Card machines for sole traders

A sole trader can get a card machine on the same terms as a limited company. Dojo's terms and conditions accept a UK resident over 18 who has a legitimate business in the UK, subject to identity and credit checks, and SumUp, Square and Zettle all accept sole traders. Nobody in this market requires a company registration number.

One distinction matters on this site. CapExpand's business-funding introductions are for limited companies and LLPs only. Card machines are different: they are available to sole traders, and everything on this page applies to you whether you are a plumber, a mobile hairdresser, a market trader or a one-person cafe.

The real decision is not eligibility. It is which pricing model fits your card turnover, and that comes down to a sum covered below.

What providers ask a sole trader for

Acquiring card payments is a regulated payment service, so every provider has to confirm who you are before settling money to you. Dojo's terms describe know-your-customer checks and a credit assessment through credit reference agencies, and require that the business is liable to UK tax. Square states that it verifies identity and asks at sign-up whether you are an individual or sole trader, or a company with a registration number.

In practice that means photo ID and details of the account you want paid into. Dojo's terms refer to a nominated account; providers generally expect an account in your trading name, and whether a personal account is accepted varies, so ask before you apply.

The options side by side

Published prices and rates checked August 2026. Dojo pricing is quoted individually for each business. A sole trader with steady card takings will often find the quote lands below a flat rate; one with light takings often will not. The statement decides.

Flat rate or quote: the sum that decides it

A flat-rate reader costs turnover multiplied by the rate, and nothing else. At £1,000 of card sales a month, SumUp's 1.69% is £16.90 and Square or Zettle's 1.75% is £17.50. There is no monthly fee to pay in a quiet month and no contract to end if you stop trading.

A quoted contract usually carries a lower percentage rate but adds fixed monthly costs: terminal rental, a minimum monthly service charge, a PCI fee. Those fixed costs are spread across more turnover as you grow, which is why the quote tends to win for a busier sole trader and lose for an occasional one. The no-monthly-fee break-even page shows the formula with worked figures at £2,000 to £20,000 a month.

The way to find out is to put a quote against a real statement or a realistic estimate of your takings. Our fee comparison has a calculator for the published rates.

Which machine for which kind of sole trader

Trades and mobile services want a machine with its own 4G connection, so the customer pays at the door without you hunting for Wi-Fi. The Dojo Pocket and Dojo Go both have a SIM built in, and Tap to Pay on iPhone needs nothing but the phone already in your pocket. There is a separate guide to card machines for tradespeople.

Market stalls and events tend to suit a cheap reader paired to a phone, because volumes are irregular and the kit gets knocked about. See card machines for market stalls and the wider mobile card machine page.

When a contract is not the right choice

If your card takings are small, seasonal or uncertain, a contract with fixed monthly charges can cost more than a flat-rate reader, and a minimum term is a commitment you may not want while testing whether the business works. Dojo's terms provide for a minimum term set in the application documents, one month's written notice to end the agreement, and an early account closure fee if you leave inside the minimum term.

If you trade for a few weeks a year, short-term hire exists. DNA Payments offers subscriptions as short as one week and Rapyd hires terminals from three days to three months, both aimed at festivals, pop-ups and seasonal peaks.

And if most of your work is invoiced to other businesses, a payment link from the provider's app may do the job without any terminal at all.

Common questions