SumUp VS Square: Which Card Reader Is Best For You?

When you’re deciding between SumUp and Square, it helps to have all the details.

Small business owners looking to be able to accept credit cards and searching for the most affordable solution available have traditionally been drawn to payment service providers (PSPs) like Square.

While not as well known in the United States, UK-based SumUp offers many (but not all) of the same features, frequently at a lower price point.

Choosing between these two low-cost providers will involve weighing several factors, including the nature of your business, how you usually take payments, and which add-on features you need.

In this article, we’ll compare Square and SumUp feature-by-feature and give you the information you need to determine which company is the better choice for your business.

At a Glance Comparison

Square and SumUp are very appealing to small business owners. They both offer affordable processing hardware, clear flat-rate pricing, and a lack of any long-term commitment or required additional fees. While Square offers extra features that will come in handy as your business grows, SumUp sticks to a minimalist approach that will save you the most money.

Both SumUp and Square originated from a desire to serve the needs of very small business owners who only needed basic credit card processing services and wanted to keep costs to an absolute minimum.

Over the years, Square has evolved into a much more robust payments platform with a lot of industry-specific ancillary services for businesses that need them. SumUp, on the other hand, has continued to pursue a minimalist approach to credit card processing, with very few bells and whistles.

Where SumUp Wins

SumUp offers a very bare-bones payment processing service that doesn’t include any of the industry-specific features that you can get with Square. If you don’t need those additional features, there’s no reason to have to pay for them through higher processing rates. While SumUp charges a slightly higher percentage-based fee for in-person transactions (2.75% vs Square’s 2.6% + $0.10), the lack of a fixed authorization fee can actually cost you less overall if you process a lot of small-ticket sales. SumUp is particularly well-suited to businesses that only occasionally need to accept a credit or debit card payment or have a very low monthly processing volume.

Where SumUp Falls Short

SumUp generally limits its US-based merchants to in-person sales only. While the SumUp Invoices feature allows online payments via payment links, there’s otherwise no support for eCommerce businesses. The company does offer a virtual terminal for mail orders and telephone orders, but you’ll need to secure prior approval to add this feature to your account.

Where Square Wins

Over the years, Square has evolved from a simple mobile processing solution into a complete integrated payments platform that includes additional features to help your business grow. Setting up a free Square account is easy, and for US merchants, Square offers several features that aren’t yet available with SumUp, including point-of-sale (POS) software and support for eCommerce.

Square is an excellent choice for growing businesses that need something beyond simple credit card processing, but aren’t quite at the point where a traditional merchant account makes more sense.

Where Square Falls Short

Square’s online account application process makes it quick and easy to get approved and start accepting transactions. However, this process can lead to account stability problems later on, as your transactions will be subject to much greater scrutiny for any hint of fraud or impropriety. Square also does not accept high-risk merchants, except for a special program (with higher processing rates) specifically for CBD merchants.

We’d also point out that Square’s flat-rate pricing, while easy to understand, can actually be more expensive at higher processing volumes. High-volume businesses (those processing over $250,000/year) can alleviate this issue by negotiating a customized pricing package.

SumUp VS Square Pricing Comparison: Processing & Software

Like most payment service providers, both Square and SumUp offer simple, flat-rate pricing plans.

There isn’t an appreciable difference in the rates themselves, although SumUp’s lack of an authorization fee for in-person transactions makes it more affordable for small-ticket sales (less than around $60).

In comparing the rates charged for other types of payments by both companies, consider the following points:

• SumUp is slightly cheaper for online payments, although the $0.15 difference in authorization fees won’t be significant at lower processing volumes (Also note that SumUp currently does not offer eCommerce payments in the US)
• SumUp is also slightly cheaper for manually keyed-in  payments
• Online invoicing is slightly cheaper with SumUp
• Square offers lower rates for payments made via QR codes or payment links
• While SumUp charges a reasonable ($10) fee for chargebacks, they’re free with Square
• Refunds are cheaper with Square, as it will refund your processing fees (SumUp does not do this)

SumUp VS Square: Hardware Comparison

If you’re looking for a mobile processing solution that works with your smartphone or tablet, SumUp’s most affordable card reader is hard to beat. For just $54, the SumUp Plus reader integrates magstripe, EMV, and NFC-based payments in one small device. Compare that to Square, where you’ll pay $59 for a similar reader that only accepts EMV and NFC-based payments.

While Square throws in a separate magstripe-only card reader as part of the package, it’s an inelegant solution at best. The SumUp Plus also features a built-in PIN pad for chip + PIN authentication of debit card transactions — a feature that Square’s more compact Square Reader for contactless and chip lacks. (Note that both companies charge the same rate for debit and credit card transactions, so the addition of a PIN pad is mostly a security feature.)

For additional features, you can choose between SumUp’s $99 SumUp Solo or Square’s $299 Square Terminal. Despite the difference in price, both units offer similar functionality, with touchscreens and the ability to operate in either a countertop or mobile environment. The smaller SumUp Solo doesn’t accept magstripe payments but compensates with an unlimited mobile data plan. Square Terminal, on the other hand, requires Wi-Fi or an ethernet connection but includes offline processing to transmit your transaction data when your internet connection is restored. The Square Terminal includes a built-in receipt printer, whereas you’ll have to upgrade to the $169 SumUp Solo Printer Bundle for paper receipts.

There are many great credit card readers for small businesses available, so take your time deciding which is right for you.

SumUp VS Square: Features Comparison

Because there isn’t a major difference in overall pricing between SumUp and Square, choosing between the two will often come down to which one provides the best features and services that you need to run your business. It’s in this area that significant differences begin to emerge, as Square clearly offers a more advanced payments ecosystem with additional features beyond just basic credit card processing. This difference is particularly acute for US-based merchants, as SumUp doesn’t yet offer some of the features that are available to European merchants (including eCommerce support).

At the same time, many businesses simply don’t need all the extra features that Square offers. If this is the case with your business, SumUp can be a better choice — particularly if you’ll save money on transaction processing and you’re looking for the most affordable processing hardware you can find.

Which Is Best For My Business Needs: Square Or SumUp?

Choosing between Square and SumUp is going to require a careful evaluation of which features your business really needs, and which company can best meet those needs at an affordable price point. While Square clearly offers a much richer variety of extra features to help you run your business, SumUp can be the better (and more affordable) choice if you don’t need those advanced features.

Choose Square If…

Choose SumUp If…

As a very general rule of thumb, businesses in the “sole practitioner” category who just need a simple, affordable way to accept credit and debit card payments with a minimum of fuss and expense can often save money with SumUp. The lack of eCommerce support in the US is the one limiting factor here, although you can somewhat get around this with SumUp’s virtual terminal or online invoicing features.

Online businesses, larger retail establishments, and full-service restaurants, however, will want to take advantage of the extra features that Square offers for those business types.

Hopefully, we’ve given you enough information to make an informed choice between Square and SumUp for your business.