Do I Need An Internet Merchant Account In Order To Take Credit Card Payments On My Web Site?

This is a commonly held misconception; you don't need an internet merchant account to accept credit card payments. This assumption holds true for sites with medium to high sales volumes. But for small companies or organisations with low sale volumes a free merchant account from a third party processing company should be sufficient for their needs.

A free merchant account provider or third party credit card will accept credit card payments on your behalf using their merchant account, which has special additional rights allowing them to take credit card transaction for other companies.

This is not to say that free merchant accounts aren't a good thing for some people. There are number of major advantages that should not be dismissed.

Taking out the credit card processing part of the e-commerce equation can save a lot of headaches and work for small companies. It also acts as a way station, letting small web ventures test the water before committing to the expense of their own internet merchant account. Where sales volumes are low, a free merchant account means not having to pay monthly operating charges, the fees are only payable on what is actually sold.