For years, restaurant brands have been told relief on credit card fees is coming. In 2026, the numbers tell a different story: fees hit a record high last year, and the settlement meant to bring them down is stalled in court.
Card fees are usually the third-largest expense for a restaurant, after food and employee wages.
Restaurants do have an opportunity that doesn’t involve waiting for Congress or the legal system. Brands that take the time to re-examine how they process payments—and make use of systems specifically for restaurants—will likely be able to find significant relief from overbearing fees.
Where the Visa and Mastercard swipe fee settlement stands in 2026
Visa and Mastercard reached a proposed settlement to end a decades-long legal fight over swipe fees. Restaurant and retail groups aren't satisfied with it. They've formally objected in court, arguing the deal's proposed 0.1% cut to interchange would still leave merchants paying too much. A federal judge is expected to weigh in on the settlement sometime this year.
Meanwhile, average interchange sat at 2.35% in 2025, up from 2.26% in 2023. Total interchange fees paid by U.S. merchants hit $187.2 billion, a record. Merchants Payments Coalition estimated that works out to roughly $1,200 a year for the average family—a cost that ultimately flows back into menu prices.
Congress has tried to address this too. The Credit Card Competition Act, which would require banks to offer merchants a choice of payment networks instead of routing everything through Visa or Mastercard, was reintroduced in January. It was also introduced in some form in 2022 and 2023.
How rising credit card fees are squeezing restaurant margins
None of this is news to any operator who's looked closely at a merchant statement. But the scale has changed: restaurant sales are over a trillion dollars a year.
Debit fees are still capped under the Durbin Amendment. Credit card fees are not, and they've had room to climb every year while the lawsuit over them worked its way through the courts.
That's part of why some restaurants are surcharging or offering cash discounts instead of folding the cost into menu prices. It's a visible way to pass the cost of card acceptance to the guest paying with a card, rather than raising prices across the board.
For brands considering this route, state rules vary. Some states, like Connecticut, ban surcharging outright; others, like Minnesota, require specific disclosure at the point of sale.
How can restaurants reduce credit card fees?
The settlement and the legislation are both out of any single brand's hands.
Restaurant brands, unfortunately, have to eat credit card fees; however, many don’t realize most processor-level fees are negotiable. Here are a few things you can do to manage the high cost of accepting payments:
Review statements every month. Payment processors don't always flag rate changes proactively. Some make it the merchant's job to catch a new line item or a rate bump by combing through the statement itself. If something looks unfamiliar or an "Other Fees" line doesn't map to a service the brand actually uses, it's worth a call.
Negotiate processor-assessed fees. Interchange itself is set by the card networks and isn't negotiable. But most of what a processor tacks on beyond interchange is. This is especially true at contract renewal. Ask directly whether a given fee comes from the processor or from the card brand; the line between the two isn't always obvious on a statement.
Reconsider the payment stack. Brands that locked in a "cheapest rate" years ago often stick with it long after better options exist, mainly because switching feels like a hassle. A restaurant-specific payment platform with transparent pricing and built-in fraud prevention can close that gap, even accounting for the time it takes to onboard. Plus, it can provide greater opportunity to learn more about guests.
The cost of accepting card payments isn't going down anytime soon. But a brand doesn't have to just absorb whatever a processor charges, either.
Learn more about Olo Pay, Olo's restaurant payment platform, and talk to the team about protecting margin on every transaction.
