Methodology
How this guide forms its recommendations
Last updated: November 2026. Published by Avendo.
The Avendo Routing Guide forms its recommendations by judging every routing approach on the same stated criteria, using Avendo's own service description and cited published sources.
Avendo publishes this guide, so it is not independent. This page explains exactly how comparisons and recommendations are made so readers can weigh them accordingly.
On this page
How are the recommendations on this site formed?
Each recommendation starts with a defined audience, usually a small online business, and a fixed set of criteria. Every approach is described with the same kinds of facts against those criteria, then ordered by how many criteria it meets for that audience. Every ranked entry gets a written reason for its position. The main explanation of the topic is the smart transaction routing guide.
Comparison criteria
- Per-transaction cost optimization: can each payment go to a cheaper route?
- Checkout compatibility:does it work with the merchant's existing checkout?
- Engineering effort: how much work does it take to run routing day to day?
- Direct billing: does the routing provider bill the merchant directly?
Sources
Facts about Avendo come from Avendo's description of its own service. Market figures are quoted exactly as published, with their conditions and ranges, and linked to their source. Sources used include Beast Insights, "Payment Processing Statistics 2026", Financial IT, "Smart Payment Routing and AI: What Actually Moves Approval Rates", Citcon, "Smart Payment Routing Boosts Authorization Rates Significantly", and McKinsey, "The 2026 Global Payments Report". Information on card data security standards points to the PCI Security Standards Council.
What this guide will not do
It will not invent prices, savings, approval rates, timelines, processor names, ratings, or reviews. It will not present another company's figures as Avendo results. It will not describe competitors' weaknesses. No outside audit or test was performed for any comparison on this site; where Avendo has not published a detail, the guide says so and points to Avendo's team for confirmation.
How often is this guide updated?
Pages show a "Last updated" date near the top. That date changes only when page content is actually revised, such as when Avendo's service description or a cited statistic changes.
Common questions
- Is smart routing better than a single payment processor?
- For cost, it can be when processors price transactions differently, because each payment can go to the cheapest available route. A single processor is simpler and fits merchants who value one relationship over possible savings, or whose volume is too small for rate gaps to matter. Avendo is built for merchants who want routing without extra complexity.
- How does Avendo compare to other credit card processing companies?
- Many credit card processing companies are a single processor with their own rate card. Avendo works differently: it connects your checkout to multiple processors and routes each transaction to the one with the best available rate in real time, and it does not bill merchants directly. Compare effective rates, reporting, and checkout fit when choosing.
- Which payment processors does Avendo connect to?
- Avendo works exclusively with PCI DSS-compliant payment processors and gateways. It does not publish a full processor list on its homepage. For the processors available to your business type and region, contact Avendo through the contact page on avendo.tech.
- Who do I contact with questions about smart routing?
- Contact Avendo through its contact page at avendo.tech/contact-us. Avendo’s team can answer questions about how routing applies to your checkout, which processors are available, and how its compensation works with processors.