Compare · Financials
Mastercard vs. Visa: how they make money
The same facts for both companies, in the same order, from each company's own page and filings. This is not a ranking and says nothing about which share to own.
Each company in 5 points
Mastercard
1 · What it sells
Mastercard runs a card payment network and sells services around it, with net revenue of $32.8 billion in FY2025, and it does not issue cards or lend.
Sources and detail on the Mastercard page2 · Who pays it
Card issuers and acquirers pay Mastercard, which does not split revenue by payer; FY2025 net revenue was 59.4% payment network fees and 40.6% value-added services.
Sources and detail on the Mastercard page3 · What it keeps from $100
Of every $100 that came in during FY2025, Mastercard kept $45.0 as net income, after a $504 million litigation provision and including about $135 million of government grants; operating income was $57.6 per $100 of net revenue.
Sources and detail on the Mastercard page4 · Where the operating profit comes from
Mastercard reports one segment, Payment Solutions, so it gives no split of its $18.9 billion of FY2025 operating income by product or region.
Sources and detail on the Mastercard page5 · The one thing to watch
Rebates and incentives to customers were 51.3% of Mastercard's network fees in FY2025, up from 46.7% in FY2021.
Sources and detail on the Mastercard page
Visa
1 · What it sells
Visa runs a payment network that moves money between banks for card and account payments, with net revenue of $45.9 billion in FY2026 (unaudited), and it does not issue cards or lend.
Sources and detail on the Visa page2 · Who pays it
Visa does not disclose revenue by type of payer; of FY2026 gross revenue (unaudited), data processing was 36.4%, service 31.0%, international transactions 23.7% and other 8.8%.
Sources and detail on the Visa page3 · What it keeps from $100
Of every $100 that came in during FY2026 (unaudited), Visa kept $50.4 as net income, after a $1,764 million litigation provision, $563 million of severance and a $282 million donation and with a $314 million deferred tax benefit; operating income was $61.2 per $100 of net revenue.
Sources and detail on the Visa page4 · Where the operating profit comes from
Visa reports one segment, Payment Services, so it gives no split of its $28.1 billion of FY2026 operating income (unaudited) by product or region.
Sources and detail on the Visa page5 · The one thing to watch
Client incentives took $28.5 of every $100 of gross revenue in FY2026 (unaudited), up from $25.8 in FY2021.
Sources and detail on the Visa page
Where each $100 went
Each company's own receipt for its latest full fiscal year, with matching lines in the same order where both have them.
Mastercard
Where $100 went · FY2025
| Personnel | $21.8 |
|---|---|
| Litigation provision | $1.5 |
| Advertising, data processing, fees, other running costs | $15.0 |
| Depreciation and amortization | $3.4 |
| Interest and investment losses | $2.4 |
| Income tax | $10.8 |
| Kept as net income | $45.0 |
| Total | $100 |
Cityfort calculation from the FY2025 10-K. Of every $100 that came in during FY2025 (net revenue plus investment and other income): each line = line ÷ $33.3 billion × 100. Rebates and incentives to customers are already taken out of net revenue.
Visa
Where $100 went · FY2026 (unaudited)
| Personnel | $17.0 |
|---|---|
| Litigation provision | $3.8 |
| Marketing | $5.0 |
| Network, fees, admin, depreciation | $12.4 |
| Interest | $1.6 |
| Income tax | $9.8 |
| Kept as net income | $50.4 |
| Total | $100 |
Cityfort calculation from Q4 FY2026 earnings release. Of every $100 that came in during FY2026 (net revenue plus investment income and other): each line = line ÷ $46.6 billion × 100. Client incentives are already taken out of net revenue.
Line items differ because each company groups its costs its own way in its filings. Only on Mastercard's receipt: Advertising, data processing, fees, other running costs; Depreciation and amortization; Interest and investment losses. Only on Visa's receipt: Marketing; Network, fees, admin, depreciation; Interest.
Revenue, net income and free cash flow
Up to five fiscal years for each company, drawn on one shared scale per measure. Amounts in US$ as reported (GAAP).
Revenue
Mastercard
Visa
See the numbers
Net income
Mastercard
Visa
See the numbers
Free cash flow
Mastercard
Visa
See the numbers
Who pays each company
Mastercard
- Card issuersFinancial institutions that issue Mastercard cards to people and businesses and pay fees to use the network. Share not disclosed.
- AcquirersFinancial institutions that sign up stores and handle their card payments. Share not disclosed.
- Other market participantsOther businesses that use Mastercard's network or buy its services. Share not disclosed.
Visa
- Card-issuing financial institutionsBanks and others that issue Visa products to account holders and pay Visa for using its network. Share not disclosed.
- Acquiring financial institutionsInstitutions that sign up stores and handle their card payments. Visa sets its fees to them separately from what they charge stores. Share not disclosed.
- Other clientsDigital banks, digital wallets, fintech companies, sellers and governments that use Visa's network or services. Share not disclosed.
Revenue by segment
Mastercard
FY2025; revenue categories (Mastercard reports one segment)
| Segment | Revenue | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Payment network | $19.5B | 59.4% |
| Value-added services and solutions | $13.3B | 40.6% |
Visa
FY2026, unaudited; gross revenue categories
| Segment | Revenue | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Data processing | $23.4B | 36.4% |
| Service | $19.9B | 31.0% |
| International transactions | $15.3B | 23.7% |
| Other | $5.7B | 8.8% |
Debt and cash
Mastercard
- Debt
- $23.9B
- Cash and investments
- $10.5B
On Sep 30, 2026.
At Sep 30, 2026, Mastercard's debt exceeded its cash and investments by $13.5 billion, about 0.8 years of FY2025 cash from operations; at Dec 31, 2025 the gap was $8.1 billion.
Visa
- Debt
- $22.1B
- Cash and investments
- $14.2B
On Sep 30, 2026.
At Sep 30, 2026 (unaudited), Visa's debt exceeded its cash and investment securities by $7.9 billion, about a third of FY2026 cash from operations; a year earlier the gap was $5.2 billion.
Who owns each company
Mastercard
- 2 classes of shares (votes per share: Class A common stock 1, Class B common stock 0).
- Officers and directors as a group: 0.1% of shares (as of Apr 21, 2026).
- BlackRock: 7.7% (as of Feb 12, 2024).
- Mastercard Foundation Asset Management (with the Mastercard Foundation): 7.4% (as of Apr 16, 2026).
- Vanguard Capital Management: 6.8% (as of Apr 30, 2026).
Visa
- 6 classes of shares.
- Officers and directors as a group: 0.1% of shares (as of Dec 1, 2025).
- Vanguard Capital Management: 7.4% (as of Apr 30, 2026).
- BlackRock: 7.3% (as of Feb 8, 2024).
Sources: Mastercard S16, S5, S1, S25, S27, S24, S26 · Visa S21, S6, S1, S22, S23
Risks only one page tracks
Risks whose type the other company's page does not list. Both pages track risks of these types: legal cases, regulation, customer or supplier concentration, competition, demand, governance. Every risk is on each company's page.
Mastercard
- More debt in 2026 (debt)Total debt rose from $19.0 billion at Dec 31, 2025 to $23.9 billion at Sep 30, 2026, after $5.0 billion of notes. Mastercard paid $1.4 billion for BVNK in August 2026. Cash from operations in the first nine months fell $787 million from a year earlier.
Visa
- Network outage or breach (technology)Visa processed 281.3 billion transactions in FY2026 (unaudited) and names a network outage or data breach as a risk. Privacy and AI laws add compliance obligations.
- Acquisitions still being absorbed (execution)Visa paid $946 million for Featurespace in December 2024 and $1.5 billion for Prisma and Newpay in February 2026, a deal under Argentine competition review. It agreed to pay $2.4 billion for BioCatch, subject to regulatory approvals.
Key facts
- How does Mastercard make money compared with Visa?
- Mastercard's revenue by segment in FY2025; revenue categories (Mastercard reports one segment): Payment network 59.4%, Value-added services and solutions 40.6%. Visa's revenue by segment in FY2026, unaudited; gross revenue categories: Data processing 36.4%, Service 31.0%, International transactions 23.7%, Other 8.8%.
- Which is bigger by revenue, Mastercard or Visa?
- Mastercard reported $32.8B of revenue in FY2025, and Visa reported $45.9B in FY2026. The two fiscal years end in different months.
- How much net income did Mastercard and Visa report?
- Mastercard reported net income of $15.0B in FY2025, and Visa reported $23.5B in FY2026.
- How much of every $100 did Mastercard and Visa keep as net income?
- Mastercard kept $45.0 of every $100 that came in during FY2025, and Visa kept $50.4 in FY2026 (unaudited) (Cityfort calculation from each company's annual report).
- How much debt and cash do Mastercard and Visa have?
- Mastercard had $23.9B of debt and $10.5B of cash and investments on Sep 30, 2026. Visa had $22.1B of debt and $14.2B of cash and investments on Sep 30, 2026.
- When do Mastercard's and Visa's fiscal years end?
- Mastercard: Dec 31 (calendar year). Visa: Sep 30.
Sources: Mastercard S3, S1, S5, S18, S21 · Visa S3, S1, S12, S29
Built from each company's page. Mastercard updated Nov 6, 2026; Visa updated Nov 1, 2026.
Sources
Mastercard
- S1Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Dec 31, 2025), Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR), Feb 11, 2026
- S3Form 10-K, fiscal year 2023 (ended Dec 31, 2023), Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR), Feb 13, 2024
- S5Form 10-Q, Q3 2026 (quarter ended Sep 30, 2026), Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR), Oct 29, 2026
- S16Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the 2026 annual meeting, Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR), Apr 27, 2026
- S18Form 8-K, Item 1.01: $8 billion revolving credit facility extended to Nov 2030, Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR), Nov 12, 2025
- S21Form 8-K, Item 8.01: $5.0 billion senior notes offering, Mastercard Incorporated (SEC EDGAR), Jun 8, 2026
- S24Schedule 13G: Vanguard Capital Management, 6.82% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026), Vanguard Capital Management (SEC EDGAR), Apr 30, 2026
- S25Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 7.4% of Class A (as of Mar 31, 2026), Mastercard Foundation Asset Management Corp. (SEC EDGAR), Apr 16, 2026
- S26Schedule 13G/A: The Vanguard Group reports 0 shares after an internal realignment, The Vanguard Group (SEC EDGAR), Mar 27, 2026
- S27Schedule 13G/A: Mastercard Foundation Asset Management, 8.3% of Class A (as of Jun 30, 2025), Mastercard Foundation Asset Management Corp. (SEC EDGAR), Aug 1, 2025
Visa
- S1Form 10-K, fiscal year 2025 (ended Sep 30, 2025), Visa Inc. (SEC EDGAR), Nov 6, 2025
- S3Form 10-K, fiscal year 2023 (ended Sep 30, 2023), Visa Inc. (SEC EDGAR), Nov 15, 2023
- S6Form 10-Q, Q3 FY2026 (quarter ended Jun 30, 2026), Visa Inc. (SEC EDGAR), Jul 29, 2026
- S12Earnings release, Q4 and full-year FY2026 (Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1), Visa Inc. (SEC EDGAR), Oct 27, 2026
- S21Proxy statement (DEF 14A) for the January 27, 2026 annual meeting, Visa Inc. (SEC EDGAR), Dec 8, 2025
- S22Schedule 13G, Vanguard Capital Management (event date Mar 31, 2026), Vanguard Capital Management (SEC EDGAR), Apr 30, 2026
- S23Schedule 13G/A, The Vanguard Group (event date Mar 13, 2026), The Vanguard Group (SEC EDGAR), Mar 27, 2026
- S29Form 8-K: $3.0B senior notes offering (Item 8.01), Visa Inc. (SEC EDGAR), Feb 12, 2026
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