First Essential
How First Essential compares to other UK card payment providers
Dojo, SumUp, Square, takepayments, Worldpay, Stripe, Teya, myPOS and Zettle can all take a card payment. Only First Essential runs the whole business around it, with one UK partner, one bill and real people who answer the phone. Here is the honest comparison, side by side.
Card payments that connect to your whole business
A card machine from a single-product provider takes the payment and stops there. First Essential connects that payment to your EPOS, kiosks, CRM, website and AI so every transaction feeds the whole counter, not just a reader in a drawer.
What to look for when you compare card payment providers
Most comparison pages stop at the headline rate. The rate matters, but it is the smallest part of what you actually pay and live with. These are the nine things that decide whether you are happy in two years' time, drawn from what UK business owners actually complain about in the reviews.
The cost is more than the headline rate
A low advertised percentage often applies to only a slice of your cards. What you really pay is the all-in cost: the rate across every card type, plus any monthly account fee, terminal rental, PCI charge and minimum monthly fee stacked on top. Always ask for the total, not the teaser.
Contract and lock-in is where the regret lives
This is the single biggest source of buyer regret in the reviews. Some providers are pay-as-you-go with no contract. Others tie you into fixed terms of 12, 18, 24 or even 36 months, with long notice periods and pay-out-the-rest exit fees. Read the term before you read the rate.
Transparency, settlement and what else it runs
Is the price on the page, or is it a bespoke quote that can creep up mid-contract? How fast does your money actually land? And does it just take payments, or does it also run your till, kiosks, website and customer follow-up, so you are not assembling a stack of five suppliers and five bills?
The nine things worth checking
- All-in cost, not the headline rate, across every card type and fee.
- Contract and lock-in: term length, notice period and early-exit penalties.
- Pricing transparency: price on the page, or a quote black box that can change.
- Settlement speed: same-day, next-day every day, or standard next working day.
- Support quality: real UK humans on the phone, or a ticket queue and a help centre.
- Breadth: card machine only, or also EPOS, kiosks, website, CRM and AI.
- Hardware: free, rented or bought; mobile, portable or countertop; 4G included.
- Setup: self-serve out of the box, or done-for-you onboarding so you trade fast.
- Trust: a clean record on surprise price rises and hidden fees.
See the connected version for yourself: our card payment solutions and the First Essential One platform behind them.
First Essential vs Dojo, SumUp, Square, Worldpay and the rest
An honest read of where each provider stands, and First Essential's edge on every row. Rival figures are indicative from public sources at the time of writing and can change, so always check a provider's own current terms before you decide.
| Provider | Headline cost | Contract / lock-in | Settlement | Support | What else it runs | First Essential's edge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Essential | Rates from 0.3% (vary by card type and business, confirmed at setup); free card machine with EPOS | One UK partner, one bill; no dozen-subscription stack to assemble | Fast settlement, confirmed at setup | Real UK-based humans, 7 days, who pick up the phone | EPOS, card payments, kiosks, AI, website, app and CRM in one platform | The home column. Every row below is measured against this |
| Dojo | Per-sale rate plus a monthly terminal rental; the rate you get is turnover-dependent | Fixed term before it rolls; not pay-as-you-go for most | Next-day payouts seven days a week (its strongest claim) | Well regarded support | Card machine and payments focused; no kiosks, AI, website or full CRM | We match the all-days support promise and win on breadth and one-partner-one-bill simplicity, with no separate stack to assemble |
| SumUp | Flat pay-as-you-go rate with no monthly fee, or a lower rate on a paid monthly plan | No contract, cancel anytime | Standard | Decent, but self-serve led | Reader plus add-on tools; light on EPOS depth, no kiosks, AI, website or CRM as one platform | SumUp suits a sole trader; we win the moment the business needs more than a reader: one platform, done-for-you setup, AI and EPOS it cannot bundle |
| Square | Flat in-person rate; reader bought up front; free POS app | No contract, no monthly terminal rental | Standard, next day | Self-serve led, online support | Strong POS ecosystem, but a US-built stack; no UK-style done-for-you AI front desk | Square is polished but faceless; we add real UK humans 7 days, done-for-you onboarding, kiosks and an AI that answers the phone. Free card machine with EPOS beats paying for hardware |
| takepayments | Bespoke, quoted per business; terminal rental plus POS plans on top | Minimum 12 months, often longer; long notice and early-exit fees | Standard | UK relationship-led account model | Card machines and terminals; not an all-in-one business platform | We give the UK relationship they lean on, without the long lock-in or the quote black box, and with EPOS, kiosks, AI and website on one bill |
| Worldpay | Per-sale rate plus monthly account, PCI and per-authorisation fees | Long contract common, with pay-out-the-rest early-exit terms | Standard | Large incumbent, mixed reviews | Broad enterprise payments, but not a small-business all-in-one with AI and kiosks | Our clearest honesty wedge: no surprise mid-contract rises, no PCI-gotcha culture, one clear bill, real humans who answer, plus breadth they do not offer SMBs |
| Stripe | Per-sale rate online and in person; cross-border and FX add-ons | No contract, pay-as-you-go | Standard | Developer and online support, not phone-first for SMBs | Best-in-class for online and developers; not a counter-to-kitchen UK SMB stack | Stripe is built for developers; most UK shops, cafes and salons want it done for them. We deliver EPOS, in-person, kiosks, website and AI set up for you, with a UK human on the phone |
| Teya | Flat rates with a monthly terminal rental | Rolling options; markets no lock-ins | Next business day | 24/7 UK-based support (a genuine strength) | Card machine plus a free business account; not kiosks, AI, website or CRM as one platform | Teya matches us on UK support and honesty, so we win on breadth: one platform that also runs EPOS, kiosks, your website and an AI that does real work, not just payments |
| myPOS | Per-sale rate with a 4G SIM included | No fixed term; an inactivity fee after a long idle period | Instant settlement (its standout) | Online and self-serve led | Readers and an e-money account; not an all-in-one SMB platform | myPOS wins on instant settlement and price clarity; we win on the whole business: done-for-you setup, UK humans 7 days, EPOS, kiosks, website and AI on one bill |
| Zettle (PayPal) | Flat in-person rate; reader bought up front, no monthly fee | No contract, no recurring fees | Standard | PayPal support, self-serve led | Reader plus the PayPal ecosystem; not a unified UK SMB operations platform | Zettle is simple for casual sellers; we are the upgrade for a business that wants EPOS, kiosks, a website, CRM and a working AI under one UK partner with real phone support |
Rival names are used for honest comparison only and remain the trademarks of their owners. Figures are indicative from public sources at the time of writing and can change, so check each provider's own current terms before deciding. First Essential rates start from 0.3%, vary by card type and business profile, and are confirmed at setup.
First Essential vs the alternatives, compared
Every card payment provider covers the basics. The gap opens when you look at what sits around the payment: the platform breadth, the setup model, the support quality and the transparency of billing.
We change the question from "what is your card rate?" to "who runs my whole business?"
The single-product rivals compete hard on one number, the transaction rate. The contract-led incumbents compete on terminals and lock you into a term. First Essential plays neither game on their terms. Every provider here can take a payment. Only one runs the business around it.
What you get with First Essential that a card-only provider cannot match
Every rival in the table sells a slice of this. None sells the whole. Here is what makes the difference once you look past the headline rate.
All-in-one breadth no card provider can match
EPOS, card payments, self-service kiosks, AI, website and app, and CRM, all inside one platform, First Essential One. Every rival in this table sells a slice of that. None sells the whole, so you stop juggling suppliers.
One UK partner, one bill
Instead of a card machine from one company, an EPOS from another, a website from a third, a CRM from a fourth and a chatbot from a fifth, there is one supplier, one invoice and one source of truth, so there is no double entry between systems.
Real UK humans, 7 days, who pick up
Teya and Dojo are strong on support; the US-built self-serve platforms like Square, Stripe and Zettle, and incumbents with mixed reputations, are not. We sit on the right side of that line and back it with people, not just a ticket queue.
Free card machine, rates from 0.3%
Rivals charge for a reader up front or rent you a terminal every month. With EPOS, your card machine is free, and processing starts from 0.3%, varying by card type and business and confirmed by a real person at setup, not buried in a bespoke quote that can creep up mid-contract.
An AI that does real work, not a chatbot
It answers the phone, makes outbound calls, books jobs, and qualifies and chases leads. No payment provider in this category offers anything close, because they sell a reader, not a way to run the front desk.
The honesty wedge, and done-for-you setup
No surprise mid-contract price rises, no PCI-gotcha fees, no quote black box, no punishing long lock-in. And where self-serve readers leave you to configure it yourself, we set it up and onboard you, so the business is trading fast.
Every rival here can take a payment. Only First Essential runs the business around it, with one UK partner, one bill and real people who answer the phone.
A till and a card machine that talk to each other - on one bill
No card-only provider in this comparison offers a connected EPOS till. With First Essential, your counter runs on one platform: the sale rings up on the till, the card machine takes the payment, and the data flows through to your CRM and reports automatically.
Processing rates vary by card type and business profile. Your exact pricing is confirmed during setup.
Moving from Dojo, Worldpay, takepayments or any other provider
Switching is straightforward, and our UK team handles the setup with you, so you are taking payments again quickly. We will look over your current rates and contract first, so the move actually pays off, then connect your card payments to EPOS, kiosks, your website and AI under one bill.
First Essential vs other card payment providers: your questions
The questions worth asking before you choose a UK card payment provider, answered straight.
How do First Essential's card fees compare with Dojo, SumUp and Square?
Is there a long contract or lock-in, like Worldpay or takepayments?
What do I get with First Essential that a card-only provider does not?
Do I get real UK phone support, or just a help centre?
Can I switch from my current provider, and how fast can I go live?
Why compare on more than the headline rate?
More from First Essential
See the difference for your business, not just on paper
Book a free, no-obligation demo. We will compare your current setup, show you the all-in-one platform, and set you up with the right card machine and payment solution for the way you work. One UK partner, one clear bill, real UK support.
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