Bank-to-bank ACH for ecommerce — 0.5–1.5% rates, 1–3 business-day settlement, and dramatically lower chargeback risk than card transactions.
What is ACH processing for ecommerce?
ACH (Automated Clearing House) moves money directly from a customer's bank account to yours, settling in 1–3 business days. It costs a fraction of card processing and carries almost none of the chargeback risk — disputes are governed by NACHA rules rather than card-brand chargeback codes.
When does ACH beat credit cards?
ACH wins anytime AOV is above $500, the order is recurring, or the customer is B2B. On a $2,000 order, card processing costs roughly $58 — ACH costs $5–15. Across a year that is real margin you can reinvest into ads or product.
How are ACH disputes different from chargebacks?
ACH returns happen via NACHA reason codes (R01 insufficient funds, R10 unauthorized, etc.). Unauthorized returns have a 60-day window vs the card chargeback window of 120 days, and there is no liability shift for issuers — clean authorization and clear billing descriptors keep return rates low.
Should ecommerce stores offer ACH at checkout?
Yes when you can hide it behind a $250–500 threshold. Offering ACH on low-AOV orders adds friction without margin payback. Above that threshold, the savings compound.
How does ACH pair with subscription billing?
Recurring ACH (using NACHA's WEB or TEL codes) is one of the cheapest ways to bill subscriptions — pair it with recurring billing tools for failed-payment retry logic.
Frequently asked questions
How fast can you get approved?
Most ecommerce merchants are approved within 24 hours of complete application submission. Files with chargeback history or international processing may take 48–72 hours while underwriting reviews trailing statements.
What does it cost?
Interchange-plus pricing — typically 2.4% + $0.10 per transaction with no setup fee and no monthly minimum. You see interchange cost, assessments, and our markup on a single itemized statement.
What if I've been terminated by another processor?
We work with merchants who've been dropped by Stripe, Square, and PayPal. Bring documentation of the termination plus 3–6 months of processing statements and we'll review your file.