Shift4 vs Dojo: the full cost comparison
Dojo publishes 1.2% blended. We charge 1.25% blended on all cards under £10,000 a month, with a free first terminal and no monthly rental. Here is every cost, side by side.
Shift4 blended rate
Monthly rental
Est. yearly saving at £5,000/mo
Settlement, incl. Saturdays
Dojo is one of the best-known card machine providers in the UK and its hardware and next-day settlement are genuinely good. The question most business owners bring to us is not whether Dojo works, but whether the monthly rental and the transaction rates still make sense once you look at what you actually turn over on card.
This page sets out Dojo's published pricing next to ours so you can compare like for like. We are an authorised Shift4 partner, our terminal costs £0, there is no monthly rental, and our rate is 1.25% blended across debit, credit, Amex and the mobile wallets.
Shift4 against Dojo, line by line
Dojo figures are taken from published UK pricing, last verified August 2026.
Headline rate
Headline rate
1.25% blended
1.2% blended
Terminal cost
Terminal cost
Free first terminal
£149–£239 to buy outright. Under £100k/yr turnover you generally buy the terminal upfront from £179+VAT.
Monthly rental
Monthly rental
£0
£15/month on a 12-month term, around £20/month rolling. The rental route generally requires £100k+/yr turnover.
Extra monthly fees
Extra monthly fees
None
Platform fee £10/month per location. Hardware care £5/month optional (basic cover included free). Plus software tier £11.99/month per location
Minimum monthly charge
Minimum monthly charge
None. No use, no bill
£24.95
Authorisation fee
Authorisation fee
None
£0.05 per authorisation and £0.50 per refund reported on some plans
Contract
Contract
18 months
12 months typical. 30-day rolling available above £100k/yr. No published term on the sub-£100k tier.
Early exit
Early exit
No early exit fees
Term-dependent, ask for the figure in writing
Settlement
Settlement
Next working day incl. Saturdays
Next day including weekends, weekend settlement reported as year one of contract only
Support
Support
Named UK partner, direct mobile
24/7 UK phone support
Source: Dojo published pricing. Below £100,000/year card turnover (~£8,333/month). Above that, bespoke quoted rate. Some merchant reports cite 1.4% + 5p on older or negotiated plans.
See what your card machine really costs
Drag to your monthly card takings. The numbers update instantly.
Who are you with now?
Fine tune: average sale & rates
Average sale
Dojo now
£109per month
With Shift4
£63per month
Estimated annual saving
About £47 a month at £5,000 card turnover.
Every provider at £5,000 a month
- Shift4 Card Machine£750/yr
- SumUp£1,054/yr
- Square£1,060/yr
- Zettle by PayPal£1,065/yr
- Worldpay£1,170/yr
- Takepayments£1,208/yr
- Barclaycard£1,212/yr
- Dojo£1,310/yr
Effective blended rate with Dojo: 1.20% plus £25.00 a month in fixed fees.
What sits underneath the Dojo headline rate
Terminal rental
A fixed monthly charge for the hardware itself, payable whether you trade that month or not.
Typical
£15/month on a 12-month term, around £20/month rolling. The rental route generally requires £100k+/yr turnover.
Platform fee
Billed monthly on top of the headline rate, so it never appears in a rate comparison.
Typical
£10/month per location
Hardware care
Billed monthly on top of the headline rate, so it never appears in a rate comparison.
Typical
£5/month optional (basic cover included free)
Plus software tier
Billed monthly on top of the headline rate, so it never appears in a rate comparison.
Typical
£11.99/month per location
Authorisation fee
A few pence charged every time a card is presented, including on declines. It bites hardest on low-value sales.
Typical
£0.05 per authorisation and £0.50 per refund reported on some plans
When Dojo is the better choice
We are not right for everyone. These are the cases where we would tell you to stay put.
You need one of Dojo's 450+ EPOS integrations, or Dojo Pocket for tableside ordering, tipping and split bills.
You are locked into another provider and can use Dojo's contract buyout of up to £3,000 to get out of it.
You turn over more than £100,000 a year and can negotiate a bespoke rate with 30-day rolling terms.
Dojo does well
Genuinely competitive published rate. 450+ EPOS integrations. Contract buyout up to £3,000. Dojo Pocket handles tableside ordering, tipping and split bills.
Four questions worth asking any provider
The real rate
“Is that rate blended across every card type, or only consumer debit?”
Shift4
1.25% blended on all cards under £10,000 a month of card turnover. Above that we quote bespoke.
Worth knowing
A headline rate quoted on consumer debit only, with premium, corporate and non-European cards priced far higher.
The monthly bill
“What will I be billed in a month where I take nothing?”
Shift4
£0. No terminal rental, no minimum monthly service charge, no PCI fee.
Worth knowing
Terminal rental, platform fees, PCI charges and minimum monthly service charges that apply regardless of turnover.
The contract
“How long is the term, and what does it cost to leave early?”
Shift4
18 months with no early exit fees.
Worth knowing
Auto-renewing terms, 90-day notice windows, and exit fees equal to every remaining monthly rental payment.
The money
“When does the money actually land, and is that free?”
Shift4
Next working day incl. Saturdays
Worth knowing
Faster settlement offered as a paid add-on, or next-day settlement only in year one of the contract.
Getting your Dojo statement
One statement is all we need to work out your real blended rate.
- Step 1
Open the Dojo app
- Step 2
Go to Billing
- Step 3
Select the month
- Step 4
Download the PDF statement
Switching means a new merchant account and a new terminal, not a rebuild of how you take payments. You apply, underwriting confirms the account, the machine is delivered, usually within two working days of approval, and you plug it in and start trading on it.
Most businesses run both terminals for a few days so nothing depends on a single changeover moment. Once you are happy, you stop using the old device and arrange its return with your existing provider.
Dojo questions, answered
Can I leave my Dojo contract early?
That depends on the terms you signed. Ask Dojo directly for your end date and any early termination charge in writing, then compare that figure against the monthly saving. Some businesses switch immediately, others wait for renewal, we will help you work out which is sensible.
Will switching interrupt my card payments?
No. Your existing terminal keeps working until you stop using it, and most businesses overlap the two for a few days. There is no period where you cannot take a card.
Do I lose next-day payouts if I move away from Dojo?
No. Settlement is next working day with us as well, including Saturdays for Friday takings, so the cash-flow pattern you are used to stays the same.
Send your statement, get a straight answer
We read your last full month with Dojo, work out what you are really paying, and tell you honestly whether we beat it.
Prefer to browse first? See all provider comparisons
Dojo pricing is taken from publicly published UK sources and was last verified in August 2026. Providers change pricing without notice and rates vary by plan, so treat every figure as indicative and confirm directly with Dojo. Calculator results are estimates, not quotes, and assume a 60% debit, 30% consumer credit and 10% business card mix. Our rate is confirmed on application, subject to status. All trademarks are the property of their respective owners; we are not affiliated with Dojo.
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Same free terminal, same rate — every trade, every postcode.