13 Best Card Readers for Sole Traders in the UK (2026)

When you work for yourself, you want a small bill to start, no contract, and a way to get paid without a business bank account. Twelve of these thirteen have no monthly fee and no contract. What separates them is whether you need your phone, whether you need to print, and where your money lands.

So I've priced all thirteen for the same business, one making £2,000 a month on cards from 80 sales of £25.

Some companies appear more than once, because a pocket device that pairs with your phone and a machine that prints solve different problems. If you were expecting Teya, Dojo or Revolut Business, I explain why they aren't ranked near the end.

• 13 card machines priced for one sole trader
• £2,000 a month, 80 sales of £25
• Where the money lands, for each one
• Confirmed 4 November 2026

How I ranked them

This isn't a price order, because the cheapest card machine to run isn't the best one to start with. Small ones with no contract come first. Then come the machines that print. The last four suit one situation each: billing other businesses, a 3-year contract, or already using that company.

Most card readers are advertised before VAT, and you can only claim that back if you're VAT registered, so my first-year sums add it.

What the thirteen cost at £2,000 a month

The business cards column matters if you bill other businesses, because a plumber or cleaner often gets paid on a company card.

UK card readers at £2,000 a month in card sales

Last confirmed on 4, 5 and 7 November 2026

	Machine price	A month	With business cards	First year
SumUp Solo Lite	£19	£33.80	£33.80	£428.40
SumUp Solo	£59	£33.80	£33.80	£476.40
Square Reader	£19	£35	£35	£442.80
myPOS Go 2	£39	£27.60	£34.60	£378
Zeller Terminal 2	£149	£26	£28.76	£490.80
SumUp Terminal	£99	£33.80	£33.80	£524.40
Zeller Terminal 1x	£99	£26	£28.76	£430.80
Square Terminal	£149	£35	£35	£598.80
myPOS Go Combo	£169	£27.60	£34.60	£534
Revolut Pro card machine	£129	£30	£30	£514.80
Flatpay card machine	£0	£29.80	£29.80	£357.60
Tide Nano	£25	£36	£42.60	£462
PayPal Reader	£29	£35	£35	£454.80

Machine prices before VAT; the first year adds VAT and 12 months on personal cards. 'With business cards' means 1 sale in 5. SumUp's are sale prices, Tide's fees start 1 December, and PayPal adds delivery.← scroll sideways on a narrow screen →

Zeller costs least a month, on personal cards and on a mix of cards. Flatpay is lowest over the first year, for a 36-month contract, and the Zeller Terminal 1x is lowest with a printer.

So Zeller, myPOS and Flatpay all cost less than my top pick, and I'll show you what you give up for that in their sections.

You can't add these fees on for customers paying by personal card, because card surcharges are banned in the UK. So build the transaction fee into your prices. At 1.69%, it's about 42p on a £25 sale.

Can the money go into a personal bank account?

It depends on the company. SumUp says no UK law requires a sole trader to have a business bank account to take cards. It also says its card machines can pay into a personal one. Your own bank may have rules about business money in a personal account, so look at your account's terms too.

Either way, you must keep records of your business income and expenses, and a receipt scanner app makes that easier. This table shows where each one sends your sales, and whether you need your phone beside you.

1. SumUp Solo Lite - the smallest bill to start

The Solo Lite comes first because it's the cheapest way to find out whether taking cards works for you. It's £19 in SumUp's sale, down from £25, there's no contract, and SumUp is plain about paying a sole trader's personal account. Square's is also £19, but SumUp's transaction fee is lower. SumUp's sale prices have been moving, so check the price before you order.

SumUp Solo Lite

SumUp Solo Lite is a small device that pairs with your phone by Bluetooth, for taking contactless and chip cards anywhere your phone has signal.

£19plus VAT in SumUp's sale, normally £25, then 1.69% a sale

Which one fits you? Quick review

It pairs with your phone and uses its screen and signal, so a flat phone or a dead spot stops your sales.

The free SumUp account pays by 7am the next day, weekends included, where a personal bank can take up to three working days. Past £3,300 a month on cards, SumUp's own advice is to move to Payments Plus at £19 a month, which cuts the fee to 0.99% on UK personal cards.

Start here if you're doing this part time or testing the idea, like a weekend market stall, a cake or craft side business, or a mobile service you've just started. SumUp refunds you if you return it within 30 days.

2. SumUp Solo - no phone needed, same fee

The Solo does the same job without your phone. It has its own touch screen and a 4G SIM with free data, plus Wi-Fi, and an offline mode if the signal drops. It's £59 in the sale, down from £79, with the same 1.69% fee and the same payout choices.

SumUp Solo

SumUp Solo is a pocket-sized card machine with its own touch screen and a 4G SIM with free data, so it works without a phone.

£59plus VAT in SumUp's sale, normally £79, then 1.69% a sale

Which one fits you? Quick review

Get it if you work away from your own Wi-Fi, as gardeners, mobile mechanics, window cleaners and dog walkers do, or you'd rather keep your phone free. If customers want paper, SumUp sells it with a mobile printer for £75 in the sale.

3. Square Reader - free tools for bookings and invoices

Square costs a little more to run, 1.75% a sale against SumUp's 1.69%. That extra £1.20 a month at our sales buys you software you'd otherwise pay for. Its free plan includes invoices, payment links and online booking with automatic reminders.

Square Reader

Square Reader pairs with your phone or tablet and works with Square's free app, which also handles invoices, payment links and bookings.

£19plus VAT, then 1.75% a sale on UK cards

Which one fits you? Quick review

That's a good fit for personal trainers, mobile hairdressers, beauty therapists and dog groomers, where a missed appointment costs more than the transaction fee. Invoices cost more than taking a card in person, though, at 2.5%.

Therefore, pick Square if your diary runs your business.

4. myPOS Go 2 - the cheapest with its own SIM

This is the cheapest card machine here with its own SIM and no contract. Its fee is 1.10% plus 7p a sale. That comes to £27.60 a month at our £2,000, which is £6.20 less than SumUp.

myPOS Go 2

myPOS Go 2 is a card machine that works on its own, with a built-in SIM and Wi-Fi backup, and no monthly charge for the data.

£39plus VAT, then 1.10% + 7p on UK personal cards

Which one fits you? Quick review

That low fee comes with two conditions. First, your money stays in the myPOS account until you move it, and each transfer to a UK bank costs £1.50. Move it once a week and that adds £6.50 a month, which makes the Go 2 30p a month more than SumUp. So it only saves you money if you pay suppliers and buy materials from the myPOS card.

Second, the 1.10% applies to UK personal cards only. Business cards cost 2.85% plus 7p, so if one sale in five is on a business card, your month comes to £34.60.

I'd take it for market stalls, food vans, coffee carts and car boot sales, where you want your own signal and a low fee on personal cards.

5. Zeller Terminal 2 - the lowest fee, with no phone needed

Zeller started in Australia and now sells in the UK too, with the lowest fee here on UK cards. Every UK Visa or Mastercard costs 1.3%, so our £2,000 comes to £26 a month, £7.80 less than SumUp. Amex, business and overseas cards cost 1.99%.

Zeller Terminal 2

Zeller Terminal 2 has a 6.5-inch screen and digital receipts, with a free POS app built in, and works without your phone.

£149plus VAT, then 1.3% on UK Visa and Mastercard

Which one fits you? Quick review

Your money lands in a Zeller account the same day, or in any UK bank account the next working day. There's no monthly fee, no set-up fee and no contract.

Pick it if most of your customers pay with UK cards and you work from one spot, like hairdressers, barbers, dog groomers and beauty therapists.

6. SumUp Terminal - a printer at a sale price

If customers expect a paper receipt, this and the Zeller Terminal 1x are the cheapest machines here with a printer built in and no contract. It's £99 in the sale, down from £135. It has a free SIM and Wi-Fi, SumUp says the battery lasts all day, and it can take tips and print order tickets.

SumUp Terminal

SumUp Terminal is a handheld machine with a built-in receipt printer, a touch screen and a free SIM, with no rental or monthly minimum.

£99plus VAT in SumUp's sale, normally £135, then 1.69% a sale

Which one fits you? Quick review

Get it if you hand over receipts or order tickets, as food vans, takeaway stalls, coffee carts and market traders often do.

7. Zeller Terminal 1x - a printer on the lowest fee

The Zeller Terminal 1x is £99 plus VAT, £50 less than the Zeller Terminal 2, and it adds a receipt printer and a bigger 6.7-inch screen. The fee is the same 1.3% on UK Visa and Mastercard, so it's the cheapest way here to print receipts and keep your fees low.

Zeller Terminal 1x

Zeller Terminal 1x prints receipts and sends digital ones, with a 6.7-inch screen and a free POS app built in.

£99plus VAT with a printer, then 1.3% on UK cards

Which one fits you? Quick review

Get it if you hand over receipts, as cafés, delis, takeaway vans and market traders often do.

8. Square Terminal - prints, and keeps your bookings in one app

The Square Terminal prints receipts and runs the same free app as the Square Reader, so your bookings and invoices stay in one place. It's £149 plus VAT, or £25 plus VAT a month for six months, at the same 1.75% a sale.

Square Terminal

Square Terminal has a built-in receipt printer and runs Square's free app, with invoices, payment links and online booking.

£149plus VAT, or £25 plus VAT a month for six months, then 1.75% a sale

Which one fits you? Quick review

Pick it if you take bookings and hand over receipts from a fixed spot, like a beauty salon, massage room, tattoo studio or barber's chair.

9. myPOS Go Combo - the myPOS fee, with a printer

The Go Combo is a portable card machine with a dock that charges it and prints receipts. It's £169 plus VAT, on the same 1.10% plus 7p and £1.50 transfers as the Go 2.

myPOS Go Combo

myPOS Go Combo is a portable card reader with a charging and printing dock, for use in a shop or on the go.

£169plus VAT, then 1.10% plus 7p on UK personal cards

Which one fits you? Quick review

It's worth it if most customers pay by personal card. Against the SumUp Terminal you pay £70 more upfront and save £6.20 a month, as long as you spend from the myPOS card and don't move the money out.

10. Revolut Pro - one fee on every card

You'll see Revolut advertising 0.8% plus 2p, but that's for Revolut Business, and its help page lists sole traders as an unsupported type. Revolut Pro is the version for self-employed people. It sits inside your personal Revolut app, starts at £0 a month and charges 1.5% in person on personal, business and foreign cards alike.

Revolut Pro card machine

Revolut's Lite machine works on its own and takes payments straight into a Revolut Pro account, with no monthly fee on Pro's starting plan.

£129one-time for the Lite machine, then 1.5% a sale

Which one fits you? Quick review

The machine costs £129. At £2,000 a month, Revolut saves you £3.80 a month against SumUp. As a result, that extra cost takes about three years to come back.

Choose Revolut Pro if you bill other businesses, as freelance designers, consultants, bookkeepers and subcontracting tradespeople do, or your sales are well above our example.

11. Flatpay - a free machine, if you can commit for 3 years

Flatpay is the only one here with a long contract. You pay nothing for the machine, then 1.49% on every card. That makes it the lowest first-year cost here, at £357.60. But you can't end its UK agreement for 36 months.

Flatpay card machine

Flatpay provides a PAX A920 Pro card machine with a printer and SIM, sets it up with you in person and charges one fee on all cards.

£0for the machine, then 1.49% a sale, 36-month contract

Which one fits you? Quick review

Work out that saving before you sign. Over the 36 months, Flatpay beats SumUp by about £162 at our sales, or roughly £4.50 a month. Any month below £1,100 on cards also adds a £39 charge plus VAT.

Flatpay doesn't single out sole traders, so get it confirmed at your first meeting, along with whether a personal bank account is fine.

This only makes sense for a settled business with a fixed pitch and steady sales, like a busy market stall, a café counter, a salon or a barber's.

12. Tide Nano - if you already bank with Tide

Tide only makes sense with a Tide account, because the Nano is linked to it before it's sent. That account is a real help if you don't have a business account yet, as the Lite plan has no plan fee and includes Making Tax Digital tools. Tide's fees rise on 1 December 2026, so I've used the new ones.

Tide Nano

Tide Nano is a 120g pocket device that pairs with your phone by Bluetooth and pays into your Tide account the next working day.

£25plus VAT, then 1.6% + 5p from 1 December

Which one fits you? Quick review

On personal cards the gap is small, £2.20 a month against SumUp. Business cards are where Tide falls behind, because at 3.25% plus 5p a mixed month comes to £42.60.

Stay with Tide if you already bank there and mostly serve the public, because having it all in one app is worth a couple of pounds.

13. PayPal Reader - if you already sell through PayPal

You may know this one as Zettle, which is now called PayPal Point of Sale. It charges 1.75% on all major cards, the same as Square. Your first one is £29 plus VAT, so it starts £10 above Square before delivery.

PayPal Reader

PayPal Reader pairs with your phone by Bluetooth and works with the free PayPal POS app, with funds reaching a PayPal Business account within minutes.

£29plus VAT for your first machine, then 1.75% a sale

Which one fits you? Quick review

PayPal's terms name sole traders and ask for a UK bank account held in your name, so that part is simple.

It's worth it if you already sell online through PayPal, as many makers, crafters and artists do, and now want to take cards at a craft fair or pop-up. Starting from nothing, you'd pay less and get more free tools with Square.

Tired of your bank's card machine?

You're probably paying for more than the card fee, because machine hire and service charges often sit on the same bill. To see what you'd really save, divide last month's whole bill by your card sales. SumUp's 1.69% is the number to beat, so at £2,000 a month anything over about £34 means you could pay less.

Then find your contract's end date before you order anything. You can run the new one alongside your bank's machine until that contract ends. The Payment Systems Regulator limits some machine-hire contracts to a first term of 18 months, so check yours.

Why Teya, Dojo and Revolut Business aren't ranked

Teya charges 1.59% on personal cards, but a £29.99 fee applies when your monthly card sales are under £2,500. So our £2,000 business pays £61.79 a month, nearly twice what SumUp costs. Teya suits busier counters, such as cafés, pubs, salons and shops that stay well above £2,500 a month on cards.

Dojo gives its prices through a quote, so I can't put a number on it at £2,000 a month. It's best known in restaurants, pubs and cafés, so it suits a fixed site with steady trade more than someone just starting out.

Revolut Business has a low headline fee, 0.8% plus 2p, but it needs a £10 monthly plan and isn't open to most sole traders. It's made for registered companies, from online shops to agencies and small chains, so Revolut Pro is the route for you.

As you can see, all three suit businesses that are bigger or more settled than most sole traders. Once your card sales stay above £2,500 a month, or you register a company, they're worth comparing again.

So which card reader should you buy?

At our £2,000 a month, the gap between the lowest and highest monthly transaction fees here is only £10. That's too small to choose on, so the contract, your phone and whether you need to print matter more.

For most sole traders, start with the SumUp Solo Lite. It's the cheapest way to find out whether taking cards pays off, because it's £19 with a 30-day refund, and your money can go to the account you already have.

If you can't rely on your phone, as market traders, mobile mechanics and window cleaners often can't, take the SumUp Solo. The myPOS Go 2 is the other choice if you're happy to spend from its card.

If you work by appointment, like hairdressers, barbers, personal trainers, beauty therapists and dog groomers, take the Square Reader.

If you need to print, as food vans, takeaway stalls and coffee carts usually do, take the Zeller Terminal 1x for the lowest fee, or the SumUp Terminal at the same price. Take the Square Terminal at a fixed spot with bookings, or the myPOS Go Combo if you'll spend from its card.

If you bill other businesses, as freelance designers, consultants and subcontracting tradespeople do, take Revolut Pro. Only take Flatpay if you're sure about three years, and Tide or PayPal if you already use them.

If you can't separate two of them, tell the finder what matters most to you, whether it can lean on your phone, and where your money should land. It names one card reader and what you give up.

Your work, your answer

Which card reader fits your work?

Answer for how you work today. The recommendation updates as you go.

1What matters most to you?

Spending as little as I can to startFree tools for bookings and invoicesA printed receipt on the spotA printed receipt, and the lowest feeA printer, spending from the machine's own cardThe lowest fee, and no phone neededOne low fee on every card, business cards tooNo upfront cost, and I can stay for 3 yearsI already bank with TideI already sell through PayPal

2Can it lean on your phone?

Yes, my phone's always with me and has signalNo, it should work on its own

3Where should your money land?

In my own bank accountAn account that comes with the machine is fine

Before you answer

SumUp Solo Lite, if you just want to get started

The SumUp Solo Lite is £19 plus VAT in its sale, with no monthly fee or contract, and can pay into a personal bank account.

The trade-off: it needs your phone beside you. If that's a problem, the SumUp Solo has its own SIM.

Read about the Zeller Terminal 2 Read about the Zeller Terminal 1x Read about SumUp Read about the SumUp Solo Read about the SumUp Terminal Read about the Square Terminal Read about the Go Combo Read about Square Read about myPOS Read about Revolut Pro Read about Flatpay Read about Tide Read about PayPal

Questions sole traders ask about card readers