Somewhere between booking your first stall and packing the bunting comes the mild panic: "do I need a card machine?" Yes — most shoppers don't carry cash anymore, and a visible card reader converts browsers who would otherwise apologise and drift off. The good news is the whole answer costs about £20.
An entry-level reader from SumUp, Square or Zettle (~£19–29 + VAT, frequently discounted), the matching free app on your phone, and a charged power bank. That's it. All three readers pair with your phone's data connection, take contactless, chip-and-PIN, Apple Pay and Google Pay, and pay out to your bank in a day or two. Fees only apply when you sell: 1.69–1.75%, so a £100 day costs you £1.69–£1.75. Order the reader a week early and run one test payment (buy something from yourself for £1) so fair morning isn't your first go.
The ~£99 standalone terminals with their own SIM are for sellers doing markets weekly, in fields with no signal, or who don't want their phone tied up. The monthly software plans, tap-to-pay-only setups and POS ecosystems are for later, if ever. And a printed receipt setup impresses nobody at a craft fair — all three apps send email receipts on the rare occasion anyone asks.
Signal dies in hangars, basements and fields; have a plan. Check whether your app supports an offline/queue mode and its rules before relying on it. A small "cash welcome" float still rescues the occasional sale. And a printed QR code linking to your online shop turns "the card machine's down" into "order it now, delivered this week" — which is sometimes a better sale anyway.
At first-fair volumes the fee difference between all three providers is genuinely pence per day — pick on reader availability and whether you like the app, not the rate. When your card takings grow into the hundreds per month, run the numbers properly and re-choose; the switch cost is one cheap reader.
Rates and reader prices verified August 2026; check current provider pages. Not affiliated with any provider; no referral links. Not financial advice.