By Tim Adler on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs
In an increasingly cashless society, if you don’t have card payment machines, you risk losing out on sales.
The 2025 UK Payment Markets report, found that debit card payments are by far the country’s most popular type, accounting for more than half of all payments (26.1 of 49 billion transactions) made in 2024, while 39% of all payments were made using contactless cards or mobiles. By contrast, less than 10% of all payments were made in cash.
Every one of the card payment machines on this page accepts debit, mobile and card payments. But there are differences in features, fees and upfront costs which will make some more or less suitable for your business than others.
This article will break down the hardware and functionality of the best card payment machines currently on the market to help you choose the one that’s right for you.
Card Payment Machine Reviews
Jump straight to a particular card machine or discover our full ranking of the 10 best card payment machines for small UK businesses in 2025.
Square Reader
Tide Card Reader
TakePayments
SumUp Air
Zettle Reader 2
MyPOS Go
Barclaycard Smartpay Anywhere
Tyl (by Natwest)
Shopify
Worldpay DX800
How much does a