SumUp Review UK 2026: Is SumUp Worth It?
SumUp costs 1.69% per in-person payment with no monthly fee and no contract, and its cheapest reader is the Solo Lite at £25 ex VAT. It is the cheapest way to start on running costs, until card takings pass about £3,060 a month.
That rate is below Square's 1.75% and Zettle's 1.75%, and up to that line it beats Dojo's 1.2% once you add a rented terminal. Past it, Dojo costs less on rate and rental.
SumUp prices checked 1 November 2026 against SumUp's card readers page, pricing page and help centre. No rating: we review SumUp's published terms, not our own use. See our editorial standards.
Check whether a switch pays at your takingsVerdict
Under about £3,060a month on cards, stay on SumUp. Below that line Dojo's lower rate is worth less than £15a month, even if the terminal costs you nothing, and it comes with a contract. Above it, SumUp's flat 1.69%is the expensive choice: get one quote before your takings grow further, and price Dojo's unpublished fees before you sign.
Market traders, mobile businesses and new shops taking under about £3,060 a month on cards, and anyone not yet sure customers will pay by card at all
Your card takings are well past £3,060a month, or you want next-day money in your own bank rather than in SumUp's account
Taking more than £3,060 a month on SumUp? We will tell you if a switch pays, and if it doesn't.
Tell us your monthly card takings and we will set them against SumUp's 1.69%. If staying put is cheaper, we will say so. Free, no obligation.
Dojo pays us a fee when a business we introduce completes a switch.
What SumUp is
SumUp is a pay-as-you-go card provider. You buy a reader outright, pay 1.69% on each in-person payment and owe nothing when you stop. Its readers are in the table below, and Tap to Pay lets your own phone take contactless for £0.
| Reader | Price | How it connects | Battery |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo Lite | £25 ex VAT | Pairs with your phone | Up to 1,000 transactions per charge (SumUp figure) |
| Solo | £79 ex VAT | Built-in 4G SIM with unlimited free data, plus Wi-Fi | Up to 300 transactions per charge (SumUp figure) |
| Terminal | £135 ex VAT | Standalone handheld | Up to 250 transactions per charge, including receipt printing (SumUp figure) |
| Tap to Pay | £0 | Your own phone; no reader needed | Runs on your phone |
Prices from SumUp's card readers page, checked 1 November 2026, excluding VAT. Connectivity and battery from SumUp's product pages, checked 1 November 2026.
The Solo Lite is the one to start on, but it only works while paired to your phone, so a flat phone means no payments. The Solo has its own SIM and Wi-Fi; at £79 ex VAT it costs £54 more, which is worth it if your phone is busy taking orders or you hand the reader to staff.
SumUp fees per transaction
On pay as you go, SumUp charges 1.69% per in-person payment and 2.5% online, with no monthly fee.
| Cost | SumUp pay as you go |
|---|---|
| In-person payments | 1.69% on every card type, Amex included |
| Online payments | 2.5% |
| Monthly fee | None (no monthly fee on pay as you go) |
| Contract and exit fee | None; pay-as-you-go, subscriptions run monthly or yearly. Exit fee: None stated; unused subscription periods are not refunded |
| Fastest payout | Next day by 7am into the free SumUp Business Account, weekends and bank holidays included |
| Payout anywhere else | 1 to 3 business days to your own bank account from the time SumUp sends the payout |
SumUp charges you 0% on in-person payments when the customer pays with their own personal SumUp card. Rates from SumUp's pricing page, checked 1 November 2026; payouts from SumUp's help centre, checked 1 November 2026. Every provider we track is in our card machine rates table.
There is no monthly fee, and Amex and premium cards cost the same 1.69% as a debit card, so the number on the pricing page is the number on your statement. But you pay 1.69% on a debit card even though a contracted provider can price debit cards separately, and you never get a volume discount.
What SumUp costs a £5,000 a month shop
Say your shop takes £5,000 a month on cards, all in person. Here is that month on SumUp and on the two obvious alternatives.
SumUp: £5,000 × 1.69% = £84.50 a month (£1,014 a year), plus the Solo Lite once at £25 ex VAT
Square: £5,000 × 1.75% = £87.50 a month, £3.00 more than SumUp, plus its reader once at £19 + VAT
Renting a terminal from Dojo direct: £5,000 × 1.2% = £60.00, plus £15.00 for the Dojo Wired = £75.00 a month, £9.50 less than SumUp on rate and rental (£114 a year)
Dojo through MerchantSwitch, no rental: £5,000 × 1.2% = £60.00 a month, £24.50 less than SumUp on rate
Break-even: £15 rental ÷ (1.69% − 1.2%) = £15 ÷ 0.49% ≈ £3,060 a month
Free Dojo terminal: £0 upfront and no monthly terminal rental for the life of your contract when arranged through MerchantSwitch. SumUp and Square prices exclude VAT. SumUp checked 1 November 2026; Square 25 August 2026; Dojo November 2026.
Dojo's 1.2% is published only for businesses with annual card turnover below £100,000. Above that it quotes per business; the lowest we have seen is 0.29%, so get a real quote rather than assuming either end. 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, so treat £3,060 as the lowest point a switch could pay, not a promise that it will.
Above £3,060, Dojo wins on rate and rental, but only once you have priced the commitment: how long the contract runs and what leaving early costs. If you are already on a contract elsewhere, send a recent monthly statement to our free statement review instead and we will work out your all-in rate.
Getting paid
SumUp pays next day by 7am into the free SumUp Business Account, weekends and bank holidays included. Otherwise the money takes 1 to 3 business days to your own bank account from the time SumUp sends the payout. So next-day money means opening SumUp's own account.
SumUp says plainly that it is not a bank: money you hold with it is safeguarded in dedicated accounts separate from SumUp’s own funds, not FSCS-protected. Move takings on rather than leave weeks of them there. If you bank elsewhere and cash is tight, plan your week around the slower route.
Contract and leaving
There is nothing to exit on pay as you go: no minimum term and no exit fee, and you own the reader rather than renting it. Stop using it tomorrow and you are £25 ex VAT down for the reader. So when Dojo starts to win, leaving SumUp costs you nothing. The steps are in how to cancel a SumUp card reader.
Source: SumUp's terms, sumup.com/en-gb/pricing/ and sumup.com/en-gb/terms/ (s.13).
Pros and cons
Pros
- Readers from £25 ex VAT, or £0 with Tap to Pay
- No monthly fee, and no minimum term or exit fee
- 1.69% on every card, Amex included, below Square and Zettle
- Payouts by 7am the next day, weekends and bank holidays included, into SumUp's free account
Cons
- On pay as you go the rate never falls: at £5,000 a month you pay £9.50 more than on Dojo with a rented terminal
- Next-day money needs SumUp's account; payouts to your own bank are slower
- The Solo Lite takes payments only while paired to your phone
- Money left in the Business Account is not FSCS-protected
SumUp, Square, Zettle or Dojo
Square charges 1.75% in person, £3.00 a month more than SumUp at £5,000, but its reader at £19 + VAT is £6 cheaper than the Solo Lite. Zettle charges 1.75%. The head to heads are in Square vs SumUp, SumUp vs Zettle and our SumUp vs Square vs Zettle answer.
Dojo is the step up once you are past £3,060 a month: 1.2% blended for businesses with annual card turnover below £100,000, with a contract. Through us there is no terminal rental, which takes the saving at £5,000 from £9.50 to £24.50 a month. The detail is in Dojo vs SumUp, and other routes off SumUp are in our SumUp alternatives guide.
Past £3,060 a month? Get a quote to hold against SumUp
Leave your details and we will call back with a quote at your volume to set against 1.69%, and tell you if SumUp still wins. The call is free and you are under no obligation.
Dojo pays us a fee when a business we introduce completes a switch. Already on a contract? Send us a statement instead.
SumUp questions
Does SumUp charge a fee?
Yes, a share of each payment: 1.69% in person on any card, Amex included, and 2.5% online. There is no monthly fee and nothing to pay when you stop. The only other cost is the reader, bought once: from £25 ex VAT for the Solo Lite, or £0 with Tap to Pay on your own phone. One case costs nothing: SumUp charges you 0% on in-person payments when the customer pays with their own personal SumUp card.
How much does SumUp charge per transaction in the UK?
1.69% of the sale and nothing fixed on top, so a £20 sale costs 33.8p. Small sales cost the same share as large ones, which suits a coffee stall better than a provider that adds pence to every tap.
Does SumUp pay out at weekends?
Yes, if your payouts go to SumUp's own account: SumUp pays next day by 7am into the free SumUp Business Account, weekends and bank holidays included, so Saturday's takings are there on Sunday morning. Otherwise it is 1 to 3 business days to your own bank account from the time SumUp sends the payout, so Saturday's money arrives on a weekday at the earliest. Checked against SumUp's help centre, 1 November 2026.
Is SumUp legit?
Yes. SumUp is an authorised electronic money institution regulated by the FCA (licence no. 900700), and you can look that number up on the Financial Services Register yourself. SumUp says plainly that it is not a bank, so money in its Business Account has no FSCS cover.
Do I need a SumUp Business Account to use the reader?
No. Without one, your money takes 1 to 3 business days to your own bank account from the time SumUp sends the payout. The Business Account only matters if you want next-day money, weekends included. There is no monthly fee. 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.