Nearly 9 in 10 businesses haven’t raised prices after surcharge ban, Tyro data reveals 

Sydney, 5 November 2026 — Almost a month after the RBA’s surcharge ban, new Tyro transaction data suggests nearly nine in ten businesses that previously charged card surcharges haven’t increased their prices. 

Tyro analysed transaction patterns before and after the ban took effect on 1 October to understand how businesses are responding to the changes. 

Key findings: 

• Most businesses haven’t raised prices: Just 12.4% of businesses that previously surcharged showed a price rise in week three, up from 9.4% in week one 

• Price rises were nearly five times more common among businesses that previously surcharged: 12.4% raised prices, compared with 2.7% of businesses that never surcharged 

• Some price rises were much larger than previous surcharges: Among businesses that previously surcharged and raised prices, 61% increased prices by more than three times their former surcharge. However, this represents just 7.6% of businesses that previously surcharged 

Tyro CEO Nigel Lee said the findings were helping build a clearer picture of how Australian businesses are responding. 

“While there’s been plenty of attention on businesses increasing prices, our data suggests the vast majority haven’t increased prices.  

“There’s also been a narrative about businesses raising prices well beyond their previous surcharge, but it’s important to keep this in perspective. Our analysis suggests this is happening in a very small number of cases. Every business has different operating costs, payment arrangements, and pressures to manage, and not every price increase is solely because of the ban. 

“While card surcharges have disappeared, the underlying costs of accepting card payments haven’t. As businesses continue to adapt, it’s important they understand what they’re paying and the overall value they’re getting from their payments provider, including price, reliability, service, and the customer experience.” 

ENDS 

Media enquiries 
Georgie Hollis, media@tyro.com, +61 466 353 920 

Methodology 

Tyro analysed anonymised card transactions, comparing each business’s full spread of transaction values before and after the surcharge ban. Transaction data for a business was only included if it indicated prices were raised as a whole by a consistent percentage, in order to exclude normal price variation.  

About Tyro  

In 2003, Tyro set out to make payments the easiest part of doing business. Today, we power more than 77,800 merchants across Australia with in-store, online and on-the-go payment solutions. With over 580 integrations, we create seamless payment experiences for hospitality, retail, services and health providers, with integrated banking, lending and accounting solutions designed to help unlock the potential of every business.