This guide is for store owners checking a merchant agreement, not shoppers choosing a rewards card. A grocery store MCC is a network-program question, not a sign over the produce case. Your acquirer assigns a merchant category code and a program. That pair, not the word “grocery” on the awning, is what the quote is using.

How to read the bill is on credit card processing fees. Which register to buy is on grocery store POS. This page is why two food stores can be priced as different businesses.

What to verify on the agreement

Ask the acquirer to show the MCC and the program name on the merchant agreement. Networks use different supermarket, retail and fuel programs. Those are issuer-to-acquirer transfer programs. They are not a published grocery rate card you can paste onto a shelf.

If a salesperson says you “are a grocery MCC,” ask them to show the code on the agreement and the network program name next to it.

What to ask before you sign

  • What MCC is on the application, in writing
  • Whether the acquirer is putting you in a supermarket program, a retail program, or a service-station / fuel program
  • What happens to the rate if most of the volume is inside sales versus fuel, hot food, or liquor
  • Whether a department that is not grocery (deli hot bar, beer, lottery) changes qualification

A convenience store with a produce cooler is still often a retail or c-store program. A fuel site with a grocery aisle can sit in a service-station program. Calling yourself a grocery store in advertising does not move the interchange table.

Counter Club’s published in-person sample is 2.50% plus $0.10, keyed and online 2.90% plus $0.25, with a $0 monthly fee on that sample schedule. Sample pricing applies to new accounts applying directly. Pricing is subject to underwriting, MCC and the merchant agreement; rates may differ and are subject to change. See pricing. The MCC sentence on that page is the same test this article is about. If a quote waves “grocery interchange” without the code, send the first page.

Frequently asked questions

Can I pick supermarket pricing because I sell milk? Not by saying so. The acquirer assigns the MCC and the program. Do not read a supermarket interchange cell as your discount.

Is interchange my processing rate? No. You pay a merchant discount, which can bundle interchange and other services. Compare effective rate on a statement, using the fee calculator.

Should I copy supermarket interchange cents onto a flyer? No. Those figures are transfers between financial institutions, not a Counter Club or competitor consumer rate.

Does a scale or SNAP Permit change the MCC? A legal-for-trade scale is a weights-and-measures job, on grocery POS with a scale. SNAP is a USDA permit, on EBT and SNAP. Neither one is Visa’s supermarket program by itself.