Industry guide

Best merchant services for contractors

Contractors and tradespeople operate in one of the most payment-inefficient environments in small business. The 2024 Billd National Subcontractor Market Report found the average wait time from invoice submission to payment is 57 days — and 60% of subcontractors report being slow-paid by general contractors. With 77–79% coming out-of-pocket for materials and labor while waiting, cash flow management is existential. On the flip side, a $10,000 invoice run through a card processor at 2.9% costs $290 in fees. That same payment via ACH costs roughly $5. The right processor decision here is largely about when to use ACH, when to accept cards, and how to set up payment links that make it easy for clients to pay.

Compare across the table below, then open the Merchant Fee Analyzer to model your actual monthly volume against each processor — or see the national shortlist.