Tide Card Reader Review UK 2026: Fees
The Tide card reader is worth having only if you already bank with Tide: its headline rates cover domestic consumer debit cards alone, and on pay as you go a £25 sale costs 1.70%, no cheaper than SumUp's 1.69% on every card.
Verdict
Convenient for Tide members, and cheap on Premium if you take mostly debit cards: £60.49 a month at £5,000, against £84.50 on SumUp. Pay as you go costs 1.70% on a £25 sale today and 1.80% from 1 December 2026. The Premium plan comes with a 12-month contract, and every business, Amex or overseas card pays 3.25% + 5p on any plan.
Tide account holders taking mostly UK debit cards who want takings and banking in one app
You bank elsewhere, or more than about 18% of your takings come from business, Amex or overseas cards, where SumUp's flat rate wins even against Tide Premium
Prices checked 1 November 2026 on tide.co and in Tide's Membership and Product Terms · exit terms checked 25 August 2026 · we compare published terms and have not tested the devices. See our editorial standards.
What the Tide card reader costs
Tide sells three plans and prices every payment as a percentage plus a fixed fee. The catch sits in the footnote: "Transaction fees shown are for domestic consumer debit cards. All other card types and fees are as defined in the Tide Membership and Product Terms." Those headline rates are not flat rates. Tide has also announced that transaction fees and subscription fees will increase on 1 December 2026, so the table shows both the prices on its site today and the revised Fee Schedule in its terms.
Tide card reader pricing (domestic consumer debit cards)
| Plan | Monthly fee | Card reader rate now | Revised Fee Schedule | Commitment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay As You Go | £0 | 1.5% + 5p | 1.6% + 5p | Pay as you go |
| Sell In-Person Essential | £17.99/month + VAT now; £19.99 + VAT revised | 0.89% + 3p | 0.99% + 3p | Monthly plan, cancel anytime |
| Sell In-Person Premium | £19.99/month + VAT (£159.99 a year) | 0.69% + 3p | 0.69% + 3p debit, 0.79% + 3p credit | 12-month contract |
| Business cards, Amex, international cards (every plan) | 3.25% + 5p |
| Diners, Discover and all other cards | 3.8% + 5p |
| Tap to Pay on a phone | 1.5% + 11p (PAYG), 0.89% + 9p (Essential), 0.69% + 9p (Premium) |
| Chargebacks | £25 per chargeback |
| Settlement | Next day on every plan (plan table); Payment will land in your account within 3 business days (card reader FAQ); terms: Standard Payout within 3 Business Days; the Next (Business) Day Settlement boost is £2.99 + VAT/month, included in Premium |
Sources: tide.co/features/card-reader and the Fee Schedule in Tide's Membership and Product Terms (15 October 2026 version on tide.co/terms), checked 1 November 2026. Prices are exclusive of VAT where applicable. Compare every provider in our card machine rates table.
The £5,000 a month shop, worked through
Our house example: £5,000 a month on cards at a £25 average sale, so 200 payments. To give Tide its best case we assume every payment is a UK personal debit card, which no real shop achieves. Subscription fees are shown before VAT.
- • Tide pay as you go: £5,000 × 1.50% = £75.00, plus 200 × 5p = £10.00. Total £85.00; on the revised schedule £90.00
- • Tide Essential: £17.99 + £44.50 + £6.00 = £68.49; revised £75.49
- • Tide Premium: £19.99 + £34.50 + £6.00 = £60.49; revised £60.49 (debit cards)
- • SumUp at 1.69%, any card: £84.50; Square at 1.75%: £87.50
Premium, Tide's cheapest plan here, beats SumUp by £24.01 a month on an all-debit mix, and pay as you go is £0.50 dearer than SumUp today (£5.50 on the revised schedule). Working at a £25 average sale, Premium beats SumUp above about £2,270 a month; below that its £19.99 fee outweighs the lower rate.
| Option | Monthly cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Tide pay as you go, today | £85.00 | |
| Tide pay as you go, from 1 December 2026 | £90.00 | |
| Tide Essential, today | £68.49 | |
| Tide Essential, from 1 December 2026 | £75.49 | |
| Tide Premium, today | £60.49 | 12-month contract |
| Tide Premium, from 1 December 2026 | £60.49 | |
| SumUp (1.69%, any card) | £84.50 | |
| Square (1.75%) | £87.50 |
| Card takings a month | Tide PAYG | Tide Premium | SumUp | Square |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £1,000 | £17.00 | £28.09 | £16.90 | £17.50 |
| £2,500 | £42.50 | £40.24 | £42.25 | £43.75 |
| £5,000 | £85.00 | £60.49 | £84.50 | £87.50 |
| £7,500 | £127.50 | £80.74 | £126.75 | £131.25 |
| £10,000 | £170.00 | £100.99 | £169.00 | £175.00 |
Now add a realistic card mix. If £500 of the month (20 payments) comes from business cards, Amex or overseas visitors, Tide charges 3.25% + 5p on that slice whatever plan you are on: £17.25 instead of £4.05 at the Premium debit rate, another £13.20 a month. At this volume Premium stays cheaper than SumUp until roughly 18% of takings are on those cards. SumUp and Square charge the same rate on those cards as on any other, so the gap to them widens with every business card you take.
Contract and exit terms
Sell In-Person (Premium), Sell In-Person (rent device) and the rent another device boost each have a 12 month minimum term; Essential is a monthly plan you can cancel any time. Cancelling a tool takes effect on the first day of the next calendar month, after which standard pay-as-you-go fees apply.
- Exit fee: Cancel a subscription early: pay the remaining subscription charges; rented-device tool adds a £50 administration fee
- Notice: Cancellation takes effect from the next billing period; fees already paid are not reimbursed
- Hardware: Purchased readers are yours; rented readers must go back within 5 working days of cancelling
Source: tide.co/terms/ - Payment Acceptance Terms (s.4-5); plan commitments from https://www.tide.co/features/card-reader/ (checked 1 November 2026), checked 25 August 2026.
A bought reader is yours to keep whatever you do, so leaving pay as you go or Essential costs nothing beyond the current month. The order of steps, including when to stop the subscription so you are not billed for another month, is in our guide to cancelling the Tide card reader.
Hardware
| Device | Pay as you go | Essential | Premium | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tide Nano | £25 | £15 | £11 | Pairs with your phone; uses the phone screen |
| Tide Card Reader | £49 | £39 | £29 | 4 inch touch display, 4G SIM and WiFi |
| Tide Card Reader Plus | £69 | £59 | £49 | 5.5 inch touch display |
Device prices + VAT from tide.co/features/card-reader, checked 1 November 2026. Rental: Sell In-Person (rent device): £24.99 + VAT/month, 12-month Minimum Rental Term. Payments are processed by Adyen.
The Tide Card Reader and Tide Card Reader Plus are standalone terminals with a touch screen and their own 4G SIM, so they work away from your phone. The Tide Nano pairs with your phone and uses its screen. The hardware is cheap on any plan; the cost of the Tide card reader is in the transaction fees, not the box.
Who should stay put, and who should switch
Stay put if you bank with Tide and mostly see UK debit cards. Under about £2,270 a month, pay as you go is within a few pounds of SumUp, and keeping payments and banking in one app can be worth that if you run the business from Tide. Check your plan before 1 December 2026, because the revised schedule moves pay as you go to 1.6% + 5p.
Switch plan if you are on pay as you go past about £2,270 a month: at £5,000 Premium saves £24.51 a month, or £294.12 a year, in exchange for its 12-month contract. Switch provider if more than about 18% of your takings are business, Amex or overseas cards (SumUp wins), or you are past £8,300 a month, where Tide moves you to a custom deal: get that in writing and test it against a bespoke quote from a full-service provider such as Dojo. On Premium, wait for the minimum term to end, or weigh the remaining fees against the saving first.
For
- Payments land in the Tide account you already use
- Cheap devices: Tide Card Reader £49 + VAT on pay as you go
- No contract on pay as you go or Essential
- 0.69% + 3p on debit cards with Premium
Against
- Headline rates cover domestic consumer debit cards only
- 3.25% + 5p on business, Amex and overseas cards on every plan
- Fees rise on 1 December 2026
- Only works with a Tide business account
Alternatives to the Tide card reader
SumUp (1.69% on every card) pays into any UK bank account and has no card-type surcharge. See Tide vs SumUp.
Square (1.75%) adds free point of sale software. See Tide vs Square.
A bespoke rate is worth pricing once you outgrow Tide's published plans. Dojo is one provider we arrange quotes with.
Not sure of your card mix? Send us a Tide statement for a free statement review and we will price your real mix of debit, credit and business cards. If Tide comes out cheapest, we will say so and you can stay where you are.
Check your Tide fees against a quote
Leave your details and we will call back with a like-for-like figure for your real card mix, not just debit cards at 1.5% + 5p. Free, no obligation.
Fees going up on 1 December 2026?
Tell us your monthly card takings and how many credit and business cards you take, and we will show whether staying on Tide still makes sense.
Frequently asked questions
What are the Tide card reader fees?
Before the 1 December 2026 rise: 1.5% + 5p on pay as you go, 0.89% + 3p on Sell In-Person Essential (£17.99/month + VAT) and 0.69% + 3p on Sell In-Person Premium (£19.99/month + VAT). Those rates are for domestic consumer debit cards only. Tide's revised Fee Schedule puts pay as you go at 1.6% + 5p and Essential at 0.99% + 3p with a £19.99 + VAT fee.
Do the Tide card reader rates apply to credit and business cards?
The headline rates do not. Tide's Fee Schedule charges 3.25% + 5p on domestic commercial cards, American Express and international cards, on every plan, and 3.8% + 5p on Diners, Discover and all other cards. In the revised schedule, UK personal credit cards pay 1.6% + 5p on pay as you go, 0.99% + 3p on Essential and 0.79% + 3p on Premium.
How much is the Tide card reader?
On pay as you go: Tide Nano £25, Tide Card Reader £49 and Tide Card Reader Plus £69, all + VAT. Premium subscribers pay £11, £29 and £49. Prices checked 1 November 2026 on tide.co.
Is there a contract with the Tide card reader?
Sell In-Person (Premium), Sell In-Person (rent device) and the rent another device boost each have a 12 month minimum term; Essential is a monthly plan you can cancel any time. Leave a plan with a minimum term early and Tide's terms say you pay the remaining subscription charges for the unused part of the term.
Can I use a Tide card reader without a Tide account?
No. Tide's card reader page says: "Tide Card Readers are only compatible with Tide business bank accounts". If you bank elsewhere, a reader that pays into any UK account, such as SumUp at 1.69%, avoids opening a second account.
How long do Tide card reader payments take to arrive?
Tide's own pages disagree. Card reader page: Next day on every plan (plan table). Same page: Payment will land in your account within 3 business days (card reader FAQ). Terms: Standard Payout within 3 Business Days; the Next (Business) Day Settlement boost is £2.99 + VAT/month, included in Premium. Plan on payouts arriving within 3 business days unless you are on Premium.