Nutraceuticals merchant accounts.
Supplements and wellness brands get lumped into high risk because of how they've historically been billed, not what they sell. Board it clean and it runs like any other DTC account.
Request a reviewWhy this category is classified high risk
The category carries the scars of the 'free trial' era — negative-option billing that auto-enrolled customers into expensive rebills. Card networks watched those chargeback ratios and flagged the whole vertical.
Health and weight-loss claims attract regulatory attention from the FTC and FDA. Acquirers underwrite the marketing as carefully as the product, because aggressive claims predict disputes.
Continuity billing is common and, done poorly, produces the exact recognition failures that trigger chargebacks.
What underwriting will want to see
- Transparent billing terms — if there's a trial or subscription, the price, cadence, and cancellation method must be visible before checkout, not buried in a footer.
- Substantiated claims. Keep marketing to what you can back up; avoid disease and guaranteed-results language.
- A working, easy cancellation flow and responsive customer support with published hours.
- Standard financials: processing history, bank statements, formation documents, and ownership.
What drives disputes here
Free-trial-to-rebill conversions are the single largest dispute driver. Clear pre-checkout disclosure and a reminder email before the first rebill are the highest-leverage fixes.
'I forgot I subscribed' is a recognition failure. Descriptors and receipts solve most of it.
Shipping delays on continuity orders generate 'never received' claims — tracking and proactive delay notices matter.
Descriptor & billing guidance
Match the descriptor to the brand name on the box and the site. For subscriptions, send an itemized email before each charge with the amount and the descriptor, and include a one-click link to manage or cancel. Acquirers watch this vertical's ratios closely, so over-communicate.
Nutraceuticals, specifically
- Is a free-trial offer going to get me declined?
- Not automatically, but it raises the bar. If you run trials, the terms have to be unmistakable before purchase and the cancellation has to actually work. Deceptive trials are what closed accounts in this category, and underwriters remember.
- How much processing history do I need?
- Three months is typical. If you're launching, we can board on projections plus a personal guarantee, usually starting with a monthly volume cap that lifts as history builds.
- Can I make weight-loss claims?
- Keep them modest and substantiated. Guaranteed outcomes and before/after promises drive both regulatory risk and 'not as described' disputes.
Tell us about your business. We'll tell you who will board it.
Describe what you actually sell and how you deliver it. We'll match you to an acquirer that wants the volume — or tell you plainly if it won't board.