Tag Archive for Card payments

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The 6 best retail POS systems

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By Henry Williams on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

UPDATED: As a retailer, you need a point of sale (POS) system that can not only handle a high number of sales (and at an affordable cost to you), but that makes your day-to-day easier, so you can focus on the most important aspects of running your business.

While many retail POS systems have very similar offerings, it’s the differences in costs and features that can make one best for a retail clothing store and one best for a retail grocery store.

From tablets to touch screens and inventory, we’ve dug down into the specifics of a variety of card machines to bring you the six best retail POS systems for you to compare.

Or, if you feel like you’re ready to decide, why not get quotes for your perfect POS system today. All you need to do is provide us with some basic info about your business in the form below and we’ll match you with the best providers for your needs.

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10 card payment machines ideal for small business

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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

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13 of the best prepaid business cards

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By Anna Jordan on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

What are prepaid business cards?

Prepaid cards offer a flexible way for small businesses to manage their cashflow and expenses. It can be an important tool for budgeting, as only the amount of money pre-loaded on the cards can be spent. You, as the business, can top up the card with funds and then give it to your staff to spend, imposing spending limits if necessary.

You and your employees can then use the card for a wide range of expenses including meals and entertainment or paying suppliers.

Physical and virtual cards are available. Virtual cards tend to be used for spending on one-off online purchases and subscriptions. On the flipside, a physical card is better if you’re making more purchases when you’re out and about.
Whether you opt for a physical or digital card will depend on what sector you’re in and what you plan to use the card for. A prepaid card is also more secure than a credit or debit card because there’s only so much the thief can be spend before you manage to deactivate it.

What’s more, both can be added to a digital

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Are there any free card readers for small businesses?

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By Anna Jordan on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

The short answer is no, but there are some lower-cost options out there.

When thinking about costs, consider your monthly fees along with your transaction fees, set-up fees and any other charges that may be hidden in the small print.

We’ll be taking a look at some of the cheapest card readers for your small business and whether you’re better off renting or buying.

Should I buy or rent a card reader?

Purchase

Pros

Purchasing card readers means that you have them on standby – handy for unexpectedly busy times

If you’re likely to use the terminal again, it’ll be worth purchasing

No worry about extra fees beyond transaction fees

Easier to switch between merchant service providers

Cons

The machine may become obsolete over time and you’ll have to fork out for a new one

 Any purchases and repairs are your responsibility         

Rental

As some of the contracts below suggest, rental card readers are more suitable for seasonal or pop-up businesses.

Pros

Can fill demand at busy times such as Christmas

Providers are good at meeting requirements at short notice

Rental units are more robust as they can passed between users and so are expected to be better able to

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Which card payment machine should I get for my small business?

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By Anna Jordan on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

You might be mulling over a new card reader – one that’s faster, has more features or has in-built fraud detection, for instance.

Here, we’ll be talking about the benefits of taking card payments along with some of the best card payment machines on the market.

You can jump straight to the section that you’re interested in using the links below:

Benefits of taking card payments

What card payment machines are out there?

Which card payment machine should I go for?

Benefits of taking card payments

Taking card payment could very well enhance your business in ways you don’t expect. Let’s consider a few.

It makes things easier

Card payments make things much simpler for both you and your customers. On a very basic level, you’re no longer having to check the authenticity of the cash and then spend time counting out the change. With a card transaction, you just type the cost into your terminal and you’re good to go. It’s even quicker if you have contactless capabilities. This allows for a much smoother transaction time between you and your customers. These types of payment also lower the need for bank visits,

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Cheapest card payment machines

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By Anna Jordan on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

Small businesses can define the cheapest card payment machines in a few different ways: by card reader price, subscription or monthly fees, and more.

Transaction fees can’t be forgotten here. If you process a high volume of sales, those transaction costs are going to add up. This is especially true for subscription services, digital downloads, online dropshipping and other high-volume businesses.

To help keep your costs down, here are some of the cheapest card readers on the market.

Square

Tide

Revolut

MyPOS

Dojo Go

Tyl by NatWest 

Barclaycard Anywhere

SumUp

Zettle

>See also: How to start a dropshipping business – What is dropshipping, what are the advantages and how do you start a dropshipping business?

Square

Device cost: £19Transaction fee: 1.75 per cent in-person payment

Features

Accept Apple Pay and Google Pay

Start accepting payments within minutes

Funds settled either next day or instantly for a small fee

Offline mode allows you to take transactions for up to 24 hours without an internet connection

The Square card reader is just £19. The standard transaction fee is 1.75%, though custom rates are available for businesses that take more than £200,000 in card sales. Fraud protection, payment dispute management and data protection is

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How to set up a POS system for your small business

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By Henry Williams on Small Business UK – Advice and Ideas for UK Small Businesses and SMEs

Once upon a time, a POS system was nothing more than a cash register that allowed shopkeepers to process and record transactions.

Today, however, a POS is a sophisticated, internet-enabled system which also enables you to manage stock, staff, and sales, reward customer loyalty, and track vital performance metrics.

But with increased sophistication comes increased complexity, and in order to get the most out of your POS system, you need to understand how to set it up and use it properly.

Whether you’re a restaurant or a retailer, this article will explain exactly how to set up a POS system for your small business, and delve into the hardware, costs, and capabilities you need to know.

If you’re still looking for the perfect POS system for your small business, we can help. Just provide some basic details about your business using the form below and we’ll match you with the best providers for your needs.

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Elavon with Opayo helps SMEs reopen with new payment solutions

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Originally written by Partner Content on Small Business
Elavon is helping small businesses SMEs reopen by offering up new eCommerce and point of sale (POS) solutions as COVID-19 sparks a change in customer behaviour.
The global payment firm recently carried out a survey with Ipsos Mori showing that more people are gravitating towards contactless and online payments.
More than two thirds (68 per cent) say they would actively seek to use cards and contactless payments following the pandemic, proving the appetite to get businesses set up with these payment methods quickly. Over half (52 per cent) increased their spending online so businesses had to move fast in order to sharpen their processes and meet that demand.
What’s more, almost two thirds of respondents (65 per cent) say they want to prioritise spending on days out, dining out at restaurants and meeting friends in the coming months. In order to meet with social distancing guidelines, the processes for booking tables and rooms online, ordering food and paying for services are essential for businesses.
The number of businesses enquiring about eCommerce rose 30 per cent in May and 52 per cent in June year-on-year.
Elavon has been helping companies move to eCommerce during lockdown when physical stores were

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5 reasons why (and how) you should meet demand for cashless payments

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Originally written by Lee Jones on Small Business
For businesses in the unattended market, keeping up to date with ever-progressing technology poses a challenge. Cashless payments and new payment methods have been growing in popularity, and it can feel like a struggle to keep up. Not to mention the fact that the time and expense of upgrading self-service payment terminals can be intimidating.
However, failure to move with the times could cost merchants business.
Here are five reasons why (and how) any merchant who operates unattended terminals – whether they’re in hospitality, parking, transport, retail, transport or travel – should be looking to meet the demand for cashless payments.
>See also: Why businesses should go cashless: pros and cons
#1 – Cash has been dethroned
The old saying, cash is king, has become less and less relevant in recent years. Card payments in the UK have grown at an exponential rate, and research from UK Finance showed that the amount of payments made with physical money dropped by 22 per cent between 2006 and 2016. In fact, card payments overtook cash payments in 2016, with notes and coins accounting for just 40 per cent of spend. It’s predicted that, by 2026, cash will be used for

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8 payment systems for festivals, pop-ups and street food markets

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Originally written by Anna Jordan on Small Business
You may be looking at payment systems for seasonal markets, festivals, street food stalls, pop-ups or promotional events.
As the number of non-cash payments at festivals grows, so does the number of options for alternative payment systems. An on-the-go payment solution is much more suitable than a clunky tabletop payment system.
Many of the machines below don’t have fixed monthly fees so they’re ideal if you need them for shorter periods of time. We’ve tried to get a sense of performance in terms of battery life but of course, it depends how much you use the card reader (or your smartphone) in a given day. Let’s take a look at some of the bigger names on the market.
Elavon
With Elavon’s payment processors, you can link your machine via WiFi or 4G and take card, contactless or mobile wallet payments. And for behind the scenes, you can add relevant functions including stock management and staff rotas.
The payment terminals have dynamic currency conversion (DCC) and multi-currency conversion (MCC). MCC lets customers see prices in their home currency while DCC lets customers pay in their home currency.
Security-wise, you’re covered with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) measures

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