Dharma Merchant Services Review

If you’re looking for a credit card processing company and you process more than $10,000 per month, here’s what you need to know about Dharma Merchant Services’ rates and fees, services, reviews, and more.

• History
• What can Dharma Merchant Services do?
  • Card-Present Payments
  • Card-Not-Present Payments
  • Flint Partnership for Smaller Businesses
  • B2B Transactions 
• Dharma Merchant Services Rates and Fees
• What about equipment?
• Is there a cancellation fee?
• Dharma Merchant Services Reviews
  • Dharma Merchant Services at the Better Business Bureau
  • Dharma Merchant Services on Yelp
  • What CardFellow Thinks

History

Dharma Merchant Services was founded in California in 2007 to offer credit card services to businesses processing more than $10,000/month. Dharma Merchant Services is a registered ISO and MSP of Wells Fargo Bank and is a certified ”green” business.

What can Dharma Merchant Services do?

Dharma Merchant Services offers processing for card-present and card-not-present transaction. Note that Dharma services are available to you if you process more than $10,000 per month. If you process less than that, Dharma Merchant Services partners with Flint to offer card acceptance.

Card-Present Payments

If you’re taking credit and debit cards in person (also known as “card-present” transactions), Dharma gives you several choices. You can use a traditional countertop terminal (either purchased new, or reprogrammed for a fee), a full-featured POS system, or a mobile device like a smartphone or tablet. You can accept all major credit and debit cards with any of the listed methods.

Card-Not-Present Payments

Maybe you don’t take cards in person, but instead need a solution that lets you take them you’re your customer isn’t present. Phone orders and online payments both fall into this category. For those, Dharma Merchant Services uses Authorize.Net gateways. With Authorize.Net, you’ll get a virtual terminal, so you can take customers’ payment information over the phone and enter it securely. If you’re more interested in taking payments through your e-commerce website, Authorize.Net offers shopping cart integration, “Buy” buttons, recurring billing for subscription services, and QuickBooks compatibility.

Flint Partnership for Smaller Businesses

Dharma partners with Flint so businesses that process $10,000 or less/month can accept payments directly through Apple or Android devices. Featuring fast approval, QuickBooks sales importing, and payment every 2 business days, Flint’s services don’t require special hardware. You can use the built-in camera on your smartphone to scan the credit card you’re processing quickly and securely. There is no monthly commitment with Flint.

B2B Transactions

For those of you running business-to-business companies rather than selling to consumers, Dharma offers a solution to help you get the best possible interchange costs.

Many businesses think that accepting commercial credit cards is very expensive. In actuality, there are steps you can take to lower your costs for accepting commercial cards. It's a matter of providing what's called enhanced data.

For businesses new to enhanced data, it can seem confusing or time-consuming. Fortunately, Dharma offers an easy solution - the MX B2B app through Priority Payments. The system lets you enter an order as you normally would while filling out any fields required to qualify for enhanced data. That means that you'll get the lower cost interchange rates without the headaches of manually entering extra information.

If you run a B2B company and haven't checked out our guide to accepting commercial credit cards, be sure to give it a read and save yourself some money.  

What’s it going to cost me to use Dharma Merchant Services?

Get a quote and find out! Dharma Merchant Services places certified quotes through the CardFellow marketplace, so you can get a quote tailored to your business instantly. All certified quotes through CardFellow are placed with interchange plus pricing, are fully disclosed, offer a lifetime rate lock and no cancellation fee.

What about equipment?

Dharma Merchant Services offers popular terminals including models from Verifone, but it can also reprogram many existing terminals for an additional fee. If you need a more robust solution, Dharma Merchant Services offers ShopKeep restaurant POS, featuring barcode scanning, print and email receipt options, and more.

Interested in processing with your smartphone or tablet? Dharma can help you do that, too. You can hand key transactions through the Authorize.Net app or swipe cards using optional card readers that connect via standard headphone jacks.

Is there a cancellation fee?

Like all certified quotes, there is no cancellation fee if you choose processing with Dharma Merchant Services through CardFellow.

What do others say about Dharma Merchant Services?

Dharma Merchant Services has been around for a little while and is generally viewed positively, as evidenced by positive Yelp reviews and an A+ rating with very few complaints with the Better Business Bureau.

Dharma Merchant Services at the Better Business Bureau

Dharma Merchant Services has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau since 2010 and has an A+ rating. It has only had 1 complaint lodged with the BBB in the past 3 years. The complaint alleges that Dharma did not make the customer aware of processing limits and wouldn’t release funds for a big-ticket order. The company responded, detailing its reasoning and steps. The funds were eventually released to the customer and the complaint was considered resolved.

Dharma Merchant Services on Yelp

Yelp shows eight 5-star reviews for Dharma. Reviews state that the company is reliable and helpful. One reviewer calls out Dharma’s helpfulness to women-owned businesses, and another mentions appreciating the company’s dedication to community. Reviewers feel like the family-owned (father-daughter) company cares about their businesses’ needs.

There is a 1-star review for Dharma Merchant Services on Yelp, complaining of funds being held. Dharma Merchant Services replied stating that they had no record of the reviewer being a client, and urged him to contact them immediately for assistance.

What CardFellow Thinks 

Dharma Merchant Services places certified quotes in the CardFellow marketplace, and we’re happy to have them on board. CardFellow doesn’t “rate” processors according to subjective variables, but instead requires binding legal agreements with processors to ensure terms that benefit you, our clients. Quotes available from Dharma through CardFellow are competitive and fully disclosed, ensuring no hidden surprises in your processing costs.

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