Card machine and wallet fees: what your shop really pays
What the merchant discount rate (MDR) on card machines, JazzCash, Easypaisa and QR costs a shop each month, how to receive the full amount, and how to keep the books right.
Munshi Team · 18 Oct 2026 · 2 min read
More customers pay by card, wallet and QR every month, and that's good for business: no change problems, less cash to carry. But every one of those payments comes with a fee, and many shopkeepers have never added up what it costs.
The card and wallet fee calculator adds it up.
What MDR means
The merchant discount rate (MDR) is the share of each payment the bank, card network or wallet keeps. Some also add a fixed charge per payment. The rate is in your merchant agreement and differs by bank, card type and wallet, so check yours rather than trusting a number someone mentions.
What it costs over a month
At an example rate of 1.5%:
| Card and wallet sales a month | Fees |
|---|---|
| Rs 1,00,000 | Rs 1,500 |
| Rs 3,00,000 | Rs 4,500 |
| Rs 10,00,000 | Rs 15,000 |
On thin margins that matters. A grocery item sold at 8% margin loses almost a fifth of its profit to a 1.5% fee.
Receiving the full amount
To receive a full Rs 5,000 after a 1.5% fee, the payment must be Rs 5,000 ÷ 0.985 = Rs 5,077. But many card agreements do not allow charging the customer extra for paying by card, so read yours before you add anything to the bill.
Keep the books right
- Record card, wallet and cash payments separately on each bill.
- Book the fee as an expense when the settlement arrives, so the bank amount matches.
- Check settlements against your sales each week: missing or late settlements happen.
In Munshi POS, every bill records how it was paid, so the galla shows cash only and the card and wallet totals are ready to match against the bank.
Check your own rate in the card fee calculator, or start free.
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