Ten minutes to sign up, or ten questions first.

Lazo does not sell payment processing and takes nothing from your payments, so this guide has no product to steer you toward. It has two models to explain and a list of questions whose answers should decide it.

The two models

Aggregator (payment facilitator)

Stripe, Square, PayPal and Whop. They hold one master account with an acquiring bank and sign you up underneath it in minutes, carrying your dispute risk themselves. Because they approve first and review later, the first human look at your business usually comes after a trigger fires: a large charge, a dispute, a volume spike. Their terms give them the tools for that moment: payout holds, reserves, and closure "at any time for any reason."^1,2 In exchange you get flat, published pricing, no monthly fee, good software, and an account the same afternoon.

Merchant account (through an ISO or a bank)

Your own account with an acquiring bank, usually arranged by an independent sales organisation. Underwriting happens before approval: they ask about your ticket size, your delivery window, your refund policy and your history, and they may ask for financials. Approval takes days to weeks and there are usually monthly and gateway fees. In return the holds and reserves are set out in a contract you negotiated, you have a named person to call, and surprises are rarer because the questions were asked up front. Wedding venues and larger studios often end up here; so do vendors who have been through a hold once.

Published terms, side by side

Figures below are from each company's own published pages as read on November 9, 2026. They change; the links are in the sources. Blank means the company publishes no figure.

We left the card rates for Stripe, Square and PayPal as pointers rather than numbers because they publish several tiers and change them; quoting one figure would be wrong for someone within a year. The pattern in the rest of the table is the point: all four name your business model as a risk factor, all four reserve the right to hold, and the published periods cluster at 180 days.

Nine questions to ask before you sign

Ask them in writing and keep the answers. For an aggregator, the answers are in the terms and help pages; for a merchant account, ask the sales rep and get it into the contract.

1. Do you underwrite before or after approval? Before means fewer surprises. After means read the hold terms twice.
2. What is your policy on businesses that take payment months before delivery? If the answer is "that's fine" with no detail, they have not thought about you yet. A good answer mentions reserves, delivery evidence, or a payout schedule tied to the event.
3. Under what conditions do you place a reserve, what percentage, and for how long? Get the maximum in writing.
4. If you close my account, how long do you hold the balance, and is partial release available against delivered bookings? Most aggregators will not answer the first part with a number, which is itself an answer.
5. What is my dispute-rate threshold for action, and how is it calculated? Ask whether it is by count or by ratio, and over what period. For a business with few transactions, a ratio rule is the dangerous one.
6. Can I set my statement descriptor to my trading name? And can I include a phone number?
7. Do you support ACH or bank payments at a lower rate? Balances should not go through cards if you can help it.
8. Who do I call? A named account manager, a phone line, or a ticket queue. Ask how long a payout-hold review usually takes.
9. What is the exit? Contract length, early termination fee, equipment lease, and whether you can export your customer and transaction data.

Who should consider which

• Under roughly $100,000 a year in card volume, few disputes, simple needs: an aggregator is reasonable. Follow the twelve habits, take balances by bank, keep the linked bank account separate.
• Over that, or a venue, or anyone who has been through a hold: get merchant-account quotes from two ISOs and compare the hold and reserve clauses, not just the rate. Ask specifically for experience with event and wedding businesses.
• Anyone: keep a second way to be paid that does not depend on the first. Bank transfer details in your contract, or a second processor you have tested with a small charge, mean a hold is an inconvenience rather than a crisis.

Questions vendors ask

What is the difference between Stripe or Square and a merchant account?

Stripe, Square, PayPal and Whop are payment facilitators: they approve you in minutes under their own master account and carry your dispute risk, which is why their terms let them hold funds, add reserves and close accounts at will. A merchant account is your own account with an acquiring bank, underwritten before approval, with holds governed by a negotiated contract.

How long can a payment processor hold a wedding vendor's money?

Published terms allow up to 180 days at PayPal and Whop; Stripe says reserves normally run 30 to 90 days and caps its reserve tool at 180 days; Square's terms allow deferral temporarily or indefinitely with no stated figure. The periods track the card networks' 120-day dispute window, which for a wedding starts on the event date.

Which payment processor is best for wedding photographers and planners?

No processor is safe from holds, so the better question is which model fits your business. Low volume and simple needs suit an aggregator with the habits in our risk guide; higher volume or past holds suit a merchant account with up-front underwriting. Take balances by bank transfer in either case.

Does Lazo recommend a processor?

No. Lazo takes 0% of payments and integrates with Whop for in-thread checkout on a Whop business the vendor owns. Vendors can also list bank transfer, Zelle, Venmo or any invoicing link as a payment method.