Merchant processing
Standalone credit card terminals for small businesses
A standalone terminal takes cards without changing the register, the software or the way the counter works. It is the simplest way to accept cards, and for some counters it is the right one.
No rate quoted before somebody has read your statement.
What is a standalone credit card terminal?
A payment device that takes the card on its own, beside whatever rings the sale. The cashier keys the total into the terminal, the terminal takes the payment, and it settles separately from the register. Not every counter needs integration, and we will say so when one does not.
The trade-off is the re-keyed total. A standalone terminal takes the payment separately and the total is re-keyed; integrated payments take the amount from the sale itself, which removes a class of error and makes reconciliation match.
- Nothing else changesThe register or software keeps doing what it does.
- The total is keyed twiceThat is the cost of keeping the two apart.
- Reconciliation is separateThe terminal batch and the register total are two reports.
- Chosen from the statementThe processing path is decided from how the counter takes payment.
We do not publish rates, and we do not promise savings. Whether a change is worth making is a question about your statement, and we will not answer it before reading one.
Where it fits
When a standalone terminal is the right answer
Integration is a choice, not a requirement.
You already have a cash register
SAM4s cash registersThe terminal sits beside it and does not depend on the register model.
Your business runs on its own software
Where the software that runs the business does not take payments, a terminal beside it does.
Checkout is simple
A few card sales a day, where a re-keyed total costs little.
You are not ready for a POS system
Complete POS systemsA terminal takes cards now without deciding the rest of the system.
When integrated payments are better
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Totals are re-keyed at a busy counter
Typing errors become reconciliation work and chargeback exposure.
Integrated payments take the amount from the sale itself.
Merchant processing -
The register and the batch never match
Closing takes longer every night.
Settlement matches the sale when the POS drives the payment.
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A payment problem has two owners
A failed batch becomes two support calls and no owner.
Integrated processing puts the sale and the settlement in one system.
Standalone terminal questions
Can I use a standalone terminal with my existing cash register?
Yes. It sits beside the register and does not depend on it; the cashier keys the total into the terminal.
Does a standalone terminal connect to my POS system?
Not by definition. A terminal that takes the amount from the POS is an integrated setup, which is a different choice, decided from the statement and the counter.
Should a standalone terminal be part of an outage plan?
That depends on how payments are configured, which is why it is settled when the system is specified rather than during an outage. The outage planning page covers what to decide in advance.
Should I choose a standalone terminal or a full POS system?
It depends on what the counter needs beyond taking a card. If the questions are about stock, suppliers and item reporting, the answer is a POS system; if the counter only needs to take cards beside what it already runs, a terminal can be enough.
Send us a statement
One recent processing statement is enough to say whether a standalone terminal, an integrated setup or no change at all is the right answer.