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In-Person Payments

Quickstart for terminal payments, covering prerequisites, hardware options, and affiliate key requirements.

You can accept card payments using SumUp’s platform accompanied by our proprietary Card Terminals available in these European countries, Brazil, Chile, and the USA. You can offer a complete user journey through the payment flow with our SDK or approach a lightweight integration with our API, using the SumUp app to execute payments.

The Card Terminals allow complete flexibility as they are not assigned to individual accounts. Once connected to a merchant account, the card terminals lock to specific countries and currencies. This applies to test accounts, which are for testing integrations and do not process transactions.

You are now ready to integrate SumUp payment capabilities into your app, provided you have a SumUp card terminal: SumUp Air, SumUp Air Lite, SumUp Top/PIN+, SumUp 3G, SumUp Total, SumUp Super, SumUp On, or SumUp Air Register.

To test SumUp APIs and tools without involving real money, use a test account. Create one from your Dashboard account as follows.

  1. Log in to your SumUp account.

  2. Open the drop-down menu between Support and your user panel.

  3. Select Test Account. Your merchant account is now in test mode.

A screenshot of the account selection dropdown in the SumUp dashboard with the test account highlighted with red circle
A screenshot of the account selection dropdown in the SumUp dashboard with the test account highlighted with red circle

With your test account, begin making API calls with real data. Test accounts do not process transactions with real funds. The test account has a different ID and displays a clear warning. Requests with a value of 11 (in any currency) always fail by design, to test failed transaction scenarios.

A screenshot of the dashboard with test account selected
A screenshot of the dashboard with test account selected

When finished experimenting with the test account, switch back to a regular account for business purposes.

All card-present integrations require an Affiliate Key. Read the Affiliate Keys Guide for details.

SumUp merchants operate in various industry segments, and our card terminals accommodate a wide range of use cases and business approaches. The following outlines the most common segments and the key benefits merchants report:

  • Retail businesses and services
  • The hospitality industry, specifically restaurants, cafés, and bars
  • Transportation and delivery services
  • Booking for Health, Beauty, and Wellness

Integration options through the Payment SDK and API, plus the full API reference, support other industries’ needs.

The SDK and API Switch handle all communication with SumUp’s Card Terminal(s) via Bluetooth (BLE 4.0).

No sensitive data passes through or stores on the merchant’s phone. The card terminal encrypts all data and holds certifications from relevant payment industry groups (PCI, EMV I & II, Visa, MasterCard, and Amex).