Shift4 vs Worldpay: the full cost comparison
Worldpay publishes 1.50% flat (Simplicity). 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
Worldpay is one of the largest acquirers in the country and processes an enormous share of UK card payments. Headline debit rates can look very competitive, and for high-volume merchants they often are.
What businesses ask us to check is the total: the monthly terminal charge, the difference between the debit and credit rates, and any service charges that sit alongside them. Our pricing is deliberately flat, free terminal, no rental, 1.25% blended on everything.
Shift4 against Worldpay, line by line
Worldpay figures are taken from published UK pricing, last verified August 2026.
Headline rate
Headline rate
1.25% blended
1.50% flat (Simplicity)
Terminal cost
Terminal cost
Free first terminal
£0
Monthly rental
Monthly rental
£0
£17.50–£22/month terminal hire. £10–£15/month on custom tariffs. Promotional £0 and £1/month offers run periodically.
Extra monthly fees
Extra monthly fees
None
PCI DSS support around £5/month
Minimum monthly charge
Minimum monthly charge
None. No use, no bill
The countertop plan lists no minimum monthly service charge
Authorisation fee
Authorisation fee
None
The countertop plan lists no authorisation fee
Contract
Contract
18 months
18 months
Early exit
Early exit
No early exit fees
Term-dependent, ask for the figure and the notice period in writing
Settlement
Settlement
Next working day incl. Saturdays
Next business day
Support
Support
Named UK partner, direct mobile
24/7 UK support
Source: Worldpay published pricing. The Simplicity tariff is flat on Visa and Mastercard. Custom tariffs from 0.75% are quote-based and generally require £75,000+ annual card turnover.
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
Worldpay now
£98per month
With Shift4
£63per month
Estimated annual saving
About £35 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 Worldpay: 1.50% plus £22.50 a month in fixed fees.
What sits underneath the Worldpay headline rate
Terminal rental
A fixed monthly charge for the hardware itself, payable whether you trade that month or not.
Typical
£17.50–£22/month terminal hire. £10–£15/month on custom tariffs. Promotional £0 and £1/month offers run periodically.
PCI DSS support
Billed monthly on top of the headline rate, so it never appears in a rate comparison.
Typical
around £5/month
Authorisation fee
A few pence charged every time a card is presented, including on declines. It bites hardest on low-value sales.
Typical
The countertop plan lists no authorisation fee
Minimum monthly charge
A floor on your bill. Take less than the threshold and you still pay the difference.
Typical
The countertop plan lists no minimum monthly service charge
Early exit charge
Leaving before the term ends usually means paying out the remaining rental in one go.
Typical
Term-dependent, ask for the figure and the notice period in writing
When Worldpay is the better choice
We are not right for everyone. These are the cases where we would tell you to stay put.
You take payments in multiple currencies or from international customers, where 135 currencies and 300+ payment methods matter.
You process high enough volumes to be quoted a custom interchange-plus tariff, which can beat any flat blended rate.
You need enterprise e-commerce and terminal processing under one acquirer.
Worldpay does well
Bank-grade acquirer with 300+ payment methods and 135 currencies. A genuine option for multi-currency or international trade.
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 Worldpay statement
One statement is all we need to work out your real blended rate.
- Step 1
Log in to Worldpay Business Manager
- Step 2
Go to Reports
- Step 3
Open Monthly Invoice
- Step 4
Download the PDF
Worldpay agreements are usually set up with a defined term for the terminal and the merchant services, so the first job is establishing your dates. Once you know them, the decision is simply whether the saving outweighs anything owed for leaving early.
The move itself is standard: a new merchant account is underwritten, a terminal is delivered, and you change over on a day that suits your trading week rather than one dictated by a contract end.
Worldpay questions, answered
Can I leave my Worldpay contract early?
It depends on the term and notice period you agreed. Request both in writing, then weigh any early termination amount against the monthly saving. Sometimes waiting for renewal is the better financial decision and we will tell you if it is.
Will switching interrupt my card payments?
No. The existing terminal continues to work until you retire it, and most businesses overlap for a few days so there is never a gap.
Is a smaller provider as reliable for settlement as a large acquirer?
Shift4 processes for over 200,000 businesses and settles the next working day, including Saturdays. Funds reach your business bank account on the same schedule you would expect from any major acquirer.
Send your statement, get a straight answer
We read your last full month with Worldpay, work out what you are really paying, and tell you honestly whether we beat it.
Prefer to browse first? See all provider comparisons
Worldpay 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 Worldpay. 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 Worldpay.
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Same free terminal, same rate — every trade, every postcode.