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How-to

Order Processing Fee

Last Updated: June 26, 2026

Overview​

UltraCart provides several ways to add a per-order processing or handling fee. Before choosing one, there are two things to know.

No option applies the fee to every payment method. The surcharge in Option A is part of Credit Card Settings and fires only for card payments. It cannot be extended to PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, or Google Pay, because UltraCart does not receive the payment method for those wallets until the customer has already authorized payment on the provider's side. By then the amount is settled. This is a limit of how third-party wallets work, not a configuration gap.

A visible fee line costs you conversions. Shoppers read a separate processing fee at checkout as a late add-on, and it reads poorly next to competitors who do not show one. UltraCart recommends building the cost into your product or shipping prices instead, which applies to every payment method and needs no configuration.

ApproachWhere fee appearsApplies to all payment methodsSeparate summary lineComplexity
Build it into pricingNowhere, absorbedYesNoNone
A: Payment method surchargeSurcharge line in summaryNo, cards onlyYesLow
B: Handling charge on shipping methodShipping/Handling lineYesNoLow
C: Auto-add fee itemCart items (subtotal)YesNoMedium
D: Custom StoreFront templateAnywhere in summaryYesYesHigh

Raise your product prices, or your shipping rates, by the amount you want to recover. A $1.95 processing cost spread across your catalog needs no surcharge configuration, applies on every order regardless of how the customer pays, and gives the shopper one number to react to instead of two.

Options B and C also apply on every payment method, but both show the cost to the shopper, one on the Shipping/Handling line and one as a cart item. Only Option A is restricted to cards.

If you have a specific reason to show the fee as its own line, the remaining options describe how, along with what each one cannot do.

Option A: Payment Method Surcharge​

UltraCart's Credit Card Settings include a native surcharge field that adds a dedicated line to the checkout summary. This is the most direct way to display a labeled fee between the Subtotal and Shipping lines without affecting the Shipping/Handling display.

warning

This surcharge applies to card payments only. Orders paid with PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, or Google Pay receive no surcharge, and there is no setting that changes that. If those methods are a meaningful share of your volume, the fee will be missing from a meaningful share of your orders.

The surcharge line label defaults to "Surcharge" and can be renamed (for example, to "Order Processing Fee") via StoreFront Languages.

Configuration​

Step 1: Set the surcharge amount

  1. Go to Configuration > Checkout > Payments.

  2. Open the Credit and Debit Card payment method settings.

  3. In the Credit Card Settings panel, locate the Surcharge transaction fee column.

  4. Enter the fixed fee amount (for example, 1.99) in the row for each card type you accept (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, Amex, etc.).

  5. Alternatively, use the Surcharge transaction percentage column if you prefer a percentage-based fee.

  6. Set Charge During Checkout to Yes (Recommended) so the surcharge appears on the checkout page in real time.

  7. Save.

Important: The surcharge is configured per card type. If you accept multiple card brands, you must enter the fee in each row individually. The fee will only apply to payment methods where a surcharge value is set. It does not apply to PayPal, Amazon Pay, or other non-card payment methods unless those methods have their own surcharge configuration.

Step 2: Rename the label (optional)

The surcharge line displays as "Surcharge" by default. To change the label:

  1. Go to StoreFronts > [Your StoreFront] > Languages.

  2. Search for surcharge.

  3. Two keys will appear:

    • checkout.specialoffersconfirmation.surchargeField

    • order.format.text.surchargeField

  4. Update the value for order.format.text.surchargeField to your preferred label (for example, Order Processing Fee).

  5. Save.

Note: The StoreFront Languages editor is only available on accounts with a StoreFront. If you are using UltraCart's legacy hosted checkout without a StoreFront, the label cannot be changed through the UI.

Option B: Handling Charge on a Shipping Method​

A flat handling charge added to a shipping method increases the cost of that method before the customer sees the total. The combined amount displays on the Shipping/Handling line.

Trade-off: If your shipping method currently displays "Free!", adding a $1.99 handling charge changes that line to "$1.99". The free shipping label is replaced. This does not produce a separate summary line.

Configuration​

  1. Go to Configuration > Checkout > Shipping > Shipping Methods.

  2. Open the shipping method to modify.

  3. Click the Handling Charge tab.

  4. Under Markup, enter the fee amount in the Flat field.

  5. Save.

Note: Handling charges are configured per shipping method. If you have multiple active methods, each must be updated individually.

Option C: Auto-Add a Fee Item​

A $1.99 "Order Processing Fee" item can be created and added automatically to every cart. The fee appears as a line in the cart items list and contributes to the order subtotal. It does not appear as a separate line in the checkout summary block.

Trade-off: The fee is visible to the customer but is indistinguishable from a product line. The Shipping/Handling line is not affected.

Configuration​

  1. Create the fee item in the Item Editor with the desired price and display name.

  2. Set the item weight to 0 and mark it as non-shippable if no physical fulfillment is involved.

  3. Auto-add the item using a promotion rule that applies to all orders, or through the Checkout API if using a custom integration.

Important: Confirm the tax treatment of the fee item with your tax advisor before enabling, and configure the item's taxable status accordingly in the Item Editor.

Option D: Custom StoreFront Template​

If none of the above options produce the exact layout required, a custom StoreFront template can insert a fee line at any position in the checkout summary block. This approach requires StoreFront template customization and familiarity with UltraCart's templating system, or assistance from a UltraCart Pro Services developer.

For most merchants, Option A achieves the same visual result without custom development.

Choosing the Right Approach​

  • If you simply need to recover the cost, build it into your product or shipping prices. This is the recommended approach, and it needs no configuration.

  • If you want a separate, labeled fee line and card orders are all you need it on, use Option A. Accept that PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, and Google Pay orders will not carry the fee.

  • If the fee must apply on every order and you are comfortable with it appearing on the Shipping/Handling line, use Option B.

  • If the fee must apply on every order and you can accept it appearing in the cart item list rather than the summary, use Option C.

  • If you require a custom summary line layout that Option A cannot provide, use Option D. Note that a custom template does not change which payment methods a surcharge can reach.

Troubleshooting​

The surcharge line is not appearing at checkout​

Symptoms: Customer completes checkout without seeing a surcharge line in the summary.

Root Cause: The surcharge value was entered for one card type but the customer used a different card type, or Charge During Checkout is set to No.

Diagnosis: Confirm the card type the customer used. Check the Credit Card Settings panel and verify the surcharge is set on that card type's row. Confirm Charge During Checkout is set to Yes.

Solution: Enter the surcharge amount in every card type row. Set Charge During Checkout to Yes.

The surcharge label still shows "Surcharge" after updating StoreFront Languages​

Symptoms: The checkout displays "Surcharge" instead of the custom label.

Root Cause: The wrong language key was updated, or the StoreFront cache has not cleared.

Diagnosis: In StoreFront Languages, confirm the value for order.format.text.surchargeField was saved (not just checkout.specialoffersconfirmation.surchargeField).

Solution: Update and save order.format.text.surchargeField. If the label still does not update, clear the StoreFront cache or contact support.

The handling charge is not appearing at checkout​

Symptoms: Customer sees the original shipping cost with no markup applied.

Root Cause: The handling charge was saved on one shipping method but the order used a different method.

Diagnosis: Confirm which shipping method the customer's order selected. Navigate to that method's Handling Charge tab and verify the flat fee is set.

Solution: Add the handling charge to each active shipping method individually.

The fee item is showing in the subtotal but I want it below the subtotal​

This is a display limitation of the standard checkout. Cart items always contribute to the subtotal line. Use Option A for a standalone summary line without custom development, or Option D for full layout control.

The surcharge does not apply to PayPal, Apple Pay, or Google Pay orders​

Symptoms: A surcharge is configured in Credit Card Settings and appears on card orders, but orders paid with PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, or Google Pay show no surcharge line.

Root Cause: The Credit Card Settings surcharge is scoped to card payments. For third-party wallets, UltraCart does not receive the payment method until the customer has authorized payment on the provider's side, so there is nothing for the surcharge to attach to.

Diagnosis: Check the order's payment method. If it is PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, or Google Pay, this is expected behavior rather than a fault.

Solution: There is no setting that extends the surcharge to these methods. To recover the cost on every order, build it into your product or shipping prices, or use Option B or Option C, which are not tied to the payment method.

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