Visa, Mastercard, Discover & Amex: What Every Agent Needs to Know
If you're a referral partner, sales partner or registered ISO, breaking into the merchant services world, you've probably heard the big brand names—Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express—thrown around like they're all the same.
But here's the reality: each of these credit card networks operates differently, which impacts merchant pricing, acceptance, and interchange costs—and knowing those differences is crucial to selling payment solutions with confidence.
Let’s break it all down….
💳 Visa & Mastercard: The Open-Loop Giants
These are the most widely accepted card brands globally. But here's what matters for you as an agent: Visa and Mastercard don’t issue cards themselves—they work with banks (like Chase, Capital One, etc.) who handle the issuing and cardholder relationships.
✅ What you need to know as an agent:
Visa and Mastercard are networks, not issuers.
They power transactions between merchants and issuing banks.
Their interchange rates are generally lower, which means lower processing fees for your merchants.
Almost every terminal, gateway, or POS system supports them by default.
💳 Discover & Amex: All-In-One Models (Issuer + Network)
Unlike Visa and Mastercard, Discover and American Express are both the card issuer and the network. That means they manage the full cycle—from issuing the card to processing the transaction.
✅ Key points for agents:
They run on a closed-loop system.
Because they control the whole chain, they tend to charge merchants higher rates.
Some merchants choose not to accept Discover or Amex due to these higher costs—so you'll need to address acceptance strategy early on.
📈 Merchant Acceptance: Know What You're Pitching
One of the first things merchants will ask you is:
“Will I be able to accept all cards?”
That depends. Most providers enable Visa and Mastercard by default. But Discover and Amex often require separate onboarding—especially Amex OptBlue.
🔍 Pro tip: Use this chart to help set realistic expectations with business owners—especially SMBs watching every basis point.
🎁 Rewards & Incentives: Merchant Perception Matters
While this isn’t your main focus, it helps to understand what cardholders value—because your merchants do too.
Amex has strong brand loyalty with affluent customers and travelers.
Discover offers rotating 5% cashback, great for millennial and Gen Z shoppers.
Visa and Mastercard rely on partner banks to offer reward programs, which vary widely.
✅ Agent angle:
Merchants that serve higher-income clientele or travelers may be better off accepting Amex—even with the higher fees—because of purchase volume and customer expectations. American Express agents will tell you “offering AmEx increases revenue as their customers have a higher average spend”. Not sure if this is true but that’s the claim.
🧮 Let’s Talk Fees & Margins
As an agent, you should always be prepared to talk about interchange rates and how each network impacts effective cost.
🔹 Visa/Mastercard: Generally cheaper, more predictable.
🔹 Discover: Slightly higher, but manageable.
🔹 Amex: Highest, unless enrolled in Amex OptBlue (which gives small businesses better rates through processors like yours).
📊 Pro tip: Use a simple side-by-side rate comparison when reviewing merchant statements to demystify pricing structures and close deals faster.
🔌 Technical Setup & Integration
Here’s what agents need to know when selling gateway or POS integrations:
Visa/Mastercard: 100% supported across all hardware and software.
Discover: Usually supported but check your processor setup.
Amex: Requires confirmation on whether the processor is certified for OptBlue or if direct setup is needed.
⚙️ This matters when you're selling into verticals like:
F&B (Micros, Toast, Lightspeed, Clover, Retail Cloud)
Hospitality (Opera, Infor, Agilysis)
E-commerce (Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce)
💡 Final Advice for New Agents
If you’re just getting started in merchant services, remember:
Merchants don’t always know the difference between networks and issuers—that’s where you shine.
Help them understand the impact of network choice on their bottom line.
Always check your processor’s support for Amex and Discover to avoid surprises at activation.
🎯 The more you can explain, the more credibility and trust you’ll earn—and the more deals you’ll close.
