ANCHORBusiness basics
- Trading name and legal business name
- Business type and operating status
- Street address, city, state, and ZIP
- Number of locations
- Business website, if available
Choose your POS
and payment setup.
Compare POS systems and card machines for a restaurant, retail shop or food truck. Match the hardware and software to your checkout, review the full costs, then prepare your merchant application.
Start a requestStart with equipment by checkout style, Clover and Stripe differences, or the POS cost and processing-fee checklist.
Request equipment and processing.
Use Anchor Strata to share your business details and request POS equipment or payment processing. Your provider decides whether to approve your merchant account.
- 01
Start a request
Enter your name, email, phone number, and business type to open your request.
- 02
Complete your profile
Describe how you take payments and the equipment you need. Use the checklist to correct missing or inconsistent details, then save your profile. Verify your email when you receive a verification message.
- 03
Review the provider’s offer
Review processing rates, fees, equipment costs, and terms before you proceed with an offer. Your provider must approve your merchant account; you cannot assume approval from submitting a request or completing your profile.
- 04
Apply through the provider
Use your provider’s secure application to review disclosures and sign the required agreements. Your provider completes underwriting and confirms account activation.
Gather your business details.
You can estimate sales volume. Enter your registered business name and address as they appear in your records.
Your payment activity
- Where you accept payments
- Estimated monthly card sales
- Average transaction amount
- Current POS or processor, or “New business”
- Mail, phone, or online sales percentage, if known
Your equipment needs
- Preferred equipment, or “Help me choose”
- Number of devices or checkout lanes
- Checkout or service style
- Software and integration needs
- Preferred start timeframe
Keep sensitive information in the provider’s application. Do not enter bank-account details, card numbers, Social Security numbers, tax IDs, or identity-document numbers in Anchor Strata intake fields. Redact sensitive information from an optional processing statement before you upload it.
Restaurant, retail
and food truck POS.
A restaurant POS system, a retail checkout and a mobile card reader solve different workflows. Describe what happens before and after the card payment.
| Your checkout | Equipment and services | Discuss with your provider |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurant counter or café | Clover Station or Clover Mini; restaurant POS software | Menu and modifier entry, receipt printing, kitchen-order routing, and any kitchen display or printer integration. Confirm which software and accessories are included. |
| Restaurant table service | Clover Flex and other handheld payment options | Table and order workflow, bringing the card machine to the guest, device count, network coverage, and receipt needs. Confirm the supported software setup. |
| Small-business retail counter | Countertop POS systems and card machines | Inventory, returns, staff access, barcode or receipt accessories, and compatibility with the software you keep. Ask which features require a subscription. |
| Food truck, pop-up or event stall | Handheld POS or a mobile card reader | Where you sell, available connectivity, power, receipts, and whether the reader needs a compatible phone or tablet. Ask how the selected setup handles a lost connection. |
| Ecommerce or remote payments | Gateways and virtual terminals | Website, online checkout platform, invoices, and card-not-present activity. |
| Restaurants, gift programs, or healthcare practices | Restaurant, gift, and practice services | Restaurant operations, loyalty programs, or practice-software integration. |
These are requirements to discuss, not a promise that every device includes every feature. Ask your provider to confirm models, fees, subscriptions, accessories and integration support before you choose equipment. Use the POS and card-machine comparison checklist alongside the manufacturer specifications.
Clover and Stripe:
compare the setup.
Compare the complete checkout you need, including payment hardware, business software and who supports it.
| Option | What you are comparing | Questions before choosing |
|---|---|---|
| Clover POS | Station, Mini and Flex hardware alongside the software plan and apps included in your provider’s offer. | Which restaurant or retail tools, device generation, accessories and integrations are supported? What are the equipment, software and processing charges? |
| Stripe Terminal | Stripe’s in-person payment tools, with a custom POS app, a third-party POS integration or a no-code option, depending on the selected setup. | Which hardware or supported phone setup will you use? Who provides the POS workflow, integration and support? Check ordering, kitchen tools, inventory and subscriptions separately. |
Clover or Stripe is a starting point for comparison. A restaurant needs more than card acceptance: confirm how its selected software handles orders and kitchen workflow. Compare a complete proposed setup using the same payment mix, rather than comparing a hardware price with a processing rate.
First-party references: Clover restaurant POS overview, Clover device specifications, and Stripe Terminal overview. Stripe is included here as a comparison reference; this guide does not offer a Stripe account or imply a Stripe partnership. Your provider confirms the equipment and services available in your offer.
Compare POS costs
and processing fees.
Ask for an itemized offer using your estimated card sales, average transaction amount and split between counter, online and phone payments.
| Cost or term | What to ask for in writing |
|---|---|
| Card processing | The pricing method, percentage and per-transaction charges, and any different charges for in-person, online or telephone payments. |
| Card machines and accessories | The exact model and device count, any printer or other accessories, and purchase, rental or lease terms where offered. Ask about ownership, warranty and replacement costs. |
| POS software and integrations | The required subscription, app and integration charges. For a restaurant, include any kitchen-display, ordering or table-service software in the comparison. |
| Recurring and other charges | Any monthly minimum, service, compliance or additional account fees. Ask which charges still apply when sales are low or the business is seasonal. |
| Contract and cancellation | The agreement length, renewal terms, equipment-return requirements and any cancellation or early-termination charges. |
A card-reader price alone does not tell you the total cost of a food truck’s payment setup, and a POS hardware quote does not include every possible restaurant software charge. Have your provider explain which costs apply to your actual offer; this guide does not publish a universal rate or promise savings. If you are considering Indeflex Flat Cash, compare it with standard processing using the same sales volume and include any fees you would still pay.
Compare Flat Cash
with your current costs.
Share your current processing costs, sales volume, and payment mix with your representative.
Request a Flat Cash reviewChoose Flat Cash under Pricing program in your intake to request a review. To enroll, you need provider approval and an agreement.
Flat Cash pricing
Indeflex offers Flat Cash with flat-rate pricing and the option to pass eligible processing costs to customers. Ask your representative to confirm the pricing method, costs, and equipment compatibility for your business.
Discounts, dual pricing, and surcharges
Ask your provider which pricing method they approve for your business. With a cash discount, you reduce the regular price for cash payments; with dual pricing, you show cash and card prices. To surcharge an eligible credit-card payment, you add a disclosed fee. You cannot surcharge debit or prepaid cards. Each method has different requirements. Your provider must confirm applicable rules, required notices, receipts, and POS configuration before launch.
Check the full cost
Review the quote for processing charges, monthly fees, equipment, software, and other services. You may pay fees under Flat Cash. Ask your provider to confirm availability and potential savings based on your business and the approved terms.
Complete your
merchant application.
Complete provider forms
After review and offer selection, follow your provider’s secure application and signature instructions. Your provider selects the required forms and disclosures for your business, equipment, and processor.
Access the provider’s portal
Follow your provider’s instructions for portal access and authorization. You do not receive an Indeflex portal account when you submit the Anchor Strata form.
Confirm account activation
You must complete the merchant application and sign the agreement. Your provider handles underwriting and confirms activation. You cannot treat an approved offer as confirmation that your account is active.
Correct your business details
Edit and save your profile in your request before you accept an offer. Contact your representative if you have moved beyond that step.
Start your request.
Enter your contact details and describe your business’s payment needs.