Small businessTaking card payments in your shop, with the prices written down
Choosing how to get paid should not take a sales call. We read each provider's own pricing pages, put the real numbers next to each other and date every one, so you can see what a month actually costs.
Independent research. Every number is checked against the provider's own page and dated. Some links may earn us a commission, which never changes a ranking. How we make money
POS systems and card readers
7 providers, from a free app on your phone to a full restaurant system. 5 of them have a plan with no monthly fee. Each page shows the card rates, the monthly price, the hardware cost, how fast you get paid and what to know about the contract.
Square POS
A free plan, simple card rates and no contract, built for small shops, salons and food trucks
- In-person rate
- 2.6% + 15¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: retail shops, restaurants and cafes, service businesses, mobile and pop-up sellers
PayPal Point of Sale
No monthly fee, a 2.29% + 9¢ in-person rate and a $29 first reader, from the company behind PayPal
- In-person rate
- 2.29% + 9¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: retail shops, service businesses, mobile and pop-up sellers
Helcim
Pay the card networks' real cost plus a small published margin, with no monthly fee or contract
- Markup on card costs
- 0.4% + 8¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: service businesses, retail shops
SumUp POS
Low-cost card readers and a no-monthly-fee plan for new, seasonal and mobile sellers
- In-person rate
- 2.6% + 10¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: mobile and pop-up sellers, service businesses, retail shops
Toast POS
A restaurant-first POS with a $0-a-month starter kit and a lower card rate on the traditional plan
- In-person rate
- 3.09% + 15¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: restaurants and cafes
Clover POS
Flexible countertop and handheld systems with rates from 2.3% + 10¢, and a 36-month plan you cannot cancel
- In-person rate
- 2.3% + 10¢
- Monthly fee
- From $16; $84.95 at 2.3% + 10¢
Good for: retail shops, restaurants and cafes, service businesses
Lightspeed POS
Retail and restaurant software with deeper inventory tools, sold as a monthly subscription
- Card-present rate
- 1.5%
- Monthly fee
- From $89
Good for: retail shops, restaurants and cafes
Credit card processing
Only need to take card payments, in person or online? 9 providers, each with its in-person and online rate, monthly fee and contract terms read on its own page. See the best credit card processing companies.
Square Payments
One flat rate for every major card, no monthly fee on the Free plan and no contract, whether you tap, type or invoice
- In-person rate
- 2.6% + 15¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: in-person sellers, online sellers, mobile and pop-up sellers
Helcim Payments
Pay the card networks' real cost plus a small published margin, with no monthly fee, no PCI fee and no contract
- Markup on card costs
- 0.4% + 8¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: in-person sellers, online sellers, higher card volume
Stripe Payments
No monthly or setup fee, 2.9% + 30¢ online and 2.7% + 5¢ in person, with payment links and invoices that need no code
- In-person rate
- 2.7% + 5¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: online sellers, in-person sellers
PayPal Payments
Take PayPal, Venmo and card payments with no monthly fee: 2.99% + 49¢ for a card online, 2.29% + 9¢ in person
- In-person rate
- 2.29% + 9¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: online sellers, mobile and pop-up sellers
Chase Payment Solutions
Bank-built card processing: 2.6% + 10¢ in person, 3.5% + 10¢ typed in, no monthly fee on QuickAccept and same-day deposits to a Chase business account
- In-person rate
- 2.6% + 10¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan, Chase business account needed
Good for: in-person sellers, mobile and pop-up sellers, online sellers
Stax
A flat monthly subscription instead of a percentage on every sale: 0% markup on card costs, plus 8¢ per in-person sale
- Markup on card costs
- 0% + 8¢
- Monthly fee
- From $99
Good for: in-person sellers, online sellers, higher card volume
Clover
Card processing sold with Clover devices and software: 2.6% + 10¢ in person on a $0 plan, 2.3% + 10¢ on larger plans, and non-cancelable subscriptions
- In-person rate
- 2.6% + 10¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: in-person sellers, restaurants, mobile and pop-up sellers
Toast Payments
Card processing built into Toast's restaurant POS: 3.09% + 15¢ with no monthly fee, or 2.49% + 15¢ from $69 a month
- In-person rate
- 3.09% + 15¢
- Monthly fee
- $0 plan
Good for: restaurants, in-person sellers
Authorize.net
A $25-a-month payment gateway for online and phone sales: the All-in-one plan is 2.9% + 30¢ with a merchant account included, and there is no contract
- Online rate
- 2.9% + 30¢
- Monthly fee
- From $25
Good for: online sellers
Read on the vendor's own page
No survey and no sales deck. Every rate and price is read from the provider's own pricing pages.
Dated, and honest about gaps
Each number carries the day we checked it. When a provider does not publish a price, we say so instead of guessing.
No placement for sale
We may earn a commission when you sign up through a link, and it never changes the order of a list.
More on how we work: how we rate and how we make money.
Six terms, in plain English
- POS system
- The register or app you ring sales up on, together with the card reader that takes the payment.
- Payment processor
- The company that moves a customer's card payment into your bank account, for a fee on each sale. A POS system can include one, or work with a separate one.
- Flat rate
- One percentage plus a few cents on every card sale, whatever card the customer uses. Easy to predict.
- Interchange-plus
- The card networks' real cost for each payment, passed on to you, plus a small margin the provider states up front. The total moves with the cards your customers use.
- Payout speed
- How long after a sale the money reaches your bank account. Some providers can also hold it for a review.
- Chargeback
- When a customer disputes a card payment with their bank. The money is pulled back while the case runs, and some providers charge a fee for each one.