Cost Comparison: Pay by bank vs. US payment methods
Payment processing costs: Pay by bank vs. US payment methods
Payments
March 19, 2026
Nick Rudy
Product Marketing Manager
Table of contents
- What is pay by bank?
- What are payment processing costs?
- Total cost: Pay by bank vs. legacy ACH
- Total cost: Pay by bank vs. cards
- Other payment method costs
- Try Aeropay’s Pay by Bank Cost Savings Calculator
Key takeaways
Accepting online payments means paying a portion of your revenue in processing fees. Find out how much it costs to accept each popular payment method, plus how much you’ll save by adding pay by bank at checkout.
What is pay by bank?
Pay by bank is an emerging payment method where customers connect their bank account to buy goods and services online. Instead of entering card numbers or bank details, the customer simply logs into their online banking app to add their account and make a payment.
When a customer uses pay by bank, money can move over three main bank networks (or “rails”):
- ACH (Automated Clearing House) Network
- RTP® Network
- FedNow® Service
Pay by bank significantly reduces processing costs, enhancing bank payments for a customer-friendly, low-risk acceptance option.
What are payment processing costs?
When a business accepts a payment, it is paying for the systems that authorize the transaction, move the money, settle the funds, and manage the risk around it. Here’s what is commonly included in the cost of payment processing:
- Interchange fees. The largest portion of card processing costs, typically ranging from about 1.5% to 3%.
- Network (assessment) fees. Charged by card networks like Visa for using their payment rails, usually a small percentage of each transaction.
- Processor fees. Added by payment processors to cover payment authorization and fraud monitoring; often charged as a percentage plus a flat fee, such as 2.9% + $0.30.
- Operational and compliance fees. Monthly or usage-based fees for services like payment gateways or PCI compliance.
- Disputes and chargebacks. Costs incurred when a customer disputes a transaction, often resulting in additional fees ranging from $15 to $100 or more.
In summary, U.S. businesses pay between 1.5% and 5% of every transaction in payment processing costs.
Total cost: Pay by bank vs. legacy ACH
The terms “pay by bank” and "ACH" are often used interchangeably, but they rely on different infrastructure. Traditional ACH payments require manual account entry, while modern pay by bank solutions use API-based connections for more reliable and cost-effective payments.
ACH processing costs
ACH transactions typically cost between $0.20 and $1.50 per transfer, but low customer adoption, high return risk, and greater fraud exposure make these savings challenging for businesses.
Pay by bank processing costs
Modern pay by bank providers usually charge around 1%–1.5% per transaction, with a small flat fee. However, real savings come from improved approval rates and payment reliability, with most providers offering a guaranteed ACH model.
When implemented correctly, approval rates can exceed 90%.
Total cost: Pay by bank vs. cards
Card payments are the costliest due to multiple layers of fees averaging between 2%-5%. Chargebacks can add an additional 3.2% cost per transaction on average.
Pay by bank savings
On average, accepting pay by bank costs 50% less than card payments, especially for recurring billing and high-value transactions.
Other payment method costs
Debit cards
While interchange rates for debit cards are capped, blended pricing can lead to similar processing costs as credit cards.
Digital wallets
Most digital wallet payments are processed similarly to credit or debit cards, resulting in similar fees of roughly 2% to 3.5%. Additional service fees from providers can increase total costs.
Buy now, pay later (BNPL)
This method usually incurs higher processing fees of 3% to 6% per transaction, reflecting the premium services offered by BNPL providers.
Try Aeropay’s Pay by Bank Cost Savings Calculator
Optimizing payments can lead to considerable gains in profit margin and revenue. Using the pay by bank savings calculator allows you to input your payment volume and processing costs to see potential savings.