Can You Get a Free Dojo Card Machine?
Yes. Arranged through MerchantSwitch, the Dojo terminal comes with £0 upfront and no monthly rental for the life of your contract. Going to Dojo direct, the hardware costs from £149 upfront or from £15/month to rent, so the offer removes that cost.
What you still pay is the rate: under £100,000 a year of card turnover, Dojo charges a 1.2% all-in blended transaction rate for all card transactions. Above £100,000 a year the quote is custom, and we have seen rates as low as 0.29% for high-turnover businesses. The offer covers the hardware cost; it does not change the rate you are quoted. If you are locked into another provider's contract, it stacks with Dojo's switching cover: up to £3,000 (arranged through MerchantSwitch; eligibility confirmed at quote) towards your exit fees (going direct, Dojo's own cover is up to £500 (annual card turnover under £180,000), or up to £3,000 (annual card turnover over £180,000)).
Rates checked: November 2026
What “free” covers, and what it doesn't
Covered: the terminal
- £0 upfront for the Dojo terminal (direct, terminals cost from £149 upfront or from £15/month to rent)
- No monthly hardware rental for the life of your contract
Still paid: the plan and the contract
- The rate under £100,000 a year of card turnover: a 1.2% all-in blended transaction rate for all card transactions. Dojo’s fees schedule also lists a secure transaction fee, a refund fee and a minimum monthly payment, each set by your agreed plan; the amounts are not published. Above £100,000 a year the quote is custom, with rates as low as 0.29% seen for high-turnover businesses
- The standard Dojo contract: any minimum term is set in your application documents. Ending the agreement before your minimum term ends can mean an early account closure fee (amount set by your agreed plan, not published), plus any fee for equipment not returned; no early account closure fee if you tell Dojo you want to end the agreement within the first month (Dojo general terms v2.0)
- The same plan pricing and terms as going direct
The saving is straightforward arithmetic: going direct, a terminal costs from £149 upfront (the Dojo Go Max, launch offer, usually £229) or £15/month to £25/month to rent; a rented Go Max over 12 months is £25.00 × 12 = £300.00. Through us the hardware cost is £0 for the life of the contract, not just an introductory period.
Dojo direct vs Dojo via MerchantSwitch vs a PAYG reader
| Cost line | Dojo direct | Dojo via MerchantSwitch | PAYG reader |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upfront cost | From £149 to buy the machine (Dojo Go Max launch offer, usually £229; Dojo Pocket £239, Dojo Wired £179), or rent instead | £0 | Buy the reader (e.g. Square Reader £19) |
| Monthly hardware rental | £0 once bought upfront, or £15/month to £25/month to rent | £0 for the life of the contract | £0 |
| Plan pricing | 1.2% all-in blended rate under £100k/year card turnover; custom quote above | 1.2% all-in under £100k/year; custom quote above (unchanged) | Flat 1.69% (SumUp) to 1.75% (Square, Zettle) |
| Contract | No closure fee in the first month; any minimum term is set in your application documents | No closure fee in the first month; any minimum term is set in your application documents | None |
| Leaving early | Early account closure fee (amount not published) before the minimum term ends; at least one month’s written notice | Same terms as direct | None (no contract) |
| Switching cover | Up to £500 (annual card turnover under £180,000), or up to £3,000 (annual card turnover over £180,000) | Up to £3,000 (eligibility confirmed at quote), and it stacks with the free terminal | None |
Figures are providers' published pricing, checked 27 August 2026; Dojo figures read from dojo.tech, November 2026. Custom-tier rates are quoted per business, and we have seen quotes as low as 0.29% for high-turnover businesses; always confirm with a current quote. Switching-cover eligibility is confirmed at quote.
Is a free terminal actually a good deal?
Honestly: only if the plan suits your volume too. The terminal is the small number: £149 to £239 upfront, or £15/month to £25/month to rent, going direct. The question that matters is whether 1.2% plus the fees Dojo does not publish beats a flat-rate reader at your takings. At £3,000 a month on rate it does: 1.2% × £3,000 = £36.00 against SumUp's £3,000 × 1.69% = £50.70. At £2,000 a month the gap narrows to £24.00 against £33.80, small enough for an unpublished minimum monthly payment to matter. On custom quotes the rate dominates: on £15,000 a month of card takings, every 0.1% on your rate is £15 a month, £180 a year, so a rate just 0.2% worse than it should be would cost more each year than the free terminal saves once.
So judge any quote (including a Dojo quote through us) on the effective rate: total monthly card fees divided by monthly card turnover. Our guide to reading your merchant statement shows how to compute it from your current statement, and our UK average card processing fees benchmarks tell you whether the number you get is competitive. The free terminal is the bonus on top of a plan that fits, not a substitute for one.
At low volume the case narrows. With the terminal free, 1.2% beats SumUp on rate at any volume, but SumUp has no contract and Dojo does not publish its minimum monthly payment, so below a few thousand pounds a month get that figure in writing before you sign. If you would rent the terminal direct instead, the break-even against SumUp (1.69% flat) sits around £3,060 a month of card takings with a Dojo Wired at £15/month and around £5,100 with a Dojo Go Max at £25/month. Below that, a pay-as-you-go reader is cheaper overall and our advice is not to switch.
How to claim the offer
- Tell us your monthly card takings: use the quote form or call 0333 041 3933. We respond in under 5 minutes.
- Get your Dojo plan: the 1.2% all-in blended rate under £100,000 a year of card turnover, or a custom quote on your turnover, average transaction value and card mix above it. Check it against your current effective rate.
- Locked into another contract? Get your exit fee in writing. Dojo pays up to £3,000 towards it when you switch through MerchantSwitch (eligibility confirmed at quote).
- Terminal arrives with £0 upfront and no monthly rental, for the life of your contract, not an introductory period.
Still weighing Dojo up? Our Dojo card machines hub covers the pricing mechanics, the full terminal lineup and every Dojo head-to-head we publish.
MerchantSwitch is a free comparison service; we are paid by providers when we successfully match a business. The free-terminal offer does not change the plan pricing you are quoted. We are an introducer, not a lender or acquirer, and we are not regulated by the FCA.
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£0 upfront, no monthly rental for the life of your contract, and switching cover of up to £3,000 towards your exit fees through MerchantSwitch (eligibility confirmed at quote) if you are switching. We respond in under 5 minutes.