Card reader / mobile POS · United States
United States card readers and mobile POS costs for a business taking $50,000 a month or more, by share of card sales
At $75,000 of card sales a month, the 6 published plans we hold take between 2.65% and 3.27% of everything the shop takes.
The lowest is PayPal (Zettle) Point of Sale (in person) at 2.65% — advertised at 2.29% + $0.09 — which leaves 97.35% with the shop.
At this size, in order
Every figure is the plan's own published rate applied to $75,000 a month, with the monthly fee added and any hardware spread across 36 months.
| Provider and plan | In person | Monthly fee | Hardware | Effective at $75,000 | Cost a month | 3-year cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PayPal (Zettle) Point of Sale (in person) | 2.29% + $0.09 | none | $29 once | 2.65% | $1,988 | $71,579 |
| SumUp Pay-as-you-go | 2.60% + $0.10 | none | not stated | 3.00% | $2,250 | $81,000 |
| Square Plus | 2.50% + $0.15 | $49.00 | free | 3.17% | $2,374 | $85,464 |
| Square Premium | 2.40% + $0.15 | $149.00 | free | 3.20% | $2,399 | $86,364 |
| Square Free | 2.60% + $0.15 | none | free | 3.20% | $2,400 | $86,400 |
| SumUp POS with Connect Plus | 2.60% + $0.10 | $199.00 | not stated | 3.27% | $2,449 | $88,164 |
Scroll sideways on a phone.
How that is worked out
The average sale is an assumption of this site, not a published figure: $25.00 in the United States and £20.00 in the United Kingdom. It decides how heavily a per-transaction fee lands, so the calculator lets you change it. Interchange, chargebacks, refunds, currency conversion, sales tax and VAT are not in any figure on this site, because the pricing page does not price them for a given shop. Every figure here is a floor. The full method is at Method.
Where does the answer change?
The order above holds only under these conditions.
- 3 of these plans charge a monthly fee whether the shop trades or not. At this volume it is already in the figures; in a quiet month it is the whole of the bill.
- If none of these fits, do not force it. The full list carries every provider we hold, including the ones that publish no rate at all.
Who this is not for
This is not a list of the best card readers and mobile POS. It is every plan we hold that a shop of this size could buy, in price order. We have not used these products and we do not rate them.
Sources
- PayPal (Zettle) pricing page. checked 2026-08-25
- SumUp pricing page. checked 2026-08-25
- Square pricing page. checked 2026-08-25
Related
- Every provider, and which publish a rate
- Effective rate calculator
- What card payments cost
- PayPal (Zettle) fees in full
Written by Kaz (pen name). Figures are copied from providers' published pricing pages on the dates shown. We have not used these products. Corrections: contact form.