Best High-Risk Merchant Account Providers

Your business could be perfectly legit, you could have actual customers and bring in money on a steady basis, and you could still get rejected by a payment processor simply because your business falls in the wrong category. 

It almost makes no sense, right?

High-risk merchant accounts can be incredibly frustrating because you could be labeled as high-risk for things like having chargebacks or selling subscriptions. Of course, that doesn't mean you can't accept card payments, but you have fewer options to choose from, and you'll need to find a processor that's okay with that added risk. Many of them prefer to avoid it.

And even when you manage to find a few processors that seem like they could work, when you start comparing them, you'll find that they can be very different from each other.

High-Risk Merchant Account Providers Worth Considering

PROVIDER	BEST FOR	RATING
Adaptiv Payments	Best overall	4,9/5
PaymentCloud	Flexible underwriting	4,8/5
Host Merchant Services	Businesses considered to be moderate-risk	4,7/5
Easy Pay Direct	SaaS and subscriptions	4,6/5
Durango Merchant Services	International merchants and businesses that are hard to place	4,5/5
SoarPay	Growing high-risk businesses	4,4/5
PayKings	Businesses that have a lot of chargebacks	4,3/5

These providers deal with businesses regular processors probably wouldn’t want to take on, and Adaptiv Payments merchant account solutions deserve their top spot because of the number of high-risk industries they work with, as well as the fact that they work with both domestic and international partners. PaymentCloud is a very close second here, and it’s great for businesses that need more flexibility during underwriting. Host Merchant Services is another really strong alternative. Easy Pay Direct and Durango Merchant Services are a bit more specialized (as you can probably tell).

There aren’t too many gaps between these options, although SoarPay and PayKings are the ones rounding out the list because they’re a tiny bit less versatile than the rest.

What Sets These High-Risk Merchant Accounts Apart

Most payment processors look the same on paper, but once you look at the types of businesses they’re willing to deal with, then you can really see the differences between them.

PROVIDER	HIGH-RISK COVERAGE	INTERNATIONAL PROCESSING	TOOLS FOR FRAUD AND CHARGEBACKS
Adaptiv Payments	More than 20 high-risk industries	Yes, and it includes various currencies	Fraud screening, monitoring, alerts for chargebacks, tools for disputes
PaymentCloud	Broad; they even consider some difficult accounts	Depends on how the account is set up	Depends on gateway
Host Merchant Services	Better for businesses considered moderate risk	Available	AVS, CVV, velocity rules, 3D Secure
Easy Pay Direct	Great for SaaS, subscriptions, and online businesses	Available	Fraud prevention and tools for chargebacks
Durango Merchant Services	Excellent for businesses that are hard to place	Excellent international support	Fraud scoring, AVS, 3D Secure, alerts for chargebacks
SoarPay	Broad high-risk coverage	Available, but depends on placement	AVS, CVV, filters for fraud
PayKings	Broad high-risk coverage	More limited	Strong tools for chargebacks and dealing with disputes

If you’ve lost count of the number of payment processors that turned you down, Adaptiv Payments is your best bet. Their focus is high-risk processing, and instead of using just one option, they work with a whole network of domestic and international banks.

Pros

• They work with a very wide range of high-risk industries

• Both domestic and international banking options offered

• Included tools for fraud and chargebacks

• 24/7 support

Cons

• You need a quote to see your actual processing rate

Pricing and Other Details on Adaptiv Payments

DECIDING FACTOR	WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pricing	Not publicly listed; price depends on your account
Setup fee	None
Application	Online application takes less than 5 minutes
Approval time	Usually within 24-48 hours
Funding	Next-day funding is advertised
Ecommerce integrations	Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce
Recurring payments	Supported
Virtual terminal	Available for MOTO and remote transactions

One other thing that’s good to know is that Adaptiv works with more than 20 domestic and international banking partners, so you have more options to match your account. With that being said, you should still pay attention to the actual quote you’ll get. Remember that high-risk accounts are underwritten individually, so the rate and terms really depend on your business.

How to Choose the Right High-Risk Merchant Account

Start With Why You’re Considered to Be High-Risk

What makes you high-risk? If you sell CBD products, then your problems with payments aren’t nearly the same as they are for someone who has a subscription service.

Check the ACTUAL Price/Rate

If you notice or suspect the initial processing rate looks a bit low, especially if it's listed in the first initial lines, then it's worth doing a bit more research before fully committing. The best way is to directly contact the service provider and ask what the total amount is after all the 'additional' fees have been processed. This is important, because the rate could go up 15-20% (even more in some cases) simply because the total price isn't advertised. What you want to confirm are things like monthly charges, reservers, chargeback fees, processing thresholds, etc. You don't want (unwanted) surprises down the line.  

Find Out How Tough Underwriting Is

This is really important, especially if you’ve had chargebacks or you’ve already been rejected.

FAQ

Why would you need a high-risk merchant account?

Regular processors may not like something about your business model (e.g., your industry, recurring billing, international sales, and so on), so this could be the only option you have for card payments.

How long does approval usually take?

It could be a day or two, and for a lot of businesses, it is. If, however, your business model is more complicated, then the processor will probably ask for some more information before they approve your account.

How do you apply?

The minimum usually includes business details, ID, bank information, and some idea of the number of sales you’re expecting. They might also ask for previous statements.