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What Is Lopay? A Complete Guide to Lopay Card Readers, Fees & Features in the UK (2026)
- UK card reader review · 2026
Take card payments from 0.79%, with no monthly fee
The Lopay card reader is a low-cost way for UK small businesses to accept contactless, chip & PIN and mobile wallet payments, for a £35 one-off reader and no contract.
0.79%
£35
£0
24/7
🎁 Reader offer: get £500 in fee-free processing when you sign up through Resay.
Your customers expect to tap a card, phone or watch to pay. But many small businesses don’t want pricey terminals, long contracts or high card fees. Lopay offers a cheap alternative, with fees from 0.79% and no monthly subscription.
In this guide, we cover what Lopay is, how the WisePad 3 reader works, what it really costs (with a live calculator and worked examples) and which businesses it suits best, so you can decide whether it’s right for you.
Lopay at a glance
Reader price:
£35 for your first WisePad 3 (+ £6.95 delivery), ordered in the app after verification.
Transaction fees:
0.79% (Essential), 0.99% (Standard) or 1.79% (Instant to Bank) for UK consumer Visa and Mastercard.
Monthly fee:
None on the core accounts. One-off reader purchase, no contract.
Accepts:
Contactless, chip & PIN, Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Main trade-off:
The cheapest rate pays out weekly (Thursdays), and the reader only works with the Lopay app.
Lopay at a glance
01. What is Lopay?
02. The WisePad 3 card reader
03. How to set it up
04. Hardware costs
05. Transaction fees & calculator
06. £500 fee-free offer
07. Pros and cons
08. Which businesses suit Lopay?
09. Lopay vs traditional terminals
10. FAQs
11. Verdict
- The basics
What is Lopay?
Lopay is a UK payment app that lets businesses take card payments without a complicated setup or a monthly processing subscription. Payments are processed by Stripe Payments UK Ltd, which is authorised by the FCA. You run everything from the Lopay app, including taking payments, checking transactions, managing products and tracking sales.
Lopay gives you four ways to get paid, all from the same app:
Bluetooth card reader
The portable WisePad 3 for contactless and chip & PIN.
Business Terminal
A Wi-Fi touchscreen terminal for countertop use.
Tap to Pay
Take contactless payments on a compatible iPhone or Android.
Payment links
Send a link for deposits, invoices or remote payments.
This flexibility means Lopay can work for a shop, a market stall or a mobile trade business.
- The hardware
The Lopay WisePad 3 card reader
The Lopay WisePad 3 is a lightweight Bluetooth card reader. It connects to your smartphone or tablet, so you don’t need a bulky countertop terminal.
What payments does it accept?
Good to know:
The WisePad 3 is not a standalone card machine. It needs a phone or tablet running the Lopay app to process payments.
- Getting started
How to set up the Lopay card reader
Five steps from download to your first payment.
1
Download the app
Install Lopay on a compatible iOS or Android device.
2
Register
Create an account and complete the business and identity checks.
3
Order your reader
Once verified, order your first reader at the discounted price in the app.
4
Pair via Bluetooth
Connect the reader to your phone or tablet and follow the in-app steps.
5
Get paid
Enter an amount, send it to the reader and let the customer tap or insert. Payments appear in the app straight away.
- Upfront costs
How much does the Lopay card reader cost?
A low starting cost is one of Lopay’s biggest draws. Here is the UK hardware pricing as of November 2026.
Product
Price
Contract
First WisePad 3 card reader
Ordered in-app
£35+ £6.95 delivery
- None, one-off
Additional WisePad 3 card reader
£49 + delivery
- None
Business Terminal
£15/month + delivery
- 12-month minimum
Tap to Pay on your phone
No hardware cost
- None (+8p per transaction)
The first-reader discount requires registration and identity verification. Transaction fees are charged separately.
Now add a realistic card mix. If 20% of that £5,000 (£1,000) came from Amex, corporate or overseas cards on the Essential account, you’d pay £31.60 on the £4,000 at 0.79%, plus £17.90 on the £1,000 at 1.79%. That’s £49.50 in total, the same as the Standard headline figure. If you serve many tourists or business customers, work out your own card mix before comparing providers.