Comparison · Updated September 13, 2026
takepayments vs Dojo for UK card machines
takepayments
B
takepayments is a Stockport-based reseller of card machines, online payments and POS systems to UK small businesses, and since June 2024 it has been a Global Payments company. It does not hold your merchant agreement: its own terms make clear that a customer enters a separate contract with an acquiring bank for the transaction processing, while takepayments supplies the terminal, the onboarding, the PCI compliance help and the support line. Two things stand out. The first is its service record, which is the strongest of any provider reviewed on this site by volume: 4.8 on Trustpilot across 66,994 reviews, 94% of them five-star, with more than 6,000 arriving in the last twelve months. The second is that it publishes no prices whatsoever. Rates, standing charges and terminal costs are all quoted by a field consultant after a visit, on a twelve-month minimum term that then runs monthly. The company is older than its name suggests: Companies House records the entity as incorporated on 14 September 1995 and shows it trading as Targeted Transaction Managed Services, then Alphyra UK, then Payzone UK, before taking the takepayments name in December 2019.
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 of two card-machine providers that both sell through a sales team on a 12-month term, and the question is what each will tell you before the consultant arrives. Dojo is an acquirer in its own right - Paymentsense Limited, FCA-authorised, settling on its own platform - and for businesses under £100,000 a year in card turnover it publishes a price: the Fix plan at £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of monthly turnover and 1% above that, Amex included, on a 12-month price lock, with a 30-day trial first and a fee schedule you can read. takepayments is a reseller: a Global Payments company since June 2024 that supplies the terminal, the onboarding, the PCI help and a seven-day UK phone line, while the merchant signs a separate contract with an acquiring bank it nominates. It publishes no rate, no standing charge and no terminal price, and its 12-month minimum then rolls monthly. What it has instead is the strongest service record on this site by volume - 4.8 on Trustpilot from 67,006 reviews, 94% five-star - against Dojo's 4.2 from 5,613. Payment Review grades both B.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Dojo publishes a small-business price and takepayments publishes none: Dojo's Fix plan is £39.99 a month for the first £3,999 of monthly card turnover then 1%, while every takepayments rate, standing charge and terminal cost is quoted after a consultation.
- ✓Dojo holds the merchant agreement itself as an FCA-authorised acquirer; a takepayments customer signs a separate contract with an acquiring bank nominated by takepayments, so accountability is split across two agreements.
- ✓takepayments has the stronger service record - 4.8 on Trustpilot from 67,006 reviews against Dojo's 4.2 from 5,613 - and a phone line open seven days a week including bank holidays.
- ✓Both run 12-month minimum terms; Dojo adds a 30-day no-commitment trial, a 30-day rolling option on its Flex plan and a published early-closure cost, where takepayments' notice period and exit charges are not published.
- ✓Dojo's ancillary fees are on a published schedule - £28 plus VAT per chargeback, £15 plus VAT a month for not attesting PCI compliance, up to £400 for an unreturned terminal; takepayments' equivalents come from the acquirer and are not published.
takepayments
takepayments suits a single-till shop, salon or trade business that values a human on a UK phone line seven days a week and an in-person setup visit, and is prepared to negotiate its quote and get the notice period and exit charges in writing.
Dojo
Dojo suits a cafe, restaurant, bar or retailer under £100,000 a year in card turnover that wants a price it can read before signing, an integrated terminal that talks to its EPOS, and a 30-day trial before the 12-month term starts.
The Verdict
It Depends on Your Needs
Why?
The tables split evenly and honestly. Dojo wins every row about what you can know before signing: a published small-business price, a published fee schedule, a published early-closure cost, a 30-day trial, a rolling option on Flex, and a contract with the acquirer itself rather than with a bank it introduces you to. takepayments wins the rows about what happens after: the best service record on this site by volume, a seven-day UK phone line, an in-person setup visit and a Nasdaq-listed parent. Both share the same weakness - a 12-month term sold by a field consultant - and the same grade. If you are under £100,000 a year in card turnover and want to know the price before the visit, Dojo's Fix plan is the only published number between them. If you are above it, both will quote, and the decision comes down to the quote in writing, with the notice period and exit charges on the same page, and how much you value answering the phone on a Sunday.
Feature by feature
Detailed Comparison
Filter Options
Pricing and transparency
| Feature | takepayments | Dojo |
|---|---|---|
| Published card rates | None; quoted after a consultation | Fix plan under £100k a year: £39.99 a month covers the first £3,999 of monthly turnover, then 1%; larger businesses quoted Winner |
| takepayments' site says the price 'will depend on the model you choose, the type of card payments you want to take and your turnover' and offers a quotation tool. Dojo's Fix figures are from the newest readable copy of its pricing page (September 2025 archive; dojo.tech blocks automated access) and are corroborated by 2026 third-party guides. Above £100,000 Dojo's Flex and Pro plans are negotiated and unpublished, so at that size neither can be benchmarked from the website. | ||
| Monthly minimum or platform fee | Not disclosed | £39.99 a month on Fix, whether or not you take a payment; £10 a month per location on Flex |
| Dojo's fee schedule lists a 'minimum monthly payment' set by the agreed plan. A takepayments quote will carry a standing charge and terminal rental, but no figure is published. | ||
| American Express | Accepted on its terminals; rate not published | Included on the Fix plan; optional on other plans |
| takepayments' card-machine page lists American Express among accepted cards. Dojo's pricing page says Fix 'includes AMEX card payments' and that Amex is optional elsewhere, with the rate 'based on your agreed plan'. | ||
| Foreign-card surcharges | Not disclosed | +0.05% EEA card present, +0.15% EEA card not present, +0.95% + 13p and +1.45% + 13p for non-EEA |
| From Dojo's fee schedule D-0018-P-1.4, which says the surcharges normally apply to all customers but may differ by plan. | ||
| Payment Review pricing-transparency score | 1.5 out of 5 | 3 out of 5 Winner |
Published card rates
takepayments
None; quoted after a consultation
Dojo
Fix plan under £100k a year: £39.99 a month covers the first £3,999 of monthly turnover, then 1%; larger businesses quoted
Winner
takepayments' site says the price 'will depend on the model you choose, the type of card payments you want to take and your turnover' and offers a quotation tool. Dojo's Fix figures are from the newest readable copy of its pricing page (September 2025 archive; dojo.tech blocks automated access) and are corroborated by 2026 third-party guides. Above £100,000 Dojo's Flex and Pro plans are negotiated and unpublished, so at that size neither can be benchmarked from the website.
Monthly minimum or platform fee
takepayments
Not disclosed
Dojo
£39.99 a month on Fix, whether or not you take a payment; £10 a month per location on Flex
Dojo's fee schedule lists a 'minimum monthly payment' set by the agreed plan. A takepayments quote will carry a standing charge and terminal rental, but no figure is published.
American Express
takepayments
Accepted on its terminals; rate not published
Dojo
Included on the Fix plan; optional on other plans
takepayments' card-machine page lists American Express among accepted cards. Dojo's pricing page says Fix 'includes AMEX card payments' and that Amex is optional elsewhere, with the rate 'based on your agreed plan'.
Foreign-card surcharges
takepayments
Not disclosed
Dojo
+0.05% EEA card present, +0.15% EEA card not present, +0.95% + 13p and +1.45% + 13p for non-EEA
From Dojo's fee schedule D-0018-P-1.4, which says the surcharges normally apply to all customers but may differ by plan.
Payment Review pricing-transparency score
takepayments
1.5 out of 5
Dojo
3 out of 5
Winner
Best For Your Business
Recommendations based on your business type
Cafe, restaurant or bar under £100,000 a year in card turnover
Recommended
Dojo
Dojo's Fix plan is a readable price - £39.99 a month for the first £3,999 of monthly turnover, then 1%, Amex included - with a 30-day trial, an integrated terminal that pulls the bill from more than 450 EPOS systems and a table-side Pocket device. takepayments would need to beat that in a quote you cannot see in advance.
Single-till shop, salon or trade business that wants a person on the phone
Recommended
takepayments
takepayments' phone line is open seven days including bank holidays, its consultants set up the equipment in person, and 67,006 reviewers rate the result 4.8. Negotiate the quote, and get the notice period and any early termination charge in writing from both takepayments and the acquiring bank.
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 both providers are now quoting. Compare the two quotes on the same basis - rate, standing charge, terminal cost, chargeback fee and exit terms - and prefer the one that puts all five on paper.
Business that wants to try a provider before committing to a year
Recommended
Dojo
Dojo offers a 30-day no-commitment trial and, on its Flex plan, a 30-day rolling option. takepayments' minimum term is 12 months from the start.
Business already trading online that wants one provider for web and counter
Both sell a gateway, payment links and a virtual terminal alongside the card machine, and takepayments adds free plugins for Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, WordPress and OpenCart. Neither publishes an online rate, so ask for the remote-payment pricing in the same quote as the terminal.
takepayments: Best for 1 use case
Dojo: Best for 2 use cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this comparison
It can only be answered for businesses under £100,000 a year in card turnover, and only on Dojo's side: its Fix plan is £39.99 a month covering the first £3,999 of monthly turnover and 1% above that, which works out at 1% with a £39.99 floor. takepayments publishes no rate, standing charge or terminal price, so the comparison is Dojo's printed plan against the quote takepayments gives you. Above £100,000 both are quoted individually. Third-party guides report takepayments quoting lower percentage rates to some higher-volume businesses; treat that as anecdote until it is in your own quote.
Yes, a 12-month minimum term that then runs monthly, with cancellation in writing. Because takepayments is a reseller, you also sign a separate contract with an acquiring bank it nominates, which has to be ended separately. takepayments does not publish its notice period or early termination charges; third-party guides report a notice period of around 90 days and possible exit charges. Get both in writing before signing.
Yes. The published Fix plan is a 12-month price-locked term, and the Flex plan offers a choice between a 30-day rolling plan and a 12-month price lock. There is a 30-day no-commitment trial at the start. Dojo's fee schedule states that closing an account early on a minimum-term agreement means paying the remaining card-machine service fees for the rest of that term, and an unreturned or damaged terminal can be charged at up to £400 plus VAT.
Both promise next-day settlement on card-machine sales. takepayments' is next working day, provided the terminal's banking window is run before the acquirer's cut-off, and is subject to the acquirer's approval and terms. Dojo's standard is next business day, with settlement on weekends and bank holidays described on its own site as a '7-day' upgrade, although some third-party guides say it is included. If weekend takings on a Sunday morning matter, confirm which applies to your Dojo plan before signing.
takepayments Limited has been a Global Payments company since June 2024, and its site now describes Global Payments as a trading name of takepayments Ltd. It remains a reseller rather than an acquirer: the merchant agreement is with an acquiring bank takepayments nominates, and its online page also offers a direct route to Worldpay Ecommerce, another Global Payments company, on separate terms.
takepayments has the stronger record by a wide margin: 4.8 on Trustpilot from 67,006 reviews, 94% of them five-star, with a UK phone line open seven days a week including bank holidays and replies to 94% of negative reviews within about 48 hours. Dojo scores 4.2 from 5,613 reviews, with UK account support 8am to 6pm, technical support 8am to 11pm and a 24/7 technical line for card-machine services. Both profiles hold paid Trustpilot subscriptions and invite reviews. Payment Review scores takepayments 4.5 out of 5 on support and Dojo 4.
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