You may be looking at payment systems for seasonal markets, festivals, street food stalls, pop-ups or promotional events.
As the number of non-cash payments at festivals grows, so does the number of options for alternative payment systems. An on-the-go payment solution is much more suitable than a clunky tabletop payment system.
Many of the machines below don’t have fixed monthly fees so they’re ideal if you need them for shorter periods of time.
We’ve tried to get a sense of performance in terms of battery life but of course, it depends how much you use the card reader (or your smartphone) in a given day. Let’s take a look at some of the bigger names on the market.
The 8 best payment systems for festivals, pop-ups and street food markets
Jump straight to a particular provider of read on for our in-depth review of each system.
Square
With the Square reader you can accept chip and PIN and contactless cards as well as Google Pay and Apple Pay.
It’s quick to set up, so you can start taking payments swiftly – great if you land a festival spot at the last minute. Square is customisable with apps from the marketplace.
Funds settle next day, or if you need cash quickly, you can pay a little extra for instant settlement.
The second-generation reader’s battery takes 20 per cent more transactions per charge than its predecessor.
Fees: You’re looking at 1.75 per cent + VAT per chip and PIN or contactless payment and 2.5 per cent + VAT per keyed-in transaction.
The reader itself is £19 and Square’s POS app is free.
Worldpay
Worldpay pairs with an app and a small card reader that can use WiFi and mobile data to take transactions.
Businesses with an annual card turnover of £75k or more can access custom rates, with pricing tailored to your business.
Worldpay offers next-day payment settlement and no hidden fees. Contracts are 18 months.
Fees: On the Simplicity tariff, all rates are bundled into a single, transparent 1.5 per cent transaction fee. The Simplicity package has a £22.50 card payment terminal fee (18-month minimum hire term).
Tide
The Tide Card Reader is the perfect mobile payment device for events and pop-ups. It accepts contactless, Chip and PIN, and digital wallet transactions, and it has unlimited 4G data, so you don’t need to rely on Bluetooth to take payments.
You can also accept payments on your smartphone using Tap to Pay.
Tide offers businesses several plans, including buying a device upfront with pay-as-you-go transaction fees, or renting or buying the device on a pay-monthly basis.
Fees: From 0.69% + 3p on monthly plan. From 1.39% + 5p on Pay As You Go.
takepayments
Working specifically with independents and SMEs, takepayments offers a variety of contracts, starting from 30 days. The mobile payment unit accepts Apple and Google Pay, with a next day settlement fee. A welcome team will help you to set up and the UK-based support team will help with any queries.
The battery lasts all day and an in-car charger is available.
Fees: Bespoke – contact takepayments for a free quote.
Get started with Take Payments
Elavon
With Elavon’s payment processors, you can link your machine via WiFi or 4G and take card, contactless or mobile wallet payments. You can enhance your setup with functions like stock management and staff rotas.
The payment terminals have dynamic currency conversion (DCC) and multi-currency conversion (MCC). MCC lets customers see prices in their home currency while DCC lets customers pay in their home currency.
Security-wise, you’re covered with Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) measures including point-to-point encryption (P2PE) solutions, safe storage and tokenisation.
The readers are said to have an ‘extra-long battery life’, but no specifics on how long it lasts per charge.
MobileMerchant is Elavon’s solution for accepting card payments using your smartphone or tablet when at events or markets. funds arrive within 48 hours, or you can pay extra for next working day settlement.
Features include stock management, reporting functions and business analytics.
Fees: The MobileMerchantApp is free. There is a one-off joining cost of £19 and the transaction fee starts at 1.75 per cent.
Compare card payment machine quotes
Wireless Terminal Solutions
Wireless Terminal Solutions comes with the option of a GPRS/GSM terminal, WiFi terminals, portable Bluetooth terminals, integrated EPOS units, fixed line countertop card machines and contactless payment machines.
WTS machines accept Apple Pay, Android Pay and UnionPay.
You have the option to rent a card machine in the short-term or the long-term, buy one outright or opt for a refurbished model. The battery life on these readers is typically 60-70 hours.
It takes a few days to get the card machine up and running, which is slower than the company’s competitors.
Fees: Wireless Terminal Solutions has EPOS rentals for festivals and outdoor events. Discounts are offered for multiple EPOS units. Request a quote for pricing.
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PayPal
PayPal is ideal for small businesses that want to start taking payments quickly.
All you need to do is add the free POS app to your smartphone or tablet and sync it to your mobile card reader.
Battery life is on average eight hours with a transaction every five minutes or up to 100 transactions from one charge.
Fees: PayPal has a fee of 1.75 per cent per card transaction. Like some competitors, the card reader is £29 (for your first reader, then £69), and the POS app is free.
Compare card payment machine quotes
> See also: Three ways to reduce chargebacks
SumUp Air
The Air model can take contactless, chip and PIN, Google Pay and Apple Pay. One battery charge lasts for up to 500 transactions.
Software includes a product catalogue and the option to add and edit VAT rates for your products, track sales and manage multiple employee accounts. Settlement can be as early as next day, including on weekends and bank holidays – ideal for businesses working events.
Fees: The SumUp reader currently costs £25 + VAT, and the pay-as-you-go transaction fee is 1.69 per cent.
SumUp also offers a £19 per month subscription plan that reduces transaction fees to 0.99% (available to businesses processing more than £3,000 per month).
Compare card payment machine quotes
Next steps
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Simply fill in the free merchant account quote form here and answer a few questions (it takes less than a minute).
Receive free quotes from suppliers that may meet your requirements.
Read more
Five tips to get started taking card payments
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