SumUp Card Machine Review 2026: Fees, Reader Prices & Best for Sole Traders Quick answer
SumUp remains one of the strongest card-payment options for UK sole traders and small businesses because it combines simple pricing, low-cost hardware and no long-term processing contract.
But the SumUp card machine is no longer just a 1.69% pay-as-you-go card reader.
Businesses can currently choose between:
Pay As You Go: £0/month + 1.69% in-person transaction feePayments Plus: £19/month or £189/year + 0.99% on eligible domestic consumer cardsTailored pricing: available for qualifying higher-volume businesses
Current SumUp hardware includes:
Tap to Pay: £0 hardwareSolo Lite: from £19 promotional/£25 standardSolo: from £59 promotional/£79 standardTerminal: from £99 promotional/£135 standard
Our view: PAYG is strongest for irregular or lower card turnover. Payments Plus becomes increasingly important once you regularly process around £3,000+ per month in eligible domestic consumer cards.
Your situation What to compare
Occasional/irregular payments
PAYG
Under roughly £3,000/month
PAYG usually makes more sense
Regular £3,000+ monthly turnover
Compare Payments Plus
£10,000+ monthly turnover
Ask about tailored pricing
No reader wanted
Tap to Pay
Phone-paired reader
Solo Lite
Standalone reader
Solo
Busy retail/hospitality
Terminal/POS
Compare SumUp & Card Machine Quotes
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How Do We Work?
Our comparisons are researched and reviewed by the Compare Your Business Costs editorial team using provider information, pricing data and UK business buying criteria. See how Compare Your Business Costs works .
Authored by: Ally Cox – Business Technology & B2B Services Specialist, 10+ years’ experience.
Reviewed by: James Ward – Telecoms Specialist, 12+ years’ experience.
Last Updated: September 2026
Key Takeaways
SumUp PAYG currently costs £0/month with a 1.69% in-person fee.
Payments Plus currently costs £19/month or £189/year.
Payments Plus reduces eligible domestic consumer-card fees to 0.99%.
Premium, international and American Express cards remain at 1.69% on Payments Plus.
Online payments remain 2.5% on both PAYG and Payments Plus.
SumUp positions Payments Plus for businesses taking around £3,000+ per month.
Tap to Pay requires no separate reader hardware.
Solo Lite is the current entry reader.
Solo is the main standalone reader.
Terminal is aimed more at busy retail and hospitality.
SumUp Business Account provides next-day access to funds by 7am, including weekends and bank holidays.
Businesses with higher turnover should compare tailored merchant pricing rather than staying on PAYG automatically.
SumUp Fees UK 2026
Payment type PAYG Payments Plus
Monthly fee
£0
£19/month or £189/year
Domestic consumer cards
1.69%
0.99%
Premium cards
1.69%
1.69%
International cards
1.69%
1.69%
American Express
1.69%
1.69%
Online payments
2.50%
2.50%
Payments Plus Break-Even Using the standard £19 monthly plan £19 ÷ 0.007 = approximately £2,714/month.
So if virtually all of your card turnover qualifies for the 0.99% rate, the mathematical break-even is around £2,700–£3,000/month.
This broadly aligns with SumUp’s own positioning of Payments Plus for businesses processing around £3,000+ per month.
Important
This assumes your transactions are mainly eligible domestic consumer cards.
If you take lots of:
commercial cards
international cards
American Express
the real break-even will be higher.
Example: £2,000 Monthly Card Turnover PAYG £2,000 × 1.69% = £33.80/month
£2,000 × 0.99% = £19.80
+ £19 subscription
= £38.80/month
Verdict At £2,000/month, PAYG is cheaper in this simplified example.
SumUp Hardware Prices UK 2026
Product Current price Best for
Tap to Pay
£0 hardware
Mobile/occasional sellers
Solo Lite
£19 promo/£25 standard
Phone-paired card reader
Solo
£59 promo/£79 standard
Standalone payments
Terminal
£99 promo/£135 standard
Busy retail/hospitality
Promotional hardware pricing can change.
SumUp Tap to Pay Tap to Pay allows compatible phones to accept contactless payments through the SumUp Business app.
No separate reader is required.
Best For
tradespeople
mobile businesses
side businesses
occasional market sellers
businesses testing card acceptance
Our View
If you only take occasional face-to-face payments, Tap to Pay can make buying hardware unnecessary.
SumUp Solo Lite Solo Lite is SumUp’s current entry card reader.
It pairs with:
through the SumUp Business app.
Current listed pricing:
£19 promotional / £25 standard.
Features
contactless
chip and PIN
digital wallets
tipping
Our View
This effectively replaces the older SumUp Air positioning on this page.
It is best for businesses happy to use their phone or tablet as the main checkout device.
SumUp Solo Solo is SumUp’s standalone card reader.
Current listed pricing £59 promotional/£79 standard and includes:
touchscreen
built-in connectivity
Wi-Fi
free mobile data
No phone or tablet is required to take a normal card payment.
Our View
Solo is probably the best all-round SumUp reader for a small business that takes card payments regularly.
SumUp Terminal SumUp Terminal is the more advanced handheld POS device.
Current listed pricing £99 promotional/£135 standard.
It is aimed at businesses needing a more capable handheld checkout.
Best For
cafés
restaurants
retail
busy service businesses
Our View
This is the SumUp product to compare with:
PayPal Terminal
Square Terminal
Elavon smart terminals
SumUp Online Payment Fees SumUp currently charges 2.5% for online payments such as:
Payment Links
Bookings
other digital payment products
Our View
SumUp’s main pricing advantage is in person, not online.
If a large proportion of turnover is taken remotely or through ecommerce, compare:
as separate online-payment propositions.
Payment Links SumUp Payment Links currently cost 2.5% per successful payment
with:
£0 monthly fee
no fixed pence charge
Our View
The absence of a fixed fee can make this easier to model than providers charging percentage + fixed pence amount.
SumUp Business Account & Payouts SumUp currently includes a Business Account option.
SumUp states that payment earnings can be available in that account by 7am the following day
including:
The account also comes with a SumUp Mastercard.
Our View
This makes payout speed more competitive than the old “1–2 working days” description on the page suggests.
Businesses should distinguish between:
availability inside the SumUp Business Account
transfer to an external bank account
SumUp POS SumUp has expanded beyond basic readers into:
POS software
POS hardware
retail tools
hospitality systems
kiosks
Our View
The old claim that SumUp has no inventory system or meaningful POS capability is now outdated.
However, businesses needing advanced:
multi-site retail
restaurant operations
complex inventory
should still compare specialist EPOS platforms.
See our SumUp POS review .
SumUp Pros & Cons
Pros Cons
£0 PAYG monthly fee
PAYG rate not the lowest available
0.99% Payments Plus option
Payments Plus only reduces eligible card types
Low-cost hardware
Online payments remain 2.5%
No long-term processing contract
Advanced businesses may outgrow basic reader setup
Tap to Pay
Premium/international cards stay at 1.69% on Plus
Standalone Solo
Higher turnover should be quoted separately
Broader POS ecosystem than before
Not always strongest for complex multi-site EPOS
SumUp vs Square
SumUp PAYG Square
Standard in-person rate
1.69%
1.75%
Monthly core fee
£0
£0
Lower-rate subscription
0.99% + £19/month
Some paid POS plans reduce eligible processing
POS ecosystem
Growing
Broader
Our View
SumUp has the lower PAYG percentage.
Square still has the stronger:
software ecosystem
retail POS
restaurant POS
integrations
See our Square vs SumUp comparison .
SumUp vs PayPal POS PayPal POS currently charges 1.75% for standard in-person transactions.
SumUp PAYG is 1.69%.
At £5,000/month:
SumUp = £84.50
PayPal POS = £87.50
Difference £3/month.
Our View
At low turnover, hardware and software may matter more than a 0.06 percentage-point rate difference.
See our SumUp vs PayPal POS comparison .
SumUp vs LoPay LoPay can offer lower headline consumer-card pricing:
0.79% Essential
0.99% Standard
SumUp offers:
1.69% PAYG
0.99% Payments Plus
Our View
LoPay may win on pure processing cost.
SumUp is stronger where the business values:
hardware choice
POS ecosystem
broader payment products
business-account integration
See our LoPay Card Reader review .
SumUp vs Elavon Elavon currently publishes 0.99% on eligible personal cards with relevant monthly terminal plans.
SumUp Payments Plus also offers 0.99% for eligible domestic consumer cards.
Our View
SumUp is usually simpler and more flexible.
Elavon becomes attractive where:
traditional merchant services
hospitality
larger terminal estates
matter.
See our Elavon Card Machine review .
SumUp vs Dojo Dojo is more suitable for businesses wanting:
managed merchant services
hospitality integrations
higher regular card turnover
SumUp is stronger for:
low commitment
small businesses
simple setup
transparent standard pricing
See our SumUp vs Dojo comparison .
Who Is SumUp Best For? Excellent Fit
sole traders
freelancers
mobile businesses
market traders
small salons
tradespeople
Strong Fit
cafés
small retailers
growing service businesses
Compare Alternatives If
you have very high card turnover
you need complex restaurant EPOS
you operate many locations
you need deep merchant acquiring support
most payments are online
Is SumUp the Cheapest Card Machine? Not universally.
PAYG at 1.69% is competitive, but:
LoPay can be lower
Elavon can be lower on eligible cards
Tyl can be lower depending on transaction size
merchant-service quotes can be lower at higher turnover
SumUp’s strength is:
price + simplicity + flexibility.
See our Lowest Fee Card Machines guide .
Common SumUp Buying Mistakes
assuming PAYG is cheapest at every turnover
ignoring Payments Plus
using outdated SumUp Air pricing
assuming every Plus transaction costs 0.99%
comparing only reader prices
ignoring online payment fees
staying on PAYG after turnover increases substantially
assuming SumUp still only provides basic readers
Questions to Ask Before Choosing SumUp
What is our monthly card turnover?
How much is domestic consumer-card turnover?
Do we take premium or international cards?
Would Payments Plus save us money?
Do we qualify for tailored pricing?
Do we need Tap to Pay, Solo Lite, Solo or Terminal?
How much revenue is taken online?
Do we need POS?
Do we need printed receipts?
Do we need multi-site functionality?
Our Verdict: Is SumUp Worth It? Yes. SumUp remains one of the strongest payment providers for UK sole traders and small businesses in 2026.
Its biggest strengths are:
simple PAYG pricing
0.99% Payments Plus option
low-cost hardware
no long-term processing contract
Tap to Pay
standalone card readers
growing POS ecosystem
next-day Business Account access
Its main weaknesses are:
1.69% PAYG is not the lowest rate on the market
0.99% only applies to eligible domestic consumer cards
online payments stay at 2.5%
higher-volume businesses should compare tailored merchant pricing
Our recommendations:
Side business / irregular sales: excellent PAYG fitSole trader: excellent shortlistMobile business: excellent shortlist£3k+ monthly card turnover: compare Payments Plus£10k+ monthly turnover: compare tailored pricingSmall café / retail: strong shortlistComplex multi-site operation: compare specialist providers
SumUp’s biggest advantage is no longer simply “cheap card readers”. It is the ability to start on PAYG and move into lower-rate pricing as card turnover grows without immediately moving to a traditional merchant account.
Compare SumUp & Card Machine Providers
Frequently Asked Questions How much does SumUp charge?
SumUp currently charges 1.69% for standard in-person PAYG transactions. Payments Plus reduces eligible domestic consumer-card transactions to 0.99% for £19/month or £189/year.
Does SumUp have a monthly fee?
PAYG has no monthly fee. Payments Plus has a monthly or annual subscription in exchange for lower eligible in-person transaction fees.
When is Payments Plus cheaper?
The simple mathematical break-even is around £2,700 per month of eligible domestic card turnover on the £19 monthly plan. SumUp itself positions Payments Plus at around £3,000+ monthly turnover.
How much is SumUp Solo Lite?
SumUp currently lists Solo Lite at £25 standard, with promotional pricing around £19 at the time of writing.
How much is SumUp Solo?
Solo currently lists at £79 standard, with promotional pricing around £59 at the time of writing.
How much is SumUp Terminal?
SumUp currently lists Terminal at £135 standard, with promotional pricing around £99 at the time of writing.
Does SumUp offer Tap to Pay?
Yes. Compatible phones can accept contactless payments through the SumUp app without separate reader hardware.
How much does SumUp charge for online payments?
Online payments, including Payment Links and other digital payment products, currently cost 2.5%.
How fast does SumUp pay out?
SumUp states that funds can be available in its Business Account by 7am the next day, including weekends and bank holidays. External-bank transfer times may differ.
Is SumUp cheaper than Square?
SumUp’s PAYG rate is currently 1.69% versus Square’s standard 1.75%, but the better provider depends on hardware, software and payment mix.
Is SumUp cheaper than LoPay?
Not on headline standard consumer-card rates. LoPay currently offers lower rates on some payout plans, while SumUp offers a broader hardware and payments ecosystem.
Is SumUp good for sole traders?
Yes. SumUp is particularly suitable for sole traders because PAYG has no monthly processing fee and hardware costs are relatively low.
What are the best SumUp alternatives?
Alternatives include Square, LoPay, PayPal POS, Elavon, Dojo, Tyl, Worldpay and takepayments.
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Hi, I’m Ally Cox , a senior copywriter and blogger at CompareYourBusinessCosts.co.uk, the UK’s trusted platform for comparing business services.over a decade of experience in the B2B sector, I specialise in simplifying complex topics like leased lines, VoIP, business energy, HR and payroll solutions, accounting software, and EPOS systems .HR, copywriting, and business operations- from clocking-in systems to card machines and office technology .informed, confident decisions when choosing products and services that improve efficiency and save money.
