SumUp Pricing: Is It Good Value for Money?

SumUp is a popular payment processor for small businesses, serving 4 million businesses across Europe. The question is, is it an affordable option for your business?

From card machine costs to transaction fees, we’ll give you the full breakdown of how much SumUp costs, and how it compares to competitors.

As a quick overview, you should know that SumUp’s cheapest card reader, the SumUp Air, starts at £39 + VAT but rises to £49 if you want a charger too. It made it onto our list of the best card readers for UK small businesses. Meanwhile, standard transaction fees are 1.69%, but go down down to 0.99% with a SumUp One subscription.

SumUp’s price tags don’t make it the cheapest merchant account in the land, and some of its competitors could suit you better depending on your needs. To help you make a decision, we have prepared a rundown of its fees and charges which you can read below.

How Much Does SumUp Hardware Cost?

Range: £39-£139 + VAT

SumUp offers three readers, all of which are a one-off purchase:

• SumUp Air: £39 + VAT (+£10 for charger)
• SumUp Solo: £79 + VAT
• SumUp Solo & Printer: £139 + VAT

With its one-off purchase pricing model for card readers, SumUp is in the same league as other mobile card reader providers such as Revolut, Square, and Zettle.

However, Zettle and Square both have cheaper card machines, with prices starting at £29 and £19 respectively. And, at two years, Square’s warranty is longer than SumUp’s one year one.

SumUp is still a better value option than Tyl, however, which doesn’t sell its readers in one go but instead charges a minimum £9.99 + VAT monthly fee for their use.

SumUp Air vs SumUp Solo vs SumUp Solo and Printer

Here’s a quick overview of the difference between each SumUp card reader:

The main difference between SumUp’s cheapest card reader, the £39 SumUp Air and the other two models is that it doesn’t come with a charging dock, which will cost you £10 + VAT extra, only connects to Bluetooth, and can only accept payments if it’s being use with the free SumUp app.

That said, it has a longer battery life than the other two, 12 hours instead of 8 hours, which comes in handy if you’re a mobile business owner, but you’ll be relying on your phone’s signal to take payments.

In comparison, the SumUp Solo and Solo Printer come equipped with Wifi connectivity, a built-in SIM card with unlimited free data, and a charging dock. So, despite their shorter battery life, these models can easily be charged on a countertop or table when they’re not in use, and they don’t rely on being connected to a smartphone to accept payments.

The main difference between the SumUp Solo and Solo and Printer is that the latter comes with a built-in receipt printer, and charges faster. If receipts are essential to your business, then it could be a good option.

Overall, however, the £79 + VAT SumUp Solo card reader offers the best value for money. You get a machine that can take payments anywhere there’s internet or a phone signal, plus you don’t need to pay extra for a charging dock.

SumUp Fees and Charges Explained

Here’s a full breakdown of SumUp’s fees and charges:

SumUp Transaction Fees

Range: 0.99%-2.5% per transaction

On SumUp’s no contract, pay-as-you-go plan, you’ll pay transaction fees of 1.69% for in-person transactions, and 2.5% for keyed-in, online, and invoice (aka card not present) payments.

These fees put SumUp on the pricier end of the providers we researched when assessing the best merchant accounts in the market. For this reason, SumUp’s pay-as-you-go offering is a poor choice for businesses that deal with a big sales volume (like busy bars and coffee shops), as they’re bound to build up and turn into a great expense.

However, there are two ways you can lower transaction fees with SumUp:

• SumUp Business Account: if you open a free account, you’ll pay transaction fees of 1.49% for in-person purchases (card-not-present transaction fees stay at 2.5%).
• SumUp One subscription: for £19 per month, you’ll pay transaction fees of 0.99%, on both in-person and card-not-present transactions on domestic cards (international, AMEX, and commercial cards have a 1.99% fee)

SumUp’s pay-as-you-go in-person transaction fee is cheaper than Zettle’s and Square’s, both of which charge 1.75%, but more expensive than Revolut (0.8% +2p), Stripe (1.4% +10p), or Tyl’s (1.39 +5p%).

With a SumUp Business Account, SumUp’s 1.49% in-person transaction fee brings it more in line with Stripe and Tyl’s fees. And, to its credit, unlike Stripe, SumUp doesn’t charge its fee for unsuccessful transactions.

SumUp Monthly Fees

Range: £0-£19 per month

If you opt for SumUp’s pay-as-you-go plan, you won’t be charged any monthly fees. To use it, you only need to buy one of its readers and the rest of your expenses will be transaction fees.

If you’re a small business owner with low transaction volume, you’ll benefit from lower monthly overheads, although your transaction fees will be higher than they would be with a SumUp subscription.

If you subscribe to SumUp One, you’ll pay a monthly fee of £19 per month. What you’ll get in return are:

• Lower transaction fees (from 0.99%)
• 7 am next-day payouts (compared to 3-5 working days on pay-as-you-go)
• 50% off SumUp card readers
• Access to SumUp’s advanced invoicing software

SumUp One is designed for businesses that process over £30,000 in card payments a year (over £2,500 a month). It’s a good option for cashless small businesses, such as cafes or independent stores, or ones with a lot of card paying customers, such as restaurants, and pubs and bars.

Although the SumUp One comes with a monthly fee, it’s not a contract, like the kind you’d get with traditional card machine providers such as takepayments or Worldpay. You can cancel your SumUp One subscription anytime, and there’s no cancellation fee.

SumUp Fees for Selling Online

Range: £0 per month + transaction fees

SumUp doesn’t charge any extra fees for selling online through its payment gateway.

The only charges you’ll pay are transaction fees, which are 2.5% on the pay-as-you-go plan, and 0.99% on SumUp One.

There are several ways to sell online with SumUp’s payment gateway. You can send payment links to customers by email, messaging app, SMS, or QR code, create a webstore for free with SumUp, or integrate SumUp into your existing online store (plugins for WooCommerce, Wix and Prestashop). These features landed SumUp a spot on our list of the UK’s best payment gateway providers.

SumUp Virtual Terminal Fees

Range: £0 per month + transaction fees

There are no extra charges for taking payments over the phone with SumUp’s virtual terminal. However, because this is considered a risky transaction, the transaction fees are higher, at 2.95% + 25p.

If your business takes a lot of payments over the phone and you want to keep fees down, you’ll be better off with Square. Like SumUp, Square doesn’t charge monthly fees for using its virtual terminal, but its transaction fees are lower at 2.5%.

See our list of the best virtual terminals for the full range of options.

How Much Do SumUp’s EPOS Solutions Cost?

Range: £0-£399 + £49 per month

In addition to offering payment processing services and card machines, SumUp also offers EPOS solutions, both software and hardware.

Here’s what you can get with SumUp:

• POS App: £0. If you have an existing tablet (Apple or Android), you can download and use SumUp’s basic EPOS app for free with no monthly costs. It comes with basic sales reporting and product cataloguing features.
• POS Lite: From £299 +£0/month. You’ll pay a £299 one-off fee for 13 inch HD touchscreen terminal and the SumUp Solo card reader, and pay no monthly fees for the free SumUp POS app (features are basic)
• POS Pro: From £399 + £49/month. You’ll pay a £399 one-off fee for the 13-inch HD touchscreen terminal, SumUp Solo card reader, cash drawer, and receipt printer. For £49 per month, you’ll also get access to more advanced EPOS software, with features tailored to the retail or hospitality sector, depending on which you select.

Providers such as Square and Tyl also offer free EPOS apps, so SumUp is by no means an outlier in this regards.

However, Square’s free EPOS app comes with far more features than SumUp’s, so if you’re looking for a cheap EPOS solution for your restaurant or store, we’d suggest going with Square. Like SumUp, it allows you to upgrade to paid plans once you outgrow the free version.

You can find out what the best EPOS systems in the UK are by looking at our official ranking.

Does SumUp Have Any Hidden Fees?

SumUp is very transparent with its costs, so you’re unlikely to get any surprise charges.

Its transaction fees are flat-rate and cover interchange fees, which are the processing charges the merchant account pays out to the banks of your customers. This means what you see advertised is what you’ll pay. Additionally, since SumUp doesn’t have fixed-term contracts, there aren’t any exit fees or early termination fees to worry about.

This straightforward pricing structure keeps SumUp’s fees easily visible and traceable, making it a popular option for small businesses.

How Does SumUp’s Pricing Compare with Other Merchant Services?

Here’s a quick overview of how SumUp’s pricing stacks up against its rivals:

Zettle vs SumUp

Zettle and SumUp are quite evenly matched in terms of price. SumUp’s basic in-person transaction fees are slightly cheaper than Zettle’s  (1.69% compared to 1.75%) but their online transaction fees are the same, at 2.5%, and neither provider charges monthly fees for their basic offering. Zettle’s card readers do have a cheaper price point, starting at £29 + VAT compared to SumUp’s £39 + VAT, but Zettle’s 4G card reader costs £149 + VAT, almost double SumUp’s £79 + VAT 4G reader. Overall, however, Zettle is better value for money than SumUp. It has more advanced reporting capabilities and integrates with a wider network of software.

Read our full Zettle vs SumUp comparison.

Revolut vs SumUp

Revolut’s fees are much cheaper than SumUp’s, at 0.8% + 2p for in-person payments, and 1% + 2p for online payments, compared to SumUp’s 1.69% for in-person and 2.5% for online. Their card readers both start at £39 + VAT, neither charge monthly fees, and both come with similarly light touch reporting features. If you’re looking for the cheapest transaction fees, Revolut is the way to go. However, if you want a payment processor that also provides EPOS solutions, SumUp is a better option, since it provides these, while Revolut doesn’t.

Square vs SumUp

Square’s in-person transaction fees are more expensive than SumUp’s, at 1.75% compared to 1.69%. However, Square’s online transaction fees are cheaper, at 1.4% + 25p, compared to 2.5%, and its card readers start at a cheaper price point, £19 + VAT compared to SumUp’s £39 + VAT. Both providers come with zero monthly fees, and have free EPOS apps. However, Square’s free EPOS solution offers far more features than SumUp’s, making it a better value option for small businesses looking for an integrated payment processor and EPOS provider.

Read our full Square vs SumUp comparison.

Tyl vs SumUp

Tyl has cheaper transaction fees than SumUp, at 1.39% + 5p across the board, compared to SumUp’s 1.69% for in-person transactions and 2.5% for online ones. However, Tyl doesn’t sell its hardware outright, the way SumUp does. It charges monthly fees starting at £9.99 + VAT for leasing its card machines. Because of this, SumUp is a better value option in the long run.

Stripe vs SumUp

Stripe has cheaper transaction fees than SumUp, at 1.4% + 10p for in-person transactions, compared to SumUp’s 1.69%. Neither provider charges monthly fees, and both of them have card readers that start at £49 + VAT, if you include a SumUp charging dock, which will be essential if you’re buying your first card reader. Stripe, however, comes with better reporting features than SumUp, and supports 125+ currencies, whilst SumUp only supports UK transactions. This makes Stripe a better value option if your business operates near tourist spots, or if you’re interested in rigorous reporting.

Read more in our Stripe vs SumUp head-to-head.

Verdict: Is SumUp Good Value for Money?

SumUp doesn’t offer the best value for money when it comes to simply taking payments, especially on the pay-as-you-go plan.

How did we reach this conclusion? Well, we compared SumUp’s fees, diversity of payment options, and features to similar providers, and used our knowledge of the industry to make a determination.

To recap, SumUp’s fees are on the higher end, despite the fact that it offers fewer reporting features on its app than rivals like Stripe, which has lower fees. Another SumUp competitor, Revolut offers similar basic reporting features, but charges much lower transaction fees.

When it comes to EPOS solutions, while SumUp does have a free EPOS app, it’s extremely basic. If you’re willing to pay Square’s slightly higher 1.75% transaction fee, you’ll get access to a much more advanced free EPOS app.

This isn’t to say SumUp isn’t a worthwhile option for some businesses. Where it truly shines is in its card reader offering. For a £79 + VAT upfront fee, the SumUp Solo card reader comes with a built-in SIM card, unlimited data, and an 8-hour battery life. This makes SumUp a great option for small, mobile businesses, such as food truck operators or market vendors.

SumUp rivals Tyl and Zettle also offer card readers with 4G connectivity. However, Tyl’s reader comes with monthly fees and  Zettle’s 4G card reader costs £149 + VAT – SumUp’s costs £79 + VAT, and you won’t necessarily have to pay monthly fees. This makes SumUp the most economical choice for small mobile businesses.