Compare Card Machine Rates UK 2026 Quick Answer
UK card machine transaction rates currently range from around 0.99% on selected subscription plans to around 1.69%-1.75% on common pay-as-you-go card readers. Businesses with higher card turnover can also get custom merchant rates.
Pricing option Current/typical rate Best suited to
SumUp Pay As You Go
1.69%
Low-volume and occasional card payments
Square
1.75%
Simple pay-as-you-go in-person payments
PayPal Point of Sale
1.75%
Small businesses wanting simple pricing
SumUp Payments Plus
0.99% eligible domestic consumer cards + £19/month
Businesses taking around £3,000+ per month
Dojo
1.2% blended below £100,000 annual card turnover; custom above
Regular and growing card turnover
Worldpay
1.50% available on its current Simplicity tariff
Businesses comparing traditional merchant services
Custom merchant account
Quote-based
Higher-volume businesses
The cheapest transaction percentage is not always the cheapest card-machine deal. You also need to compare terminal rental, subscriptions, authorisation charges, PCI fees, settlement costs, card type and contract terms.
Your current rate is particularly worth reviewing if:
your card turnover has increased
you process £3,000+ per month
you are approaching a contract renewal
you still pay around 1.7%+ despite significant monthly turnover
you pay terminal rental or other fixed charges as well as transaction fees
Compare Card Machine Rates for Your Turnover
Free quotes • No obligation • Compare UK business card-machine providers
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
Common pay-as-you-go in-person rates currently sit around 1.69%-1.75%.
SumUp currently offers 0.99% on eligible domestic consumer card payments with its £19/month Payments Plus plan.
Dojo currently advertises a 1.2% blended rate for businesses taking under £100,000 annually, with custom rates above that level.
Worldpay currently offers a 1.50% Simplicity tariff for Mastercard and Visa transactions on one of its small-business plans.
Flat-rate card readers can be good value at low turnover but become expensive as card sales grow.
Businesses processing several thousand pounds per month should compare flat rates against subscription or custom merchant pricing.
Compare total monthly processing cost rather than transaction percentage alone.
International, commercial, manually entered and online payments can cost more than standard UK in-person transactions.
Your current provider may be willing to negotiate if you have higher turnover or competing quotes.
Card Machine Rates at a Glance
Provider/pricing model In-person rate Monthly cost Best for
SumUp Pay As You Go
1.69%
£0
Sole traders, seasonal and lower-volume businesses
SumUp Payments Plus
0.99% eligible domestic consumer cards
£19
Businesses processing around £3,000+ monthly
Square
1.75% UK cards
£0 standard processing plan
Small retailers, cafés, salons and mobile sellers
PayPal Point of Sale
1.75%
No standard transaction subscription required
Small businesses and existing PayPal users
Dojo
1.2% blended below £100k annual turnover
Hardware/package dependent
Regular card-taking SMEs
Worldpay
1.50% on current Simplicity tariff
Terminal/package dependent
Established businesses wanting merchant services
Custom merchant account
Quote-based
Usually includes fixed/monthly charges
Higher-volume businesses
Provider rates and promotional terms can change. Always check the complete quote before switching.
Current UK Card Machine Rates SumUp Card Machine Rates SumUp currently offers two main UK pricing approaches:
SumUp plan In-person rate Monthly fee
Pay As You Go
1.69%
£0
Payments Plus
0.99% on eligible domestic consumer debit and credit cards
£19/month or £189/year
Premium, international and American Express cards remain at 1.69% on Payments Plus, while online payments are currently 2.5%. SumUp itself positions Payments Plus at businesses taking around £3,000 or more in monthly payments.
Square Card Machine Rates Square currently charges:
1.75% for in-person UK card transactions1.4% + 25p for UK online transactions2.5% for manually entered, virtual-terminal and card-on-file transactions
An additional charge applies to non-UK cards, and the simple flat rate makes Square easy to understand, but businesses with higher turnover should still compare custom pricing. Square currently says custom processing rates may be available for businesses processing more than £200,000 per year on selected plans.
PayPal Point of Sale / Zettle Rates PayPal’s current Point of Sale pricing lists:
1.75% for card-present transactions3.4% + 20p for manual card entryseparate rates for payment links
Dojo Card Machine Rates Dojo has recently made its pricing much more transparent and currently advertises:
1.2% blended transaction rate for businesses with less than £100,000 annual card turnovercustom rates above £100,000 annual card turnovermore bespoke volume pricing for businesses taking over £5 million annually
Hardware can be purchased upfront or paid monthly depending on the device.
Dojo also lists a 5p authorisation fee and other potential service fees, so compare the complete package rather than the 1.2% rate alone.
Worldpay Card Machine Rates Worldpay currently offers both variable pricing and a simplified fixed-rate tariff and their current Simplicity tariff advertises:
1.50% on Mastercard and Visa transactionsseparate rates for some other card types
terminal-hire terms depending on the package and promotion
Worldpay also offers tailored pricing based on business payment requirements.
What Is a Good Card Machine Rate? A good card-machine rate depends on your monthly card turnover and what is included.
As a practical guide:
Your situation
Rate to benchmark
Low turnover/no monthly commitment
Around 1.69%-1.75%
£3,000+ monthly turnover
Compare sub-1% subscription pricing against flat rates
Regular higher turnover
Compare blended and custom merchant pricing
£10,000+ monthly card sales
Definitely request custom merchant quotes
Large/high-volume business
Negotiate bespoke pricing based on card mix and volume
A 1.75% rate can be perfectly reasonable for a business taking £500 per month if there is no terminal rental.
The same 1.75% can become expensive for a business taking £30,000 per month.
How Much Does Your Card Machine Rate Actually Cost? How Much Does Your Card Machine Rate Actually Cost?
Apply the transaction percentage to your monthly card sales to see how quickly small differences in rates add up.
Monthly card sales 1.75% 1.69% 1.20% 0.99%
1,000
£18
£16.90
£12.00
£9.90
£3,000
£52.50
£50.70
£36.00
£29.70
£5,000
£87.50
£84.50
£60.00
£49.50
£10,000
£175.00
£169
£120
£99.00
£25,000
£437.50
£423
£300
£247.50
£50,000
£875.00
£845
£600
£495.00
These figures show percentage transaction fees only. They do not include subscriptions, terminal rental, authorisation charges or other payment-processing costs.
For example, saving just 0.5 percentage points on £25,000 of monthly card turnover is worth approximately £125 per month or £1,500 per year before any change in fixed fees.
Flat-Rate vs Subscription vs Custom Card Machine Pricing
Flat rate Subscription + lower rate Custom merchant pricing
Typical user
Lower-volume business
Growing SME
Higher-volume business
Monthly fee
Usually none
Yes
Usually
Rate
Simple fixed percentage
Lower percentage
Negotiated
Contract
Usually flexible
Plan dependent
Often contractual
Best advantage
Simplicity
Lower rates without full merchant contract
Potentially lowest effective rate at scale
Main risk
Expensive as turnover increases
Monthly charge may outweigh savings
Complex fees/contracts
When Does a Lower Rate Become Worth Paying a Monthly Fee? Consider SumUp’s current pricing as a simple real-world example – their Pay As You Go rate is currently 1.69%, while Payments Plus reduces eligible domestic consumer transactions to 0.99% for £19/month.
The difference between those rates is 0.70 percentage points .
Monthly eligible card sales PAYG at 1.69% 0.99% + £19 Approximate difference
£1,000
£16.90
£28.90
PAYG cheaper by £12
£3,000
£50.70
£49
Payments Plus cheaper by £2
£5,000
£84.50
£68.50
Payments Plus cheaper by £16
£10,000
£169.00
£118.00
Payments Plus cheaper by £51
This simplified calculation assumes all transactions qualify for the 0.99% rate and excludes other costs. SumUp itself currently recommends Payments Plus for businesses processing around £3,000 or more per month.
The same principle applies to every provider: compare the saving from the lower transaction rate with the additional fixed monthly costs.
Compare Rates for Your Card Turnover
Which Card Machine Pricing Is Best for Your Turnover?
Monthly card turnover What to compare first
Under £1,000
Pay-as-you-go readers
£1,000-£3,000
Flat-rate readers
£3,000-£5,000
Flat rate vs subscription/lower-rate plan
£5,000-£10,000
Subscription rates plus custom quotes
£10,000-£25,000
Custom merchant pricing
£25,000-£50,000
Negotiate blended/custom rates
£50,000+
Request bespoke acquiring quotes
These are comparison starting points rather than fixed cut-offs. Your card mix, transaction values, monthly charges and contract terms change the break-even point.
What Is Your Effective Card Processing Rate? Your effective rate is often more useful than the advertised transaction percentage.
Calculate it using:
Total monthly card-processing cost ÷ total monthly card turnover × 100
Include relevant costs such as:
transaction charges
terminal rental
account fees
authorisation fees
PCI costs
settlement fees
For example, if you process £20,000 of card sales and pay £280 in relevant payment-processing charges:
£280 ÷ £20,000 × 100 = 1.40% effective rate
This gives you a much better figure to take to competing providers than simply saying your headline rate is 1.2%.
If your effective rate is materially higher than the advertised rates available to similar businesses, request comparison quotes using the same monthly turnover, card mix and number of terminals.
Compare Rates for Your Card Turnover
Card-Present vs Online and Manual Payment Rates How the customer pays also affects the processing cost.
Payment type Typical pricing pattern
Chip and PIN/contactless
Usually lowest mainstream rate
Online checkout
Often percentage + fixed charge
Virtual terminal
Usually higher
Manual card entry
Usually higher
International cards
Often additional fee
Square, for example, currently charges 1.75% for UK in-person transactions, 1.4% + 25p for UK online transactions and 2.5% for manually entered transactions.
So if you take significant telephone or online payments, do not compare providers using the card-machine rate alone.
Debit, Credit, Commercial and International Card Rates Some providers charge one blended rate while traditional merchant accounts may price different card categories separately.
Ask specifically about:
UK consumer debit cards
UK consumer credit cards
commercial cards
premium cards
international cards
American Express
This matters particularly for:
B2B businesses taking corporate cards
hotels and tourist businesses
high-value retail
businesses with lots of overseas customers
What Fees Should You Compare Besides the Transaction Rate? A low percentage can be outweighed by additional charges.
Check:
terminal rental
monthly account fees
authorisation fees
minimum monthly service charges
PCI compliance charges
PCI non-compliance charges
settlement charges
refund charges
chargeback fees
international-card fees
paper-statement charges
setup fees
replacement hardware charges
early termination fees
For a detailed explanation of the fee structure rather than a rate comparison, see our UK card processing fees guide .
Pay As You Go or Monthly Card Machine? Pay As You Go A pay-as-you-go reader can be the better option if you:
take relatively few card payments
have seasonal turnover
want no monthly terminal rental
want a short or flexible commitment
are a new or mobile business
Monthly or Merchant Account A monthly card-machine package could become better value if you:
take card payments every day
have consistent turnover
need several terminals
can negotiate a lower processing rate
need merchant services support
The decision should be based on the total monthly cost at your actual turnover .
When Should You Renegotiate Your Card Machine Rate? Compare your rate again if:
your monthly card turnover has increased
your average transaction value has changed
your contract is approaching renewal
you have opened additional locations
you need more terminals
you still pay an old flat rate
you have competing provider quotes
you have been with the same supplier for several years
A growing payment history can make your business more attractive to acquiring providers.
How to Reduce Card Machine Rates
Calculate your current effective rate. Know your exact monthly card turnover. Separate UK, commercial and international card volumes where possible. Get competing quotes before renewal. Ask your existing provider to match the best quote. Check whether a lower transaction rate justifies a monthly subscription. Remove fees or services you do not need. Negotiate again as your turnover grows.
Compare Card Machine Rates Now
What Information Do You Need to Compare Quotes? Have these figures ready:
monthly card turnover
average transaction value
number of monthly transactions
business sector
number of terminals
in-person vs online payment split
current provider
current transaction rate
current monthly fees
contract renewal date
commercial/international card volume
American Express usage
settlement requirements
EPOS requirements
This makes it easier for providers to quote accurately and lets you compare like-for-like.
Which Providers Should You Compare? If your priority is the transaction rate, compare both flat-rate providers and quote-based merchant services .
Your requirement Providers/models worth comparing
Low-volume / simple
SumUp, Square, PayPal Point of Sale
£3,000+ monthly turnover
Subscription/lower-rate plans plus quote-based providers
Regular retail/hospitality turnover
Dojo, Worldpay and merchant-account providers
Higher-volume business
Custom merchant account/acquirer quotes
EPOS-heavy business
Integrated POS/payment providers
For provider rankings and feature comparisons rather than rate comparisons, see our best card machines UK guide .
For acquiring and merchant-account providers, see our best merchant account providers UK guide.
Our Verdict: How Should You Compare Card Machine Rates? Do not choose a card machine simply because it advertises the lowest percentage.
For lower-volume businesses, simple rates around 1.69%-1.75% can still represent good value when there is no monthly rental – so as your monthly card turnover grows, compare:
subscription plans with lower rates
blended merchant pricing
custom acquiring quotes
The most useful number to compare is your effective total processing rate after transaction fees and relevant monthly costs.
Then compare at least several providers using the same turnover, card mix and terminal requirements.
Compare Card Machine Rates for Your Business
Free quotes • No obligation • Compare UK card machine providers
Frequently Asked Questions What is a good card machine rate in the UK?
For simple pay-as-you-go readers, current in-person rates around 1.69%–1.75% are common. Growing businesses should also compare lower subscription and custom merchant rates.
What is the lowest card-machine transaction rate?
SumUp currently advertises 0.99% for eligible domestic consumer in-person payments on its Payments Plus plan, which costs £19/month. Higher-volume merchant accounts may also offer custom rates.
Is 1.75% a good card-machine rate?
It can be good value for a low-volume business with no monthly rental. At higher turnover, a lower transaction rate may save more than the cost of a monthly fee.
Is 1.69% a good card-machine rate?
1.69% is currently SumUp’s standard pay-as-you-go rate and can be competitive for businesses wanting no monthly processing subscription. Higher-volume businesses should still compare lower-rate options.
Are card-machine rates negotiable?
Often, yes. Higher turnover, established trading history and competing quotes can strengthen your negotiating position.
At what turnover should I compare custom rates?
There is no universal cut-off, but once you are processing several thousand pounds per month it is sensible to compare flat rates against subscription and merchant-account pricing.
What is an effective card-processing rate?
It is your total relevant card-processing cost divided by your total card turnover, multiplied by 100. It can give a more useful comparison than the advertised transaction percentage alone.
Do debit cards have lower rates than credit cards?
Some merchant-account pricing models charge different rates by card type, while flat-rate providers may charge the same standard rate for eligible debit and credit cards.
Do international cards cost more?
Often, yes. For example, Square currently applies an additional fee to non-UK card-present transactions, while SumUp’s reduced Payments Plus rate does not apply to international cards.
Are online card rates the same as card-machine rates?
No. Online, manually entered and virtual-terminal transactions commonly have different rates from in-person Chip and PIN or contactless payments.
Does a lower transaction rate always save money?
No. A lower percentage can come with monthly subscriptions, terminal rental or other charges. Compare total monthly cost at your actual turnover.
How often should I compare card-machine rates?
Review them before contract renewal and whenever your turnover changes substantially. For established businesses, an annual rate check can also be useful.
Can I negotiate with my current card provider?
Yes. A competing quote and evidence of increased monthly turnover can give you leverage when asking an existing provider to review your pricing.
Related Card Machine Rate Guides Compare Card Machine Rates
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.
