the card network's own fee is also passed through. Helcim lists Visa's at 0.14% of the transaction.
- Helcim margin, in person: 0.40% + 8¢ at $0 to $50K a month, 0.35% + 7¢ at $50K to $100K, 0.25% + 7¢ at $100K to $500K, 0.20% + 6¢ at $500K to $1M, and 0.15% + 6¢ at $1M to $5M.
- Helcim margin, keyed and online: 0.50% + 25¢ at $0 to $50K a month, 0.45% + 20¢ at $50K to $100K, 0.35% + 20¢ at $100K to $500K, 0.25% + 15¢ at $500K to $1M, and 0.15% + 15¢ at $1M to $5M.
- Volume tiers: your tier is set by your average monthly credit card processing volume over the last three months and adjusts automatically each month.
- Recurring payments add 0.4% per transaction. ACH and EFT payments cost 0.5% + 25¢ per transaction, capped at $6; a rejected ACH payment costs $5.
- Other costs: chargebacks are $15, and $0 for cases resolved in your favor. There are no monthly, signup, PCI or cancellation fees. Hardware is optional: the Helcim Card Reader is $199 and the Smart Terminal is $349 or $32 a month for a year, plus shipping.
Ways to keep more of each Helcim sale
- Take the card in person when you can. A $100 basic Visa credit sale costs $2.23 tapped but $2.89 keyed, because both interchange (1.90% against 1.51%) and Helcim's margin (0.50% + 25¢ against 0.40% + 8¢) are higher.
- Debit is far cheaper than credit. Regulated Visa debit is 0.05% + 22¢ in interchange, so a $100 in-person sale costs about $0.89 in total at the first tier.
- Send large invoices by ACH. At 0.5% + 25¢ capped at $6, a $5,000 invoice costs $6 instead of about $127 on a keyed basic credit card.
- Dispute chargebacks you can win. The $15 fee is $0 for cases resolved in your favor.
- Check your tier before comparing quotes. The margin falls on its own at $50,000, $100,000, $500,000 and $1 million in average monthly volume, with no application needed.
Helcim fee FAQ
How much does Helcim charge per transaction?
Interchange plus Helcim's margin. At up to $50,000 a month the margin is 0.40% + 8¢ in person and 0.50% + 25¢ keyed or online. On a $100 tap with a basic Visa credit card (1.51% + 10¢ interchange and a 0.14% card-brand fee) the total is $2.23.
Does Helcim charge a monthly fee?
No. Helcim's pricing page lists no account monthly fee, no signup fee, a $0 PCI fee and no cancellation fee. An optional 4G wireless plan for hardware is $7 a month.
What is interchange plus pricing?
You pay the wholesale cost of each card, which is the interchange paid to the card-issuing bank plus card-network fees, and the processor adds a fixed, published margin. With Helcim that margin is the only part Helcim keeps.
How do Helcim's volume discounts work?
Your margin tier is based on your average monthly credit card processing volume over the last three months and updates automatically. The in-person margin falls from 0.40% + 8¢ under $50,000 to 0.15% + 6¢ at $1 million or more.
Is Helcim cheaper than Stripe?
It depends on the card. On a $100 online sale with a basic Visa credit card, Helcim's total at the first tier is about $2.89 against Stripe's published 2.9% + 30¢ ($3.20). A premium rewards card keyed at 2.52% + 10¢ interchange brings Helcim's total to about $3.51.
What does Helcim charge for ACH payments?
0.5% + 25¢ per transaction, capped at $6. A rejected ACH payment costs $5.
How much is a Helcim chargeback fee?
$15 per chargeback, and $0 for cases resolved in your favor.
Good to know
Sources
- Helcim Pricing (accessed Oct 3, 2026)
- Helcim Learn: Helcim's automatic volume discounts (September 26, 2025) (accessed Oct 3, 2026)
- Helcim: Interchange Plus Pricing (accessed Oct 3, 2026)
- Helcim: Visa Interchange Rates USA (accessed Oct 3, 2026)
Rates are read from the pages above and re-checked on a schedule. If you find a rate that has changed, tell us and we'll fix it.