Comparison · Updated September 11, 2026
SumUp vs Dojo for UK card machines
SumUp
B+
A pay-as-you-go card reader and POS provider with flat published rates, no monthly fee and no contract. Strong for small and mobile sellers; the recurring complaint is account freezes and held funds with slow resolution.
Dojo
B
Dojo is the trading name of Paymentsense Limited, a London company incorporated in 2008 that grew into one of the UK's largest card-terminal resellers before rebuilding itself, from 2020, as a cloud-native acquirer under the Dojo brand. It now holds its own acquiring licence rather than reselling Fiserv's, and by its own filings handled £46.2bn of card volume for roughly 146,000 merchant locations in the year to March 2025 — a share it puts at 12.5% of UK small-business card-present acquiring. The pitch is simple: a fast card machine, money in your account the next day including weekends and bank holidays, integration with more than 450 EPOS systems, and a UK phone line. For businesses turning over less than £100,000 a year on cards there is a published Fix plan at £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of monthly card turnover, with 1% above that. Everyone larger gets a quote. Independent satisfaction is strong — 4.2 on Trustpilot from 5,612 reviews, 88% of them five-star — and the company is FCA-authorised. Against that sit a 12-month minimum term with the remaining terminal fees payable if you leave early, custom pricing that cannot be benchmarked, a fee schedule with £28 chargebacks and a £15-a-month PCI non-compliance charge, and a balance sheet carrying £649m of net debt at a 14% effective interest rate.
VS
Overview
This is a UK comparison, because Dojo is a UK acquirer and the question is about card machines. SumUp sells a reader for £15 to £99 plus VAT and charges 1.69% on every in-person payment with no monthly fee, no contract and no minimum; a £19-a-month Payments Plus plan drops domestic consumer cards to 0.99%. Dojo publishes one plan for businesses under £100,000 a year in card turnover - Fix, at £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of monthly turnover and 1% above that, on a 12-month price-locked term - and quotes everyone larger individually. On the rate alone Dojo Fix is cheaper once monthly card turnover passes roughly £2,400, because £39.99 is exactly 1% of £3,999 and 1% is well under 1.69%. What SumUp gives up in rate it recovers in freedom: no term, no early-closure charge, a £10 chargeback against Dojo's £28 plus VAT, and money in its business account by 7am the next day including weekends. Dojo's standard settlement is next business day, with weekend and bank-holiday settlement sold as an upgrade, and its ancillary fee schedule only surfaces at signing. Both sit at 4.2 on Trustpilot. Payment Review grades SumUp B+ and Dojo B.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Dojo is cheaper on rate above roughly £2,400 of monthly card turnover - its Fix plan works out at 1% with a £39.99 floor, against SumUp's 1.69% pay-as-you-go or £19 plus 0.99% on Payments Plus.
- ✓SumUp has no contract, no minimum term and no early-closure charge; Dojo's Fix plan is a 12-month term and leaving early means paying the remaining card-machine service fees.
- ✓SumUp pays into its own business account by 7am the next day, seven days a week; Dojo's default is next business day, with weekend settlement as a paid upgrade.
- ✓SumUp's chargeback fee is £10; Dojo's is £28 plus VAT, alongside a £15-a-month charge for not attesting PCI compliance.
- ✓Dojo integrates with more than 450 EPOS systems and supplies a 4G terminal with a printer; SumUp's cheapest reader pairs with a phone and its full POS is a £39-a-month add-on.
SumUp
SumUp suits a market trader, mobile service, new business or anyone under about £2,000 a month in card takings, and anyone who values being able to stop without a bill.
Dojo
Dojo suits an established cafe, restaurant, salon or shop taking a few thousand pounds a month or more on cards, that wants a standalone terminal talking to its till and accepts a 12-month term to get the lower rate.
The Verdict
It Depends on Your Needs
Why?
The maths draws the line and it is lower than most guides suggest. Dojo's Fix plan is effectively 1% with a £39.99 floor, so above roughly £2,400 a month in card takings it is cheaper than SumUp's 1.69%, and above roughly £2,100 it is cheaper than SumUp's Payments Plus. A busy cafe or salon doing £5,000 a month pays about £50 on Dojo against £68 to £85 on SumUp, and gets a 4G terminal with a printer that talks to its till. What the rate does not show is what SumUp's B+ against Dojo's B does: SumUp has no term, no early-closure charge, a £10 chargeback and seven-day payouts as standard, and you can stop tomorrow. Dojo's £28 chargeback, £15 PCI charge, up-to-£400 terminal charge and 12-month minimum are all on a schedule you see at signing. Below about £2,000 a month, or if you are not sure you will still be trading in a year, SumUp. Above it, with a till to integrate and a business that is going to be there, Dojo - after reading the fee schedule.
Feature by feature
Detailed Comparison
Filter Options
Card rates and monthly cost
| Feature | SumUp | Dojo |
|---|---|---|
| In-person rate, no monthly fee | 1.69% flat, including Amex and premium cards Winner | Not offered; the cheapest plan carries a monthly fee |
| SumUp's pay-as-you-go plan has no monthly cost at all. Dojo's Fix plan is the closest thing to a published rate and includes Amex, but it starts at £39.99 a month whether or not you take a payment. | ||
| Published plan with a monthly fee | Payments Plus: £19 a month, 0.99% on domestic consumer cards, 1.69% on others | Fix: £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of turnover, then 1% |
| Fix is only for businesses under £100,000 a year in card turnover; above that Dojo's Flex and Pro plans are negotiated and unpublished. Payments Plus is £189 a year if paid annually and can be cancelled any time. | ||
| Effective cost at £1,500 a month | £25.35 pay-as-you-go Winner | £39.99 |
| Rate only, before hardware. SumUp: 1.69% of £1,500. Dojo: the Fix minimum. Payments Plus would be £19 + £14.85 = £33.85 if every card were domestic consumer. | ||
| Effective cost at £5,000 a month | £84.50 pay-as-you-go; £68.50 on Payments Plus | £50.00 Winner |
| Rate only. Dojo: £39.99 plus 1% of the £1,001 above £3,999. SumUp Payments Plus figure assumes all domestic consumer cards; any Amex or foreign cards push it up. | ||
| Online, payment link and keyed rate | 2.5% | Not disclosed; priced under the agreed plan |
| Dojo's fee schedule lists remote payments as 'based on your agreed plan'. No winner marked because Dojo's figure is unknown. | ||
| Surcharge on foreign-issued cards | None published; 1.69% applies to all in-person payments Winner | +0.05% EEA card present, +0.95% + 13p non-EEA card present |
| From Dojo's fee schedule v1.4; the card-not-present surcharges are higher (+0.15% and +1.45% + 13p). Dojo notes these normally apply to all customers but may differ by plan. | ||
| Minimum monthly charge | None Winner | Fix: £39.99; Flex: £10 platform fee per location plus any agreed minimum |
In-person rate, no monthly fee
SumUp
1.69% flat, including Amex and premium cards
Winner
Dojo
Not offered; the cheapest plan carries a monthly fee
SumUp's pay-as-you-go plan has no monthly cost at all. Dojo's Fix plan is the closest thing to a published rate and includes Amex, but it starts at £39.99 a month whether or not you take a payment.
Published plan with a monthly fee
SumUp
Payments Plus: £19 a month, 0.99% on domestic consumer cards, 1.69% on others
Dojo
Fix: £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of turnover, then 1%
Fix is only for businesses under £100,000 a year in card turnover; above that Dojo's Flex and Pro plans are negotiated and unpublished. Payments Plus is £189 a year if paid annually and can be cancelled any time.
Effective cost at £1,500 a month
SumUp
£25.35 pay-as-you-go
Winner
Dojo
£39.99
Rate only, before hardware. SumUp: 1.69% of £1,500. Dojo: the Fix minimum. Payments Plus would be £19 + £14.85 = £33.85 if every card were domestic consumer.
Effective cost at £5,000 a month
SumUp
£84.50 pay-as-you-go; £68.50 on Payments Plus
Dojo
£50.00
Winner
Rate only. Dojo: £39.99 plus 1% of the £1,001 above £3,999. SumUp Payments Plus figure assumes all domestic consumer cards; any Amex or foreign cards push it up.
Online, payment link and keyed rate
SumUp
2.5%
Dojo
Not disclosed; priced under the agreed plan
Dojo's fee schedule lists remote payments as 'based on your agreed plan'. No winner marked because Dojo's figure is unknown.
Surcharge on foreign-issued cards
SumUp
None published; 1.69% applies to all in-person payments
Winner
Dojo
+0.05% EEA card present, +0.95% + 13p non-EEA card present
From Dojo's fee schedule v1.4; the card-not-present surcharges are higher (+0.15% and +1.45% + 13p). Dojo notes these normally apply to all customers but may differ by plan.
Minimum monthly charge
SumUp
None
Winner
Dojo
Fix: £39.99; Flex: £10 platform fee per location plus any agreed minimum
Best For Your Business
Recommendations based on your business type
Market stall, mobile trader or sole trader starting out
Recommended
SumUp
A £25 reader, 1.69% and nothing else. At £1,500 a month that is about £25 against Dojo's £39.99 minimum, with no 12-month commitment if the business does not take off.
Cafe, restaurant or bar taking £4,000 to £8,000 a month on cards
Recommended
Dojo
This is the band Dojo's Fix plan is priced for: 1% against 1.69%, an integrated terminal that pulls the bill from the EPOS, and Amex included. The 12-month term is the price of it; budget the £28 chargebacks and complete the PCI attestation.
Hair or beauty salon with a mix of walk-ins and online bookings
Recommended
Dojo
Dojo integrates with the booking and till systems salons already use and its Fix plan undercuts SumUp on rate once card takings pass a couple of thousand a month. If online payment links are a large share of revenue, ask Dojo for the remote rate first - it is not published - because SumUp's is a known 2.5%.
Business that needs weekend takings in the bank on Sunday morning
Recommended
SumUp
SumUp's business account is credited by 7am the next day seven days a week at no extra cost. Dojo sells weekend settlement as an upgrade on top of next-business-day.
Established business over £100,000 a year in card turnover
Both. Dojo's Fix plan no longer applies and its Flex and Pro pricing is negotiated, so get the quote in writing with the fee schedule attached and compare it to SumUp's published 0.99% on Payments Plus. At this volume a negotiated Dojo rate should beat SumUp comfortably; if it does not, SumUp's published price is the safer deal.
Charity or trust
Recommended
SumUp
Dojo says it cannot serve charities or trusts. SumUp markets a card reader for charities and donations on its UK site.
SumUp: Best for 3 use cases
Dojo: Best for 2 use cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this comparison
On rate, above roughly £2,400 a month in card takings, yes. Dojo's Fix plan is £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of turnover and 1% above that, which works out at 1% with a £39.99 floor; SumUp charges 1.69% with no monthly fee, or £19 a month plus 0.99% on domestic consumer cards. Below about £2,000 a month SumUp is cheaper because Dojo's minimum applies whether or not you take a payment. Dojo also charges more for chargebacks (£28 plus VAT against £10) and has other account fees SumUp does not.
No. SumUp's pay-as-you-go plan has no minimum term, no monthly fee and no early-closure charge; you buy the reader and stop whenever you like. Its Payments Plus subscription is £19 a month and can be cancelled at any time. Dojo's Fix plan is a 12-month price-locked term, and leaving early means paying the remaining card-machine service fees for the rest of it.
SumUp pays into its own free business account by 7am the next day, including weekends and bank holidays, or into an external bank account in one to two business days. Dojo's standard settlement is next business day; its site describes weekend and bank-holiday settlement as a faster '7-day' upgrade, although some third-party guides say it is included at no extra cost, so confirm which applies to your plan.
They are not hidden so much as on a separate schedule: £28 plus VAT per chargeback, £15 plus VAT a month if you do not attest PCI DSS compliance, £3.50 for paper billing, £15 for a failed direct debit, £10 for arrears management, £25 to change the legal entity, up to £400 plus VAT for an unreturned or damaged terminal, and surcharges on foreign-issued cards. Ask for the fee schedule before you sign.
Yes on both. SumUp offers Tap to Pay on a phone at no hardware cost, on the same 1.69% rate. Dojo offers Tap to Pay on iPhone through its app, but it sits inside a plan with a monthly fee.
Both score 4.2 on Trustpilot - SumUp from 56,690 reviews on its global profile, Dojo from 5,612 - and both hold paid Trustpilot subscriptions. Dojo offers UK phone lines for account and technical support; SumUp runs support through in-app chat with agents seven days a week and no email channel. Complaints about SumUp cluster on frozen accounts and held funds.
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