Dojo

Overview

Dojo brings card payment services, payment terminals and business-management tools together for merchants taking payments in person, online or by phone. It is strongest for businesses that want payment hardware alongside reconciliation and EPOS connections; it is less straightforward for buyers who need a simple, fixed total cost before choosing a plan.

Its offer spans small businesses through expanding enterprises, with particular relevance to hospitality, leisure and service businesses. The range of payment methods and terminal options is useful, but the right fit depends on transaction rates, hardware and the tools a business needs.

Key features

• Payments across channels: Dojo supports card-present, online, tableside and mobile payments, alongside phone payments. That breadth can keep several sales channels within one provider rather than separating in-person and remote payment arrangements.
• Sidekick management: The tool brings payments, refunds, reconciliation and real-time business insights together, including across multiple locations. That makes it more relevant to operators coordinating sites than to a business seeking only a card reader.
• Payment options: Plan features include payment links, native-currency payments, digital and printed receipts, refunds, bill splitting, cashback, tipping and pre-authorisations. The breadth suits varied service and hospitality workflows, though which features apply depends on the plan.
• EPOS and developer connections: Dojo says it partners with over 450 EPOS providers and syncs card-machine transactions with EPOS for reconciliation. APIs cover online payments and EPOS integrations; mobile integration documentation and a prebuilt checkout page give developers additional routes to connect payment flows.
• Integrated service: Pay at Table and Pay at Counter are supported for integrated payments. Technical support is offered seven days a week from 8am to 11pm, a useful window for businesses that take payments outside standard weekday office hours.
• Security and continuity: Dojo says its card-processing, storage and transmission environments are PCI DSS compliant, with annual independent assessment, and that payment transmissions use TLS. Its machines include point-to-point encryption and instant fraud detection. The company also advertises 99.99% uptime; these are provider claims, not a substitute for evaluating operational requirements.
• Human assistance: Dojo says customers can speak to a UK-based person within minutes, and its UK team can remotely access a device to help. Remote device assistance may be practical when a terminal issue needs troubleshooting.

Pricing

Dojo uses a freemium model, but its free options do not mean every business pays nothing: transaction charges and hardware costs may still apply. The listed plans are:

• Essential: free, billed per month/location. It includes core tools, all major card types, real-time transactions and easy PCI-compliance. It is the no-monthly-charge starting point, but the listed rate for qualifying low-turnover businesses still matters.
• Tap to Pay on iPhone: free, with no contract. It accepts contactless payments using an iPhone and the Dojo app, without extra hardware. This is the clearest low-commitment option for a business that can take contactless payments on an iPhone rather than needing a dedicated terminal.
• Transaction rate below £100,000 annual card turnover: 1.20 % per contact, described as an all-in blended rate for all card transactions for businesses below that annual card-turnover threshold. This gives eligible lower-turnover businesses a stated rate, but the threshold is an important qualification.
• Plus: £11.99 a month, billed per month/location. The page shows ~~£25~~£11.99* and specifies new customers and new locations of existing customers. It adds customer spend tracking, competitor benchmarking, weekly performance reports and remote refunds. It is aimed at businesses that will use those insights and remote tools; the eligibility wording and per-location billing matter when assessing the price.
• Dojo Wired (pay monthly): £15 a month for a countertop or kiosk card machine.
• Dojo Pocket (pay monthly): £20 a month for a portable device for orders and payments.
• Dojo Go Max (pay monthly): £25 a month for card-machine hardware.
• Dojo Go Max (pay upfront): £149, paid once for card-machine hardware, shown as a launch offer (the page also shows £229).
• Dojo Wired (pay upfront): £179, paid once for a countertop or kiosk machine.
• Dojo Pocket (pay upfront): £239, paid once for a portable orders-and-payments device.

Pay-monthly hardware spreads the cost, while upfront choices require a larger one-time payment. Dojo says sign-up has no fixed contracts, and eligible businesses can choose a custom rate on either a 12-month fixed plan or a 30-day rolling plan. The custom-rate options are relevant when negotiating terms, but the shorter rolling arrangement and fixed-term choice should be weighed against a business's appetite for commitment.

Platforms

Dojo supports Android, iOS, web and API access. That combination covers mobile use, browser-based work and developer integrations, while Tap to Pay on iPhone specifically avoids buying additional payment hardware for that use case.

Who it's for

Dojo is a credible fit for cafes and other small businesses that need payment hardware, and for hospitality, leisure and service operators that benefit from tableside or counter payments, EPOS syncing and reconciliation. Its multi-location insights and range of terminals also make it worth considering as a business expands. A merchant with a narrow need for just a payment terminal, or one that cannot settle its transaction and hardware costs from the available terms, should compare alternatives before committing.

Pros and cons

Pros

• Multiple payment channels: In-person, online, phone, mobile and tableside support can serve businesses with more than one way of taking payment.
• Broad EPOS reach: Partnerships with over 450 EPOS providers and transaction syncing can reduce reconciliation friction for businesses already using compatible systems.
• Hardware choice: Countertop, portable and other card-machine options are offered with monthly and upfront payment structures.
• Useful operational tools: Sidekick combines refunds, reconciliation and real-time insights, including across locations.

Cons

• Cost is layered: A free plan can still sit alongside transaction charges or hardware payments, so the headline monthly price alone is not enough to judge total cost.
• Rate qualification matters: The stated 1.20 % per contact rate applies to annual card turnover below £100,000, limiting its relevance to higher-turnover businesses.
• Plus eligibility is narrow: The £11.99 a month price is stated for new customers and new locations of existing customers, rather than unqualified access.
• Hardware choice changes the commitment: Pay-monthly plans add a recurring charge, while upfront devices demand a larger initial outlay.

Alternatives

For restaurant-focused comparisons, browse Restaurant Payment Processing Software; for remote card-taking workflows, see Virtual Terminal Software or Payment Link Software.

• Heartland Retail is worth comparing for a freemium retail POS with a starting price of $89 a month.
• Lightspeed Restaurant is a paid restaurant POS alternative with a $69 a month Starter plan that includes menu management, floor plans, advanced insights, offline mode and 24/7 support.
• PayFacto offers customized payment solutions with custom pricing.
• SpotOn Order is a paid ordering option at $55 a month, with a $200 set up fee and features including an ordering menu page, ordering analytics and DoorDash Drive integration.
• Paybyrd offers an Essential plan at no cost for online card transactions, up to €80K / month, with APMs from €0.20 and chargebacks at €7.50 each.
• Adyen uses per-transaction pricing with no setup or monthly fees; each transaction has a fixed processing fee plus a payment-method fee, and other products are priced separately.
• TableSend is a free alternative.
• Tyro Hospitality Payments is a paid hospitality option with a Tyro Pro Lite plan that includes a 1.3% transaction fee, POS-integrated or standalone payments, a portable terminal, Wi-Fi with mobile network backup and real-time reporting.

Verdict

Choose Dojo if your business needs more than a card reader: its combination of channel coverage, terminal choices, EPOS connections and multi-location payment management is the main reason to consider it. The main reason to look elsewhere is cost clarity: transaction rates, plan eligibility and hardware payment choices all affect the final bill, so a simpler or more predictable pricing model may suit a business that wants a narrow payment setup.