Bank statement charge
What is a Large Digital Goods Merchant charge on my card?
Who charged you
A very large digital store, such as Apple or Microsoft
LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANT is a card network category, not a company: some banking apps show it for purchases from very large digital stores, such as Apple and Microsoft. The charge is usually an app, game, in-app purchase or subscription renewal, and the store's own name sits in the same transaction.
How it can show on a statement
LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANTDIGITAL GOODS - LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANTDIGITAL GOODS - LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANT (LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANT)
Find out what it was
- 1
Open the transaction in your banking or card app and read the merchant name above or beside the category: that is the store that charged you.
- 2
Check the purchase history and subscriptions of that store's account for the same amount and date: Purchase History in the App Store for Apple, the order history in your Microsoft account for Microsoft.
- 3
Search your inbox, spam and promotions folders for the exact amount; receipts from these stores name the product and the plan.
- 4
Ask anyone who uses your card or shares a family account with you whether they bought a game item, an app or a subscription that day.
- 5
Look for the same amount a month or a year earlier: a repeat usually means a subscription renewal.
- 6
Still a charge you did not agree to? File your complaint here. We write it with you and send it to the business, so you do not have to chase it yourself.
Not in any of your accounts? If nobody in your household made it, someone else may have used your card details. Your card issuer can stop the card, so the charges do not continue.
Why does it say “LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANT”?
Every card payment carries a merchant category code. Visa sets code 5818 aside for very large sellers of digital goods, meaning goods delivered in electronic form such as apps, games, music and books. Outside Europe a seller needs at least 25 million transactions a year to use it, so it is meant for the biggest stores only. Mastercard calls the same code Digital Goods: Multi-Category.
Some banking and card apps turn that code into a category label and print it next to the merchant name, sometimes with the words repeated in brackets. When the merchant name is short or easy to miss, the label looks like the name of the business. It is not: the store that charged you is the merchant name in the same transaction, such as Apple's billing name or MICROSOFT*ST.
Why you might see this charge
- An App Store purchase or the renewal of a subscription paid through Apple, such as an app plan.
- A purchase or subscription billed by Microsoft.
- Coins, gems or other in-app purchases in a game, sometimes made by a child or another family member on a shared device.
- A trial that ended and became a paid monthly or yearly plan.
- A purchase made on someone else's account with your card details, which is why it shows in none of your own purchase histories.
Is LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANT legit?
The label itself is genuine. It is Visa's own title for merchant category 5818, which some banking and card apps print for the purchase, and it says only that a very large digital store took the payment. The store named in the same transaction is the one that charged you, usually for a purchase or renewal on one of your accounts or a family member's.
If none of your accounts or your family's shows the purchase, your card details may have been used on someone else's account at that store. Fake receipt and renewal emails that copy these stores are common too: check the purchase in your own account with the store, never through a link in an unexpected message.
Other charges people look up
| On your statement | Who charged you | What it usually is |
|---|---|---|
| 2CO.COM | 2Checkout | 2CO.COM is 2Checkout, a company that sells software and subscriptions on behalf of thousands of brands, including many… |
| PAYPRO GLOBAL | PayPro Global | PAYPRO GLOBAL is PayPro Global, a Toronto company that sells software, apps and subscriptions on behalf of software… |
| STEAM PURCHASE | Steam | WL *STEAM PURCHASE or STEAM PURCHASE is Steam, the PC game store run by Valve. |
| SOLIDGATE | Solidgate | SOLIDGATE, SOLIDGATE LLC or SOLIDGATE.COM means you paid an online business, often an app or subscription service… |
| FACEBK* | FACEBK* is Meta, the company behind Facebook and Instagram. | |
| ADOBE INC | Adobe | ADOBE INC is Adobe, the maker of Acrobat, Photoshop, Lightroom and Creative Cloud, sold mostly as subscriptions. |
| LEMSQZY* | Lemon Squeezy | LEMSQZY* is Lemon Squeezy, a Stripe company that sells software, courses and other digital products for the businesses… |
| BOLT.EU | Bolt | BOLT.EU is Bolt, the ride-hailing, scooter and food delivery app. |
Questions about LARGE DIGITAL GOODS MERCHANT
What is Large Digital Goods Merchant on my credit card?
It is a merchant category, not a business. Visa uses it for the biggest digital stores, so it tells you the purchase was something digital, such as an app, a game item or a subscription. The merchant name in the same transaction tells you which store.
Is a Large Digital Goods Merchant charge from Apple?
It can be, but not always. Shared Apple charges show this category, and so do shared Microsoft charges. If the merchant name in the transaction is Apple's billing name, Purchase History in the App Store shows what it was.
Why does it say Digital Goods - Large Digital Goods Merchant (Large Digital Goods Merchant)?
Some apps print the full category title and then repeat the short name in brackets. It is still one category label for one purchase, not two charges and not the name of the seller.
Can Amazon or Google charges show as Large Digital Goods Merchant?
The shared statements we could check show this label only for Apple and Microsoft charges, so we cannot confirm which other stores carry it. Whatever the store, its name is the merchant name in the same transaction; check the order history in that account for the same amount and date.
What if I did not agree to a Large Digital Goods Merchant charge?
File a complaint on Complain.biz. Tell us which store's name is in the transaction, and we write the complaint with you and send it to that business, so you do not have to chase it yourself.
Based on
- Visa Merchant Data Standards Manual: MCC 5818, Digital Goods, Large Digital Goods Merchant (Visa)
- Merchant Category Codes: 5818 is Large Digital Goods Merchant at Visa and Multi-Category at Mastercard (Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions)
- Don't recognize charge from APPLE.COM/BILL, category Digital Goods, Large Digital Goods Merchant (Apple Community)
- Charged twice: MICROSOFT*ST with category Digital Goods, Large Digital Goods Merchant (Microsoft Q&A)
- Being charged on large digital goods that are not in the purchase history (Apple Community)
- View your purchase history for the App Store and other Apple media services (Apple Support)