Plain-English comparisons, transparent fee maths and honest limitations for UK sole traders, market traders, cafés, salons and trades. We feature the Tide Card Reader, and we tell you where it is the wrong choice.
Featured partner. Tide brand and product images are used for identification only; this site is not operated by Tide.
Apply through the partner link, open an eligible new Tide account, purchase a Tide Card Reader and process at least £500 of reader transactions within the first 60 days. Terms and eligibility apply.
Offer checked 13 October 2026. £100 cashback / £500 reader transactions / 60 days. Terms apply. Eligible new Tide applicants. Account approval and card reader product eligibility apply. Verified 13 October 2026 by Haley Duster against the official Tide offer page. Promotions can change or end at any time; Tide alone decides eligibility and payment.
Headline rates hide the pence-per-transaction fee, which is what actually hurts a business with a low average sale. Enter your monthly card turnover and transaction count to see the effective rate on each plan.
Pay As You Go monthly cost
£70.00
£70.00 processing + £0.00 subscription including VAT.
Effective rate
1.75%
Total monthly cost as a percentage of card turnover.
Annual estimate
£840
Twelve months at the same trading pattern.
Average sale
£20.00
Low average sales are hit hardest by the fixed pence-per-transaction fee.
At this volume, Sell In-Person Premium is the cheaper of the two by £6.81 a month, before hardware. Hardware is a separate one-off cost.
Estimates only. Rates shown are for domestic consumer debit cards. Credit cards, commercial cards and non-UK cards commonly attract different, usually higher, fees. Check the current Tide fee schedule for the card types you actually accept.
Monthly processing = (turnover × plan percentage) + (transactions × fixed fee). The optional credit and commercial card share adds an indicative 0.4 percentage points to that portion of turnover, because published debit rates do not apply to those cards.
Subscription costs are shown including VAT at 20%. Processing fees are shown as charged. VAT-registered businesses can normally recover input VAT, so compare like with like for your own registration status.
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Short answer
Indicative £49 + VAT · Email receipts · 170g
Mobile and market traders, tradespeople and pop-up sellers who need a light reader that works away from a fixed counter.
Main limitation
No paper receipts, so customers who need a printed VAT receipt must accept email
Read the Standard review
Indicative £69 + VAT · Built-in paper receipt printer plus email receipts · 495g
Cafés, salons, shops and workshops that serve customers at a counter and are regularly asked for a printed receipt.
Main limitation
Almost three times the weight of the standard reader, so less comfortable to carry
Read the Plus reviewLast checked 13 October 2026. Providers can change prices without notice; confirm current figures before you buy.
| Plan | Rate | Monthly fee | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pay As You Go | 1.5% + 5p | None | Occasional and seasonal card takings, or a business testing card payments for the first time. |
| Sell In-Person | 0.89% + 3p | £17.99 + VAT | Steady weekly card takings where the lower transaction rate outweighs the subscription. |
| Sell In-Person Premium | 0.69% + 3p | £19.99 + VAT | High-volume in-person selling where priority support and the lowest published reader rate matter. |
Last checked 13 October 2026. Providers can change prices without notice; confirm current figures before you buy.
Tide is not the only option, and for some businesses it is not the right one. These are the alternatives most UK small businesses shortlist.
| Provider | What it is | Our relationship |
|---|---|---|
| Tide | Business account provider whose card readers are sold alongside a Tide business account. Card processing is handled by a third-party acquirer rather than by Tide itself. | Featured commercial partner |
| SumUp | Standalone card reader provider with low-cost hardware, no monthly subscription on its entry plan and no requirement to change bank. | No commercial relationship |
| Square | Payments and point-of-sale platform with a broad software ecosystem, including stock, bookings and multi-till retail setups. | No commercial relationship |
| Zettle by PayPal | Card reader and point-of-sale provider with PayPal balance integration and a simple flat published rate. | No commercial relationship |
Apply through the partner link, open an eligible new Tide account, purchase a Tide Card Reader and process at least £500 of reader transactions within the first 60 days. Terms and eligibility apply.
Offer checked 13 October 2026. £100 cashback / £500 reader transactions / 60 days. Terms apply. Eligible new Tide applicants. Account approval and card reader product eligibility apply. Verified 13 October 2026 by Haley Duster against the official Tide offer page. Promotions can change or end at any time; Tide alone decides eligibility and payment.
This site follows strict editorial guidelines to ensure accuracy, independence, and transparency. We are a UK-based research publisher, not a financial institution.
Editor and researcher, Payment Card Reader UK
