Comparison · Updated October 26, 2026
Payment Depot vs Merchant One for US small businesses
Payment Depot
C+
Payment Depot, now operating as "Payment Depot by Stax," is a California-based merchant services provider founded in 2013 that pioneered the subscription/interchange-plus pricing model for small businesses, but has experienced significant customer service and transparency issues since its 2021 acquisition by Stax.
Merchant One
C+
A Miami Beach independent sales organization, incorporated in 2002 and bought by Fiserv in December 2022 for about $300 million — a fact almost no review of it mentions, and one that undercuts its own "we're not a broker or middleman" claim. It publishes headline rates, which is rare for an ISO, but they are qualified-tier rates on a tiered plan, and its Trustpilot score of 4.9 and its BBB customer-review average of 1.02 across 56 reviews describe two different companies.
VS
Overview
We compare the two for a low-risk US small business that wants a traditional merchant account, using each company's published US terms as of October 2026. In-person pricing is compared with in-person, and keyed and online with keyed and online. Both are independent sales organisations (ISOs), meaning they sell merchant accounts sponsored by a bank and run on a larger processor. Payment Depot has been owned by Stax since 2021 and is a registered ISO of Wells Fargo Bank. Merchant One has been owned by Fiserv since December 2022 and is a registered ISO of KeyBank, Citizens Bank and Pathward. They price in different ways. Payment Depot lists interchange plus a flat fee per sale, 8¢ in person and 15¢ keyed or online, with a monthly subscription whose price it does not publish. Merchant One publishes a $13.95 monthly fee and tiered "qualified" rates of 0.29% to 1.55% swiped and 0.29% to 1.99% keyed, and offers interchange-plus on request. It does not publish the rates charged on cards that fall out of the qualified tier. Payment Depot advertises no long-term contract and no cancellation fees. Merchant One publishes neither a contract length nor a termination fee for its merchant accounts, but its own 2021 equipment and gateway agreement, still hosted on its site, runs for three years. Both have complaint records that centre on billing and cancelling. Payment Review grades both C+.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Neither is a clear winner. Payment Depot is the more predictable price and the easier exit. Merchant One offers free placement terminals, its own gateway and round-the-clock support, but on terms it does not publish in full.
- ✓Payment Depot's listed price is interchange plus 0% plus 8¢ in person and 15¢ keyed or online, plus a subscription it does not price. Merchant One's $13.95 a month and 0.29% headline rates apply only to qualified transactions, and its mid- and non-qualified rates are not published. Ask Merchant One for interchange-plus in writing.
- ✓Payment Depot advertises no long-term contract and no cancellation fees. Merchant One publishes no merchant-account term or exit fee. Its 2021 equipment and gateway agreement runs three years, renews yearly and charges $450 for an unreturned standard terminal, and Business News Daily reports exit fees of up to $750 for each remaining year.
- ✓Both complaint records are about money. Payment Depot is rated F by the BBB for not answering complaints, and its Trustpilot reviewers report fee rises since Stax bought it. Merchant One holds a BBB A+, but its customers rate it 1.02 out of 5 there, against 4.9 on Trustpilot from reviews it invites.
Payment Depot
Choose Payment Depot if you want a pass-through price you can check against your statement and the freedom to leave without a fee. Get the monthly subscription price, the PCI fee and the chargeback fee in writing before you sign, because none is published.
Merchant One
Choose Merchant One if you want a free placement terminal or Clover system, its own gateway with shopping-cart plugins, and a named account manager with 24/7 support. Insist on interchange-plus pricing and get the term, exit fee and equipment terms in writing first.
The Verdict
It Depends on Your Needs
Why?
The two suit different merchants, and both have complaint records about billing that you should take seriously. Payment Depot is easier to price and to leave. It passes interchange through with a listed 8¢ or 15¢ per sale and advertises no contract and no cancellation fee, though it does not publish its subscription, PCI or chargeback fees. Merchant One offers more up front: free placement terminals, Clover systems, its own gateway with shopping-cart plugins, and 24/7 support with a named account manager. But its published rates cover only qualified transactions, and it publishes no merchant-account term or exit fee. Its own equipment agreement runs three years, renews yearly and charges you for any terminal you do not return. A merchant who mainly wants a transparent price and the freedom to leave will do better with Payment Depot. One who wants hardware and hands-on support at the start, and will negotiate interchange-plus and the exit terms in writing, may prefer Merchant One.
Feature by feature
Detailed Comparison
Filter Options
Pricing (US, as of October 2026)
| Feature | Payment Depot | Merchant One |
|---|---|---|
| In-person (swiped) sales | Interchange + 0% + 8¢ | 0.29%–1.55% qualified (tiered) |
| Payment Depot's pricing page, as read on 26 October 2026, lists "0% markup on interchange" and $0.08 per card-present sale. The same page also advertises "variable rates as low as 0.2% - 1.95%" and sends you to a consultant for a quote, so 0% is the listed rate, not a guaranteed one. Merchant One's home page lists a "Qualified Swiped Rate" of 0.29% to 1.55% and says the rates are "for qualifying rates" and that the signed merchant processing agreement overrides the table. Under tiered pricing, rewards, business and corporate cards usually fall into mid- or non-qualified tiers, and Merchant One publishes no rate for those. Merchant One also lists "Interchange Plus: Available" but gives no markup. The two are not priced on the same basis, so we mark no winner. | ||
| Keyed and online sales | Interchange + 0% + 15¢ | 0.29%–1.99% qualified keyed (tiered) |
| Payment Depot's 15¢ covers keyed and online card-not-present sales. Merchant One publishes a "Qualified Keyed-in Rate" of 0.29% to 1.99%, publishes no separate e-commerce rate, and publishes no rate for keyed or online sales that fall outside the qualified tier. No winner, for the same reason as above. | ||
| Monthly account fee | Not disclosed | $13.95 |
| Payment Depot's pricing page says "Subscriptions unlock all these features at no extra cost" but prints no subscription price. The Stax terms of use linked from its site (last modified 20 December 2024) say subscription fees are "billed in advance on a recurring monthly basis until canceled". CardFellow, in an undated review, reports Payment Depot membership plans of $59, $79 and $99 a month by annual volume. Payment Depot does not confirm these figures, and Trustpilot reviewers since 2023 report higher monthly charges, so they may be out of date. Merchant One's home page lists a $13.95 monthly fee and a $0.00 setup fee. Because Payment Depot's fee is unpublished, we mark no winner. | ||
| Setup fee | $0 | $0 |
| Payment Depot's industry pages promise "no set-up or cancellation fees". Merchant One's home page lists a $0.00 setup fee, and its industry page says "No application or setup fees". | ||
| PCI compliance fee | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Neither company publishes a PCI fee, and the reports conflict. An older Payment Depot blog post says it provides PCI-compliant processing "at no additional charge", but independent reviewers report $10 a month, rising to $19.99 if you are not compliant, and a 2025 BBB complaint describes non-compliance fees. Business News Daily (updated 20 July 2026) says some Merchant One customers report a $100 annual PCI fee. Ask both for the figure in writing. | ||
| ACH / eCheck | 1% per transaction, capped at $10 | Not disclosed |
| Payment Depot lists ACH on its pricing page. Merchant One's gateway takes ACH payments through its virtual terminal but publishes no price. | ||
In-person (swiped) sales
Payment Depot
Interchange + 0% + 8¢
Merchant One
0.29%–1.55% qualified (tiered)
Payment Depot's pricing page, as read on 26 October 2026, lists "0% markup on interchange" and $0.08 per card-present sale. The same page also advertises "variable rates as low as 0.2% - 1.95%" and sends you to a consultant for a quote, so 0% is the listed rate, not a guaranteed one. Merchant One's home page lists a "Qualified Swiped Rate" of 0.29% to 1.55% and says the rates are "for qualifying rates" and that the signed merchant processing agreement overrides the table. Under tiered pricing, rewards, business and corporate cards usually fall into mid- or non-qualified tiers, and Merchant One publishes no rate for those. Merchant One also lists "Interchange Plus: Available" but gives no markup. The two are not priced on the same basis, so we mark no winner.
Keyed and online sales
Payment Depot
Interchange + 0% + 15¢
Merchant One
0.29%–1.99% qualified keyed (tiered)
Payment Depot's 15¢ covers keyed and online card-not-present sales. Merchant One publishes a "Qualified Keyed-in Rate" of 0.29% to 1.99%, publishes no separate e-commerce rate, and publishes no rate for keyed or online sales that fall outside the qualified tier. No winner, for the same reason as above.
Monthly account fee
Payment Depot
Not disclosed
Merchant One
$13.95
Payment Depot's pricing page says "Subscriptions unlock all these features at no extra cost" but prints no subscription price. The Stax terms of use linked from its site (last modified 20 December 2024) say subscription fees are "billed in advance on a recurring monthly basis until canceled". CardFellow, in an undated review, reports Payment Depot membership plans of $59, $79 and $99 a month by annual volume. Payment Depot does not confirm these figures, and Trustpilot reviewers since 2023 report higher monthly charges, so they may be out of date. Merchant One's home page lists a $13.95 monthly fee and a $0.00 setup fee. Because Payment Depot's fee is unpublished, we mark no winner.
Setup fee
Payment Depot
$0
Merchant One
$0
Payment Depot's industry pages promise "no set-up or cancellation fees". Merchant One's home page lists a $0.00 setup fee, and its industry page says "No application or setup fees".
PCI compliance fee
Payment Depot
Not disclosed
Merchant One
Not disclosed
Neither company publishes a PCI fee, and the reports conflict. An older Payment Depot blog post says it provides PCI-compliant processing "at no additional charge", but independent reviewers report $10 a month, rising to $19.99 if you are not compliant, and a 2025 BBB complaint describes non-compliance fees. Business News Daily (updated 20 July 2026) says some Merchant One customers report a $100 annual PCI fee. Ask both for the figure in writing.
ACH / eCheck
Payment Depot
1% per transaction, capped at $10
Merchant One
Not disclosed
Payment Depot lists ACH on its pricing page. Merchant One's gateway takes ACH payments through its virtual terminal but publishes no price.
Best For Your Business
Recommendations based on your business type
Established retail store or restaurant that wants to check its processing costs against its statement
Recommended
Payment Depot
Payment Depot passes interchange through and adds a listed 8¢ per in-person sale, so every line on the statement can be checked. Merchant One's default plan is tiered, and it does not publish the mid- and non-qualified rates that rewards and business cards usually fall into.
New business that does not want to buy a terminal
Recommended
Merchant One
Merchant One offers the Pax S80, FD-130 or Verifone VX-520 free under its terminal placement program for new accounts. Under its equipment agreement the terminal stays Merchant One's, and you pay $450 if you do not return it when you leave. Payment Depot sells equipment outright: card readers from $125 and countertop terminals from $310 for a Dejavoo QD4.
Seasonal or uncertain business that may need to close the account
Recommended
Payment Depot
Payment Depot advertises no long-term contract and no cancellation fees. Merchant One publishes no term or exit fee, its own equipment agreement runs three years and renews yearly, and Business News Daily reports exit fees of up to $750 for each remaining year. Cancel in writing with either company, because both have BBB complaints about charges after closure.
Online store that needs a gateway with shopping-cart plugins
Recommended
Merchant One
Merchant One's gateway lists more than 175 shopping-cart integrations, a QuickBooks plugin, recurring billing and an API. Payment Depot offers hosted payment pages and payment links but names no shopping cart it integrates with. Ask Merchant One for interchange-plus pricing, because it publishes no e-commerce rate.
Merchant who wants low, fully published pricing and good service
Neither company publishes its full cost. Payment Depot leaves out its subscription, PCI and chargeback fees, and Merchant One leaves out its downgrade tiers, contract term and exit fee. Both have BBB complaints about fees and cancelling. Compare them with providers that publish complete fee schedules before you sign.
Payment Depot: Best for 2 use cases
Merchant One: Best for 2 use cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this comparison
It depends on your card mix and on what each quotes you, because neither publishes its full price. Payment Depot lists interchange plus 0% plus 8¢ in person and 15¢ keyed or online, plus a monthly subscription it does not price. Merchant One lists $13.95 a month and qualified rates from 0.29%, but it does not publish the higher tiers that rewards and business cards usually land in. If you ask Merchant One for interchange-plus pricing and both give you a markup in writing, you can compare them directly. This is as of October 2026.
Merchant One does not publish one on its site. Its own Payment Gateway, Equipment and Services Agreement, dated 2021 and still hosted on its website, runs for three years and renews automatically for a year at a time unless either side gives 30 days' notice. Business News Daily, updated July 2026, reports a minimum three-year merchant agreement and an exit fee of up to $750 for each year remaining, though it also says the contract is not always enforced. Get the term and the fee written into your agreement before you sign.
Payment Depot's pricing page says subscriptions unlock its features but prints no subscription price. The Stax terms of use it links to bill subscription fees monthly in advance until you cancel. Third-party reviewers have reported plans of $59 to $99 a month, which Payment Depot does not confirm. Ask for the monthly price in writing.
Stax, a subscription-pricing processor based in Orlando, bought Payment Depot in 2021. Payment Depot is a registered ISO of Wells Fargo Bank. Fiserv bought Merchant One on 20 December 2022 for about $302 million. Merchant One still trades under its own name, is a registered ISO of KeyBank, Citizens Bank and Pathward, and sells Fiserv's Clover systems.
Both are established, bank-sponsored sales organisations, but both have complaint records worth reading. The BBB rates Payment Depot F for failing to respond to complaints, and its recent Trustpilot reviews report fee rises since Stax bought it. Merchant One holds a BBB A+ and 4.9 on Trustpilot from reviews it invites. However, its BBB customer reviews average 1.02 out of 5, and it had 193 BBB complaints in three years. The ones BBB publishes concern fees charged after accounts were closed and a monthly minimum fee.
Both advertise next-day funding. Payment Depot lists next-business-day funding as standard, and Merchant One advertises next-day deposits. Neither publishes its batch cut-off times, and customers of both have reported slower deposits, so confirm the funding schedule for your account.
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