SumUp business account: does it change the card machine decision?

What is the SumUp business account?

It is the account SumUp gives every merchant alongside its card readers: a place for your card takings to land, with a free business Mastercard, physical or virtual, transfers and Direct Debits. SumUp lists no fees to open the account, send or receive money, or set up and use Direct Debits. Sole traders, freelancers and start-ups can open one online with ID; verification can take longer if the ID photo or address does not match.

Is SumUp a bank?

No. SumUp says plainly that it is not a bank: it is an authorised electronic money institution regulated by the FCA (licence no. 900700). Your balance is safeguarded in dedicated accounts separate from SumUp’s own funds, not FSCS-protected. For takings you move on within a day or two that matters little; for a reserve you leave sitting there, a bank account with FSCS cover is the safer home.

What is the SumUp card?

The SumUp card is a free business Mastercard, physical or virtual linked to the account, used for business spending and cash withdrawals. Limits: £15,000 per payment and £15,000 per day on the SumUp card; cash £500 per withdrawal and £2,000 per day. Outgoing transfers are capped at £25,000 per transfer, £50,000 per day and £150,000 per month.

What does the SumUp business account cost?

• Monthly fee: £0
• ATM: three free UK ATM withdrawals a month (five on Business Account Plus), then 2% on cash withdrawals above the monthly free allowance and on withdrawals abroad
• Cash deposits: 2.5% of the amount deposited
• Business Account Plus: £15/month (incl. VAT) for extra balances, extra cards for staff, bulk transfers, five free UK ATM withdrawals a month, 24/7 priority support and Invoices Plus templates

The cash charges are the ones to watch. A pub or market stall paying in £1,000 of notes a month through the account would pay £1,000 × 2.5% = £25.00 for the privilege. Cash-heavy businesses should keep a high-street bank account for cash.

How fast does SumUp pay into the business account?

Card sales taken on a SumUp reader or Tap to Pay arrive by 7am the next day, weekends and bank holidays included. If you send payouts to an outside bank account instead, payouts into any other bank account take 1 to 3 business days. In practice that means Friday's takings are in the SumUp account on Saturday morning, against Monday at the earliest and Wednesday at the latest in a high-street bank. For comparison, Dojo offers next-business-day settlement as standard, or an upgrade to faster next-day settlement that includes weekends and bank holidays (dojo.tech card machine page).

Does the SumUp business account lower your card fees?

No. Your card fee is set by your payments plan, not your account. On pay as you go it is 1.69% on every card, Amex included. Payments Plus, a separate £19/month plan, cuts domestic debit and credit cards to 0.99%. The one zero-fee case: sumUp charges you 0% on in-person payments when the customer pays with their own personal SumUp card, which depends on your customers, not on you.

What does it change for the £5,000 a month shop?

Card fees at £5,000 a month, with or without the business account:

• SumUp pay as you go: £5,000 × 1.69% = £84.50 a month, the same whichever account it pays into
• SumUp Payments Plus, all domestic cards: £19 + £5,000 × 0.99% = £68.50, saving £16.00 a month
• Dojo, 1.2% blended rate: £5,000 × 1.2% = £60.00, saving £24.50 a month against SumUp pay as you go before the terminal (Dojo Go Max £149 upfront (launch offer, usually £229) or £25/month; Dojo Pocket £239 or £20/month; Dojo Wired £179 or £15/month. Tap to Pay on iPhone needs no hardware at all.)

The account itself is worth £0 in fees either way. What it buys is speed: earlier access to £5,000 a month of takings, most noticeably over weekends and bank holidays. If that cash flow matters, open it. If you are deciding between SumUp and a provider with a lower rate, ignore it and compare the rates.

Should the business account decide your card machine?

No. Already on SumUp and staying? Open the account: it is free and gets you paid faster. Choosing a card machine? Decide on the rate, the terminal and the contract, then pick a bank account. Our SumUp review covers where SumUp's flat rate stops being good value, and SumUp alternatives ranked by cost runs the same sums for Revolut, Lopay, Dojo, Tide and others. Leaving SumUp is free, as our SumUp cancellation guide explains, and the Dojo vs SumUp comparison covers the upgrade path.

Want the sums done on your own figures? Use the SumUp cost calculator or send a statement to our free statement review.

SumUp business account: common questions