A cash discount program lets a restaurant offset the cost of card acceptance without charging anyone more than the menu price. Your menu price is your card price. Guests paying cash or debit receive a discount at the point of sale. Here is how it works, and how it differs from the two programs it's most often confused with.
Cash discount vs dual pricing vs surcharging
| What the guest sees | What happens at payment | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash discount (our program) | One posted price, which is the card price | Cash and debit receive a discount, shown on the receipt |
| Dual pricing | Two prices shown side by side, cash and card | The guest pays the price for the method they choose |
| Surcharge | A base price | A fee is added on top for paying by credit card |
The difference is not just a label. A surcharge adds to the posted price and carries its own card network rules, caps and disclosure requirements. A genuine discount reduces the posted price, so nobody pays more than the menu says. In Canada, the Code of Conduct for the Payment Card Industry expressly protects a merchant's right to offer discounts by payment method, while surcharging Interac debit is prohibited and Quebec prohibits surcharges.
What the guest sees at the table
When the Adyen S1F2 handheld is handed over, the guest picks how they're paying. Credit pays the posted price. Cash and debit both take the discount, and it's printed on the receipt. Signage at the point of sale states the program before anyone orders. Sales tax is calculated on the discounted amount, because a genuine discount reduces the amount being taxed.
What it does to your statement
Most restaurants pay a rate of roughly 2.6% to 2.9% of card volume in the United States, and near 2.4% on credit in Canada, plus $0.10 to $0.25 on every transaction. The per-transaction fee lands hardest on small tickets: a quarter on a $6 coffee is over 4% on its own. With our program there's no separate per-transaction fee on your statement, and the cost of card acceptance is carried at the point of sale instead of by your margin. A discount program reduces your exposure to processing rate changes; subscription, hardware and service fees remain separate line items.
How we set it up
- Configured to your location. We set the discount rate, the terminal display and the receipt wording to the rules that apply in your state or province.
- On Lavu, or on your current POS. Lavu runs the program natively. If you're not ready to change systems, the S1F2 runs it on its own beside your existing till.
- Proved on your numbers. Run one station for sixty days and measure the result against a baseline built from your own statements.
Is it legal in Florida?
Florida's former statutory ban on credit card surcharging has been held unconstitutional, and cash discount programs are widely used by Florida restaurants. We configure every program to current card network rules, and we'd always encourage you to confirm your specific setup with your acquirer and your own advisor.
Where we work
We serve restaurants across Ontario and British Columbia in Canada and across Florida, including Toronto & GTA · Tampa Bay · Naples · Fort Myers & Cape Coral · Miami · Fort Lauderdale · West Palm Beach.
Related reading
- Visa and Mastercard both say pricing grew their fee revenue
- An appeals court struck down the Fed's 21 cent debit fee cap. What it means for US restaurants
- Visa and Mastercard settlement: the surcharge cap falls to 1%
- Australia banned card surcharges on October 1. Discounts for cash are still allowed
- The Code of Conduct rights most Canadian merchants never use
- Lavu POS with Adyen processing
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