Updated on January 19, 2022

“Featured Processosr”

Analysis Rating

Quality & Features

Excellent

Rates & Fees

Excellent

Month-to-Month & Cancel Fees

Excellent

Transparency

Excellent

Customer Support

Excellent

Reviews:

Excellent

 

Dharma Merchant Services is consistently rated among the best for 100% transparency, honest and fair pricing. We give them our 5 star approval as the best overall processor in U.S.

Dera Joseph | Jan 6, 2022 | Advertiser Disclosure

Dharma Merchant Services Review 2022; Pricing, Features, Fees, Positive Reviews and Complaints

Staff at Dharma Merchant Services

As a small business owner, choosing the best merchant service provider is vital to effectively processing card payments. However, making the best choice means considering the amount of fees, ease of use, robust features among others. One such merchant service provider and credit card payments solution you might consider is Dharma Merchant services. Dharma Merchant Service was founded in 2007 by Authorize.net former Senior Vice President of Business Development, Jeff Marcous, and his daughter, Alexia Marcous. 

The brand is headquartered in Vancouver, Washington, and a certified B corporation, which means they have a very strong dedication to social and environmental causes.

Dharma merchant service actually stands out from the crowd as one of the best merchant services and overall payment processors for small business owners. This is because they have a remarkable commitment to honest and fair practices with low fees and equally robust customer service. With Dharma merchant service, there’s a huge chance of saving up to 40% in processing costs because of their low fees and interchange-pricing model.

Nevertheless, like other merchant payments solutions, Dharma merchant services aren’t for everyone. You want to choose the best merchant service provider that meets the needs of your business. So in this Dharma merchant services review, we will look at the Dharma merchant services reviews, PCI compliance fees, dharma merchant services fees, and other unique features of using this payment processing solution.

What is Dharma Merchant Services?

Website capture of Dharma Merchant Services

Dharma Merchant Services is a merchant service provider and 3rd-party processor. As a merchant service provider, they help you process credit card transactions which include in-store transactions, online payments and lots more. Like other merchant account service providers, Dharma merchant service offers access to POS terminals, online credit card transaction processing solutions, and credit card machines.

What makes Dharma merchant services stand out is their transparency from day one. There will be no scrupulous sales tactics, and ‘freebies’ to get you hooked before delivering unattainable fees.

You also have a free full-disclosure rate from the onset. Dharma merchant services also requires no application fees, PCI compliance fees, AVS fees, setup fees, early termination fees, and lots more. They are also incredibly flexible as they don’t have any proprietary software and hardware thereby giving you the room to work with any credit terminal or POS solution of your choice. Dharma will also guide you towards making the best purchase if you are buying one for the first time.

You will also love their access to a robust suite of integrations to run your business flawlessly. What’s more, Dharma offers one of the lowest processing fees. So in the end, you’ve got a superb small business software solution that is fair and predictable.

Who Should Use Dharma Merchant Services?

Dharma Merchant services is an excellent choice for businesses of all shapes and sizes, especially if you process a higher transactions of $10,000 or more on a monthly basis. They offer one of the lowest interchange-plus rates available that brands from small mom-and-pops to mid-sized businesses would love. Here’s a breakdown of small businesses that would enjoy using dharma merchant solutions:

  • Virtual and online brands: If you are a small-time brand or e-commerce business owner looking to create a virtual storefront, Dharma merchant services give you one of the lowest fees.
  • Startups: Startups can also enjoy Dharma merchant services without paying any monthly fees and with fixed transaction rates. That way, even with just $50 revenue monthly, you can start enjoying this merchant service. If you think you won’t be processing many credit cards, Square may be a better option.
  • Established nonprofits: Dharma merchant service providers ensure that established nonprofits receive the best rates they won’t find with other credit card processors. That way you can collect donations and contributions through your website and crowdfunding pages without hassles. You can add a quick ‘donate now’ button on your website that allows you to take donations easily. Non-profits will also have access to an app for recurring billing, e-commerce integrations with their favorite gateways or online shopping carts, mobile apps, and lots more. What’s more Dharma partners with 4aGoodCause to provide non-profits with CRM and web solutions so they can successfully raise money online. However, these organizations must process up to $10,000 monthly.
  • Restaurants and quick-serve brands: These businesses will also enjoy low credit card processing rates with 24 hours customer support. Dharma also provides robust integrations with many hospitality software which restaurants and quick-serve businesses will love.
  • Healthcare and medical: Healthcare and medical brands (e.g rehab clinics, walk-in clinics, speech therapists, hospitals, EMS, etc) would especially love that Dharma merchant service supports almost all kinds of medical record systems, patient billing systems, and lots more. This ensures that all healthcare payments will be handled according to the strictest regulations (e.g HIPAA).
  • Business to business establishments: B2B merchants can use this credit card solution with a dedicated MX merchant B2B app. You will enjoy level 2/3 interchange reductions with mouthwatering high-volume discounts. Businesses will also enjoy withdrawals within 24 hours. Merchants processing over $6,500 can enjoy lower interchange rates which get lower with an increase in processing volume.
  • Small business & retail: Small business and retail businesses will especially enjoy Dharma’s interchange-plus pricing alongside credit card swipe terminals, customer support, managing payment links, and support for a broad range of POS systems. Also additional features you will enjoy include a mobile app and virtual for keyed-in transactions, and an online ‘Pay Invoice Now’ or ‘Buy Now’ button to your website.

ultimate guide for merchant services

In the same way, Dharma merchant services may not be the ideal option for merchants that don’t process up to $10,000 a month. Dharma also no longer accepts high-risk businesses.

One thing you might find fascinating is that Dharma merchant services are a socially conscious business. So they work with local sustainable and socially responsible minority-owned vendors and supplies alongside women-owned businesses. What’s more, they have also donated more than $7,500,000 to diverse charities. So if this aligns with your sustainability goals, Dharma merchant services might be the right partner.

A Snapshot of Dharma Merchant Services Review

The best thing we love about Dharma Merchant services is their dedication to honesty and transparency. It’s one reason they offer interchange-plus pricing which is a sweet spot better than the tiered pricing model offered by many other merchant account providers. With this interchange-plus pricing model, you can quickly see and track your fees with immense savings as well.

Another reason we love after carefully reviewing Dharma merchant service is their strict application process. For one thing, it might seem to be both a benefit and a drawback. This is because businesses that would love to get started immediately may be put out by the fact that they have to wait up to 3 days to get their new merchant account setup. But this is because of the stringent approval process that ensures that once you are in, the chances of a frozen account (except in cases of fraud) will be minimal.  So it’s highly beneficial to you.

Dharma Merchant service also offers features such as encryption and tokenization which helps to mitigate fraud. You will also receive free PCI-compliant software with your plan so your business can meet PCI standards with ease. Dharma also offers a questionnaire that helps you gain PCI compliance.

We also love that Dharma merchant services do not also use unscrupulous sales tactics to get customers on board. You will never pay any more than your contract stipulates for just monthly fees and transaction charges. There are no little fees that add up into exorbitant bills.

Finally, their customer service is top-notch. Besides 24/7 technical support, they have a dedicated team of customer service professionals to address any issues you have at any time.

Pros and Cons of Using Dharma Merchant Credit Card Processing Solution

Pros

  • Suitable credit card payment solution for businesses in some high-risk industries
  • 24/7 robust customer service
  • Free PCI-compliant software with additional fraud protection tools
  • No PCI compliance or batch fees
  • No early termination fees or faulty advertisements
  • Free virtual terminal and mobile processing app
  • Next-day funding
  • Free MX merchant account
  • Low interchange-plus pricing
  • Businesses that process over $100,000 can even have transaction fees as low as 0.1% +5 cents plus interchange.
  • Flexible to choose all the systems you use
  • Simple and easy to use platform
  • Dharma merchant service gives you a merchant account that supports all major debit and credit cards, mobile payments, and ACH bank transfers
  • Dharma merchant provider is known as one of the most ethical processors. They uphold ethical and transparent business practices.

Cons

  • Not suitable for brands seeking a free card reader or a low-cost no fee plan
  • You may have to set up separate accounts for retail payments and online/telephone transactions.
  • Does not support high-risk or international brands.
  • It may not be a great choice for businesses that process less than $10,000/month
  • Businesses outside the U.S cannot use this service.

Features, Products & Services by Dharma Merchant Services

dharma review

 

Merchant services account

Dharma merchant service provider is a 3rd-party credit card payment processor, so your merchant account will be managed by their Fiserv (formerly First Data). So this is their main back-end processor. While Fiserv does not have a great reputation with small business owners, Dharma is strongly dedicated to these business types and provides much lower contract fees, account fees, and processing rates than they offer. Dharma will also provide customer service to you, so you won’t have plenty of contact with Fiserv,

MX Merchant app

Your Dharma merchant services login takes you straight to your MX merchant account. This superb merchant account offers access to a delightful amount of features including online payment links, robust online reporting, a mobile processing app, a virtual terminal, and a customer base including options to save customer payment data. You will also receive the capacity to create quick payment links for your website so your customers can send payments.

The merchant portal, MX merchant will be in-charge of creating monthly invoices and servicing your merchant account. For additional fees, you can also integrate B2B processing, recurring billing, ACH payment processing, and invoicing.

MX B2B app review

If you are a merchant doing level 2 and level 3 processing (business-to-business and business-to-government transactions respectively), you can use the MX B2B app which costs about $20 per month. This app will require additional data that is reported to the payment networks. Nevertheless, the MX B2B App makes it easy.

Payment gateway options

Dharma has partnered with Authorize.net and NMI Gateway to offer you payment gateway options where you can process online payments. Authorize.net allows easy credit card processing using the virtual terminal and smartphone swipes. To use this gateway you have to pay $10 per month and five cents per transaction

Alternatively, you can use the NMI Gateway for sending invoices, accepting Level 3 data, and taking payments on your website. The NMI Gateway also synchronizes with QuickBooks. To use this gateway, you have to pay $10 per month and five cents per transaction. Some additional features may also require additional charges.

Mobile app solutions

Dharma merchant services offer a sleek and beginner-friendly free MX Merchant Express IOS and Android app for accessing transaction fees and taking payments. If you take payments online, you can also create monthly invoices via this app for an additional fee. You can link to your existing website to receive payments seamlessly. It’s also possible to purchase a mobile card reader such as the Walker 2 card reader that works with this app to accept magstripe, NFC, and EMV-based payment methods. The reader actually costs about $99 and you can use it via Bluetooth or your smartphone’s headphone jack. With this mobile app, you can email or text receipts. Through the app, customers can also take photos of their cards instead of entering information.

Credit Card terminals

Dharma Merchant service is unrivaled for its flexibility. So you won’t be set up with any non-cancelable leases or be given free hardware that requires you to pay for them if ever you cancel. Dharma simply provides access to all kinds of credit card terminals and payment processing solutions.

Retail brands will love the access to purchase an EMV-compatible Bluetooth card reader for $149.00. There is also a wide range of desktop terminals for chip reading, swiping, and contactless payments as alternatives to the Bluetooth swiper. For instance, you can access Ingenico Desk/5000 ($375), Verifone Vx520  ($|295). and lots more. These terminals start from $229.

POS solutions

Dharma does not provide proprietary hardware but integrates easily with point-of-sale systems by Clover, including the Clover Mini. This, therefore, means you have the flexibility to change your merchant account provider at any time without making new hardware investments. That said, Dharma merchant services offer no free equipment. So, you have to pay upfront for your POS system from diverse brands including Clover, Verifone, Digital Dining, Aloha, Breadcrumb, Groupon, Lavu POS, Micros, Vendini, Talech POS, Squirrel POS, Shopkeep, Shopify POS, Revel POS, and NCS Silver.

ACH transactions

The MX Merchant platform also makes it easier to accept ACH payments and even save ACH information for future billing. It’s also easy to set up recurring ACH payments and the transaction fees will be lower than for credit cards. However, don’t forget that the ACH underwriting process is independent of Dharma merchant services. Their approval time usually takes up to 10 days and they might require additional documents. But once you are done with them, you can manage your ACH payments volume using your MX merchant portal.

MX Merchants Insights App

Want to learn more about your customers and local competitors? MX insights can help transform Big data into actionable insights to empower your business. With this tool, you can view all kinds of data about potential customers you never knew were possible. This includes data about the type of customers that frequent businesses like yours, their age, gender, education levels, and lots more.

Other integrations

Dharma merchant service also integrates with gateway solutions such as NMI gateway and Authorize.net. You can also enjoy other software integrations such as QuickBooks among others.

Ecommerce Solutions for Nonprofits

Dharma partners with 4aGoodCause to help non-profits create mobile-friendly web pages to take payments for donations or registrations. This web page is a superb choice for launching unlimited campaigns. It will also integrate with over 2,000+ third-party apps including CRM solutions, and other apps like Quickbooks, Salesforce, and Constant Contact. With this solution, nonprofits can get started the right way with a unique digital presence on the internet.

Kabbage Merchant Financing

Dharma also partners with Kabbage to provide lines of credit up to $150,000 for small businesses. This is not the same as a merchant cash advance. A credit line might just be the best solution when you are getting your business off the ground.

Dharma Merchant Services Fees: How much does Dharma Merchant Services Processing Cost?

Dharma also allows Surcharging  

Dharma Merchant Services surcharge customers

Dharma merchant services include a monthly fee plus an interchange pricing model for transactions. This interchange-plus pricing is also exclusive for every business that works with them. However, all business types also pay the same monthly fees but the transaction fees vary by processing volumes with higher discounts for qualified non-profits.

Monthly fees:

Dharma requires a monthly fee which is fixed regardless of your brand. The cost is $25/month. However, you may also pay additional monthly fees for using systems such as recurring online invoicing and simplified online ordering. Again, high volume retail establishments may also access lower monthly fees of $20/month.

Transaction fees :

This fee differs from one business type to the next with a few similarities. On average, Dharma merchant services charge a per-transaction fee, generally 0.15% plus $0.08 for in-store transactions alongside the interchange fees charged by the credit card industry. For online transactions, you pay a dharma merchant services fee of interchange + 0.20% plus $.11 Nevertheless, here’s the rate breakdown for different business types:

  • B2B processing rates

For B2B brands, you will pay interchange + 0.15% + $0.08 for card present transactions and 0.20% + $0.11 card-not-present transactions.

  • E-commerce stores

As said you pay a monthly $25 fee plus transactional fees of interchange + 0.20% + $0.11. There are no batch or AVS fees. For additional gateway service, you pay a minute fee to that gateway

  • Brick and mortar storefront and restaurant rates

Besides your $25 monthly fee, your transactional fees are interchange + 0.15% + $0.08 without any AVS or Batch fees. These rates also apply to quick-serve brands, health care institutes, and restaurants.

  • Non-profits

As said earlier, nonprofits enjoy delightful discounts. However, in general, your transaction fees would be interchange + 0.10% + $0.11 for virtual payments and 0.10% + $0.08 for storefront payments.

  • High-volume retail rates

You will pay $20/month plus interchange + 0.10% + $0.08 per transaction.

One thing you should note is that if you opt to accept American Express, you will be charged 0.25% of the transaction amount alongside the $0.07 fee when a customer pays with an American Express card. Again if you process ACH transactions, your transaction fee will be $0.40 per transaction.

There are also additional fees you might have to pay including:

  • Mobile card reader: $149
  • Gateway fees: $10/month and $0.05 per transaction
  • Retrieval fee: $5 per instance (only charged if a customer disputes a transaction)
  • Return item fee: $2
  • Recurring billing fee: $10 per month
  • Chargeback fee: $20 (only charged when a chargeback occurs)
  • Voice authorization fee: $1.50/per situation

However, there are no additional fees to set up your gateway. You will also pay no account setup fees or annual fees. Dharma also has no monthly minimum or early termination penalties.

Overall, Dharma now offers an online calculator that allows you to compare your anticipated costs. This further boosts their transparency and is a superb way to ensure you know every fee you will pay when using Dharma from day one.

Early Termination Fee and Contract Length

Dharma merchant services do not require that you sign up for a long-term. However, they do have a closure processing fee of $49 if you ever decide to permanently close your account. This is in no way the same as an early termination fee which usually costs hundreds of dollars and applies as a penalty. Also realize that if you ever permanently close your account, Dharma is required by law to keep your account open for a minimum of six months. The idea behind their closure fee is to account for record-keeping within this time.

However, if you don’t want to pay the closure fee to use Dharma merchant services especially when you are a seasonal business, you can always close and re-activate your account from time to time.

Dharma Merchant Services Customer Service

Dharma Merchant Services offers a robust customer service channel. You will also love their robust knowledge base where you can find tutorials, videos, and in-depth explanations on diverse features. This ensures you don’t have to call Dharma merchants customer service directly for everything. Even when you want that, Dharma has a dedicated customer service team in-house that can address your concerns through live chat support, and phone support between 8 am to 5 pm Pacific Time, Monday through Friday. You will also enjoy 24-hour tech support as well.

Besides their dedicated customer service channels, Dharma also has an active presence on social media channels such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube. But their YouTube channel offers a lot more in terms of educational videos alongside marketing videos from satisfied customers.

BBB Positive and Negative Reviews and Complaints

Dharma Merchant Service has a superb 4.1 rating on Trustpilot, 4.1 rating on Facebook, and an A+ rating on Better Business Bureau. However, they also seem to be lacking in reviews on BBB over the years with only 1 complaint in the last three years. They are also highly responsive to their customer review profile and take time to answer the questions asked by their customers from time to time. Most positive reviews praise their robust customer service representatives. Some of their customers that identified as non-profits or sympathetic to humanitarian causes also praised Dharma’s dedication to numerous charities. Other of their customers also praised their transparent pricing and rates. Comparing their overwhelmingly lack of negative reviews to the myriad of positive reviews from one end to the next, there’s no doubt that Dharma delivers impeccable service.

Comparisons with Other Credit Card Processing Payment Solutions

Dharma merchant services versus Square

Dharma merchant services offer monthly fees just as Square which is great for all kinds of brands including startups. Nevertheless, startups may benefit more from an alternative like Square because of their fixed rates for both swiped and keyed-in transactions. However, established brands may benefit more from the lower transaction fees because they process a higher volume. Unlike Square, Dharma does not force you into using their proprietary hardware. You can reprogram your favorite terminals and POS systems efficiently.

Dharma merchant services versus Payment Depot

Dharma merchant service offers one of the best interchange rates with lower monthly fees than Payment Depot. Payment Depot’s most basic plan starts at $49 per month. In contrast, Dharma offers startups access without monthly fees. Still, the lowest fee you pay for your monthly merchant account fees with Dharma is $25 per month. Nevertheless, Payment Depot might still be great for businesses with very high transaction in-flow.

Getting Started on Dharma Merchant Services

As said earlier, Dharma merchant services have a rigorous application process and typically take as much as 3 business days to approve new merchants. However, in some cases, Dharma will work with you from first contact, guiding you on what you need to change, provide or modify to get started. Your first step on the Dharma merchant service is filling out an online application. All you must have include:

  • Bank account information
  • Three months of current processing statements if you are already receiving credit card payments
  • Proof of legal entity (document showing your Taxpayer iD number or EIN or IRS letter)

The Verdict

There’s no doubt that Dharma merchant services are one of the best online merchant services for almost every business type. Their transparency, fairness, and robust customer service is one of a kind. You will also love their hassle-free processing experience and a firm dedication to your comfort. No matter your business size or type, you will access their dedicated customer support channels for any issues you have. However, if you process less than $10,000 volume, you might do better with Square as a more affordable option. Dharma does not also work with high-risk merchants or merchants outside the U.S. But overall, Dharma stands out as one of the best merchant services in the U.S.

Square, Best Choice
for Low Volume
Credit Card Processing

Starting at 2.6% + 10¢ per swipe for Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express.


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