Square, SumUp and Grace Pay get compared as if they are the same kind of thing. They are not, quite. Two are payment products that happen to have some software around them, and one is a payments option inside a hospitality platform. Knowing that difference is most of what you need to choose well.
This is the head-to-head. For how card fees work in general, start with card payments for independent venues. And a fair warning: I will not quote current rates for Square or SumUp here, because they change and I would rather you check the live figure than trust a number that may be stale by the time you read this.
SumUp: simplest and cheapest to start
SumUp built its name on being the easy way for a very small business to take a card. A cheap reader, no monthly fee in its basic form, pay-as-you-go pricing, up and running in minutes. For a market stall, a pop-up, a tiny cafe or anyone whose card-taking is occasional, it is hard to beat on simplicity and barrier to entry.
The limitation is that simplicity is also the ceiling. SumUp is a way to take a payment, not a way to run a venue. There is little here to manage table service, kitchen workflow, or, crucially, a guest record. If your needs are genuinely just "take a card cleanly and cheaply", it is a sensible answer. If they are more than that, you will outgrow it. The SumUp comparison goes into where that line falls.
Square: a payments ecosystem
Square is more ambitious. Around the card processing sits a fuller ecosystem, software, reporting, some venue tooling, with a still-low barrier to entry and familiar hardware. For a growing independent that wants payments plus a bit of structure, it is a reasonable step up from a bare reader.
The honest limit is depth in hospitality specifically. Square came from payments and breadth rather than from the particular needs of a table-service venue, so deep reservation management, kitchen flow and a real, value-aware guest record are not where it is strongest. It will handle the money and give you decent numbers. It is less built to tell you who your most valuable regulars are and help you keep them. The Square comparison covers the specifics.
Grace Pay: payments inside the platform
Grace Pay is a different category. It is not a standalone reader you bolt onto a venue, it is the payments option inside a hospitality platform, which changes what it can do. Because the payment, the order and the guest record are all in one system, every payment reconciles automatically against the right guest and the right service, with no spreadsheet at the end of the week.
On pricing, the rates are published in full, with the in-person and online rates stated separately and a lower in-person rate on higher plan tiers. And there is a deliberate escape hatch: if Grace Pay does not suit you, you can bring your own provider, Square, Stripe, Dojo, SumUp included, and Grace charges no fee of its own on top. The point is that you are not locked in. You can see the rates on the pricing page.
The honest framing: Grace Pay only makes sense if you want the rest of the platform too. If all you need is a cheap standalone reader, SumUp or Square will serve you, and I would say so. Grace Pay's advantage is the joined-up reconciliation and the single guest record, which only matter if you are running the whole thing as one system.
What to actually check before switching
Whichever way you lean, do the same homework. Compare the real cost at your volume, with in-person and online rates separated, not a single blended figure. Find out how premium, business and international cards are treated. Look hard at contract length and the cost of leaving, because that is where a tempting rate often hides its catch. And ask whether you are free to change your mind later, or whether switching locks you to one processor at one rate.
A lower headline rate on a long contract you cannot escape is usually a worse deal than a slightly higher rate you can walk away from.
The short version
SumUp wins on simplicity and starting cost for the smallest takings. Square offers more structure for a growing venue that mainly needs payments plus reporting. Grace Pay is for venues that want payments to be part of one hospitality platform, with automatic reconciliation against a guest record and the freedom to bring their own provider instead. Choose on what you are actually running, a reader, an ecosystem, or a whole system, and check the real cost and the exit before you sign anything.
FAQ
Is Square or SumUp better for a restaurant?
SumUp is simplest and cheapest to start with for very small or occasional takings. Square offers more of an ecosystem, software and reporting around the payments, which suits a growing venue. Neither is built primarily around a full hospitality platform with a guest record, which is the main thing to weigh if that matters to you. - q: "What is Grace Pay?" a: >- Grace Pay is the payments option built into the Grace platform. You can use it at a published rate, with lower in-person rates on higher plan tiers, or bring your own provider with no Grace fee on top. Because it is part of the platform, payments reconcile automatically against the guest record. - q: "Should I switch payment providers to save on fees?" a: >- Only after you have compared the real cost at your volume, including the in-person and online rates separately, any higher-rate card types, and the cost of leaving your current contract. A lower headline rate tied to a long contract is not always the saving it looks like. - q: "Can I keep my current card provider and still use a hospitality platform?" a: >- With some platforms, yes. Grace, for example, lets you bring your own provider with no fee on top. Check this before committing, because being locked to one processor at one rate removes your ability to negotiate later.