Data Verification
ProcessorFit checks provider information against publicly available sources and clearly labels what has been confirmed, what remains unknown, and what should be verified directly with the provider.
Each field on a provider profile carries a verification status that reflects ProcessorFit's confidence in that specific data point based on available public sources at the time of the most recent review.
A field is marked Confirmed when ProcessorFit can support it with public provider documentation, pricing pages, merchant agreements, official support materials, card-network documentation, or another source type allowed by the data-sources policy. Confirmed fields reflect what public sources say at the time of review — providers can change terms at any time, so merchants should still verify current details directly.
A field is marked Needs Verification when public information exists but is incomplete, ambiguous, stale, provider-specific, or likely to vary by merchant account. Merchants should verify these details directly with the provider before relying on them.
A field is marked Unknown when ProcessorFit has not found enough reliable public information to classify it. Unknown is treated as a real research state, not filled with assumptions or inferred values.
A provider or field is marked Research in Progress when ProcessorFit has identified the provider or topic but has not completed enough review to publish a full research profile or conclusion. No pricing estimates or inferred information are published until research is complete and verified.
A confidence level describes how strongly ProcessorFit can support a field from public sources. It does not mean a provider is better or worse, and it does not guarantee that a merchant will receive the same terms.
Confidence levels are assigned at the profile level and reflect the overall depth of available public documentation — not a measure of provider quality, size, or trustworthiness.
ProcessorFit applies field-specific standards when evaluating what public evidence is sufficient to confirm a particular data point.
Pricing model
Confirmed from public pricing page or provider marketing materials that explicitly name the model (interchange-plus, flat-rate, membership, tiered).
Rates and fees
Confirmed only when specific rate or fee figures appear in official published pricing — not inferred from general descriptions. Unlisted rates are marked needs-verification.
Contract terms
Confirmed from published merchant agreements, terms of service, or official documentation. Month-to-month vs. multi-year status requires explicit public statement.
Industries served
Confirmed from public website, product pages, or official documentation. Assumed acceptance is not counted.
Prohibited businesses
Confirmed from published acceptable-use policies or terms of service. If specific prohibited categories are not publicly listed, marked unknown.
Payout timing
Confirmed from official documentation or public support materials stating specific business-day windows. Promotional claims are not used as the sole source.
Reserve and hold policies
Confirmed from published merchant agreements or official documentation. Reserve practices that are not publicly disclosed are marked unknown.
Hardware obligations
Confirmed from public pricing and hardware pages. Proprietary hardware requirements or lock-in terms require explicit public confirmation.
Supported payment channels
Confirmed from product pages or official feature documentation (in-person, online, mobile, invoicing).
Integration capabilities
Confirmed from official integration directories, developer documentation, or public partnership announcements.
Customer support channels
Confirmed from public support pages or help centers. Availability hours and contact methods require public documentation.
ProcessorFit uses a tiered approach to source evaluation. Higher-tier sources carry more weight in field confirmation. See the full Data Sources methodology for detailed sourcing policy.
Primary provider sources
Official provider websites, pricing pages, product documentation, and marketing materials published by the provider.
Merchant agreements and terms
Published terms of service, merchant agreements, acceptable-use policies, and legal documentation.
Official support documentation
Help center articles, support guides, and official FAQ content published directly by the provider.
Card-network and payment-network documentation
Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and other network rules and interchange documentation where relevant to provider capabilities.
Regulatory or public legal documents
Publicly filed regulatory documents, court records, or government databases where relevant to provider fact claims.
Evidence separation
ProcessorFit separates verified provider facts from merchant-experience evidence and independent corroboration. Merchant interviews, surveys, case studies, journalism, and community reports can inform research questions or provide context, but they do not replace official sources for provider pricing, contract terms, or policy claims.
Each provider profile displays a last-reviewed date indicating when ProcessorFit most recently checked and updated the profile. This date does not guarantee that all details remain current — providers can change pricing, terms, and policies at any time.
For more on how review cycles work, see the Data Freshness & Review Schedule methodology page.
No comparison tool replaces direct confirmation with a provider before committing. Before signing any agreement, merchants should verify the following directly with each provider under consideration:
Payment processor approval, pricing, and terms are determined solely by the provider based on their underwriting criteria, risk assessment, and business policies. ProcessorFit has no influence over these outcomes.
ProcessorFit updates provider research when public sources change or when credible corrections identify outdated, incomplete, or incorrect fields.
Merchants, providers, and researchers can submit corrections through the Community Update Center. All corrections are independently reviewed and verified before publication. Provider submissions do not receive special editorial treatment and are subject to the same verification standards as any other source.
See the Review Methodology page for how corrections are evaluated and incorporated.
Found Outdated Information?
Help improve ProcessorFit by submitting a correction. Every verified update helps merchants make better payment processing decisions.
Related methodology