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Taking a card payment over the phone is common for trades, takeaways, hotels and repair shops. Here is how it works, what it costs and how to keep card details safe, 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 take a card payment over the phone, you type the customer's card details into a virtual terminal, a provider's app or a card machine that allows keyed entry, or you text or email them a payment link. These are card-not-present payments, so they cost more than tapping a card: Square charges 2.5% on manually entered payments and Zettle 2.5% on invoices, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| Zettle Source | 1.75% all major cards | £0 | PayPal Reader from £29; Terminal £149 (ex VAT) | None | Within minutes to PayPal balance |
| Paymentsense Source | 1.40% debit and credit (price tool); bespoke over £150k | Terminal £20 + VAT; minimum service charge £24.95 | Rental, £20 a month + VAT | Not published | 24 working hours |
| Tyl by NatWest Source | 1.39% + 5p personal cards (under £50k a year) | Machine hire from £13.99 + VAT | PAX A920 Pro £19.99, A50 £14.99, A80 £13.99 a month + VAT | 12 months | Next business day |
| Worldpay Source | Quote only | Terminal £20 a month (indicative) | Rental, quote | Minimum 18 months | Next day |
| 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 |
| Revolut Source | From 0.8% + 2p (UK consumer Visa and Mastercard) | £0 for the reader | Reader £49; Terminal £169 + VAT | None | Within 24 hours |
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.
A phone payment is called a card-not-present payment, because the card is not in front of you, or a MOTO payment, short for mail order or telephone order. There are three ways to take one.
A payment link is often the best choice for small businesses, because you never hear or handle the card number. That reduces how much of the card security rules apply to you, and can reduce disputes. Keyed entry is quicker when a customer wants to pay there and then, but you carry more of the risk.
Phone payments cost more than in-person ones, because fraud risk is higher and the card cannot be checked with a chip and PIN. Few providers publish a separate phone price, so ask before you start.
Most other providers, including Dojo, Teya, Worldpay, Barclaycard and Elavon, do not publish a separate phone payment rate on the pages we read. Ask for the card-not-present rate in writing, along with any monthly charge for the virtual terminal.
A plumber takes 40 jobs a month by phone at an average of £150, so £6,000 a month. At Square's 2.5% for manually entered payments, card fees are £150.00 a month. If the same plumber took the cards in person at the job, Dojo's 1.2% would cost £72.00 and Revolut's 0.8% + 2p would cost £48.80, on UK consumer Visa and Mastercard.
A takeaway takes 80 phone orders a month at £25, so £2,000. At 2.5% the fees are £50.00. Taking the same orders by card at the door, at SumUp's 1.69%, would cost £33.80.
The gap is real but often worth paying, because a phone payment secures the job or the order before you set off. The cheapest set-up for many businesses is to take a deposit by phone or link, then take the balance in person on a card machine or Tap to Pay at the lower in-person rate.
Any business that takes card payments must follow PCI DSS, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, a set of security rules for handling card details. Your provider will ask you to complete a short yearly check. Paymentsense publishes a PCI DSS fee of £4.95 + VAT a month and a PCI non-compliance charge of £35.00 + VAT a month if the check is not done, so it pays to complete it.
Phone payments carry a higher risk of chargebacks, where a customer disputes a payment with their bank and the money is taken back. Providers charge a fee for each one: Paymentsense £28.00, Stripe £20.00 per dispute, Viva £20, Revolut £15 on its fee schedule, and Worldpay £20.00 on its indicative quote.
Many people search for how to take a phone payment with the provider they already use. Square publishes a 2.5% rate for manually entered payments, so it supports keyed payments. Zettle publishes invoice and QR code pricing. SumUp publishes an online payments rate of 2.5%; check in the app or with SumUp support which phone payment options your account has.
If you rent a full card machine from a provider such as Dojo, Teya, Paymentsense or a bank-backed service, ask whether keyed phone payments can be switched on for your machine and what rate applies. Some providers class these as a separate service with its own approval. If you take a lot of phone payments, such as a hotel taking deposits or a garage taking payment before collection, a dedicated virtual terminal with a clear monthly price is usually tidier than keyed entry on a counter machine.
Phone payment pricing is rarely published, and it is often where businesses overpay. We compare the whole UK market, including Dojo, SumUp, Teya, Flatpay, Paymentsense, Square, Worldpay and others, on both your in-person and phone takings, and negotiate the card-not-present rate along with the rest. We also look at whether a payment link, a virtual terminal or keyed entry suits the way you take orders.
We set up the account, handle the switch from your current provider, and give you a named account manager who stays with you after setup and helps with PCI checks and disputes. If you take a mix of in-person and phone payments, we make sure both are on the best terms available to you. You pay us nothing. We may receive a fee from the provider you choose.
Use your provider's virtual terminal, a secure web page where you type the card details while the customer reads them out, or keyed entry in its app or card machine. Alternatively, send a payment link by text or email so the customer enters the details themselves.
More than in person. Square charges 2.5% per manually entered payment, Zettle 2.5% on invoices and SumUp 2.5% on online payments, read 26 October 2026. On a £150 job, 2.5% is £3.75. Most other providers quote this rate on request.
SumUp publishes a 2.5% rate for online payments. Check in the SumUp app or with SumUp support which phone or link payment options your account offers before relying on them, because its pricing page does not describe a virtual terminal.
Yes. Square publishes a rate of 2.5% for manually entered payments, where you type the customer's card details into the app. Its in-person rate on UK cards is 1.75%, so taking the card in person costs less when you can.
It can be, if you follow PCI DSS, the card industry's security rules. Type details straight into the virtual terminal, never write them down, and never keep the security code. Payment links are safer still, because you never hear the card number.
MOTO stands for mail order or telephone order. It means a card payment taken without the card present, usually by typing the card details into a virtual terminal. MOTO payments usually cost more than in-person payments and carry more risk of chargebacks.
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