Dojo at a glance

The short verdict

Shortlist Dojo when you take regular in-person payments, have a clear need for a portable or integrated terminal, and can explain the working-day problem you want to solve. Compare a simpler reader too if you trade occasionally or only need basic payment collection.

For an established business, the strongest case is a combination of a competitive complete bill and a better checkout workflow. The weakest case is switching because one percentage looks smaller while ignoring equipment, software and the remaining cost of the old agreement.

This is a research-based buying guide, not a hands-on speed test or a promise of individual acceptance. Published product and pricing information was checked on 11 September 2026.

What can Dojo do for you day to day?

In a restaurant, a portable machine can bring payment to the table, accept a tip and print a receipt without sending the customer to the bar. If it connects properly to the till, the correct amount can pass across automatically and the payment result can come back into the order record.

In a shop, the main benefit may be a neater fixed checkout and less double-keying. For a mobile service, a suitable wireless setup can take payment while the job is still fresh in the customer's mind. The value is not the colour of the screen; it is fewer steps, fewer mistakes and a checkout customers understand.

Ask the salesperson to show a normal sale, a refund and a failed connection. That will tell you far more than watching a perfect contactless payment in a showroom.

What Dojo currently advertises

Dojo's main pricing page lists a 1.2% blended transaction rate below £100,000 annual card turnover, with custom pricing above that level. It separates hardware charges from Essential and Plus software plans. Plus is advertised at £11.99 per month per location for eligible new customers and new locations from 24 August 2026; confirm the applicable offer and VAT in writing. Dojo pricing and conditions.

That annual turnover threshold matters. A business doing £15,000 every month should request its own quote rather than assume the smaller-business headline rate applies. Equally, do not use an advertised promotional software price indefinitely in a forecast without confirming what happens when the offer ends.

Hardware routes to discuss

The current pricing page shows Go Max, Pocket and Wired, with upfront and monthly options. For example, Go Max is shown at £25 monthly, alongside an upfront launch offer. Those figures do not establish the all-in cost or ownership terms of your agreement. Ask for a dated proposal that separates hardware from processing and software.

Choose around the job rather than the screen size. A device that moves is useful only if the connection and software work at the location where staff need it.

Connectivity and receipts: features worth checking on site

Dojo describes Go Max as using Wi-Fi and 4G, with a built-in thermal receipt printer. The product specification also lists EPOS integration support. Those are relevant features for mobile service inside a venue, but they should be tested with your premises and exact till software. Go Max specifications.

Walk the device to your outside tables, back room and busiest counter. Check that a staff member can tell whether a payment succeeded without going back to the main till. Ask which connection is used when Wi-Fi fails and whether suitable mobile coverage is available where you trade.

Do not confuse mobile connectivity with offline processing. A 4G connection is another online route. If you need a contingency for losing all connectivity, have the supplier explain the approved procedure and any risk you would carry.

For printed receipts, establish the roll size, where replacements come from and who checks stock. A built-in printer is useful only when staff have paper and know how to replace it during service.

How to compare the Dojo bill with what you pay now

Use at least three recent statements if you can. Record card sales, transaction count, average sale, card mix and all fixed charges. Separate in-person payments from payment links, online checkout and manually entered transactions, because pricing can differ.

Ask Dojo to reproduce those months using its actual proposed fee schedule. Then ask for a quiet-month example, including any minimum or recurring charges. The card machine fees guide can help you check whether a comparison has left out a line from your existing bill.

Worked example: a lower rate that only just wins

This is a hypothetical model, not a Dojo quote. Assume all sales qualify for the stated rates, with no fixed pence fee. Your existing reader costs 1.75% and has no monthly charge. A proposed terminal package costs 1.2% plus £30 in total recurring charges.

At these assumptions, the percentage saving is 0.55 percentage points. Dividing £30 by 0.0055 gives an equipment-and-plan break-even point of about £5,455 in monthly eligible sales. That is an illustration of the arithmetic, not a universal Dojo switching threshold.

If there is also a 3p transaction charge on a real proposal, 600 payments add £18 a month. At £6,000 of sales, that would turn the £3 saving into a £15 extra cost. Include every fee before calling an offer cheaper.

The model excludes hardware purchase, setup, tax on applicable charges, refunds, disputes and differences between card categories. For your decision, replace every assumption with the written proposal and actual trading figures.

A saving is not always enough to justify switching

Suppose a verified comparison shows £35 a month of recurring savings, but leaving your old provider and setting up the new service costs £280. It takes eight months to recover that cost if sales and fees stay the same. Across twelve months, the net saving is £140 before other migration costs.

Now assume the recurring saving is only £10. The same £280 cost takes twenty-eight months to recover. That may not fit your plans if the premises lease ends next year or you expect to change the business model.

Ask for any contribution towards cancellation costs in writing. Confirm eligibility, evidence required, payment timing and whether you must remain a customer for a particular period. Do not cancel on the assumption a marketing maximum is an unconditional reimbursement.

Dojo publishes separate contractual documents and fee schedules. Check which versions apply to your offer, along with your order form and any existing agreement. Dojo documents.

Where integration can make a difference

Imagine a restaurant where staff enter every bill total on the terminal and then return to the till to mark the table paid. A working integration may reduce repeated entry and make the payment status clearer. The benefit depends on the exact EPOS product and configuration, not merely whether two company logos appear on an integration page.

Give your supplier a short set of real jobs. Settle a full bill, split one between two cards, add a tip where appropriate, void an unpaid order and issue a partial refund. Check both systems after each task. If you collect tips, keep their reporting distinct from sales and have your accountant check the arrangements; a terminal feature does not settle the separate policy and payroll questions.

For a retailer, test a discounted basket and an exchange. For a service business, test a deposit followed by a final balance. Ask who investigates if the till says paid but the transaction report does not show the expected amount.

Put a sensible value on staff time

Suppose an integration saves twenty seconds on 150 payments a day. That is fifty minutes daily, or about 18.3 hours over twenty-two trading days. This is a hypothetical workload calculation, not a measured Dojo performance claim.

It does not automatically mean you can cut a shift or save 18.3 paid hours. The practical benefit might be shorter queues, less walking or a calmer close. Judge whether that matters at your peak period and measure the actual change after any switch.

Payouts: understand where the money goes

Ask for the settlement destination, cut-off time and normal timetable for your account. Then ask how weekends, bank holidays, refunds and account reviews are handled. Dojo advertises next-day takings, but your cash-flow plan needs the specific terms rather than a general promise. Dojo pricing overview.

A bakery buying stock before opening on Monday should consider when weekend proceeds are available. A business taking advance payments should ask how delivery timing affects account review or reserve requirements. Do not promise suppliers access to money solely because a terminal displays an approved sale.

During setup, reconcile one ordinary trading day and one day containing refunds. Make sure the person who does the bookkeeping can find gross sales, deductions and net settlement without relying on the owner to explain it every time.

Alternatives to compare fairly