what is an interchange fee 
an interchange fee often referred to as interchange is a portion of the merchant discount rate that the payment processor pays to the card issuer used in a transaction typically a bank in addition to the interest charged to cardholders credit card issuers earn money through interchange fees which are also called swipe fees can merchants charge extra for using a credit card in most states in the u s merchants are allowed to charge customers extra for using a card rather than cash in effect covering some or all of the merchant discount rate they have to pay on the transaction this is commonly known as a surcharge and is typically calculated as a percentage of the transaction amount in some cases merchants can also charge convenience fees which are typically a flat amount 45can a merchant give you a discount if you pay in cash yes as an alternative to charging more for using a debit or credit card merchants can give customers a discount for paying in cash this practice is legal in all 50 states of the u s 6