Quick verdict

Flatpay offers a simple-looking proposition: a PAX A920 Pro terminal with no start-up hardware price and a 1.49% rate for all cards when annual card turnover is below £200,000. The package includes a SIM, portal, on-site installation, daily payouts and 24/7 email and telephone support.

The important small print is not the card rate. Flatpay’s separate UK price list shows a £995 minimum monthly turnover requirement, assessed annually for seasonal customers, and a £39 fee for an unfulfilled month. Terminal replacement is listed at £410 and business re-onboarding at £25. Prices in that list exclude VAT.

Flatpay can be attractive for a busy shop, café, pub or service business with consistent card sales and a mixed card profile. It is a weaker fit for a new, seasonal or very low-volume trader unless the turnover condition is understood. Get the contract’s exact assessment method in writing.

Current UK pricing

The official Flatpay UK pricing page and price list were checked on 11 September 2026.

Flatpay says businesses above £200,000 annual card turnover may receive custom pricing. Its page contains inconsistent currency and formatting around the displayed above-threshold example, so this guide does not treat that figure as a dependable UK quote. Ask Flatpay for a written sterling schedule.

What the terminal package includes

Flatpay lists:

• PAX A920 Pro terminal.
• Charging cable and power supply.
• Installed SIM card.
• Receipt roll and acceptance materials.
• Merchant portal.
• On-site installation and training.
• Daily payouts.
• 24/7 support by email and phone.
• Sale, refund, transaction history, X and Z reports, receipt controls and tipping settings.

The included smart terminal is a strong practical package for a business that wants a provider to install it. Ask whether the terminal remains Flatpay property, what happens at contract end and whether replacement for ordinary failure differs from the £410 replacement line.

Worked transaction costs

A café taking £12,000 a month

Assume every card is covered by the stated 1.49% flat rate.

• £12,000 × 1.49% = £178.80 a month.
• Annual cost at unchanged volume: £178.80 × 12 = £2,145.60.

There is no separate terminal start price in the published terminal offer. That does not prove there are no contract, replacement, re-onboarding or other conditional charges.

Compare a 1.69% pay-as-you-go service:

• £12,000 × 1.69% = £202.80.
• Flatpay saves £24 a month, or £288 a year, under these assumptions.

The saving is modest. A single £410 replacement cost, if charged, exceeds 17 months of modelled processing savings.

A low-volume trader

Assume a trader takes £800 in one month:

• Processing: £800 × 1.49% = £11.92.
• If the £39 unfulfilled-turnover fee applies because the £995 requirement is missed, known cost becomes £50.92 before VAT on the £39 fee.
• Effective cost is about 6.37% before that VAT.

At a 1.69% pay-as-you-go rate, £800 costs £13.52. Flatpay would be £37.40 more in this scenario. The contract may assess seasonal performance annually, so ask how many low months trigger charges and whether stronger months offset them.

The turnover break-even

Against a 1.69% alternative, Flatpay’s rate saves 0.20 percentage points. A £39 conditional fee requires £19,500 of turnover at a 0.20% saving to recover:

• £39 ÷ 0.20% = £19,500.

That is not a general Flatpay break-even because the fee applies only under its turnover rule. It shows why a low-volume month changes the comparison sharply.

Is “all cards” valuable?

Many providers charge more for commercial, premium or international cards. Flatpay advertises the same rate for every card type. That can make the bill predictable for a hotel, B2B merchant or tourist venue.

Check the contract definition. Ask whether American Express, cards issued outside the UK, commercial cards, manually keyed payments and card-not-present transactions are all covered. A statement saying “all cards” beside a terminal offer may not cover online or telephone sales.

For a business with 30% of turnover on cards that cost 2.5% elsewhere, a flat 1.49% could be valuable. For a local café taking nearly all consumer debit cards, a tailored quote below 1.49% may win.

The £995 turnover requirement

Flatpay’s price list describes a minimum monthly turnover requirement of £995, assessed annually for seasonal customers, and a £39 unfulfilled-month fee.

Ask for examples:

• Does one £500 month trigger £39 immediately?
• Can a £1,500 following month offset it?
• What is the annual assessment date?
• How are new businesses with partial years treated?
• Are refunds deducted from qualifying turnover?
• Does downtime caused by a failed terminal affect the test?
• Can a seasonal account be paused?

An annual assessment may protect a summer trader with quiet winter months, but only if the contract’s calculation supports that interpretation.

Terminal replacement and damage

The UK price list shows £410 for terminal replacement. Confirm when this applies. Ordinary hardware failure under normal use should be distinguished from loss, theft, accidental or liquid damage and non-return.

The A920 Pro is mobile and includes a printer, so it will be carried, charged and used near customers. Assign each unit, record its serial number and use a charging location. Consider whether business insurance covers loss.

Ask for the failed-terminal replacement target and whether a temporary unit is free. Losing a Saturday’s trade can cost more than hardware.

Daily payouts

Flatpay says daily payouts are included. Confirm:

• Settlement destination.
• Transaction cut-off.
• Weekend and bank-holiday coverage.
• Whether “daily” means initiation or arrival.
• First-payout delay for a new account.
• Reserve, review and chargeback conditions.

A pub or shop may value daily bank deposits for stock and wages. A business with a cash buffer should not choose on speed alone. Reconcile the first week of sales, refunds, fees and deposits before relying on the schedule.

24/7 support and installation

Flatpay lists 24/7 telephone and email support and includes on-site installation and training. Those features differentiate it from self-setup readers.

Ask what the overnight team can do. Technical diagnosis, terminal replacement, account changes and missing-settlement investigations may have different service levels. Record a support number and merchant ID outside the terminal.

Use installation to test contactless, chip and PIN, refunds, receipts, tips, mobile signal, portal reports and payout matching. Do not sign the completion sheet before core flows work.

Mobile POS and full POS costs

Flatpay’s POS routes charge 1.69% below the published turnover threshold and have material onboarding or installation prices. These should be judged as operating systems, not card readers.

The Mobile POS list includes tables, saved orders, dine-in and takeout, discounts, split orders and reports on a PAX device. POS Pro adds a tablet, terminal, cash drawer and printer. Premium uses a larger dedicated setup and can include more accessories.

Before spending £995, £1,495 or £2,495, model the admin time and software replaced. If a £1,495 system saves five hours a week at £15 an hour, the gross time value is £3,900 a year. If staff still duplicate orders into another system, the business case weakens.

Reconcile the main pricing page with the separate price list, which displays some different bundle numbers. Ask Flatpay to state the final sterling price, VAT, included hardware, ownership, software licences and replacement terms in one schedule.

Contract questions

Flatpay’s public pricing tells only part of the commitment. Obtain:

1. Minimum term and start date.
2. Renewal and notice method.
3. Early-exit calculation.
4. Terminal ownership and return obligations.
5. Turnover assessment and £39 fee rules.
6. Replacement, damage and non-return prices.
7. Re-onboarding treatment when the legal entity changes.
8. Rate-review rights.
9. Settlement and support commitments.
10. Full VAT treatment.

The price list shows a £25 administration fee for re-onboarding after a change in business registration. A sole trader incorporating or a buyer acquiring the business should ask whether new underwriting or a fresh term also applies.

Who is Flatpay most likely to suit?

A café taking £15,000 every month can comfortably clear the turnover requirement and may value predictable all-card pricing. It should still compare a tailored consumer-card quote because its international share may be low.

A pub with tourists and corporate customers may gain more from one card rate. Daily payouts and 24-hour support also fit evening and weekend trading, provided the contract confirms the claims.

A seasonal events business needs a written annual-assessment example. If winter months each attract £39 despite strong summer turnover, the simple headline becomes less attractive.

A new tradesperson taking £500 to £1,000 monthly should be cautious. The conditional fee can dominate processing cost, while a bought pay-as-you-go reader has no turnover hurdle.

An established restaurant considering POS should value saved staff and reconciliation time against the large onboarding cost. It needs a data-export and exit plan so products and sales history are not trapped in an unsuitable system.

First-month verification

Once installed, record the opening terminal and merchant details, then complete a low-value sale and refund. Check the receipt’s business name, tip settings and VAT treatment. Match the first daily payouts to portal batches and confirm whether fees are deducted from settlement or collected separately.

At month end, compare total fees with 1.49% of eligible terminal turnover. Review any £39, £25 or replacement-related line rather than assuming it is correct. Save the statement and original quote together. If the portal reports gross sales differently from the till, resolve the mapping before the difference becomes a year of bookkeeping work.

Train at least two people to contact support and replace receipt paper. On-site installation should leave the business able to operate without the installer present.

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