Best Payment Terminals for UK Small Businesses 2026

The best payment terminals for UK small businesses in 2026 are SumUp, Square and PayPal POS, but SumUp is the one most should buy. It charges the lowest transaction fee of the three, pays you out the next day including weekends, and its all-in-one Terminal costs less than Square or PayPal.

Square wins if you want a proper till system built into the device. PayPal POS, formerly Zettle, is worth a look if you already run money through PayPal. Below we break down real UK pricing for each, including the fees and payout terms that decide which one actually saves you money.

What actually matters when choosing a terminal

The headline price of the hardware is the least important number. What costs you over a year is the transaction fee, the monthly charges, and how long your money is held before it reaches your bank.

For a 1 to 10 person business, you want a flat percentage rate, no contract you can be locked into, and fast settlement so cash flow does not stall. All three providers here meet that bar. The differences are in the detail, and the detail is where the money goes.

SumUp: best overall for value

SumUp is the cheapest way to take card payments properly in 2026, and that is why it wins. The pay-as-you-go rate is 1.69% per in-person transaction with no monthly fee, no contract and no minimum. On a £800 Saturday market day you pay around £13.52 in fees and see the money by 7am Sunday.

Next-day settlement including weekends and bank holidays is the standout feature, and it runs through the free SumUp Business Account with a Mastercard attached. For a tradesperson or a weekend trader, getting paid on a Sunday rather than waiting until Tuesday matters.

The range covers every budget. The SumUp Terminal at £135 + VAT is the full all-in-one machine with a built-in printer, WiFi and a 4G SIM, so it works without a phone. The SumUp Solo at £79 + VAT is the same standalone idea without the printer, and the Solo Lite at £25 + VAT pairs with your phone for the lightest setup.

If you take more than roughly £3,000 a month in cards, the Payments Plus plan at £19 per month drops your rate to 0.99%, which is the lowest in-person rate available in the UK. There is also a POS Plus tier at £29 per month that adds inventory, table plans, staff permissions and Xero, QuickBooks and Sage sync.

The weakness is support. Phone support runs Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm only, so if your reader plays up on a Saturday you are waiting until Monday. Online and keyed payments are also dearer at 2.5%, so SumUp is at its best when most of your trade is face to face.

Square Terminal: best for a full till system

Square Terminal costs £149 + VAT, or £25 + VAT a month over six months, and charges 1.75% per transaction with no monthly hardware fee. It is an all-in-one machine with a built-in receipt printer, an all-day battery and an offline mode that keeps taking payments for up to 24 hours if your internet drops.

Where Square pulls ahead is the software. The free Square point-of-sale system turns the device into a proper till with inventory, sales reporting, invoices, loyalty and a customer directory, and it connects to Xero, Wix and WooCommerce out of the box. If you run a shop, a salon or a café and want one system to handle everything, this is the strongest pick.

The downsides are real. At 1.75% the rate sits just above SumUp, and there is no built-in 0.99% option for higher turnover unless you process more than £200,000 a year and negotiate custom pricing. Standard payouts land the next business day rather than at weekends, and a number of reviewers report funds being held during account reviews, which is worth knowing before you rely on it for cash flow.

To connect the Terminal by Ethernet or add a cash drawer or barcode scanner, you need the optional Hub at £39 + VAT, so budget for that if you want a fixed counter setup.

PayPal POS (Zettle): best if you already use PayPal

PayPal POS is the new name for Zettle, which was itself iZettle before PayPal bought it. The brand is mid-rebrand, so you will still see Zettle on plenty of hardware and in your account, but the products and fees have not changed.

It charges 1.75% on card and contactless payments with no monthly fee. The PayPal Reader is listed at £29 + VAT for an eligible first reader and £69 + VAT for extra ones, while the all-in-one PayPal Terminal is £149 + VAT. Keyed payments cost 3.4% + 20p and payment links 2.9% + 30p, so it is least competitive when you are not taking cards in person.

The pull is familiarity. If your business already runs on PayPal, linking the two is simple and funds can show in your PayPal balance quickly, then take one to two working days to reach a bank account. The cheap £29 reader pairs with your phone rather than standing alone, so for a true standalone terminal you are looking at the £149 device, the same price as Square.

Outside the PayPal habit, there is little here that SumUp does not do for less, which is why it lands third.

What about Dojo?

Dojo is the name you will see most in busy pubs, cafés and restaurants, and it is a strong machine. But it does not fit the no-monthly-fee bracket the three picks above sit in. Its Fix plan starts around £39.99 + VAT a month on top of transaction fees, pricing is quote-based, and it usually involves a contract.

For a higher-volume hospitality or retail business processing several thousand pounds a month, that monthly fee can work out cheaper than a flat percentage, and Dojo also pays out next day including weekends. For a sole trader, a mobile service or anyone wanting £0 monthly cost, it is the wrong shape, and the sales calls are frequently flagged as pushy. Get a live quote before you commit.

The verdict

For most UK small businesses, SumUp is the one to buy. It has the lowest fees, no monthly commitment, the cheapest all-in-one terminal at £135 + VAT, and it pays you out the next day including weekends. The Payments Plus rate of 0.99% then keeps it cheapest as you grow.

Choose Square if you want a full till and back-office system in one device and do not mind paying 1.75% for it. Choose PayPal POS if you already use PayPal and want everything under one login. And if you run a busy hospitality or retail site with steady turnover, get a Dojo quote and compare the monthly model against a flat percentage before you decide.

Whichever you pick, the trick is to match the machine to how you trade. If most of your sales are in person and you want the lowest cost with money in the bank fast, SumUp is hard to beat. If you need a till and stock control built in, pay the small premium for Square.