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Many customers now pay with a phone or watch instead of a plastic card. Here is how to accept Apple Pay, Google Pay and other contactless payments, and what it costs, with prices read 26 October 2026.
Published rates from every major UK card machine provider, plus the quoted rates that only come on request. You see them side by side, on your own takings.
The short answer
To accept mobile payments such as Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay, you need a contactless card machine, a contactless reader or Tap to Pay on a phone. Nothing extra is needed. The fee follows the card stored in the customer's wallet: Zettle charges 1.75% on cards and mobile wallets, and Square 1.75% on any contactless, mobile or chip and PIN payment with UK cards, read 26 October 2026.
Published prices read 26 October 2026 from each provider's own pricing page. Quote only means the provider gives rates on request; we obtain those for you.
| Provider | In-person card rate | Monthly fee | Card machine | Contract | Payouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zettle Source | 1.75% all major cards | £0 | PayPal Reader from £29; Terminal £149 (ex VAT) | None | Within minutes to PayPal balance |
| Square Source | 1.75% UK cards; +1.5% non-UK cards | £0, or Plus £29+ | Reader £19; Terminal £149 (ex VAT) | None, cancel anytime | Next day free; instant for 1.95% |
| SumUp Source | 1.69% pay as you go, or 0.99% on Payments Plus (domestic cards) | £0, or £19 on Payments Plus | Solo Lite £25, Solo £79, Terminal £135 (ex VAT), bought outright | None, cancel anytime | Next day, 7am, weekends included |
| Dojo Source | 1.2% blended under £100k a year; custom above | £0 Essential; Plus £11.99 new customers (£25 list) | Go Max £149 or £25 a month; Pocket £239 or £20; Wired £179 or £15 | 30-day rolling or 12-month fixed (custom rate) | Next day |
| Flatpay Source | 1.49% all cards (terminal, under £200k a year) | £0 | Payment terminal free to start | Not published | Daily |
| Revolut Source | From 0.8% + 2p (UK consumer Visa and Mastercard) | £0 for the reader | Reader £49; Terminal £169 + VAT | None | Within 24 hours |
| myPOS Source | From 1.10% + 7p (under £10k a month) | £0 | Device prices not on fees page | Not published | Instant to myPOS account |
| Stripe Source | 1.4% + 10p EEA cards; 2.9% + 10p non-EEA | £0 | WisePad 3 £49; S700 or S710 £229 (ex VAT) | Pay as you go | Standard free; instant 1% |
| Clover Source | Quote only | Rental only | Flex Pocket £15, Mini £20, Station Duo £30 a month + VAT | Not published | Next business day |
VAT is excluded where the provider states it. Rates are for in-person UK consumer cards unless stated. Our service is free to you. We may receive a fee from the provider you choose; it never changes the price you pay.
Tell us about your business. We compare the whole market, including the providers that only quote on request, and come back with the lowest total cost for your takings and the right machine. You keep a named account manager who looks after you after setup.
Our service is free to you. We may receive a fee from the provider you choose; it never changes the price you pay.
Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay are digital wallets. The customer adds their debit or credit card to their phone or watch. When they pay, the phone sends a secure stand-in for the card number, called a token, through NFC, the short-range radio that contactless cards also use.
To your card machine, a phone payment looks like a contactless card payment. That is why any machine or reader that takes contactless can take Apple Pay and Google Pay, with no extra set-up. The customer usually confirms the payment on their own phone with a face scan, fingerprint or passcode, so phone payments can often go above the amount where a contactless card would ask for a PIN.
Searches for a paywave machine, paypass machine or tap2pay machine mean the same thing. PayWave was Visa's name for contactless, and PayPass was Mastercard's. Any modern contactless card machine handles all of them.
There is normally no separate charge for accepting a phone wallet. The provider charges the rate for the card stored in the wallet, so a UK debit card in Apple Pay costs the same as the plastic debit card.
Two providers say this directly. Zettle, now PayPal Point of Sale, charges the same 1.75% for major cards and mobile wallets, even American Express. Square's 1.75% covers any contactless, mobile or chip and PIN payment with UK cards, with non-UK cards at 1.75% plus 1.5%.
Elsewhere, the provider's card rate applies: Dojo 1.2% on all cards under £100,000 a year, Flatpay 1.49%, SumUp 1.69% or 0.99% on Payments Plus for domestic cards, myPOS from 1.10% + 7p, and Revolut from 0.8% + 2p on UK consumer Visa and Mastercard. Revolut also lists Revolut Pay, its own app payment, at 0.5% + 2p, and SumUp charges 0.00% on in-person payments made with a SumUp card.
A café takes £6,000 a month at an average of £5, so 1,200 payments, nearly all by phone or contactless card. That is £72,000 a year. Card fees only, at published rates read 26 October 2026, on UK consumer cards. Every payment here is a tap, so the price depends only on the provider's rate and fixed fee, not on the wallet.
You have three choices, and all of them take Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Search terms such as Apple Pay machine or Square Apple Pay reader refer to these same devices. Square says its rate covers any contactless or mobile payment on its devices. Other contactless machines, including Clover's, take phone wallets the same way when contactless is switched on; confirm it when you ask for a quote.
Phone payments are quick, but a few checks avoid problems at a busy till. Put a contactless or mobile wallet sign at the counter, so customers know before they reach you.
Refunds are worth testing. A refund on a phone payment goes back to the card in the customer's wallet, and some customers have more than one card stored, so ask them to present the same card or device they paid with. Run a test with your own phone in the first week.
When most payments are small phone taps, the fixed fee per payment can cost more than the percentage. We compare the whole UK market, including Dojo, SumUp, Teya, Flatpay, Paymentsense, Square, Worldpay and others, on your real average sale and card mix, and negotiate the rate with the provider for you. We also check that each machine handles contactless and phone wallets smoothly at a busy counter.
We handle the set-up and any switch from your current provider, so the counter never stops taking payments, and you get a named account manager who stays with you after setup. If your sales grow past a provider's pricing level, we review the rate with you. You pay us nothing. We may receive a fee from the provider you choose.
Use any contactless card machine, contactless reader or Tap to Pay app. Apple Pay works like a contactless card, so there is nothing extra to set up. The customer holds their iPhone or Apple Watch near your machine and confirms on their own device.
Usually not. The fee follows the card in the customer's wallet. Zettle charges 1.75% on cards and mobile wallets alike, and Square's 1.75% covers any contactless, mobile or chip and PIN payment with UK cards, read 26 October 2026.
Yes. Any machine or reader that takes contactless cards also takes Google Pay and Samsung Pay. The customer taps their Android phone or watch on the machine. The payment is charged at the rate for the card stored in their wallet.
There is no special Apple Pay machine. Any contactless card machine or reader accepts Apple Pay, from a Square Reader at £19 + VAT to a rented countertop terminal. You can also accept Apple Pay on your own phone with Tap to Pay, for example through SumUp at 1.69%.
Choose a provider with Tap to Pay, such as SumUp, Square, Teya, myPOS, Revolut, Stripe, Tyl by NatWest or Lloyds Accept, download its app and turn Tap to Pay on. Customers then tap their card or phone on yours. No reader is needed.
PayWave was Visa's name for contactless payments, and PayPass was Mastercard's. A paywave machine is simply a contactless card machine. Every modern card machine from the main UK providers takes contactless cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.