StatementDecoder

Prefix guide

Statement charge prefixes, explained

Payment processors and platforms stamp recognisable prefixes onto bank statements. Knowing the prefix tells you who processed a charge — the first step to working out who actually charged you.

Got a specific charge? Identify it now or upload a whole statement.

What a statement prefix tells you

A prefix like SQ *, TST*, PAYPAL * or SP  identifies the payment processor that moved the money — Square, Toast, PayPal, Stripe — not the business you bought from. That's why a coffee shop can show up as SQ *BLUBTTL: Square processed it, and only the truncated merchant tag hints at who it was.

Knowing the processor is the first step to identifying a charge — and often the fastest route to a refund, since the processor can point you to the seller. Each guide below explains a prefix, who processes it, and how to check a charge. Don't recognise one? Paste it into the identifier.

Whole statement, one pass

Stop looking charges up one by one

Upload the statement instead: every descriptor identified with confidence levels, plus subscriptions, duplicates and fees flagged automatically. Free account, no card required, deleted after 24 hours.

No bank logins · card numbers redacted before storage · everything deleted after 24 hours