Fluidpay is the gateway you meet when a processor says “we have our own gateway.” It is not their own; it is Fluidpay with their logo, and that is by design. This page explains what it is, what it does that the others do not, and when we place it.
The sales model
Fluidpay’s own words: it has never boarded a merchant directly and that is not changing. It builds the gateway; ISOs, agents, software vendors and white-label resellers sell it. For a merchant that means the partner is the relationship: pricing, boarding, support and the quality of the integration advice all come from them. Choose the partner as carefully as the gateway.
What it does
From Fluidpay’s published feature list, September 2026:
- Virtual terminal for cards and ACH from a browser.
- Customer vault with tokenization for cards and ACH, including an account updater to refresh reissued cards.
- Recurring billing with plans, retry schedules and dunning.
- Tokenizer / hosted fields that keep the merchant’s checkout on SAQ A.
- WatchDog fraud detection with partner-specific rules and machine-learning scoring.
- Level 3 processing for B2B and B2G interchange optimization.
- Batch processing from CSV uploads.
- Cash discount program, patented, across all channels.
- Unified card and ACH processing.
- API, SDKs and shopping cart integrations, multi-region cloud infrastructure.
- Authorize.net AIM emulator for legacy integrations.
The emulator, explained
Many older carts and custom integrations talk to Authorize.net through its legacy AIM method: a form post to a URL. Fluidpay exposes an endpoint that accepts the same format. Migration for those integrations is a URL change and new credentials, with no code rewrite.
Limits: the emulator covers AIM only. Integrations built on Authorize.net’s SIM hosted form, its XML API, CIM stored profiles, ARB recurring, or DPM need a native Fluidpay integration or plugin instead. Most modern carts have one. Custom code written against CIM or ARB is the case to check before promising anyone a one-hour migration.
Cash discount and dual pricing online
Fluidpay is the gateway we reach for when a merchant wants dual pricing in store and online on one platform. The rules do not change with the channel: display both prices before the customer chooses, charge the card price as the price, keep fee lines off the receipt. Fluidpay’s program handles the display and receipt mechanics; the merchant handles menu, cart and signage disclosure. The three models are compared in dual pricing vs surcharging vs cash discount.
Fluidpay vs NMI vs accept.blue
| Fluidpay | NMI | accept.blue | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sold by | Partners only | Partners only | ISOs only |
| Vault, recurring, virtual terminal | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Level 2 and 3 | Yes | Yes | Enhanced |
| ACH | Yes, unified | Yes | Yes |
| Fraud tools | WatchDog rules and ML scoring | Fraud suite | Scoring and rules |
| 3D Secure | Via partner configuration | Yes | Yes |
| Cash discount / dual pricing built in | Yes, all channels | Via partner programs | Via partner programs |
| Authorize.net emulator | AIM | Partner-dependent | Not published |
| Invoicing suite | Basic | Basic | Yes |
| Integration catalog | Growing | Largest | Broad |
| Interface | Modern | Functional, partner-branded | Modern |
Pricing
Partner-set. Ranges we see are the same as NMI and accept.blue: $10 to $25 monthly, 5¢ to 15¢ per item, processing on a separate merchant account. The comparison method, with worked examples at three volumes, is on the gateway pricing page.
When we place Fluidpay
An Authorize.net AIM integration with no budget to rebuild. Dual pricing or cash discount wanted online and in store on one platform. B2B sellers who want Level 3 with a modern vault and recurring. High-risk placements through partner acquirers. Month to month, one bill, interchange-plus.