# PCI Compliance Cost 2026: Level-by-Level, No Vendor Pitch > What PCI DSS actually costs by merchant level. Processor fee explainer, real penalty schedule, calculator with no signup or sales call. Independent, vendor-neutral ## Pages - [Home](https://pcicompliancecost.com): What PCI DSS actually costs by merchant level. Processor fee explainer, real penalty schedule, calculator with no signup or sales call. Independent,... - [PCI Compliance In 2026: What Changed, And What Is Actually Published](https://pcicompliancecost.com/2026-pci-compliance-cost-outlook): The 2026 PCI picture from the primary documents: the current Visa and Mastercard rulebook editions, the first full cycle with v4.0's future-dated... - [A-LIGN PCI Compliance Cost 2026: The Multi-Framework Question](https://pcicompliancecost.com/a-lign-pci-cost): A-LIGN PCI pricing read. Multi-framework efficiency angle, when bundling PCI with SOC 2 and ISO 27001 saves money, and how A-LIGN compares... - [About PCIComplianceCost.com & Digital Signet](https://pcicompliancecost.com/about): PCIComplianceCost.com is operated by Digital Signet, an independent AI-development studio. About the operator, the editorial framework, and what we do not publish - [PCI Merchant Levels: Visa Has Three, Mastercard Has Four](https://pcicompliancecost.com/by-level): Visa folded level 4 into level 3 on 25 April 2024. Mastercard still runs four levels. Both brands' thresholds quoted from their... - [Coalfire PCI Compliance Cost 2026: What Drives The Quote](https://pcicompliancecost.com/coalfire-pci-cost): Independent read on Coalfire PCI pricing. Federal-adjacent QSA premium, scope dynamics, and how Coalfire compares with Trustwave, A-LIGN, and Schellman for commercial... - [ControlScan PCI Compliance Cost 2026: The Mid-Market Read](https://pcicompliancecost.com/controlscan-pci-cost): What actually drives a ControlScan PCI quote. Mid-market QSA positioning, the acquirer portal channel, Sysnet acquisition history, and how ControlScan compares with... - [Drata PCI Compliance Cost 2026: PCI DSS Framework Lists at $7,500/yr](https://pcicompliancecost.com/drata-pci-cost): What Drata lists for PCI DSS in 2026. The published AWS Marketplace dimensions (platform fee and per-framework fee), what the platform covers,... - [PCI Compliance Cost by Industry: Retail, E-commerce, Restaurant, Healthcare](https://pcicompliancecost.com/industry): What actually drives PCI cost in six sectors: which SAQ each one lands on, the published control count that follows, and the... - [Level 1 PCI Compliance Cost: What Sets The Bill For A Report On Compliance](https://pcicompliancecost.com/level-1-pci-cost): Nobody publishes a price for Level 1 assessment work. So this page gives you what is published: who may sign the ROC,... - [Level 2 PCI Compliance Cost: The Tier Where Self-Assessment Is Not Self-Service](https://pcicompliancecost.com/level-2-pci-cost): Mastercard requires a Level 2 merchant filing SAQ A, A-EP or D to have it validated by a QSA or a certified... - [Level 3 PCI Compliance Cost: What Sets The Bill For 20K-1M E-Commerce Transactions](https://pcicompliancecost.com/level-3-pci-cost): Visa and Mastercard no longer mean the same thing by Level 3. Nobody publishes a price for the work, so this page... - [Level 4 PCI Compliance Cost: A Mastercard Tier, Not A Visa One](https://pcicompliancecost.com/level-4-pci-cost): Visa retired level 4 on 25 April 2024 and folded it into level 3. Mastercard still runs it. What the smallest merchant... - [Methodology: Which Numbers Here Are Facts, And Which Are Our Model](https://pcicompliancecost.com/methodology): Card brand rules are quoted from Visa's and Mastercard's own rulebooks with check dates. Nobody publishes PCI prices, so this site carries... - [PCI DSS v4.0 vs v3.2.1: What Changed, Requirement By Requirement](https://pcicompliancecost.com/pci-dss-v4-vs-v3-cost-delta): The v4.0 delta measured in new controls and new work rather than invented dollars. Every changed requirement by number, the published SAQ... - [PCI Non-Compliance Penalties: What The Card Brands Actually Publish](https://pcicompliancecost.com/penalties): Mastercard publishes its SDP assessment ceilings. Visa publishes its breach-response ones and withholds the rest. What each brand's own rulebook says, and... - [The PCI Fee On Your Statement: Which One You Have, And How To Remove It](https://pcicompliancecost.com/processor-fees): There are two different PCI charges and only one of them comes off when you file your SAQ. How to tell which... - [QSA Assessment Cost: What Drives The Quote, And Why Nobody Publishes A Rate](https://pcicompliancecost.com/qsa-cost): No QSA firm publishes a day rate or a sample fee. What is documented is who must use a QSA, what an... - [Qualys PCI ASV Cost 2026: No Published Price, and What Drives the Quote](https://pcicompliancecost.com/qualys-pci-cost): Qualys publishes no price for PCI ASV scanning. What the product actually is, why the quote scales with your internet-facing IP count,... - [Rapid7 PCI Compliance Cost 2026: The ASV Comes From MegaplanIT](https://pcicompliancecost.com/rapid7-pci-cost): Rapid7 does not attest your PCI scan. Rapid7 partners with MegaplanIT, a third-party ASV partner. What that means for scope, quotes and... - [How to Reduce PCI Compliance Cost: 7 Proven Strategies](https://pcicompliancecost.com/reduce-costs): Tokenization, hosted payment pages, network segmentation, P2PE terminals, automation platforms, SAQ right-sizing, and ISA training. Real cost savings per strategy - [PCI DSS 4.0 Requirements: All 12 Explained, and What Each One Costs You In Work](https://pcicompliancecost.com/requirements): Plain-English explanation of all 12 PCI DSS 4.0 requirements: what each one asks, the gaps assessments flag most often, what changed from... - [PCI SAQ A Cost 2026: ~24 Controls, and What Actually Decides Your Bill](https://pcicompliancecost.com/saq-a-cost): SAQ A is the smallest SAQ at around 24 controls under v4.0.1, roughly a tenth of SAQ D. What sets eligibility, the... - [PCI SAQ C Cost 2026: 160 Controls, and What Actually Decides Your Bill](https://pcicompliancecost.com/saq-c-cost): SAQ C covers 160 controls for POS-on-internet merchants, roughly double SAQ B-IP. What sets the scope, what segmentation changes in control terms,... - [PCI SAQ D Cost 2026: ~251 Controls, and What Actually Decides Your Bill](https://pcicompliancecost.com/saq-d-cost): SAQ D-Merchant covers all 12 PCI DSS requirements at around 251 controls under v4.0.1, roughly 10x SAQ A. What drives the work,... - [SAQ D Service Provider Cost 2026: What Drives It, and Why No One Publishes a Price](https://pcicompliancecost.com/saq-d-service-provider-cost): SAQ D-Service Provider covers around 269 controls under v4.0.1. What actually sets the cost for payment gateways and hosting providers, the customer... - [PCI SAQ P2PE Cost 2026: 33 Controls, and Why Validated Is the Whole Point](https://pcicompliancecost.com/saq-p2pe-cost): SAQ P2PE is 33 controls against 160 for SAQ C, the lightest SAQ for in-person card acceptance. Why only a PCI-validated P2PE... - [PCI SAQ Types: Which Self-Assessment Questionnaire Do You Need?](https://pcicompliancecost.com/saq-types): All 9 PCI SAQ types compared. Interactive selector wizard, published control counts from the v4.0.1 SAQ documents, and the common payment processor... - [PCI ASV Scanning & Pen Testing Cost: What Is Published, What Is Not](https://pcicompliancecost.com/scanning-costs): One ASV publishes a price. The rest quote per engagement. What each vendor actually publishes, which two are not ASVs at all,... - [Schellman PCI Compliance Cost 2026: What Drives The Quote](https://pcicompliancecost.com/schellman-pci-cost): What actually drives a Schellman PCI quote. Partner-level review, the multi-framework bundle, the engagement shapes to expect, and how Schellman compares with... - [Secureframe PCI Compliance Cost 2026: Platform + First Framework at $7,500 Each](https://pcicompliancecost.com/secureframe-pci-cost): What Secureframe lists on AWS Marketplace in 2026. The published platform fee and first-framework fee (both $7,500/yr, up to 100 employees), what... - [SecurityMetrics ASV Scan Cost 2026: The $399/Year Published Price, Read Properly](https://pcicompliancecost.com/securitymetrics-asv-cost): SecurityMetrics is the one PCI ASV that publishes a price. What the published $399/year actually covers, what it does not, and why... - [SecurityMetrics PCI Compliance Cost 2026: What Is Published and What Is Quoted](https://pcicompliancecost.com/securitymetrics-pci-cost): SecurityMetrics publishes one PCI price: $399/year for a single-IP small-business bundle. What that covers, why the portal channel matters more, and where... - [Sprinto PCI Compliance Cost 2026: $7,500 Starter Platform, Frameworks From $2,000](https://pcicompliancecost.com/sprinto-pci-cost): What Sprinto lists on AWS Marketplace in 2026: a $7,500/yr Starter platform for up to 100 employees and frameworks described as starting... - [Sponsorship](https://pcicompliancecost.com/sponsorship): The site accepts one sponsor at a time, shown as a single labelled strip. Vendors the site evaluates can never sponsor it, and rankings, comparison outcomes, calculator placement and verification are never for sale. - [Tenable PCI Compliance Cost 2026: You Scan, Tenable Attests](https://pcicompliancecost.com/tenable-pci-cost): Tenable is an ASV, but the model is unusual: you run the scan yourself with Tenable's PCI template, then submit it for... - [Trustwave PCI Compliance Cost 2026: Now LevelBlue, and No Published Price](https://pcicompliancecost.com/trustwave-pci-cost): LevelBlue completed its acquisition of Trustwave in August 2025. What that means for a PCI buyer, why no fee is published, and... - [Vanta PCI Compliance Cost 2026: Essentials Lists from $14,000/yr](https://pcicompliancecost.com/vanta-pci-cost): What Vanta lists on AWS Marketplace in 2026. The published package prices (Essentials from $14,000/yr), why there is no separate PCI DSS... --- *Generated 2026-07-28 from PCI Compliance Cost 2026: Level-by-Level, No Vendor Pitch site source.*