High-volume dual pricing
Restaurants process a high number of transactions on already-thin margins. Pine Payments helps restaurants, bars, and cafes offer transparent cash and card prices while preserving a familiar checkout experience for guests and staff.
The best dual pricing program for a restaurant is one that works with the POS you already use (or plan to use), shows both the cash price and the card price before the guest pays, handles tips correctly, and comes with clear signage and month-to-month terms you understand. There is no single "best" provider for every restaurant: a quick-service counter, a full-service dining room and a bar each need a different setup. Pine Payments, a merchant services company serving restaurants nationwide, helps restaurants compare those options using their own processing statements.
A dual pricing program lets a restaurant post two prices for the same item: a card price and a lower cash price. The guest sees both prices before paying and chooses how to pay. This is different from a surcharge, which adds a separate fee on top of the price only when a guest pays by credit card.
When people compare programs, the differences usually come down to five things:
Every card payment has a cost. Most of that cost is interchange, a fee set by the card networks (such as Visa and Mastercard) that goes to the bank that issued the guest's card. The processor then adds its own markup. Restaurants run a high number of transactions on thin margins, so these costs add up across every shift. Dual pricing is one way a restaurant can reflect the cost of card acceptance in its card prices while giving cash-paying guests a lower price.
Dual pricing and cash discounts are generally allowed in the United States when both prices are clearly disclosed, but rules are set by the card networks and by each state, and they change. Florida's rules on card fees have been the subject of past court decisions, so check the current rules for your state and city before you change your menu, and talk to a qualified attorney if you are unsure. Our state-by-state guide to credit card fees explains the basics.
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The best fit is usually the program that works with your existing POS, handles tips cleanly, discloses both prices clearly, and has terms you can leave if it doesn't work out. Compare at least two or three options using your own recent processing statement, not advertised rates.
No. With dual pricing, the restaurant shows a card price and a cash price up front. With a surcharge, a separate fee is added at checkout only when a guest pays by credit card. Surcharges have their own card network rules, including limits on the amount and a ban on surcharging debit cards. See cash discount vs. dual pricing vs. surcharging.
It depends on the POS and terminal. The program should be set up so the tip is calculated and shown consistently and the receipt clearly shows the total charged. Ask your provider to walk you through a sample receipt before you go live.
Yes. Guests should see that two prices exist before they order and before they pay, usually with signs at the entrance and register and with both prices on the menu. Pine Payments offers free cash discount signs.
Reactions vary. Restaurants that show both prices clearly, train staff to explain the choice in one sentence, and keep signage visible usually find it easier for guests to understand.
Learn more about Pine Payments' dual pricing program and cash discount program, or request a free statement review.