How each network calculates your ratio
Work out yours with the chargeback ratio calculator, which shows the overall, Visa and Mastercard figures side by side, or the VAMP calculator for Visa's ratio in every region.
Visa (VAMP). Visa's Acquirer Monitoring Program combined its earlier fraud and dispute programs into one global program, with thresholds effective 1 June 2025 and an advisory period that ended 30 September 2025. Per Visa's fact sheet:
- VAMP ratio = (fraud reports, TC40 + disputes, TC15) ÷ settled transactions (TC05), counted on card-not-present transactions, domestic and cross-border.
- Disputes resolved through pre-dispute solutions are excluded, and so are TC40 fraud reports that qualified for Compelling Evidence 3.0 (both subject to the timing of Visa's data extract).
- Stripe notes that the same transaction can appear in both the TC40 and TC15 reports and then counts twice, and that Visa calculates against payments in the same calendar month.
Mastercard (Excessive Chargeback Program). Mastercard divides the chargebacks received in a month by the Mastercard transactions from the previous month. A merchant enters the program only when both the ratio and the chargeback count meet the threshold. Stripe notes that Mastercard counts a chargeback regardless of refund, liability shift or outcome.
Example. A store settles 40,000 Visa card-not-present transactions in March and receives 260 disputes plus 380 fraud reports in March. Its VAMP ratio is (380 + 260) ÷ 40,000 = 1.6%, above the 1.5% level, but with 640 counts it is below the 1,500 minimum in the US, so it would not be identified as Excessive that month. Its acquirer may still act, because acquirers carry their own portfolio thresholds.
What counts and what doesn't
- Refunds you issue are not disputes, and monitoring programs don't count them.
- Early fraud warnings are not disputes, but Stripe notes they are fraud reports that Visa includes in VAMP even if you refund the order.
- Won disputes still count. Networks measure how many disputes you receive, not their outcomes.
- Inquiries that never move funds are not counted as disputes.
- Multiple descriptors can split or combine your numbers; Stripe explains that Visa identifies an account by the static part of its statement descriptor and its acquiring bank.
Fines and consequences
Visa's fact sheet requires entities above the thresholds to implement risk-mitigation measures, and Stripe's documentation says Visa assesses fees to merchants above the Excessive threshold. Visa doesn't publish the fee amounts in its fact sheet, so ask your acquirer how they are passed on. For Mastercard ECM, Stripe and Shopify list no fine in month 1, $1,000 USD in months 2 and 3, and $5,000 USD plus an issuer recovery assessment in months 4 to 6, rising after that; HECM fines are higher. Mastercard removes a merchant after 3 consecutive months below the threshold. Persistent problems can end in termination and a MATCH or VMSS listing (see high-risk merchants).
How to bring your ratio down
- Find the reason codes behind most of your disputes and fix those causes first.
- Stop fraud before capture: Stripe notes that an authorization reversed before capture isn't reported as fraud, while a captured payment can be.
- Screen orders and hold risky ones before fulfillment.
- Make descriptors recognizable and refunds easy, and send renewal reminders.
- Use pre-dispute tools where available, since Visa excludes disputes resolved through them.
- Use Compelling Evidence 3.0 for Visa fraud claims from returning customers.
- Track the ratio weekly, per processor and descriptor, not just at month end.
How Verdikx helps
Verdikx is a fraud, chargeback and dispute platform for e-commerce and SaaS merchants, built by Verdikx LLC (New Jersey, United States).
- Daily chargeback-ratio alerts (every plan). Once a day Verdikx works out your 30-day dispute-to-order ratio, store-wide and per processor, and shows it on Results: watch from 0.65%, approaching the limit from 1%, and above the Visa and Mastercard level at 1.5%, with samples under 100 orders marked. When a ratio rises into a higher band you get an alert in the app, and by email if you opted in to email alerts.
- No per-card-network ratio. Orders don't record the card brand, so Verdikx can't divide disputes by network; the card-network breakdown on Results counts disputes only, and the networks apply their own counts.
- An early warning, not the official figure. Verdikx doesn't see Visa fraud reports (TC40) beyond the Stripe early fraud warnings you connect, and VAMP counts them, so your VAMP ratio can be higher than the one Verdikx shows. It is not the official VAMP or ECM figure.
- Fewer fraud disputes. Order screening on new Shopify orders (Growth, $79/month) and custom rules with automatic holds (Pro, $199/month).
- Stripe early fraud warnings (Growth). Refund eligible unfulfilled orders automatically under your cap, which avoids the dispute and its fee.
- Visa Compelling Evidence 3.0 listed in fraud-dispute packets when prior orders qualify.
What Verdikx does not do
- It does not report your official VAMP, ECM or HECM status; your acquirer and processor do.
- Card-network pre-dispute alerts (Visa RDR, Mastercard Ethoca) are coming soon, not live.
- Thresholds change. Treat the table below as a dated summary and confirm current rules with your acquirer.
| Program and level | Region | Ratio threshold | Monthly count threshold | How the ratio is counted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visa VAMP, Excessive merchant | Asia Pacific, Canada, EU, US | 1.5% (150 bps) or more from 1 April 2026; 2.2% (220 bps) from 1 June 2025 to 31 March 2026 | 1,500 or more fraud reports plus disputes | (TC40 fraud + TC15 disputes) ÷ settled card-not-present transactions, same month |
| Visa VAMP, Excessive merchant | Latin America and Caribbean | 1.5% (150 bps) or more | 1,500 or more fraud reports plus disputes | Same as above |
| Visa VAMP, Excessive merchant | Central Europe, Middle East and Africa (CEMEA) | 2.2% (220 bps) or more | 150 or more, and USD 75,000 or more in amount | Same as above |
| Visa VAMP, acquirer portfolio | Global | Above Standard at 0.5% (50 bps); Excessive at 0.7% (70 bps) | Same minimum counts as the merchant level in each region | Measured across the acquirer's whole portfolio |
| Mastercard ECM (Excessive Chargeback Merchant) | All regions | 1.5% to 2.99% | 100 to 299 chargebacks | Chargebacks this month ÷ Mastercard transactions last month |
| Mastercard HECM (High Excessive Chargeback Merchant) | All regions | 3% or more | 300 or more chargebacks | Chargebacks this month ÷ Mastercard transactions last month |
Sources: Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program fact sheet (2025) for VAMP; Stripe and Shopify documentation for Mastercard ECP. Both ratio and count must be met to be identified. Programs change and acquirers can apply stricter limits, so check with your acquirer.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good chargeback ratio?
As low as you can keep it, and comfortably below your acquirer's limits, which can be stricter than the networks'. Visa's merchant Excessive level is 1.5% in most regions and Mastercard's ECM level starts at 1.5%, but Visa's acquirer portfolio thresholds start at 0.5%, so acquirers often watch merchants well below 1.5%.
What is the VAMP ratio?
It is Visa's single monitoring metric since June 2025: the count of fraud reports (TC40) plus disputes (TC15) divided by the count of settled card-not-present transactions in the same month. Disputes resolved through pre-dispute solutions and fraud reports qualified for Compelling Evidence 3.0 are excluded.
When did the VAMP threshold drop to 1.5%?
Visa's fact sheet states the Excessive merchant threshold was reduced from 2.2% to 1.5% in the Asia Pacific, Canada, EU and US regions on 1 April 2026. Latin America and Caribbean already used 1.5%, and CEMEA remains at 2.2% with a lower count minimum plus an amount threshold.
Do won chargebacks count toward my ratio?
Yes. Monitoring programs count disputes when they are received, not when they are decided, so a won dispute still counts. Stripe's documentation notes the networks care more about how well you prevent disputes than whether you win them.
Do early fraud warnings count toward VAMP?
Yes. Stripe explains that early fraud warnings come from Visa's TC40 fraud reports and are included in the VAMP ratio regardless of outcome, even if you refund. Refunding still avoids a dispute (TC15) and its fee, so the order counts once instead of twice.
How do I calculate my Mastercard chargeback ratio?
Divide the Mastercard chargebacks you received this month by the Mastercard transactions from the previous month. Mastercard's ECM level applies at 1.5% with at least 100 chargebacks, and HECM at 3% with at least 300, according to Stripe's and Shopify's documentation.
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Sources
- Visa: Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program fact sheet (2025) (checked October 5, 2026)
- Visa: Evolving the Visa Acquirer Monitoring Program (checked October 5, 2026)
- Stripe Docs: Dispute and fraud card monitoring programs (checked October 5, 2026)
- Shopify Help Center: Card network monitoring programs (checked October 5, 2026)
Last reviewed by Verdikx Research.