If you've been thinking about processing credit cards this year -- either in person at the market or on your website -- you know there are a ton of different options out there. We've done a lot of the research to help you make an informed decision as to what will help you the most. For smaller farms processing less than $50,000/year in credit card transactions, PayPal is likely the best choice because there are no monthly fees with Paypal.

However, for farms processing higher volumes of payments or for farms that want a more seamless online payment experience, getting a full merchant account with Authorize.net may make sense. We are happy to discuss your unique situation with you and figure out if a full merchant account makes sense.

There are hundreds of merchant services providers out there and it can be very confusing. One thing we've learned is that for many CSA farmers, it can be a challenge to apply for a merchant account because of the "pay now/get something later" model of CSA. Some merchant services companies refuse to work with farms regardless of the farm's business model.

To help address this challenge, we've partnered with a full-service merchant account company called Total Merchant Services (TMS). TMS provides online merchant accounts with Authorize.net for your website, wireless merchant accounts with free terminals for markets, and even an app to swipe credit cards on your mobile phone. TMS has already cleared the CSA model through their Risk Department so applying is streamlined and usually only takes a couple of business days for approval. Even if you are already processing with a merchant account, TMS may be able to offer better rates for you.

Click here for a lot more detail about their services and how they compare with some of the other options out there. Hopefully there is a solution out there to help your customers pay you quickly and easily!

Related Documents:

- Merchant Account Options with TMS (detailed rates and fees)
- Authorize.net vs. PayPal (updated cost analysis)