What is the CTLP charge on my credit card?
Facts checked
Short answer
CTLP is Cantaloupe, Inc., the company behind the card readers on vending machines, office micro markets, laundry machines and air pumps. CTLP was its stock ticker. The name after CTLP is the business that owns the machine, so a charge from "CTLP Modern Leasing" means someone bought something from a machine Modern Leasing runs.
How it shows up on your statement
- CTLPModern Leasing MI CLIVE IA
- CTLP InReach Bethesda MD
- CTLP*AIR VAC GLOBAL
- USA*TECHNOLOGIES MALVERN PA
Banks trim and reformat these, so yours may be shorter or carry a different city or number. Why charge names look strange.
Who is CTLP?
CTLP stands for Cantaloupe, Inc., a company in Malvern, Pennsylvania that used to be called USA Technologies. It renamed itself in April 2021 and began trading on Nasdaq as CTLP, which is the four letters on your statement. Before the rename, the same charges read USA*TECHNOLOGIES.
Cantaloupe doesn't sell snacks. It makes the cashless readers fitted to vending machines, micro markets (the self-checkout fridges in offices and hospitals), laundry machines, air and vacuum stations, arcade games and kiosks, and it processes the card payments those readers take. Its consumer FAQ says it plainly: "Cantaloupe is the provider of the card reader that you (or someone else) used to make the payment."
The words after CTLP name the operator, the business that owns and stocks the machine. One Reddit user found three charges from "CTLPModern Leasing MI CLIVE IA" and worked out they came from a rest-area vending machine on a road trip. "CTLP InReach" charges come from InReach, Sodexo's vending and micro market business, whose US offices are in North Bethesda, Maryland. So the city on the charge is usually the operator's head office, not where anyone was standing.
In May 2026, 365 Retail Markets completed its purchase of Cantaloupe and said the combined business will operate under the 365 name. These charges may show a different name over time.
Why is CTLP on my card statement?
Someone used the card at an unattended machine. Reddit users who tracked down their CTLP charges found amounts between $0.80 and $3.20: a soda, a bag of chips, a laundry cycle, a minute of air for a tire.
- A pending hold bigger than the purchase. The reader doesn't always know the final total when you tap, so it holds an estimate. Cantaloupe says your bank can take 24 to 72 hours to clear that hold.
- Several lines from one visit. Each item, and sometimes each retried tap, can post on its own.
- Apple Pay or Google Pay. A phone tap charges the card behind it, so the line can land on a card nobody took out of a wallet.
- A machine you've used for years under a new name. When an operator switches payment providers, its machines start billing differently.
- A family member at work, school or the hospital. Workplace micro markets and hospital vending machines are among the most common sources.
Holds are the part that alarms people. One Reddit user spent $5 at a vending machine and saw $35 pending. It corrected itself, which is what Cantaloupe's FAQ says should happen.
How to get a refund for a CTLP charge
There's nothing to cancel. CTLP charges are one-off purchases, not a subscription. If a machine took your money and didn't vend, charged you twice, or left a hold that won't drop, work through these in order.
- Wait 72 hours if the charge is still pending. Most odd-looking holds shrink to the real price or vanish.
- Look on the machine for a sticker with the operator's phone number. The operator owns the machine and the stock and can often refund you directly.
- Call Cantaloupe. Its consumer FAQ says to call 1-888-561-4748 and choose option 1 for refunds and receipts. Its contact page lists 1-800-766-8728 for vending machine customers.
- Have the date, amount, location and the last four digits of your card ready. Cantaloupe can see which reader processed the charge, which helps when the statement only shows a head office in another state.
What if you never used a vending machine?
Most CTLP charges turn out to be someone's snack. Check these first.
- Think back over the last few days for places with unattended machines: work, a hospital, an airport, a rest stop, a laundromat, a car wash, a gas station air pump. Ask anyone who has the card or a phone wallet linked to it.
- Search the operator name after CTLP. It usually leads to a vending company and its home city.
- Check whether the line is pending or posted. A pending hold for an odd amount usually corrects itself within 72 hours.
- Several tiny charges from places you've never been can be card testing, where someone with a stolen card number makes small purchases to see if it works. Call your card issuer straight away if that's the pattern.
Ignore explanations that call CTLP a cruise line fee or "Card Transaction Liability Protection". Both turn up in search results with no source behind them.
Still don’t recognize it? Dispute it with your bank
- Open the transaction in your banking app. The detail view often shows a longer merchant name, a phone number or a city that the statement line cuts off.
- Ask the merchant for a refund first. It is usually faster than a dispute, and your card issuer may ask whether you tried.
- If the merchant says no, or you think your card number was stolen, call the number on the back of your card. Ask them to dispute the charge and, if it is fraud, to cancel the card and send a new one.
- For a credit card, follow up in writing. The FTC says your letter should reach the issuer within 60 days after the first bill with the error was sent to you, at the billing inquiries address rather than the payments address.
Federal law caps what you owe for unauthorized credit card charges at $50. Debit cards work differently: if only your card number was used, you owe nothing as long as you report it within 60 days after the statement is sent, but the money is gone from your account while the bank looks into it. See the FTC's guide to lost or stolen cards. A successful dispute becomes a chargeback against the merchant.
Questions people ask
- What does CTLP mean on a credit card?
- CTLP is the stock ticker of Cantaloupe, Inc., which makes the card readers on vending machines, micro markets, laundry machines and kiosks and processes their payments. The name after CTLP is the company that owns the machine.
- Why was I charged more than the vending machine price?
- That's usually a pending hold, not the final charge. The reader authorizes an estimate when it can't know the total yet, and Cantaloupe says the hold takes 24 to 72 hours to clear.
- What is CTLP InReach Bethesda MD?
- InReach is Sodexo's vending and micro market business. Sodexo's US offices are in North Bethesda, Maryland, so a snack from an InReach machine at a hospital, workplace or airport anywhere in the country can show Bethesda on your statement.
- Is a CTLP charge a scam?
- No. Cantaloupe is a real payments company and a CTLP line is a real machine purchase. The exception is a run of small charges you can't explain, which can mean someone is testing a stolen card number. Call your card issuer if you see that.
- How do I get my money back from a vending machine that didn't work?
- Call the number on the machine first, since the operator owns it. If there isn't one, call Cantaloupe at 1-888-561-4748 and choose option 1, with the date, amount and location ready.
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Sources
Read on . Policies and phone numbers change, so confirm on the company’s own site before you act.