WELCOME!
My name is Daniel Moreno. I manage credit card payment processing for a large US-based online retailer. Like many of you, I've faced the daily struggle of:
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Accurately identifying the issuing country .
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Distinguishing between Credit, Debit, and Prepaid cards.
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Filtering out Gift and Reloadable cards to prevent fraud.
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Managing the complex Personal vs. Commercial card classification.
Without a well-structured, up-to-date BIN database, these tasks are nearly impossible.
CRITICAL UPDATE: The 8-Digit BIN Split:
Visa and MasterCard have mandated the transition to 8-digit BINs . A traditional 6-digit database is no longer sufficient for modern payment processing. Check the mandates:
Visa: Preparing for the Eight-Digit BIN (FAQ, PDF)
MasterCard: 8-Digit BIN Expansion Mandate
and PCI DSS Impact (PDF)
I have personally tested several vendors. Below is my honest research. I only include providers who offer high-quality data; if I had a terrible experience with a vendor, I simply got a refund and left them out.
Detailed BIN Database Records Distribution (February 2026)
| BIN Length / File Type | Number of Records | Percentage Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| 6 digit BIN file (Standard) | 375,518 | 11.57% |
| 8 digit BIN file (Expanded) | 499,569 | 15.39% |
| 9 digit BIN file | 1,424,681 | 43.88% |
| 10 digit BIN file | 931,065 | 28.67% |
| 11 digit BIN file | 16,145 | 0.50% |
| TOTAL DATABASE SIZE | 3,246,978 | 100% |
* Note: 88.43% of the database now consists of expanded 8-11 digit BIN ranges, supporting the new Visa/MasterCard standards.
Why Official Network Sources Are Not Enough
Direct files from Visa/Mastercard often contain critical inconsistencies that lead to financial loss.
1. The "Prepaid vs Credit" Trap (BIN 523841)
If you process this as a credit card based on official tags, you risk high interchange fees and fraud:
Prepaid Financial Services Ltd,30869,5238412900000000000,5238412999999990000,MRG,MASTERCARD PREPAID NON US GENERAL SPEND,MCC,GBR
⚠️ Reality: It's DEBIT PREPAID - NOT CREDIT ( MCC).
2. The HSA Financial Loss Case (BIN 551274)
Jack Henry & Associates,18205,5512740000000000000,5512740099999990000,MDJ,DEBIT MASTERCARD ENHANCED,DMC,USA
551274; MASTERCARD; JACK HENRY;DEBIT;PREPAID HSA SUBSTANTIATED; USA
The Result: A major merchant suffered serious financial loss by authorizing transactions that should have been restricted to Healthcare-only MCCs. Official data labeled it as standard Debit.
3. Overlapping / Conflicting Records (BIN 44352125)
Official files often show the same BIN for different countries. Which one do you trust?
| 44352125, Visa Classic, Consumer, Debit, USA, USD (Fedex Employees CU) |
| 44352125, Visa Classic, Consumer, Debit, Denmark, DKK (Nordea Bank) |
And so much more examples like these
The 6-Digit Legacy Trap
Warning for Developers: In 2026, a single 6-digit BIN is no longer a unique identifier. It can contain dozens of sub-ranges belonging to different countries, different banks, and different card products.
Using a legacy 6-digit database often returns "Generic" or "Wrong Country" results because it cannot see the 8, 9, or 11-digit granularity where the actual data resides.
Don't trust the marketing. Test the data for free.
Select 50-100 of your most "mysterious" or recently declined BINs and send them for a manual check (better use direct emails to attach your CSVs:
*Tip: Specifically ask for a breakdown of a single 6-digit cluster into its 8-digit sub-products.
BIN Database Providers Comparison Chart
| Companies Features | BinBase.com BIN Database | ExactBins.com BIN Database | FraudAssets.com BIN Database |
|---|---|---|---|
| Account range processing / extended BIN numbers |  |
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| Number of 6 digit records as of February 2026 | 375.000+ | 372.000+ | 480.000+ |
| Number of 7-11 digit records as of February 2026 | 2.870.000+ | 2.450.000+ | |
| Number of parameters | 11-14 | 6-9 | 7 |
| - BIN | |
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| - Brand | |
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| - Issuing organization | |
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| - Card type (debit, credit, charge) | |
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| - Card category (classic, business, prepaid, etc.) | |
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| - Issuing country ISO name | |
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| - Issuing country ISO A2 code | |
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| - Issuing country ISO A3 code | |
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| - Issuing country ISO number | |
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| - Issuing organization website | |
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| - Issuing organization phone number | |
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| Card types/cat. | |||
| Debit vs. Credit | |
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| Consumer vs. Commercial | |
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| HSA/FSA | |
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| Purchasing | |
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| Regulated vs. Unregulated Debit BINs | |
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| Prepaid | |
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| Prepaid Reloadable | |
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| Virtual | |
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| Gift | |
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| Carte Bancaire | (added cost) |
(added cost) |
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| Billing Currency | (added cost) |
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| Anonymous Prepaid | (added cost) |
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| Company | BinBase.com BIN Database | ExactBins.com BIN Database | FraudAssets.com BIN Database |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-purchase information | |||
| Purchase agreement | Download PDF | Download PDF | By request |
| Online BIN lookup tool | Direct link | Direct link | Direct link |
| Data sheet | Direct link | By request | By request |
| Sample database download (6 digit) | N/A | Download | Download |
| Sample database download (6+ digit) |
6-11-digit sample |
7-9-digit sample | |
| Additional services | |||
| XML API | |
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View info |
| IP database | |
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| Updates | |||
| Montly updates | |
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| Updates by email | HTTPS download SFTP - your location or their location |
HTTPS download SFTP by request |
HTTPS download |
| Included with purchase | 6 months or 2 years | 1 year or 2 years | 2 years |
| Price per year after initial contract expires | $499/$899 | $1200/yr | $900 |
| Update frequency per year | 6 or 24 | 4 | 4 |
| Ordering | Licensing options | Licensing options | Licensing options |
| License type 1 | $1199 (6 months of updates) | $15000 (1 year of updates) | $2400 (DB) |
| License type 2 | $1899 (2 years of updates) | $3000 (DB+API) | |
| License type 3 (extended BINs) | $2999 (2 years of updates) | $2900 (2 years of updates) | |
| Online ordering | |
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| Direct wire transfer with invoice | $1079 or $1899 or $2699(-10%) | |
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| Contact form | Contact online | Contact online | Contact online |
| Contact email | |||
| Website |  |
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Common Features Across All Providers
Despite their differences in depth, all listed vendors meet high industry standards. Every provider in my research offers:
Conclusion: Which BIN Database Provider is Right for You?
After a thorough comparison of the top industry vendors, the choice depends on your specific technical requirements. BinBase stands out as the most comprehensive solution for 2026, offering the deepest data granularity, including full support for the 8-11 digit BIN expansion and unique parameters like HSA/FSA and Consumer vs. Commercial differentiation. ExactBins is a strong runner-up with excellent coverage of extended ranges, though it provides fewer issuing organization details. For businesses strictly requiring legacy 6-digit data, FraudAssets remains a reliable and cost-effective option, but lacks support for the newer account range processing standards. To future-proof your payment processing and fraud prevention, I highly recommend opting for a provider that covers the full 3.2M+ record spectrum of expanded BIN standards.