Comparison · Updated September 9, 2026
Stax vs Payment Depot
Stax
B
Stax is a payments technology company founded in 2014 that partners with SaaS companies, ISOs, and SMBs to enable flexible, multi-channel payment processing and invoicing solutions, claiming a distinctive subscription-based pricing model with 0% interchange markup.
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.
VS
Overview
Start with the fact most comparisons of these two leave out: they are the same company. Stax acquired Payment Depot in 2021, the brand trades as Payment Depot by Stax, and both are run out of Orlando. The convergence has since reached the price list. As of September 2026 the two pricing pages carry an identical rate card - 0% markup on interchange, $0.08 per card-present transaction, $0.15 card-not-present, ACH at 1% capped at $10, $19 a month for terminal protection, next business day funding and no cancellation fees. The one real difference on the page is that Stax publishes its monthly subscription tiers and Payment Depot publishes no monthly fee at all, sending you to a sales consultant instead. Payment Review grades Stax B and Payment Depot C+.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Same owner since 2021 and, as of September 2026, the same published rate card: 0% interchange markup, $0.08 card-present, $0.15 card-not-present, ACH 1% capped at $10.
- ✓Stax publishes its subscription tiers - $99, $139 and $199+ a month by annual volume. Payment Depot publishes no monthly fee and quotes it through sales.
- ✓The widely repeated $79 a month Payment Depot figure is not on Payment Depot's own pricing page, and third-party sources disagree with each other about what replaced it.
- ✓Both fund next business day, both charge no early termination fee, and both price terminal protection at $19 a month - there is no cost argument between the brands.
- ✓Stax is the better-supported product on Payment Review's scoring: features 5.0 against 2.0, and a Trustpilot standing of 4.4 against 2.3.
Stax
Stax is the brand to sign with if you are choosing today: the same processing economics, but with the monthly cost published before you talk to anyone, a broader platform behind it and materially better third-party standing.
Payment Depot
Payment Depot is the legacy brand on the same rails. It is a reasonable place to already be - the rate card is identical - but it gives a new merchant no published price and no capability Stax lacks.
Overall Winner
🏆 Winner
Stax
Bexpert grade
Runner-up
Payment Depot
Why?
Stax, but for a narrower reason than the grade gap suggests - and a merchant should understand why before treating this as a real choice. On processing economics there is nothing to choose: the two pricing pages now carry the same interchange markup, the same $0.08 and $0.15 transaction fees, the same ACH terms, the same $19 terminal protection, the same next business day funding and the same absence of a cancellation fee. That is what happens when one company owns both brands. What separates them is everything around the price. Stax publishes its monthly subscription - $99, $139 or $199+ by annual volume - so you can cost it before speaking to a salesperson, while Payment Depot publishes no monthly fee at all and the $79 figure repeated across the web is not on its site. Stax also has the broader platform, having bought a gateway and a surcharging engine, and much better third-party standing at 4.4 on Trustpilot against 2.3. If you are choosing today, sign with Stax. If you are already on Payment Depot, note that you are already a Stax customer and that there is no rate-card reason to migrate - renegotiate instead.
Feature by feature
Detailed Comparison
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Who you are actually buying from
| Feature | Stax | Payment Depot |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Stax Payments, Orlando, Florida | Stax Payments - acquired 2021, trades as Payment Depot by Stax |
| This is the row that reframes the rest of the page. A merchant comparing these two is not choosing between two processors; they are choosing which of one company's two brands to sign under. | ||
| Founded | 2014 | 2013 |
| Acquiring relationship | Processing technology company selling direct and through partners | Registered ISO of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. |
Owner
Stax
Stax Payments, Orlando, Florida
Payment Depot
Stax Payments - acquired 2021, trades as Payment Depot by Stax
This is the row that reframes the rest of the page. A merchant comparing these two is not choosing between two processors; they are choosing which of one company's two brands to sign under.
Founded
Stax
2014
Payment Depot
2013
Acquiring relationship
Stax
Processing technology company selling direct and through partners
Payment Depot
Registered ISO of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
Best For Your Business
Recommendations based on your business type
Merchant choosing between the two purely on processing cost
Both. There is no cost argument to settle. As of September 2026 both published rate cards are identical: 0% markup on interchange, $0.08 card-present, $0.15 card-not-present, ACH at 1% capped at $10, next business day funding, no cancellation fee. Whichever you sign, the processing economics are the same company's.
Business that wants to know the monthly cost before talking to a salesperson
Recommended
Stax
Stax states its three subscription tiers on its pricing page, so a merchant can work out the monthly cost against its own annual volume unaided. Payment Depot's pricing page names no subscription figure and routes to a consultant for an estimate.
Small business under $150,000 in annual card volume
Recommended
Stax
Stax's entry tier is published at $99 a month for volume up to $150,000 a year, which is a number this merchant can test against its own statements immediately. Payment Depot may quote lower - third-party sources suggest tiers starting below that - but none of those figures is confirmed by Payment Depot, so it cannot be relied on when modelling.
Business already processing on Payment Depot
Both. You are already a Stax customer, and the rate cards match, so migrating between the brands buys nothing. The productive move is to take the published Stax tiers into a renegotiation of your existing agreement and ask for the PCI and chargeback fees in writing, since neither is published.
Merchant needing a developer-facing gateway or an ISV integration
Recommended
Stax
Stax brought a gateway in-house with the BlockChyp acquisition in 2024 and sells an API and partner programme around it. Payment Depot's published feature set is a competent small-business dashboard - invoicing, hosted pages, payment links, recurring billing - without that developer surface.
Business that needs support outside US business hours
Neither brand publishes support hours anywhere on its site, and Payment Review's assessment of both is business-hours Eastern coverage rather than round the clock. Payment Depot's home page claims support "by phone or online anytime", which its own contact page - two phone numbers, no hours, no email - does not substantiate. If overnight coverage matters, get the commitment in the contract or look elsewhere.
Stax: Best for 3 use cases
Payment Depot: Best for 0 use cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this comparison
Yes. Stax acquired Payment Depot in 2021 and the brand now trades as Payment Depot by Stax, run from the same Orlando base. That is why the two price lists have converged: as of September 2026 both publish 0% markup on interchange, $0.08 per card-present transaction, $0.15 card-not-present, ACH at 1% capped at $10, $19 a month terminal protection and next business day funding. Comparing them is really a question of which brand to sign under, not which processor to use.
That figure is not on Payment Depot's pricing page, and nothing on its site confirms any monthly subscription price - the page lists the standard per-transaction fees and then invites you to contact a consultant for an estimate. Third-party reviewers also disagree with each other: one publishes tiers at $59, $79 and $99 by volume, another a flat $79. Treat all of them as unconfirmed and ask for the subscription figure in writing before signing.
On the published rate card, neither - they are identical, line for line. The only cost variable that could separate them is the monthly subscription, and only one of the two publishes it: Stax at $99, $139 or $199+ a month depending on annual volume. Because Payment Depot's is quoted rather than published, the honest answer is that you cannot know which is cheaper for your business until you have both quotes, and that any difference is a sales decision by one company rather than a difference in the underlying processing.
It did. Payment Depot originally sold a membership model with published monthly tiers, and its current pricing page instead shows the Stax standard fee structure with no subscription price named at all. Some customer reviews collected by third parties report that their costs rose after the acquisition, though neither company has published anything confirming a systematic increase, so treat that as reported experience rather than an established fact.
Stax, on the evidence available, though the gap is about reputation rather than a documented service difference. Payment Review scores Stax 3.0 out of 5 on support against Payment Depot's 2.0, and third-party standing diverges sharply - Trustpilot has Stax at 4.4 across roughly 1,235 reviews and Payment Depot at 2.3. Both sit at 1 star on the BBB. Neither publishes support hours, and Payment Depot's contact page offers two phone numbers and no email address.
Not for the rates, because they are the same and you are already a Stax customer either way. The reasons to move are platform rather than price: Stax sells a gateway of its own since the BlockChyp acquisition in 2024, a wider integration list and an automated surcharging product, and it publishes its subscription tiers. If none of that is relevant to you, the better use of the information is to take Stax's published tiers into a renegotiation of the agreement you already have.
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