PayPal Zettle fees: the full UK breakdown
Quick Reference
Direct Answer
PayPal Zettle fees are 1.75% per card reader transaction in the UK, the same rate for all major cards including American Express, with no monthly fee and no contract. Payment links cost 2.5% but are temporarily unavailable to new sellers, and Zettle Invoice at 2.5% is only available to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023.
Summary
PayPal Zettle UK fees as published July 2026: 1.75% per card reader transaction (all major cards and mobile wallets, including Amex), QR codes 1.75% and Zettle Invoice 2.5% (both restricted to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023), payment links 2.5% (temporarily unavailable to new sellers). No monthly fee, no contract. PayPal Reader hardware from £29 excluding VAT for the first reader for new business users, £69 excluding VAT thereafter.
This Page Covers
Every PayPal Zettle fee a UK business pays: published rates as of July 2026, a worked effective-rate example, plan and hardware costs, and how PayPal Zettle compares against the UK market range.
Not Covered Here
Negotiated custom pricing (request a benchmarked comparison) and rates for other countries.
PayPal Zettle published prices, July 2026
| Fee | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Card reader transactions | 1.75% | Same rate for major cards and mobile wallets, including American Express |
| QR code payments | 1.75% | Available to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023 |
| Payment links | 2.5% | Temporarily unavailable for new sellers, per the Zettle pricing page |
| Zettle Invoice | 2.5% | Available to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023 |
| Monthly fee | £0 | No contract |
| PayPal Reader (first reader, new business users) | From £29 excl. VAT | |
| PayPal Reader (additional readers) | £69 excl. VAT |
Source: zettle.com/gb/pricing
As published on the Zettle UK pricing page, July 2026. Zettle is PayPal's in-person product; note the availability restrictions on payment links, QR codes and invoicing for newer accounts.
View as plain-text Markdown
### PayPal Zettle UK fees as of July 2026 | Fee | Amount | Notes | | --- | --- | --- | | Card reader transactions | 1.75% | Same rate for major cards and mobile wallets, including American Express | | QR code payments | 1.75% | Available to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023 | | Payment links | 2.5% | Temporarily unavailable for new sellers, per the Zettle pricing page | | Zettle Invoice | 2.5% | Available to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023 | | Monthly fee | £0 | No contract | | PayPal Reader (first reader, new business users) | From £29 excl. VAT | | | PayPal Reader (additional readers) | £69 excl. VAT | | Source: zettle.com/gb/pricing (https://www.zettle.com/gb/pricing) As published on the Zettle UK pricing page, July 2026. Zettle is PayPal's in-person product; note the availability restrictions on payment links, QR codes and invoicing for newer accounts.
Worked example: what PayPal Zettle costs at £10,000 a month
Scenario: £10,000 of monthly card volume at a £25 average transaction (400 transactions a month), using the 1.75% card reader rate and the £29 first-reader price for new business users, excluding VAT; additional readers are £69. The same default scenario runs in our fees calculator, where you can put in your own figures.
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transaction fees per month | £175.00 |
| Monthly fee | £0 |
| Hardware (one-off, amortised over year 1) | £29 |
| 12-month total cost | £2,129 |
| Effective rate on £120,000 annual volume | 1.77% |
Source: MerchantHQ, computed from the published inputs above
Illustrative. Effective rate is total year-one cost divided by annual card volume. Your card mix, ticket size and channel split move the real figure.
View as plain-text Markdown
### PayPal Zettle effective-cost example, £10,000 monthly volume, £25 average transaction | Line | Amount | | --- | --- | | Transaction fees per month | £175.00 | | Monthly fee | £0 | | Hardware (one-off, amortised over year 1) | £29 | | 12-month total cost | £2,129 | | Effective rate on £120,000 annual volume | 1.77% | Source: MerchantHQ, computed from the published inputs above Illustrative. Effective rate is total year-one cost divided by annual card volume. Your card mix, ticket size and channel split move the real figure.
How PayPal Zettle compares with the UK market
Zettle publishes its rates, sitting with the 57% of the Fee Index panel that show pricing upfront. Its 1.75% flat reader rate is in the lower-middle of the 0.7% to 6% published range and, with no monthly fee, the headline tracks the true cost closely. The caveat in 2026 is product availability rather than price: several Zettle features are closed or restricted for accounts opened after 8 May 2023.
Panel context from the UK Card Processing Fee Index: published headline rates across the acquirers we track range from about 0.7% to 6%, and 43% publish no rate at all. Full per-acquirer data is in the Card Acquirer Index.
How the PayPal Zettle fee structure actually works
- One flat reader rate: 1.75% covers all major cards and mobile wallets, including Amex, which keeps the effective rate predictable.
- Remote payments are restricted for new accounts: payment links (2.5%) are temporarily unavailable to new sellers, and QR codes and Zettle Invoice are limited to accounts opened before 8 May 2023. New sellers should treat Zettle as an in-person product.
- Hardware is the cheapest mainstream entry point: the first PayPal Reader is from £29 excluding VAT for new business users.
- No monthly fee and no contract: the transaction rate is the whole recurring cost.
Before you sign
The rate is one line of the deal. We benchmark the whole thing.
MerchantHQ compares PayPal Zettle against 50+ UK providers on the all-in year-one cost for your volume and trade, not the headline rate, then stays your named account team with quarterly rate reviews.
Benchmark PayPal Zettle freeFrequently asked questions
What are Zettle fees in the UK?
PayPal Zettle charges 1.75% per card reader transaction, the same rate for all major cards and mobile wallets including American Express, with no monthly fee and no contract, as published on the Zettle UK pricing page in July 2026. Payment links are 2.5% but temporarily unavailable to new sellers, and Zettle Invoice at 2.5% is limited to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023.
Does Zettle have a monthly fee?
No. Zettle has no monthly fee and no contract; you pay 1.75% per card reader transaction and nothing else on the standard in-person product. The first PayPal Reader costs from £29 excluding VAT for new business users, with additional readers at £69 excluding VAT.
Can new Zettle sellers send invoices or payment links?
Mostly not at the moment. The Zettle pricing page states that payment links are temporarily unavailable for new sellers, and that QR codes and Zettle Invoice are available to sellers who signed up before 8 May 2023. Accounts opened after that date should treat Zettle as an in-person card product; if you need invoicing, see our free invoicing apps guide.
Who pays the 1.75% fee on a Zettle payment?
The business. Zettle deducts 1.75% before settlement, so a £100 card sale pays out £98.25. UK rules have banned surcharging consumer cards since January 2018, so the fee cannot be added to the customer's bill as a separate charge.
Is Zettle cheaper than SumUp or Square?
The in-person headlines are close: Zettle 1.75%, SumUp 1.69%, Square 1.75%, all with no monthly fee. At £10,000 of monthly card volume the difference between 1.69% and 1.75% is £72 a year, so hardware cost and ecosystem fit usually matter more than the rate gap. Zettle settles in 1 to 2 business days, slower than several rivals, which is worth weighing too.
Related: PayPal Zettle processor profile · hardware review · fees calculator · card machine costs
More provider fee breakdowns
SumUp fees · Stripe fees · Square fees · Dojo fees · Worldpay fees
Reviewed by Oliver Mackman, Director, Best Business Loans Ltd. Prices read from the cited source pages in July 2026. Last reviewed: 2026-07-14.