Business

Stripe vs Sumup: Comparison for UK businesses

Paola Faben Oliveira

27.05.24 (updated more than 1 year ago)

Read time 4 minutes

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Stripe¹ and SumUp² both offer a broad range of ways for UK businesses to accept card payments from customers. But which is best between SumUp vs Stripe?

This Stripe vs SumUp review takes a look at the similarities and differences, and some key costs to consider.

Stripe vs SumUp - Comparison overview

The services Stripe and SumUp offer have a lot of overlap - however, the exact ways the providers work, including their fee structures, do vary. Here’s a quick overview of the features available with each provider. We’ll look at each in more detail next.

Service	Stripe	SumUp
Pricing	Varied fees per transaction type, plus costs for physical POS terminals Standard fee 1.5% + £0.20 for local cards	Varied fees per transaction type, plus costs for physical POS terminals 1.69% fee applies for payments taken using a card reader
Trustpilot rating	2.4 stars, Poor, from 13,000+ reviews³	4.2 stars, Great, from 20,000+ reviews⁴
Invoice payments	Available	Available
Recurring payments	Available	Available
International payments	Available	Available
API integrations	Available	Available
Checkout solution	Available	Available
Payment links	Available	Available
In-person payments	Available with POS terminals and smartphone solutions	Available with POS terminals and smartphone solutions

SumUp reviews

SumUp offers payment processing solutions for more or less any business type, but has specific tools designed for food and beverage, retail and large venue companies. You can receive customer card payments with a SumUp POS terminal, or by using your smartphone, allowing in person payments.

Alternatively, SumUp processes payments made online and in-app, invoices, and payment links. SumUp can process payments made with many different popular card networks like Visa and Mastercard, but the exact options depend on the way the payment is made.

SumUp payment gateway services

A payment gateway is used by companies which need to take card payments from customers, often online and through mobile apps. Payment gateways often offer various ways to process customer payments securely, such as off the shelf solutions to embed payment options into a website.

SumUp offers payment processing services including physical POS systems and ways to take payments with a smartphone, among other business services.

SumUp fees

With SumUp you may need to buy a physical card payment processing terminal, and you’ll also pay transaction fees when you receive a payout from your SumUp account. Physical POS terminals come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes - with varying costs. Here’s a quick rundown of some of the key fees which apply to SumUp.

Bear in mind that the services and fees do vary a lot depending on your business type and size, so you’ll need to check your options carefully before signing up.

Transaction type	SumUp fee⁵
In-person payments	1.69% fee applies for payments taken using a card reader Discounts available with SumUp membership⁶
Online payments	2.5% fee for payments made online and via payment link
International	Check directly with SumUp - international fees can vary based on card type and SumUp account plan
Refund	SumUp fees apply at the point of payout - if the payout has been made before issuing a refund, the SumUp fee will apply
Chargeback	£10

stripe-vs-sumup

Stripe payment reviews

Stripe has a broad range of products and services in the UK, which makes it suitable for many different business types. There are off the shelf solutions which you can use with no coding required, as well as more complex solutions for enterprise level organisations. You can receive payments with Stripe online and in person, as well as accessing other business support such as loans and capital. Stripe processes payments from cards issued more or less all over the world, on major card networks.

Stripe payment fees

Stripe has varying fees which can depend on how you take payment, including where the card being used was issued, and whether or not you’re receiving money digitally or in person. Here are some key costs.

Transaction type	Stripe fee⁷
Local card payments	Standard fee 1.5% + £0.20
International card payments	Standard fee 2.5% + £0.20 for EU cards 3.25% + £0.20 for cards issued elsewhere
Chargebacks (disputes)	£20
Recurring payments (billing)	0.5%
Invoicing	0.4%

Stripe vs SumUp fees - Head to head comparison

Let’s round up with a look at the fees and costs for both providers side by side. As both Stripe and SumUp offer lots of different products and services, and may vary their fees depending on the customer type, size and account use, it’s important to check fee schedules carefully before signing up. Here are the headlines to start you off:

Transaction type	Stripe fee	SumUp fee
In-person payments	Standard fee 1.5% + £0.20 for local cards	1.69% fee applies for payments taken using a card reader
Online payments	Standard fee 1.5% + £0.20	2.5% fee for payments made online and via payment link
International	Online, standard fee 2.5% + £0.20 for EU cards 3.25% + £0.20 for cards issued elsewhere Different fees may apply for in person payments	Check directly with SumUp - international fees can vary based on card type and SumUp account plan
Refund	Fees may apply but this varies based on the details of the transaction	Transaction fees apply if payout has been processed already
Chargeback	£20	£10

Stripe and SumUp offer many similar products and services, and in many cases their fees are similar too. However, they’re not exactly the same so comparing Stripe vs SumUp for your specific business needs is important.

Bear in mind that both providers offer a variety of different options which can come with different fees depending on the specific arrangements you have with the company, so you’ll need to look carefully at costs to decide which is best for you. Reach out to the SumUp and Stripe sales teams for more details, and to learn about the packages available for your specific company.

*Disclaimer: The UK Wise Business pricing structure is changing with effect from 26/11/2025 date. Receiving money, direct debits and getting paid features are not available with the Essential Plan which you can open for free. Pay a one-time set up fee of £50 to unlock Advanced features including account details to receive payments in 22+ currencies or 8+ currencies for non-swift payments. You’ll also get access to our invoice generating tool, payment links, QR codes and the ability to set up direct debits all within one account. Please check our website for the latest pricing information.

Sources used in this article:

Stripe
SumUp
TrustPilot - Stripe
TrustPilot - SumUp
SumUp pricing
SumUp accepted payment methods
Stripe pricing

Sources last checked 24/05/2024

*Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

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