The Best Mobile Credit Card Readers For iPhone & iPad Credit Card Processing

Square Features

Square's mobile POS app, called Square Point of Sale, gets a lot of love from mobile merchants for its exceptionally robust and varied feature set while offering two different card readers.

• The Square Point of Sale app offers reporting, customer engagement tools, inventory and team management, invoicing, gift cards, and much more -- it's one of the best mPOS feature sets around.
• The free Square Reader for magstripe comes in two versions: one with a headset jack for older iPhones and one with a Lightning connector for newer iPhones. It just takes swiped transactions, so it's only appropriate for light/occasional sales due to the inferior security of magstripe tech.
• The Square Reader for contactless and chip accepts chip cards, NFC (contactless) cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. It doesn't accept magstripe payments, but you can use the free reader for those if necessary.

Hardware Cost

• Square Reader For Magstripe: $0
• Square Reader For Contactless & Chip: $49

Square Pricing

• Processing Fees: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction
• Monthly Fees: $0

Where Square Really Shines

With its impressive and extensive POS features, Square is ideal for businesses processing under $5,000/month and those that can't get a traditional merchant account due to a lack of business history.

Its two mobile card readers are well-suited to smaller on-the-go merchants, but for more hardware options, read our guide to Square POS hardware card readers to learn about Square's terminal and register bundles.

Clover Go Features

Unlike many of the providers listed here, when you sign up with Clover Go, you get a card reader and mobile POS backed by a full merchant account, which gives you more account stability than a third-party processor. Let's go through what else you'll get with Clover Go:

• The Clover Go mobile app gives you sales tracking, paperless receipts, an offline mode, order management, and an outstanding inventory mode for an mPOS app. However, these features (along with other robust abilities) are reserved for paid plan subscribers.
• The Clover Go card reader is an ideal all-in-one mobile card reader that accepts swiped/dipped/tapped credit and debit card transactions, along with Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.

Hardware Cost

The Clover Go card reader costs $49.

Clover Go Pricing

• Processing Fees: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction
• Monthly Fees: $0 (Payments plan) or $14.95/month (Essentials plan)

Where Clover Go Really Shines

As Clover Go is backed by a merchant account, it's great for mobile sellers with irregular processing volume (merchants who sell at conventions and the like). (These merchants can sometimes run afoul of the hair-trigger flagging systems of third-party processors such as Square and PayPal.)

Note that many resellers offer Clover Go. Pricing, features, and support will vary with each reseller. All information herein is based on the Clover Go mPOS package sold directly at Clover.com.

Shopify Features

Shopify is mainly known for its eCommerce, but it has also strengthened its POS capabilities over the last several years.

A Shopify subscription (except the Shopify Starter plan, which doesn't include the POS) gives you the mobile POS features you need, along with industry-leading eCommerce.

• The Shopify POS app gives you print and email receipts, automatic tax calculation based on location, team management with custom staff permissions, reporting, and advanced inventory management, all paired with the online selling features Shopify is known for.
• For mobile in-person sales, Shopify offers the Bluetooth-enabled Tap & Chip Card Reader and the Chipper 2X BT Reader, both of which accept dipped/tapped card payments, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. The Chipper 2X BT Reader also accepts magstripe payments. What's more, if you want to bypass your iPhone entirely, Shopify just released its new all-in-one Shopify POS Go touchscreen reader, which combines a card reader, barcode scanner, and touchscreen tablet that runs Shopify POS natively.

Hardware Cost

The Shopify Tap & Chip Reader and the Chipper 2X BT reader both cost $49. The new Shopify POS Go sells for $399.

Shopify Pricing

• Processing Fees: Starting at 2.7% per transaction with Basic Shopify, 2.5% with Shopify, and 2.4% with Advanced Shopify
• Monthly Fees: $39/month for Basic Shopify, $105/month for Shopify, and $399/month for Advanced Shopify if billed monthly ($29/month, $79/month, and $299/month if billed annually)

Where Shopify Really Shines

Shopify's in-person processing rate is great for merchants with small average tickets because there's no $0.10 fixed fee. With the 2.6% + $0.10 rate offered by Square/Clover Go/etc., that extra ten cents adds up when you're processing lots of small transactions.

PayPal Zettle Features

PayPal Zettle, PayPal's mobile processing app, gives you a capable mPOS, an exceptional mobile card reader, and access to PayPal's comprehensive ecosystem of merchant tools.

• The PayPal Zettle app supports QR code payments and offers an item library, reports, custom gift cards, refunds (partial and whole), discounts, and support for a full register setup.
• The Zettle Reader takes chip and NFC card transactions and supports PIN transactions (the most secure way to process debit charges), as the reader has a PIN pad and display screen like the advanced card readers found in Europe. It also takes Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.

Hardware Cost

The Zettle Reader costs $29 for the first reader and $79 for all additional readers.

PayPal Zettle Pricing

• Processing Fees: 2.29% + $0.09 per transaction
• Monthly Fee: $0

Where PayPal Zettle Really Shines

PayPal's 2021 pricing changes were mostly bad for eCommerce merchants, but for in-person sales, PayPal now offers one of the lowest flat rates around. Combine that with a PIN-enabled iPhone card reader that sells for $20 less than the PIN-less $49 readers offered by some competitors and a solid mPOS app, and you've got a great package for smaller sellers who don't want to pay too much, as well as new sellers needing an easy-to-use payments system.

SumUp Features

SumUp serves up a solid mPOS system and two unique card readers for mobile sales.

• The SumUp app offers an item library, tipping, basic analytics, multiple tax rates, email/text receipts, receipt printer connectivity, and QR code support -- it's not on par with Square's mPOS, but it'll do for many merchants.
• The SumUp Plus card reader is akin to the PayPal Zettle in that it accepts EMV/chip and contactless card transactions while providing a PIN pad for additional debit transaction security. It also takes Apple Pay, Google Pay, and (unlike the Zettle) magstripe transactions, making it a great value for the price.
• The SumUp Solo is a unique standalone terminal with a touch screen and a built-in SIM card with free unlimited mobile data. It takes EMV and NFC payments (not magstripe) along with Google Pay and Apple Pay, offers smart tipping, lets you access reports, and can send digital receipts right from the screen.

Hardware Cost

• SumUp Plus Card Reader: $35
• SumUp Solo Card Reader: $99

SumUp Pricing

• Processing Fees: 2.75% per transaction
• Monthly Fee: $0

Where SumUp Really Shines

SumUp's 2.75% transaction cost lacks a $0.10 fixed fee, giving a boost to sellers with small average tickets. The card readers are technologically advanced and reasonably priced, while the mPOS features are solid enough if you don't need the advanced functionality Square provides.

Helcim Features

Helcim is a merchant account provider (like Clover Go's parent company) that offers an advanced chip + contactless + PIN card reader, full POS capabilities, and, uniquely among the providers listed here, interchange-plus pricing, which works to the benefit of most merchants.

• Helcim's mobile POS features include email receipts, inventory and customer tracking, analytics, reporting, automatic tax calculation, unlimited invoice creation, and more. It's a stellar feature lineup.
• The Helcim Card Reader has a PIN pad and display, it accepts chip + NFC (including Apple Pay and Google Pay) + PIN payments, and it works with iPhones, iPads, and PC and Mac computers.

Hardware Cost

The Helcim Card Reader costs $109.

Helcim Pricing

• Processing Fees: Interchange + 0.10% + $0.05 to interchange + 0.30% + $0.08, depending on your processing volume (process more, pay less)
• Monthly Fee: $0

Where Helcim Really Shines

While interchange-plus pricing isn't as easy to understand as the flat-rate pricing offered by the other companies listed here, most merchants will save money with Helcim over the likes of PayPal and Square. Combine this with an incredible array of POS features and a full merchant account, and you have an ideal mobile selling solution for higher-volume merchants.

Smaller merchants, however, may not need all the advanced POS functionality and may find the card reader expensive. Merchants with little to no processing history may not qualify for a merchant account anyway.