Payment comparison for UK businesses

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We compare specialist payment providers for your industry using recorded prices, so you can estimate costs and check which features are included. On screen, in seconds. Nobody sells your details.

Compare providers How it works

Free to use · Dated provider sources · No contact details needed

The problem

Compare first.
Keep control of the conversation.

A quote request can turn into follow-up calls before you have had a chance to compare. Start with the numbers instead: understand the likely charges, check the small print and decide who you want to speak to.

Tapvantage shows you the comparison without asking for your name, email or phone number.

Published prices

The prices are already out there.

Many providers publish tariffs or offer quotation tools. We bring recorded rates, per-transaction fees, plan charges and equipment costs into one comparison, with sources you can check. Providers without enough published pricing remain quote-only or incomplete.

Every comparison links to the provider's own published pricing.

The small print

One rate is never one rate.

A percentage rate is only part of the cost. Card type, how the payment is taken, pence per transaction, plan charges and equipment can all change the total. We estimate the recorded charges and flag prices that still need confirmation.

Features

Free, until you use it.

Bookings, invoicing and loyalty can be useful extras, but free plans often have limits. Paid upgrades and optional software can add to the bill. We show recorded features and their limits so you know what to check with the provider.

Compare

Your numbers.
Their published prices.

Cards, pay by bank and buy now, pay later are priced very differently. Tell us how you take payments and we estimate recorded charges, including supported machines and plans. Individual records carry their own source dates. We also compare supported card-only routes across providers. Pick up to five for the full comparison.

Explore agentic payments ↓

95% in person
Card machines
1
Not included

Share of online-checkout, payment-link and invoice sales diverted from cards after BNPL. Phone payments are excluded; this adds no extra sales.

Not offered

Share of existing sales paid by instalments (Klarna, Clearpay, PayPal Pay Later). These sales are diverted from cards, not added to turnover.

Recorded pricing; bought machines spread over 24 months. UK business-card shares above are explicit estimates. The full comparison accepts overseas and UK Amex shares. Unknown prices stay incomplete and cannot win the ranking. Refunds, disputes, FX, optional services and VAT additions are excluded. How accurate is this?

Pick to compareMonthly equivalent

    Pick up to five. Get the whole picture.

    Explore the recorded plans, equipment, features and small print for your selected providers. Takes a couple of minutes, on screen. No contact details, signup or phone calls required.

    Agentic payments

    When your customer’s
    AI does the checkout.

    AI agents can help customers discover products and pay with their permission. Here’s what providers document, who can access it in the UK, and what still needs a conversation.

    Sources checked 17 October 2026 · Availability varies by business and AI channel.

    AtoaProvider states live

    Agentic payments and MCP

    Payment tools for AI agents, with a documented production MCP server. Atoa also advertises AP2 mandates and x402 bank payments.

    UK access
    UK and EU advertised; production onboarding and business eligibility apply.
    Pricing
    A separate agentic tariff is not published.
    Setup & payment methods

    An Atoa business account, SDK token and production access are needed. Bank payments and cards are described; confirm your supported flow. Tapvantage has not tested live payments.

    Standards / interfaces: AP2 · x402 · MCP.

    Provider source ↗Technical / further source ↗
    StripeUK documented; agent approval required

    Agentic Commerce Suite

    Make a product catalogue available to connected AI agents, with Stripe handling checkout, payment and order events.

    UK access
    GB is listed in the current seller documentation. Each AI channel must approve the connection.
    Pricing
    Processing and service fees apply. No complete UK agentic tariff confirmed here.
    Setup & payment methods

    Set up a Stripe profile, catalogue feed and order fulfillment. Advanced custom checkout hooks remain US private preview.

    Standards / interfaces: UCP · Shared Payment Tokens.

    Provider source ↗Technical / further source ↗
    Revolut PayAP2 compatibility announced

    AP2-compatible checkout

    Revolut has announced AP2 compatibility for Revolut Pay and account-to-account checkout through AI platforms.

    UK access
    UK and EEA are named. General access across AI channels remains unconfirmed.
    Pricing
    No separate UK agentic tariff confirmed.
    Setup & payment methods

    Confirm merchant eligibility and the specific AI-channel integration with Revolut. Protocol compatibility alone does not enable every channel.

    Standards / interfaces: AP2.

    Provider source ↗
    PayPal / BraintreeRequest access

    Agent Ready

    Agent Ready documents delegated checkout through Braintree and PayPal, with ACP and UCP integration paths.

    UK access
    Access request required; confirm UK merchant and AI-channel eligibility.
    Pricing
    Processing and access terms need confirmation; no complete UK agentic tariff established.
    Setup & payment methods

    Use an eligible PayPal or Braintree merchant relationship and apply for Agent Ready access. Product discovery through Store Sync is a separate service.

    Standards / interfaces: ACP · UCP.

    Provider source ↗Technical / further source ↗

    The networks behind agent checkout

    VisaLive partner transactions

    Intelligent Commerce / Agentic Ready

    Visa reports live agent-initiated purchases with participating European partners, using agent recognition and tokenized payment credentials.

    UK access
    UK and European partners are participating; issuer, merchant and integration access applies.
    Pricing
    Partner terms apply. This is network infrastructure, rather than a processing quote.
    Setup & payment methods

    Access is through participating payment, issuer or infrastructure partners. Existing Visa acceptance alone does not establish agentic-checkout readiness.

    Standards / interfaces: Trusted Agent Protocol.

    Provider source ↗Technical / further source ↗
    MastercardEuropean network enabled; partner pilots

    Agent Pay

    Agent Pay supports controlled agent-initiated purchases using tokenized cards and customer authentication.

    UK access
    European network readiness and partner pilots; confirm a UK acquirer or integration route.
    Pricing
    Partner terms apply. No comparable small-business agentic tariff published.
    Setup & payment methods

    A participating issuer, acquirer and agent integration are needed. Mastercard’s separate Agent Connect merchant rollout starts in the US.

    Standards / interfaces: Agent Pay · Verifiable Intent.

    Provider source ↗Technical / further source ↗

    MCP · the tools

    Gives an assistant access to a provider’s tools. Payment permissions and fees still come from the provider.

    Read the documentation ↗

    AP2 · the permission

    Uses signed mandates to record a customer’s authority for an agent to pay within agreed limits.

    About AP2 ↗

    ACP / UCP · the checkout

    Commerce standards connect agents with product, checkout and order systems. Individual platforms still control access.

    About ACP ↗ About UCP ↗

    Capability research is separate from the cost calculator. An ordinary card or bank-payment rate does not establish the price of agentic checkout. Unknown fees are shown as unknown, and these network services do not enter the cheapest-provider ranking.

    How it works

    A comparison, not a lead.

    Three steps. Compare without an account, then decide whether to contact a provider yourself.

    Your choice

    Free to compare.
    Ready when you are.

    Tapvantage is free to use. Start with the recorded prices and compare the assumptions that matter to your business. A comparison does not apply for an account, send your details to a provider or commit you to a contract.

    When you are ready, use the provider links to check availability and obtain your final quote. Questions about the comparison? Email Tapvantage.

    • Recorded pricesSources and dates beside each provider.
    • Clear assumptionsSee the charges included and the gaps.
    • No contact formCompare without sharing contact details.
    • Your decisionCheck the final quote with your chosen provider.

    Industries

    Specialists, not generalists.

    The right provider depends on how you take payments. We compare the ones built for your kind of business.

    HospitalityTips, table ordering, split bills and next-day payouts. Rates that hold up on a £4 coffee. RetailFast tap, stock and refunds that just work, and terminals that aren't on a three-year lease. Salons & beautyBookings, deposits and no-show protection, and what they really cost once you're busy. Trades & mobileTake cards on site, send a pay-by-link for the invoice, get paid the next day. Online storesCheckout, fraud tools and subscriptions, priced for cards you never see. Services & professionalInvoices and large payments, where pay-by-bank can cost a fraction of a card link.

    Questions

    Straight answers.

    How accurate are the numbers?

    They use recorded published tariffs and indicative quotes, with source dates shown for each provider. This calculator does not check websites live. Unknown charges, unsupported card categories and missing machine prices stay incomplete and cannot be ranked as cheapest. Estimates exclude refunds, disputes, FX, optional services and automatic VAT additions. A provider's final quote can differ.

    Will I get phone calls?

    Using this comparison does not send your details to a payment provider or request a sales call. We do not ask for your name, email or phone number. If you follow a provider link and contact them, their own privacy terms apply.

    Does it cost anything to compare?

    No. The comparison is free and the provider links take you to their own websites. No account application or introduction is made through this website. If referral links are introduced in future, they will be clearly identified before you use them.

    Do you cover pay-by-bank?

    Yes. Pay-by-bank lets a customer authorise a bank payment instead of using a card. Costs, payment limits, refunds and customer protections differ, so check the provider terms and whether your customers can use it. We show supported published tariffs alongside card options.

    Can't I just use the providers' own quote tools?

    You can, and for the largest acquirers the regulator requires one. Ours puts them side by side, with the per-transaction fees, monthly charges and feature limits that a headline rate leaves out, and links to each provider's own page so you can check.

    Do you cover buy now, pay later?

    Yes, where supported published fees are available. Availability, eligibility, settlement and customer protections depend on the product and provider. Set the share of sales you would offer it on, or focus on it alone, then check the provider's current terms before applying.

    Do I have to use one provider for everything?

    You can use different providers for different channels. This comparison uses complete single-provider estimates and supported card-only routes, including each selected plan fee. Combining bank payments or BNPL across providers needs a separate channel and eligibility review, so we do not claim a cheapest route for those mixes.

    I already have a provider. Is this still useful?

    Very. Put in the numbers from your last statement and see what the same month would cost elsewhere, from published prices, with no one phoning you about it.