Contractors do not get paid on tiny ecommerce carts. A normal invoice might be a $400 service call, a $2,500 repair, a $7,500 progress payment, or a $10,000 final draw. That changes how payment fees should be evaluated.
Credit cards are familiar and fast, but the fee scales with the invoice. ACH bank transfer is slower, but the cost can be dramatically lower on larger jobs. The right answer is usually not “ACH only” or “cards only.” It is knowing when each method makes sense and making the lower-cost option easy for customers to choose.
The simple difference
Card processing lets the customer pay with a credit or debit card. It is convenient, often settles quickly, and customers understand it. The tradeoff is that the fee is percentage-based. At a standard 2.9% plus 30 cents, a larger invoice can create a surprisingly large processing bill.
ACH processing moves money by bank transfer. It usually takes longer to settle, and some customers need a little more confidence before linking a bank account. The upside is cost: ACH fees are commonly capped, which matters when invoice amounts get into the thousands.
For contractors, the practical question is: how much margin are you willing to give up for convenience?
Fee math on a $10,000 invoice
Using the fixed fee math in Conduit payment examples:
- Card processing at 2.9% plus 30 cents is about $290 on a $10,000 invoice, excluding Conduit’s 1% card platform fee.
- ACH is $6 total: a $1 Conduit fee plus Stripe ACH at 0.8%, capped at $5.
- That is roughly $284 saved before considering any additional platform fee on card payments.
That difference can pay for materials, cover callbacks, offset labor overruns, or simply stay in profit. On one invoice it is noticeable. Across a year of project payments, it can become one of the largest hidden costs in the business.
When card processing makes sense
Cards are often the right default when speed or customer convenience matters more than fee savings.
Use card payments for:
- Small service invoices where the fee is tolerable.
- Emergency work where collecting immediately matters.
- Customers who will not use ACH.
- Deposits where the customer expects a card option.
- Situations where faster settlement is worth the higher fee.
Cards can also reduce friction for first-time customers. If a homeowner does not know your company yet, a card payment may feel more familiar than a bank transfer. The fee may be worth it if it gets the invoice paid without follow-up.
When ACH should be the preferred option
ACH is strongest when the invoice is large enough that percentage fees hurt.
Use ACH for:
- Progress payments.
- Final invoices on larger projects.
- Commercial customers who already pay vendors by bank transfer.
- Repeat customers with established trust.
- Any invoice where a 2.9% card fee would materially reduce margin.
The customer experience matters here. If ACH is buried, confusing, or requires a separate manual process, customers will default to cards. If ACH is visible in the invoice payment link and framed as the preferred payment method, many customers will use it.
How to present ACH without sounding cheap
Contractors sometimes avoid talking about payment method because they do not want to look difficult. The better framing is operational, not apologetic.
Try language like:
“For larger invoices, bank transfer keeps processing costs down and helps us keep project pricing stable. Card is available if you prefer it.”
That tells the customer why ACH exists without turning the invoice into a negotiation. It also leaves the card option open, which is important for customers who want rewards points, need to pay quickly, or have internal card policies.
Watch for timing and failed-payment risk
ACH is not identical to card processing. Build the timing into your expectations:
- ACH can take several business days to settle.
- Bank-account entry mistakes can cause failures.
- Some customers need approval before sending bank payments.
- You may want deposits or milestone payments before ordering expensive materials.
For urgent cash needs, card may still be worth the fee. For planned jobs and progress billing, ACH usually has enough time to work.
A contractor-friendly payment policy
A practical policy might look like this:
- Offer both ACH and card on every online invoice.
- Recommend ACH on invoices above a threshold, such as $1,000 or $2,500.
- Keep card available for convenience and urgent payment.
- Mention payment timing in the invoice notes for large jobs.
- Track how much fee savings ACH creates each month.
That policy gives customers choice while nudging high-dollar invoices toward the method that protects margin.
Soft next step
If payment fees are becoming a real line item in your business, compare how contractor payment software handles ACH, card fees, invoice links, and payout timing before choosing a system. Conduit is built around lower-cost ACH payment links for contractor invoices; you can read more on the contractor payments page or compare options starting with Conduit vs Jobber.