“Why I Stopped Dodging Credit Card Fees (and You Might Too)”

I Refused to Accept Credit Cards—and Slowed Down My Cashflow

In this episode of No Se Habla Taxes, I’m coming clean about a hill I used to die on: refusing to accept credit card payments from clients. Yep, I said no to the easiest way to get paid—because I didn’t want to eat the 2.9% fee.

I told myself I was protecting my margins. I was wrong.

Here’s the truth: every time I resisted credit card payments, I made it harder for clients to pay me. And that friction? It cost me in ways I didn’t expect—slower cashflow, delayed invoices, and lost time.

Tune in for:

💳 My full confession and what finally changed my mind
 🔄 The cashflow lesson I learned while paying my own vendor
📈 How to build credit card fees into your pricing (without eating the cost)
🧾 Options for passing down fees or setting minimums
📊 Tools that make it easy (like QuickBooks Online and Stripe)

If you’ve been dodging credit card fees like they’re financial quicksand, this one’s for you. Spoiler: the real risk is slowing your money down to avoid a minor fee.

🎧 Don’t forget to subscribe, and send this episode to a fellow founder who still only takes checks (bless their heart).

💌 Want more real talk about DIY bookkeeping? I’ve got a newsletter and a bookkeeping bootcamp launching soon. Stay tuned!

Let's connect!

LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/armstrongmelissacpa/

Website: https://steadyhandaccounting.com/

Coaching Program Waitlist: https://steadyhandaccounting.myflodesk.com/ofgzp2o7tc

Episode Transcript

(00:12):
Welcome to No Se Habla Taxes.
The podcast where A CPA does herown books and confesses every
"should have known better"moment along the way.
I'm Melissa Armstrong, afractional controller, solo
practice owner, and thefinancial bestie you never knew
you needed.
And today's confession, it'sabout something I've resisted

(00:35):
for a long time.
I didn't wanna accept creditcard payments from clients.
There I said it.
Why the fees?
Obviously every percentage pointfelt like money slipping through
my fingers.
I told myself I was being smart,preserving my margins.

(00:58):
I told myself I was being smart,preserving my margins,
protecting my bottom line,running a lean business.
But you know what else I wasdoing?
I was making it harder forclients to pay me.
It hit me one day as I waspaying one of my vendors.
They only took credit cards andI paid it without blinking

(01:23):
because you know what a creditcard gives me?
Time, time to float that paymentuntil my next client invoice
clears time to manage cash flowmore smoothly, especially during
those slow months.
And that's when it hit me.
Uh, if I expect that flexibilityas a customer, then why was I

(01:45):
denying it to my own clients?
I realized I was shooting myselfin the foot by not accepting
credit cards.
I was adding friction to myclient's payment process.
I was slowing down cash andflows to avoid a measly 2.9%
fee.
That's like skipping dinner tosave on groceries and spending

(02:09):
the evening hangry andunproductive.
No, no.
Credit card processing fees?
They're not a scam.
They are not.
They're a cost of doing businesslike a grownup, just like
insurance, Zoom subscriptions.
Or your coffee pods.

(02:29):
And honestly, it is a cost thatyou can absolutely plan for.
Here's how to make peace withcredit card fees and keep your
sanity.
Number one, bump your pricesbuild that 2.9 into your
pricing.
You don't have to call it out.
Just know it's baked in.
That way, when the money hitsyour bank account, you will be

(02:50):
receiving the amount youoriginally intended.
You can also pass down the feesto your customers.
You're gonna have to do some duediligence to find out what the
regulations are in your homestate, and in some cases you may

(03:11):
not be able to pass down ahundred percent of the fees, but
most of it.
And it's all fine as long as youdisclose it.
And newsflash, most clients areokay with that.
It's a convenience for them.
You can also set minimums.
You can require a minimuminvoice amount to accept cards,

(03:32):
or you can reserve it forretainers and high ticket
services.
Use the tools at your disposal.
QuickBooks Online, Stripe.
They both let you accept creditcards and auto sync to your
books.
Use whatever integrates bestwith your system.
And, finally, offer someoptions.

(03:53):
Some clients still prefer ACHand that's fine, but let them
choose.
Make it easy for them to payyou.
So that's my confession.
I avoided credit card feesthinking I was saving money when
I was actually slowing down mycashflow.
And listen, if you're DIY-ingyour books and hesitant to add

(04:14):
one more platform, I hear you.
One more fee?
I get it.
Nobody wants that.
But making it easier to getpaid, that's not extra.
Mm-hmm.
That is essential.
If this episode made you rethinkhow you accept payments, hit
that subscribe button and sendit to a fellow funder who still

(04:36):
only takes checks, bless theirheart.
And if you want more real talkon messy money system and clean
bookkeeping strategies, I've gota newsletter and a DIY
bookkeeping book camp launchingsoon.
Until next time, stay scrappy,stay solvent, and yes, accept

(04:59):
the damn credit card.
Bye.