Comparison · Updated September 22, 2026
Viva.com vs SumUp for UK card machines
Viva.com
B
Viva.com is a European payments company and licensed bank, headquartered in Athens, that sells card acceptance, a business account, cards and financing to small and medium businesses on one platform. It is unusual in two ways that matter to anyone comparing processors. The first is disclosure: where almost every acquirer in Europe quotes privately, Viva.com publishes a full price pack per country — acquiring rate, scheme pass-throughs, plan fees, dispute fees, investigation fees and cash-withdrawal charges, line by line, with an effective date stamped at the bottom. For UK consumer cards in September 2026 that pack quotes 1.69% for card-present with a 1p minimum per transaction, and 2.19% + 24p online. The second is its licence. Viva is not an intermediary reselling somebody else's acquiring: the group holds a Greek banking licence, acquired with Praxia Bank in 2020, alongside an e-money licence from the Bank of Greece, and it describes itself as Europe's first full tech bank for businesses, operating across 29 European countries. J.P. Morgan has owned 48.5% since December 2022, with the founders holding the balance — a stake that has also produced several years of shareholder litigation between the two.
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.
VS
Overview
This is a UK comparison, in pounds. Viva.com (formerly Viva Wallet, graded B on Payment Review) and SumUp (graded B+) both charge 1.69% on an in-person payment with a UK consumer card, and neither ties you to a contract. The differences are around that rate. Viva settles card payments into its own account in real time on every plan and charges 2.19% + 24p online, but its terminals start at £220 plus VAT, its £0 plan carries a £3.99 minimum monthly charge, and it charges £20 per lost chargeback. SumUp's readers start at £25 plus VAT list price, it charges a flat 2.5% online and £10 per chargeback, its business account is free, and a £19-a-month Payments Plus plan cuts domestic debit and credit cards to 0.99% in person. SumUp suits most small UK merchants better. Viva is the choice for a business that wants money available the moment a card is tapped.
Key Takeaways
- ✓SumUp wins on hardware: readers from £25 plus VAT (list) against Viva's cheapest terminal at £220 plus VAT, though both let you take payments on a phone for free.
- ✓SumUp wins at higher volume: Payments Plus (£19 a month) drops domestic debit and credit cards to 0.99% in person, while Viva charges 1.69% on every plan.
- ✓Viva wins on payout speed: real-time settlement into the Viva account on every plan, against SumUp's 7am next-day payout into its business account.
- ✓SumUp wins on fees around the edges: a £10 chargeback fee against Viva's £20, and a free business account against Viva's £10 a month or per-transfer charges.
- ✓Online pricing splits: Viva's 2.19% + 24p is cheaper than SumUp's 2.5% on orders above about £77, and dearer below.
Viva.com
Viva.com is for a UK business that wants card takings available in real time, sells online at average orders above about £77, or needs a full Android terminal fleet on one account.
SumUp
SumUp is for sole traders, market stalls, cafés and small shops that want a cheap reader, a free business account, a £10 chargeback fee and, above roughly £3,000 a month, a 0.99% in-person rate.
Overall Winner
🏆 Winner
SumUp
B+expert grade
Runner-up
Viva.com
Why?
For most small UK businesses SumUp is the better buy. The in-person rate is the same 1.69%, but SumUp's readers cost a fraction of Viva's terminals and its business account is free. Its chargeback fee is half Viva's, and it charges nothing on months you don't trade. Above roughly £3,000 a month, Payments Plus cuts domestic debit and credit cards to 0.99%, a rate Viva doesn't offer on any plan. SumUp also has the stronger Trustpilot record and the higher grade on Payment Review. Viva wins on one thing SumUp can't match: card money is available in real time on every plan. It is also cheaper online on orders above about £77. A business that needs either should look at Viva.
Feature by feature
Detailed Comparison
Filter Options
In-person rates
| Feature | Viva.com | SumUp |
|---|---|---|
| UK consumer card, no monthly fee | 1.69% | 1.69% |
| Viva charges a minimum of 1p per transaction, or 10p on its Terminal app. Its £0 Zero plan carries a £3.99 minimum monthly charge. SumUp's pay-as-you-go plan has no monthly fee and no minimum. | ||
| Domestic consumer card, on a monthly plan | 1.69% on every plan (£3.99–£15.99 a month) | 0.99% on Payments Plus (£19 a month) Winner |
| SumUp's 0.99% applies to domestic debit and credit cards; premium, Amex and international cards stay at 1.69%. SumUp puts the Payments Plus break-even at £3,000 a month on its pricing page (£3,300 in its card-reader FAQ). Viva's paid plans add support tiers and account features, not a lower card rate. | ||
| American Express in person | 2.65% (+0.40% if issued outside the EEA) | 1.69% (pay-as-you-go and Payments Plus) Winner |
| Commercial, European and international cards | 1.16% plus interchange and scheme fees | 1.69% on premium and international cards |
| Viva passes through interchange and scheme fees on these cards, so the total varies by card. SumUp's fee table lists premium, Amex and international cards at 1.69% and does not list commercial cards separately. | ||
UK consumer card, no monthly fee
Viva.com
1.69%
SumUp
1.69%
Viva charges a minimum of 1p per transaction, or 10p on its Terminal app. Its £0 Zero plan carries a £3.99 minimum monthly charge. SumUp's pay-as-you-go plan has no monthly fee and no minimum.
Domestic consumer card, on a monthly plan
Viva.com
1.69% on every plan (£3.99–£15.99 a month)
SumUp
0.99% on Payments Plus (£19 a month)
Winner
SumUp's 0.99% applies to domestic debit and credit cards; premium, Amex and international cards stay at 1.69%. SumUp puts the Payments Plus break-even at £3,000 a month on its pricing page (£3,300 in its card-reader FAQ). Viva's paid plans add support tiers and account features, not a lower card rate.
American Express in person
Viva.com
2.65% (+0.40% if issued outside the EEA)
SumUp
1.69% (pay-as-you-go and Payments Plus)
Winner
Commercial, European and international cards
Viva.com
1.16% plus interchange and scheme fees
SumUp
1.69% on premium and international cards
Viva passes through interchange and scheme fees on these cards, so the total varies by card. SumUp's fee table lists premium, Amex and international cards at 1.69% and does not list commercial cards separately.
Best For Your Business
Recommendations based on your business type
Market stall or sole trader
Recommended
SumUp
A £25 list-price SumUp reader and a pay-as-you-go 1.69% rate with no minimum beat buying a £220 Viva terminal and meeting a £3.99 minimum monthly charge.
Café or small shop taking over £3,000 a month
Recommended
SumUp
SumUp's Payments Plus charges 0.99% on domestic debit and credit cards for £19 a month; Viva charges 1.69% on every plan.
Business that needs same-day cash flow
Recommended
Viva.com
Viva settles card payments into its account in real time on every plan; SumUp's fastest payout is by 7am the next day.
Online shop with average orders above £80
Recommended
Viva.com
Viva's 2.19% + 24p undercuts SumUp's 2.5% once an order passes about £77, before Viva's 3p 3-D Secure charge.
Business taking many American Express cards
Recommended
SumUp
SumUp charges 1.69% on Amex in person; Viva charges 2.65%, more for cards issued outside the EEA.
Viva.com: Best for 2 use cases
SumUp: Best for 3 use cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this comparison
Yes. Viva Wallet rebranded as Viva.com. In the UK it operates as Viva Wallet.com Ltd, an FCA-authorised electronic money institution (reference 989273).
In person, both charge 1.69% on UK consumer cards with no monthly plan. SumUp gets cheaper at volume: Payments Plus costs £19 a month and cuts domestic debit and credit cards to 0.99%, where Viva's plans keep 1.69%. SumUp is also cheaper on hardware and chargebacks. Viva is cheaper online on orders above about £77.
Viva settles card payments into your Viva account in real time on every plan. SumUp pays into its free business account by 7am the next day, weekends and bank holidays included, and takes one to two business days to reach another bank.
No. Both are e-money institutions in the UK, so your balance is safeguarded rather than covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Both companies say so on their own UK pages.
Neither has a fixed term. Viva lists cancellation as free, and SumUp is pay-as-you-go, with Payments Plus cancellable at any time.
Viva charges £20 per lost transaction. SumUp's UK help centre lists a non-refundable £10 chargeback fee.
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