PayKings Review

Pros

• No setup or application fees
• Multicurrency options
• eCheck processing offered
• PCI-compliant solution
• Good for high-risk merchants

Cons

• Untransparent tiered pricing
• Early termination fee

What Is PayKings?

PayKings is a merchant services provider specializing in high-risk merchant accounts. That means PayKings will service companies in industries that many other payment services shy away from.

PayKings has been active within its niche since 2011, forming partnerships with many of the bigger platforms in the eCommerce space. High-risk merchant accounts tend to come with conservative terms and contracts, which means you want to select your provider carefully. Chances are, you’ll be locked into a multi-year contract.

While PayKings seems to check all the boxes you’d look for from a high-risk merchant services company, it also doesn’t yet stand out from the pack.

Read our full PayKings review for the complete breakdown.

PayKings High-Risk Merchant Account Services & Features

Let’s take a closer look at some of PayKings’ core features.

PayKings Fees & Rates

Like most high-risk and instant approval payment processors, PayKings does not divulge its pricing upfront. While we prefer to see pricing schemes disclosed, the fact is that high-risk processors tend to shop client profiles around to different merchant account providers until they find one willing to take the client. A PayKings representative told me the company works with approximately 28 different banks. That means rates and even the pricing scheme itself can vary greatly between customers.

PayKings does advertise rates “as low as 2.49%.” Usually, when you see that phrase, it implies tiered pricing. That means only certain transactions will qualify for the lower rate, while others will be charged at higher rates. We don’t like it as a pricing model, but it is common in the high-risk processing world. That said, it never hurts to request interchange-plus pricing.

PayKings appears to charge a monthly fee, but the amount is not disclosed publicly.

Now for the good news. PayKings does not charge any application or setup fees. PayKings offers chargeback protection, though it’s unclear whether this is a base service or an add-on.

Sales & Advertising Transparency

PayKings offers about as much information as you can expect from a high-risk payment processor. We tend to be more forgiving with high-risk processors because the nature of their business makes it harder to offer definitive rates.

PayKings’ website offers a decent breakdown of its features, as well as a lot of general information on credit card processing. Despite the website generally being well-laid out, I did run into some broken links.

Contract Length & Early Termination Fee

High-risk merchant account providers usually require a long-term contract. Depending on the bank PayKings pairs you with for your merchant account, that contract could be two or three years.

Likewise, the early termination fee for breaking your contract may vary by each bank; PayKings does not set this number. Early termination fees usually run between $300 and $500.

PayKings Customer Service & Technical Support

PayKings seems to have a solid public reputation for customer service. During my interactions with customer service, the company representative was willing to answer my questions to the best of their ability with no aggressive sales tactics despite the company’s use of independent sales agents. Each customer will have their own representative assigned to them, a common practice amongst high-risk processors.

As mentioned earlier, developer documentation is posted online and, while slim, is easy to parse. Support is available by phone and email. PayKings maintains social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.

PayKings High-Risk Merchant Account Reviews & Complaints

PayKings, like many high-risk processors, has a limited review footprint online.

Final Verdict On PayKings

Much maligned high-risk businesses can have a tough time finding merchant services, so it’s always nice to see players such as PayKings stepping up to meet their needs. PayKings doesn’t reinvent the niche, but it offers its customers a complete suite of services. A deciding factor here could be how much of a hands-on approach you want your payment process to take in terms of keeping your merchant account active and compliant.

PayKings also appears to have particular expertise when it comes to selling CBD products on Shopify, so businesses using that platform for eCommerce may find this company especially well-suited to their needs.

If PayKings doesn’t sound right for you, be sure to check out our picks for best high-risk payment processors.

High-Risk Merchant Account Ratings Methodology

We research, evaluate, and test each high-risk payment processor that we review at Merchant Maverick, placing special emphasis on key characteristics to generate granular ratings for high-risk merchant account providers.

High-risk merchant accounts, by definition, require the provider to take on more risk and liability; they tend to be more expensive overall than traditional merchant accounts, with more fees and limitations. For this reason, our high-risk rating methodology differs from our standard credit card processor rating methodology, so we don’t mislead our readers by comparing apples and oranges. Many businesses in high-risk industries cannot qualify for a normal payment processing account. That said, there are good and bad options available in the high-risk space, and we judge these high-risk providers against each other to provide the most balanced assessment.

High-risk services can be complex, so we use a 24-point rubric to evaluate each provider. First, we look at pricing structure – interchange plus, subscription-based, tiered, or hybrid – giving the most points to providers that provide fair, transparent pricing and docking those that rely on tiered models. Then we examine rates, the presence and transparency of early termination fees, and any additional fees.

We also look at contract length and fairness and test out sales staff and customer service channels ourselves to ensure that the company uses reputable, above-the-board sales techniques. Finally, we take the company’s online reputation into account, reading customer reviews and comments.

Read more about how we rate high-risk merchant account providers.

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Our Top Pick To Get Your Merchant Account Approved

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Host Merchant Services has an excellent track record for both service quality and account approvals. Start your application.

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