Paya at a glance

Our view: Paya deserves a place on your shortlist if you want more choice than a single reader and a flat transaction rate. Short-term hire is particularly relevant for occasional events. Whether it offers good value for your everyday business depends on the complete quote, including transaction charges and the equipment agreement.

What could Paya do for your business?

Start with how customers buy from you. A customer paying for a takeaway coffee needs a quick tap at the counter. Someone ordering flowers for a birthday might prefer to pay remotely. A stallholder may need a machine for a few trading days rather than all year.

Paya lists services for each of those situations. That does not mean you need to buy everything. Describe your normal working week and ask for the smallest setup that covers it. A useful supplier should be able to explain the proposed arrangement without making you learn a list of payment-industry terms.

Before ordering, ask for a demonstration of a sale, a refund and the daily totals. If staff will use the equipment, let them try it too. The important test is whether they can find the right option when there is a customer waiting, not whether the screen looks impressive in a brochure.

Choosing a card machine

A fixed checkout for shops and counters

If customers always pay in the same place, a countertop setup can be a sensible starting point. You can keep the machine charged, visible and ready beside the till. Think of a florist wrapping bouquets, a bakery serving at the counter or a salon with a reception desk.

Paya’s countertop catalogue includes PAX A920, PAX A920 Pro and Castles S1F2 devices. Some equipment appears in more than one category, so ask how your particular setup will be connected and positioned.

A stand or charging base can make the counter easier to use, but check what is included. Ask whether the machine connects to your existing till or whether staff must enter the payment amount separately. Both arrangements can work; they involve different steps at checkout.

Portable payments around your premises

A portable machine makes sense when you want to take payment to the customer. In a café, that might be a table. In a salon, it could let a customer pay without joining a queue at reception.

Paya offers a portable machine range. Ask about the connection used by the exact device you will receive. Walls, room layout and local signal conditions can affect where it works, so do not plan around a maximum distance alone.

Try the machine in the places where staff will actually use it. Check charging arrangements as well: who puts it back on charge, and what happens if it runs low during the afternoon?

Payments away from the shop

For markets, deliveries and work at customers’ homes, look at the mobile options. Ask whether the proposed machine works independently or needs a compatible phone, and what mobile connectivity is included.

The practical questions are simple. Will it work at the venue? Can another member of staff use it while you are elsewhere? Does it print a receipt if a customer wants one? Get answers for the device on your quote rather than assuming all mobile readers behave alike.

Paya hardware prices

Paya publishes starting prices for several machines. These are equipment figures, not the total cost of accepting cards. The listings reviewed do not make every rental period, hire duration or VAT detail clear, so confirm those points before comparing totals.

Source: Paya’s short-term hire listings, checked 11 September 2026. Ask for the billing period, hire length, VAT treatment, delivery costs and processing charges in writing. Prices and availability may change.

The A920 Pro has a higher purchase price than the A920. That does not automatically make it the better choice for your business. Ask what the difference lets you do during an ordinary shift. If you only need to enter an amount, take payment and issue a receipt, a more expensive device needs a clear reason to justify itself.

Buying, renting or hiring for an event

Buying means a larger equipment payment at the start. Renting spreads equipment costs, but you need to understand how long you are committing and what happens when you leave. Short-term hire can fit a defined event without buying a device you may rarely use again.

For example, compare the listed £75 A920 short-term hire starting price with its £349 purchase starting price. Four hires at exactly £75 would total £300; five would total £375. That is only a starting-point calculation. It assumes each booking qualifies for that price and excludes delivery, VAT, transaction fees and any differences in support. It is not a Paya quote for repeated events.

For one annual fair, hire may be convenient. If you trade at markets most weekends, buying or an ongoing arrangement may deserve a closer look. Ask what each option costs over the period you realistically expect to use it.

Paya’s hire page lists UK technical support, merchant-portal access and a faulty-device replacement service. Before an event, confirm the support hours, delivery date and replacement arrangements for your location. A replacement promise is useful only if you know how it would work during your trading window.

What about transaction fees?

There is no single universal processing rate to apply to every Paya customer from the product pages reviewed. Use Paya’s quote process to obtain a schedule for your business, then compare it with the same sales figures you give other providers.

Ask for:

• The percentage charged on ordinary UK personal cards.
• Any fixed pence charge on each payment.
• Charges for business cards, overseas cards and American Express.
• Equipment, account, online-payment and other recurring fees.
• Refund and disputed-payment charges.
• Any minimum monthly charge and cancellation costs.

You do not need to become an expert in every fee name. You do need to know which charges can appear on your bill. Our card-machine fees guide explains how to bring them together.

A simple monthly example

Imagine a florist takes £6,000 over 200 card payments in a month. A hypothetical offer charges 1.2% plus 4p per payment and £25 in fixed monthly costs.

The percentage charge is £72. The 200 fixed transaction charges add £8. Add the £25 monthly cost and the total is £105.

At the same £6,000 sales total but 600 payments, the fixed transaction charges would be £24 and the overall bill £121. That is why a café selling lots of smaller items can pay differently from a business taking fewer, larger payments.

These are illustrative figures, not Paya’s advertised rates. They exclude hardware purchase, VAT where applicable, refunds and other conditional charges. Repeat the calculation with your written quote and your own statement.

Getting paid without the customer being there

Invoice links for deposits and unpaid bills

Paya’s invoice-link service lets you send a customer to a payment page containing details such as the amount and invoice reference. Its email-payment tools can also send individual payment requests.

For a florist, that could help collect payment before preparing a delivery order. A tradesperson could send a request after finishing a job. It gives the customer a way to pay without visiting your premises.

The benefit is fewer steps between agreeing the bill and paying it. It does not guarantee that every customer pays immediately, so keep a clear process for checking outstanding invoices. Ask what the service costs and how a completed payment is matched to the relevant order.

Telephone payments

Paya also offers a virtual terminal. This is a payment screen accessed through its management system on a computer, tablet or phone, rather than a physical card machine. It includes reporting and supports multiple users.

That may suit a bakery taking celebration-cake orders or a florist handling telephone bookings. Ask Paya how staff should handle payment details and what training is needed. Where a payment link suits the customer, it can offer a different route that lets them enter their own details.

Website payments

Paya’s website lists payment buttons, shopping-cart plugins and custom online-payment options. A small business selling a handful of items may need something different from a full online shop.

Give Paya the name of your website platform and ask which connection it supports. Find out who sets it up, whether there are additional charges and how refunds are handled. For a wider explanation of the choices, see our small-business payment gateway guide.

Support, payouts and the contract

Ask when takings will reach the account you actually use to pay bills. Confirm the timetable for weekdays, weekends and bank holidays, plus any cut-off times. Avoid choosing on a payout claim without understanding the conditions attached to it.

For support, keep the contact details somewhere staff can find them. Ask who deals with failed payments, device faults and questions about the monthly statement. If your busiest period is Saturday afternoon, check the support arrangements for that time.

Read the equipment and payment terms together. Buying a machine does not by itself explain the payment-service commitment. Similarly, a short hire needs a clear return date and return process. Before agreeing, ask what you would owe if you stopped using the service, returned the machine late or needed to replace it.

Alternatives worth comparing

For a simple starting point, compare Paya with the options in our card-machine comparison. Use the same monthly sales, number of payments and equipment needs for each offer.

Square is worth including when you want to explore a reader alongside till software. You can view the Square offer and compare the complete setup with your Paya quote. For another tailored payment-service option, view takepayments.

The aim is not to collect ten quotes. Two or three suitable options should help you judge whether Paya offers the right balance of cost, flexibility and support. Choose the equipment arrangement first, then compare what each provider charges for it.

Frequently asked questions

Who operates Paya Card Services?

PayaCardServices is operated by Acceptacard Limited, company number 06910204, according to its official website. Its company story dates the business to 2009.

Can I hire a Paya machine for an event?

Yes. Paya advertises short-term hire. Ask for a quote covering your event dates, delivery, return arrangements and payment fees, rather than treating the starting hire price as the complete cost.

Can Paya take payments over the phone?

Yes. It offers a virtual terminal for telephone payments, alongside invoice links and online-payment options. Confirm the charges and staff procedures for the service you choose.

Is Paya the cheapest option?

That depends on your quote and how you take payments. Compare the full monthly bill, equipment costs and commitment. A low hardware price or transaction percentage alone cannot answer that question.

Our view

Paya is worth considering when you want a choice of equipment arrangements and ways to get paid. A shop with occasional event trading or a business collecting remote orders may find that flexibility useful. Keep the decision grounded in your working day: the right machine, a clear total cost and support you can use when you need it.