Merchant services
Square card machine review: fees, readers and terminals.
Square publishes one rate for UK cards and a full price list for its hardware. Here is what a Square payment machine costs, what Plus adds and where others charge less.
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Square publishes one rate for UK cards and a full price list for its hardware. Here is what a Square payment machine costs, what Plus adds and where others charge less.
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
Square charges 1.75% on any contactless, mobile or chip and PIN payment with a UK card, and 1.75% + 1.5% with a non-UK card. The Free plan costs £0 a month. Square Reader costs £19 + VAT, Square Terminal £149 + VAT or £25 + VAT a month for 6 months, and Square Register £699 + VAT. 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 |
| 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.
Square publishes its full pricing. Every in-person payment with a UK card, whether contactless, mobile wallet or chip and PIN, costs 1.75%. Payments with non-UK cards cost 1.75% + 1.5%, which is 3.25% in total. Payments you key in by hand, for example card details read out over the phone, cost 2.5% per transaction.
The Free plan has no setup fees or monthly fees: £0 a month plus processing fees. Square Plus costs £29+ a month plus processing fees, and you can cancel at any time. Square Premium, for businesses taking over £200,000 a year, is custom, and Square says custom processing rates may be available at that level. You can upgrade, downgrade or cancel your plan at any time.
Dispute management is included. Square does not publish a PCI fee, chargeback fee or minimum monthly fee. Customer support is on 0800 098 8008, with hours not stated. Square states that Squareup Europe Ltd. is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, reference 900846. All figures read on 26 October 2026.
Square sells a wide range of hardware, from a small card reader to a full till. Several items can be paid over 6 or 12 months. List prices are below. The page also showed discount codes with dates that had already passed, so we have used list prices only.
On £2,000 a month of UK card sales at 1.75%, you pay £35 a month in fees. On £5,000 a month you pay £87.50. On £10,000 a month you pay £175.
A tourist paying £100 with a non-UK card costs you £3.25, against £1.75 for a UK card. If a fifth of your sales come from overseas cards, your average cost rises from 1.75% to 2.05%.
Compare the same £5,000 a month elsewhere. SumUp pay-as-you-go at 1.69% costs £84.50, £3 less. Dojo at 1.2% costs £60, £27.50 a month or £330 a year less, though Dojo's machine starts at £149 upfront against Square Reader's £19 + VAT.
Payouts are free if you wait one to two working days, and can arrive as soon as the next day. Instant Transfers cost 1.95%, with funds generally available within 20 minutes, a £15 minimum and a £3,500 daily limit. Moving £1,000 instantly costs £19.50, so only use it when you need the cash that day.
Square's UK pricing page quotes 1.75% for transactions with UK cards and 1.75% + 1.5% for non-UK cards, covering any contactless, mobile or chip and PIN payment. It does not set out a separate rate or a named line for American Express. If many of your customers pay by Amex, confirm acceptance and the rate with Square on 0800 098 8008 before you buy hardware.
If American Express is important to you, two providers state it clearly on their pricing pages. Zettle (PayPal Point of Sale) charges the same 1.75% for major cards and mobile wallets, even American Express. SumUp charges 1.69% on all in-person payments including American Express on pay-as-you-go.
Square's real strength is its software. The Point of Sale apps are free, starting from £0 a month. Square Plus plans start at £29 a month, a Kitchen Display System (a screen that shows orders to the kitchen) is from £15 per device per month, and Kiosk software costs £35 per device per month. For a café or restaurant that wants one company for till, kitchen and card payments, that range is the main reason to choose Square.
This review uses Square's published pricing, read on 26 October 2026.
Square's 1.75% sits at the higher end of published UK rates, matched by Zettle and just above SumUp. These four providers are the closest comparisons, with figures read on 26 October 2026.
If you mainly want a cheap reader and a free till app, Square and SumUp are close, and the choice comes down to software. If your takings are above a few thousand pounds a month, Dojo's lower rate usually saves more than any hardware difference within the first year.
Square's 1.75% is a list rate, and Square itself says custom rates may be available above £200,000 a year. Many businesses well below that level can still pay less elsewhere. We compare the whole UK card machine market for your business, including providers that only quote in private. We take your real monthly takings, average sale and card mix to them and negotiate the rate on your behalf, so you are not comparing headline figures that do not fit your trade.
We then handle the switch for you, from the application to the timing of any exit from your current contract, so you are not left without a working card machine. You get a named account manager who stays with you after setup and checks your rate as your business grows. You pay us nothing for this. We may receive a fee from the provider you choose. Fill in the quote form to start.
Square Reader costs £19 + VAT. Square Terminal costs £149 + VAT or £25 + VAT a month for 6 months, Square Handheld £169 + VAT, Square Stand and Kiosk £99 + VAT each, and Square Register £699 + VAT. Prices read 26 October 2026.
Square charges 1.75% on in-person payments with UK cards and 1.75% + 1.5% with non-UK cards. Manually entered payments cost 2.5%. The Free plan has no monthly fee. Square Plus costs £29+ a month. Instant Transfers cost 1.95%.
Square's UK pricing page quotes 1.75% for UK cards and 1.75% + 1.5% for non-UK cards but does not list a separate American Express rate. Confirm with Square on 0800 098 8008 before relying on Amex. Zettle and SumUp both state Amex on their pricing pages.
No. Square states you can upgrade, downgrade or cancel your plan at any time, and the Free plan has no setup fees or monthly fees. Some hardware can be paid monthly over 6 or 12 months.
Standard transfers are free and take one to two working days, and can arrive as soon as the next day. Instant Transfers cost 1.95%, generally arrive within 20 minutes, and have a £15 minimum and a £3,500 daily limit.
Yes. Square offers Tap to Pay on iPhone, on iPhone XS or above, and Tap to Pay on Android, from 1.75% per tap. You do not need to buy a reader to start.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.