Tiered pricing

An older pricing model where the acquirer bundles transactions into qualified, mid-qualified, and non-qualified tiers, each with a different rate. The acquirer determines tier eligibility opaquely. Generally more expensive than IC++ and less transparent than blended pricing; rare in the modern EU acquirer market.

In practice.

Tiered pricing buckets transactions as qualified, mid-qualified or non-qualified, with the provider deciding which bucket each transaction lands in. The headline rate applies to the best bucket and much of real traffic lands in worse ones. Treat tiered quotes with suspicion and compare against IC++.

Related terms: Blended pricing · IC++ · MDR