takepayments for Business UK: Fees, Features and Honest Review (2026)

takepayments is a UK card payment provider founded in 2011 and headquartered in Leeds, supplying card machines, merchant accounts and payment gateways to small and medium-sized businesses across the UK. Transaction fees are not published as a standard rate card. Rates are quoted individually, with indicative debit card rates starting from around 0.79% per transaction for UK consumer Visa and Mastercard debit cards, based on third-party merchant reports. Contracts run for 12 months, and early termination fees apply if you leave before the end date. This review covers fees, contract terms, hardware, honest pros and cons, and how takepayments compares to Dojo, Handepay and other UK face-to-face payment providers, updated September 2026.

Key Facts: takepayments UK

Who Is takepayments For?

This review is written for UK business owners researching takepayments before requesting a quote or signing a contract. It is most useful if you run a face-to-face business — a retail shop, café, pub, salon or trade service — and are weighing takepayments against competitors such as Dojo, Handepay, Retail Merchant Services or Paymentsense. It is also relevant if you are an existing takepayments customer trying to understand your contract terms, cancellation rights or how your current fees compare to the market.

takepayments is best suited to established businesses processing at least £5,000 per month in card payments. Below that threshold, the monthly rental fee adds a proportionally high fixed cost compared with pay-as-you-go providers like SumUp or Square. Above £10,000 per month, negotiated rates can become genuinely competitive.

If most of your sales happen online, this page is less relevant. The takepayments payment gateway exists but is not the company's primary product. Businesses with significant ecommerce volumes are better served by a gateway-specialist such as Stripe or Opayo. See our guide to the best payment gateways in the UK for a comparison of online-first options.

takepayments Features

• Range of card terminals: takepayments supplies countertop, portable and mobile card machines using hardware from PAX and Ingenico. Portable terminals connect over Bluetooth to a base unit. Mobile terminals use a SIM card, so you can take payments anywhere with a 4G signal — useful for tradespeople, market traders and mobile businesses.
• Contactless and digital wallet acceptance: All terminals accept contactless payments up to the current UK limit, plus Apple Pay and Google Pay. Digital wallets accounted for over 30% of in-person contactless payments in the UK by early 2025.
• Next business day settlement: Card payments taken on a Monday are typically in your nominated bank account by Tuesday morning. Predictable cash flow is a genuine operational benefit for businesses managing tight margins.
• Dedicated account manager: Unlike aggregator-style providers, takepayments assigns a named account manager to each merchant. You get a direct phone number rather than a generic support queue.
• Online reporting portal: A web-based dashboard shows transaction history, daily totals and monthly statements. The interface is functional, though it is not as feature-rich as the reporting tools offered by newer entrants such as Dojo.
• Virtual terminal: A browser-based virtual terminal is available for telephone and mail-order payments (MOTO), useful for businesses that occasionally take card details over the phone. Our guide to MOTO payments in the UK explains how this payment type works and what compliance requirements apply.
• Payment gateway: takepayments offers an online payment gateway for businesses needing ecommerce functionality, though it is a secondary product rather than a core strength.
• Free terminal replacement: Most contracts include free replacement of faulty terminals, removing an unexpected hardware cost during the agreement period.

takepayments Fees and Pricing

takepayments does not publish a standard price list. Rates are quoted individually based on your business type, monthly card turnover and average transaction value. That makes direct comparison harder upfront, but it also means there is room to negotiate — particularly if you arrive with a competing written quote from a rival provider.

Based on third-party merchant reports and industry benchmarks as of September 2026, indicative takepayments fees look broadly like this. Debit card rates start from around 0.79% per transaction for UK consumer Visa and Mastercard debit cards. Credit card rates for standard UK consumer cards typically fall between 1.2% and 1.8% per transaction. Premium, corporate and non-European cards generally attract higher rates, sometimes above 1.8% per transaction. These figures are indicative starting points, not published guarantees — the rate you are quoted will depend on your specific business profile.

To put the rates in context: a business processing £15,000 per month at a blended rate of 1.0% pays around £150 in transaction fees each month, plus the monthly service charge of roughly £20. At a blended 1.5% rate, transaction fees rise to £225 per month. Over a 24-month contract, that £75-per-month difference amounts to £1,800. Getting competing quotes before signing can make a material difference to that figure.

The early termination fee is the single biggest cost risk. If you leave a 12-month contract after 6 months, you typically owe the remaining 6 months of monthly fees. On a £20-per-month contract that is £120 per terminal, before any other exit charges. Always ask for the full termination schedule in writing before you sign. Our guide to early termination fees in merchant contracts explains exactly what to look for in the small print.

takepayments Card Machine Fees Explained

The takepayments card machine fee structure has two main components: a per-transaction percentage rate and a fixed monthly rental charge. The transaction rate covers processing, acquiring and card scheme costs. The monthly rental covers the terminal hardware, technical support and, in most contracts, terminal replacement if the machine develops a fault.

Most merchants are quoted a blended rate — a single percentage applied to all card types regardless of whether the customer pays by debit or credit card. Blended pricing is simpler to understand but less transparent than interchange-plus pricing, where you see the actual cost of each card type separately. If you process a high proportion of debit cards, a blended rate may not be the most cost-effective structure. Our guide to interchange-plus versus blended pricing explains the difference and which tends to suit which business type.

How takepayments Fees Compare to SumUp and Square

SumUp charges 1.69% per transaction with no monthly fee and no contract. Square charges 1.75% per transaction for UK cards in-person, also with no monthly fee and no contract. takepayments charges a lower per-transaction rate for higher-volume businesses but adds a monthly rental fee and requires a long-term contract. At £10,000 monthly card volume, takepayments at a negotiated 0.9% blended rate costs around £90 in transaction fees plus £20 in monthly rental, totalling approximately £110. SumUp at 1.69% costs £169 with no monthly fee. The takepayments model typically becomes more cost-effective above roughly £8,000 to £10,000 per month, assuming you can negotiate a competitive rate. See our SumUp vs takepayments comparison for a full breakdown.

Pros and Cons of takepayments

Pros

• Competitive negotiated rates at higher volumes: Businesses processing above £10,000 per month can often negotiate debit rates well below 1%, which undercuts flat-rate providers like SumUp (1.69%) and Square (1.75%) significantly at that volume.
• Dedicated account manager: A named contact speeds up problem resolution compared with providers that rely entirely on online chat or email ticketing.
• Good terminal range: Countertop, portable and mobile options cover most business types, with reliable hardware from PAX and Ingenico.
• Next business day settlement: Funds are predictably in your account by the following morning, which helps with cash flow management.
• Free terminal replacement: Faulty hardware is replaced without charge in most contracts, removing an unexpected cost risk during the agreement.

Cons

• Long contracts with exit fees: Committing to a 12-month term is still a decision. Early termination fees can be substantial, and a consistent pattern in negative takepayments reviews in the UK involves merchants struggling to exit agreements early.
• Opaque pricing: The absence of a published price list means you cannot compare rates without going through a sales conversation first. That disadvantages businesses unfamiliar with the market.
• Weak ecommerce offering: The online gateway exists but is not the primary focus. Businesses with significant online sales are better served by Stripe or Opayo.
• Terminal rental model: You never own the hardware. At the end of a 48-month contract you have nothing to show for the monthly rental payments beyond the service received.
• Cancellation complaints: Search data and review platforms show a notable pattern of merchants searching for cancellation contact details and exit procedures, suggesting the off-boarding process is not as straightforward as the sign-up experience.

takepayments vs Dojo

Dojo has become one of the most direct competitors to takepayments for UK face-to-face businesses. Both target hospitality and retail merchants with dedicated hardware and negotiated or volume-based rates.

Dojo's same-day settlement and shorter contract options give it a clear advantage for businesses that value flexibility. takepayments may offer lower transaction rates for businesses willing to commit to a longer term and capable of negotiating hard. Read the full Dojo review or the dedicated Dojo vs takepayments comparison for a detailed breakdown.

takepayments vs Handepay and Paymentsense

Handepay and Paymentsense both operate in the same space as takepayments, targeting face-to-face businesses with negotiated rates and named account managers. Retail Merchant Services also competes directly. The table below covers the key decision factors.

The honest assessment is that takepayments, Handepay and Paymentsense are structurally very similar products. The difference in your actual cost comes down almost entirely to how well you negotiate and which provider quotes most competitively for your specific business profile. Getting quotes from all three before signing is the most effective way to reduce your annual processing cost. Read the Handepay vs takepayments comparison or the Paymentsense vs takepayments comparison for side-by-side detail. You can also review our full Handepay review and Retail Merchant Services review independently.

How to Negotiate a Better takepayments Rate

Because takepayments quotes individually, your negotiating position matters. Three steps give you the most bargaining power. First, know your monthly card volume and average transaction value before the sales call. A business doing £20,000 per month has significantly more leverage than one doing £3,000. Second, get a competing written quote from at least one other provider — Dojo, Handepay or Retail Merchant Services — before speaking to takepayments. Third, ask specifically about the blended rate, the monthly service fee and the early termination terms as three separate line items, not as a single bundled cost.

If the initial quote is above the benchmark figures in this review, push back. Providers in this segment expect negotiation. Our guide to negotiating card processing fees covers the specific language and tactics that work in these conversations.

Is takepayments Right for Your Business?

Roger Milne, founder of Compare Card Fees, puts it plainly: takepayments is competitive at the smaller-merchant sector — businesses taking up to £100,000 per year on card. That is a useful anchor. If your annual card turnover sits comfortably below that figure and you take most of your payments face-to-face, takepayments is worth quoting. The negotiated rates can undercut flat-rate providers meaningfully at volumes above £8,000 to £10,000 per month, and having a named account manager rather than a chatbot is a genuine operational benefit when something goes wrong.

The contracts are the sticking point. A 24 or 48-month commitment with exit fees is a material risk if your business circumstances change — a move to a new location, a shift toward online sales, or simply finding a better rate elsewhere. Before signing, get the full fee schedule in writing, read the exit clause carefully and compare at least two or three alternative quotes. Providers like Dojo, Handepay and Retail Merchant Services operate in the same space and may offer better terms depending on your profile. If you are considering switching away from takepayments, our guide on switching costs and what to check before leaving a provider walks through the process step by step.

For businesses above £100,000 per year in card turnover, or those with significant online sales, the fit is less clear. Larger merchants may benefit from the transparent interchange-plus pricing that providers such as Adyen offer. Ecommerce-heavy businesses are better served by Stripe or Opayo. If you are unsure which category you fall into, the team at Compare Card Fees can help clarify. Compare Card Fees is a free, independent advisory service that has helped UK businesses find better card payment deals since 2012. Visit our merchant services comparison tool or get in touch directly to get comparable quotes based on your actual transaction volume.