QwikEat vs SumUp: a card reader, or a whole restaurant POS on your phone?
SumUp is a good way to take a card payment. QwikEat is a way to run the shop: orders from the counter and the QR menu, Tap to Pay on the same phone, kitchen printing, receipts and your numbers. Free, with no reader to buy and no subscription.
SumUp starts from the payment. QwikEat starts from the order.
SumUp built its business on a small card reader that pairs with a phone, and it does that job well. Buy the reader, download the app, take a card. For a stall that needs to take a card now and then, it is a sensible purchase.
The limits show up as soon as the shop grows a little. The reader is a purchase. The till features beyond the basics sit in a paid plan. Online ordering and a QR menu are separate products. And it was built for a till, not a kitchen: food modifiers and kitchen tickets are an afterthought. Every extra channel is another subscription or another device.
QwikEat takes the opposite path. The order comes first, from the counter, from the QR code on the table, from your ordering page or from WhatsApp. Payment is part of the order, with Tap to Pay on the iPhone you already hold and no reader at all. Printing, receipts, menu edits and today's numbers are in the same free app, and the desktop dashboard is the same account.
No reader to buy
SumUp's model starts with hardware you order, charge and replace. QwikEat's Tap to Pay on iPhone uses the NFC chip already in the phone. Nothing to order, nothing to pair, nothing to send back.
A restaurant register, not a generic till
Modifiers, notes, dine-in against takeaway, kitchen tickets and receipts on a Bluetooth printer. Built for food, where a burger has six questions and the kitchen needs to see every one of them.
QR menu and online ordering included
Guests scan the table code or open your page, order and pay. Those orders land in the same list as the ones you ring up at the counter. With SumUp, online ordering is a separate product with its own pricing.
Kitchen printing from the phone
Pair a Bluetooth thermal printer and print the kitchen ticket or the receipt from any order in one tap, or send the receipt by email. No till hardware required.
Free, not a monthly plan
SumUp's fuller till features come in a paid plan on top of the reader and the transaction fees. QwikEat is free for every feature, on every phone, with no subscription. You pay card-processing fees on what you sell, and nothing else.
Your customers stay yours
Every QwikEat order carries the customer's details, so loyalty points, coupons and review requests are built in. A card reader records a payment; it does not know who came back.
How to switch from a SumUp reader to QwikEat
Install the app and sign up
QwikEat on the App Store or Google Play. Create your account in the app; verifying your business for payouts takes three minutes.
Add your menu
Type it, import it, or photograph your board and let the AI builder do the typing. Set order types, prices and VAT.
Turn on Tap to Pay and take an order
Enable Tap to Pay in Settings, ring up the first order, tap the card. The reader goes in the drawer.
QwikEat vs SumUp: what you get
SumUp sells payments; QwikEat runs the shop
| SumUp | QwikEat | |
|---|---|---|
| Card reader required | Yes, a purchase | No, Tap to Pay on iPhone |
| Software price | Free basics, paid plan for the full till | Free, every feature |
| Restaurant register (modifiers, notes) | Basic till | Included |
| QR table ordering | Separate product | Included |
| Online ordering page | Separate product | Included |
| WhatsApp ordering | Not available | Included |
| Kitchen ticket printing | With their till hardware | Bluetooth printer, from the phone |
| Digital receipts | Yes | Yes, by email |
| Loyalty and coupons | Separate product | Included |
| Review management | Not available | Included |
| Multi-location | Available | Included, one login |
| Card fees | Per-transaction fee | Card-processing fees only |
Free, with no reader and no plan to upgrade to
SumUp's entry price is the reader, and the full till lives in a paid plan on top of transaction fees. QwikEat is free for every feature, on every phone, with no subscription. You pay card-processing fees on what you sell and nothing else.
FAQ
Can I keep my SumUp reader and use QwikEat for orders?
Does QwikEat work on Android?
Is QwikEat only for restaurants?
What does QwikEat charge per card payment?
How long does switching take?
Is my money safe?
Put the reader in the drawer.
Orders, Tap to Pay, printing and your numbers, on the phone you already carry. Free, with no subscription.
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