Dojo

Overview

Dojo combines card payment services, terminals and business-management tools for merchants taking payments in person, online or by phone. It is best suited to hospitality, leisure and service businesses that need more than a standalone card reader. Its range of payment channels and EPOS connections is a strength, but the total cost depends on transaction rates, hardware and the tools a business chooses.

Dojo serves businesses from cafes and other small operators to expanding enterprises. Its Sidekick tools bring payments, refunds, reconciliation and real-time insights together, including across multiple locations, which makes the offer more compelling for operators coordinating sites than for businesses seeking only basic payment acceptance.

Key features

• Payments across channels: Dojo supports card-present, online, tableside and mobile payments, as well as payments by phone. Payment links and native-currency payments add options for remote and varied-currency transactions, though the listed features depend on plan.
• Merchant tools: Sidekick covers payment management, refunds, reconciliation and business insights. The pricing page also includes digital and printed receipts, bill splitting, cashback, tipping and pre-authorisations among plan features. This breadth suits businesses with varied checkout needs; buyers should match the plan to the features they actually need.
• EPOS and integrations: Dojo says it partners with over 450 EPOS providers and syncs card-machine transactions with EPOS systems for reconciliation. Integrated payments support Pay at Table and Pay at Counter, useful for hospitality workflows. APIs cover online payments and EPOS integrations, while mobile integration documentation and a prebuilt checkout page give developers additional routes to connect payments.
• Security and support: 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 advertises 99.99% uptime and says customers can reach a UK-based person within minutes; its UK team can remotely access a device to help. Integrated payments include seven-day technical support from 8am to 11pm.

Pricing

Dojo uses a freemium model, but the zero-price software options do not make payment acceptance or hardware cost-free in every case. The listed transaction rate and device charges matter when comparing the headline monthly prices.

• Essential: free per month/location, with core tools, all major card types, real-time transactions and easy PCI-compliance. This is the no-monthly-charge starting point, but it does not remove the transaction rate or any hardware costs.
• Tap to Pay on iPhone: free, with no contract, lets users take contactless payments with an iPhone and Dojo app without extra hardware. It is the leanest hardware option, but is specific to iPhone-based contactless acceptance.
• Transaction rate below £100,000 annual card turnover: 1.20 % per contact, an all-in blended rate for all card transactions for businesses below that annual turnover. Smaller-volume businesses can see a stated rate, though this price does not describe the costs of hardware or additional tools.
• Plus: £11.99 a month per month/location. The page shows ~~£25~~ £11.99* for new customers and new locations of existing customers. It adds customer spend tracking, competitor benchmarking, weekly performance reports and remote refunds, making it more useful to businesses seeking analysis and remote management than Essential.
• 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. Monthly device charges suit businesses preferring not to pay the listed upfront amounts.
• Upfront hardware: Dojo Go Max costs £149, paid once, with a launch offer (the page also shows £229); Dojo Wired costs £179, paid once for a countertop or kiosk machine; Dojo Pocket costs £239, paid once for a portable orders-and-payments device. Upfront payment avoids an ongoing device charge but requires more initial spending.

Dojo says sign-up has no fixed contracts, while eligible businesses can choose a custom rate on either a 12-month fixed plan or a 30-day rolling plan. The choice between those terms matters for businesses weighing rate certainty against flexibility.

Platforms

Dojo is available on Android, iOS and web, and provides API access for integrations. Its iPhone Tap to Pay option is explicitly tied to an iPhone and the Dojo app; businesses choosing another setup can consider the listed card machines and payment integrations.

Who it's for

Dojo is a strong candidate for cafes, hospitality venues and other leisure or service businesses that need in-person, tableside and remote payment options alongside reconciliation. Multi-location operators may particularly value Sidekick's cross-site insights, and businesses already using an EPOS provider may benefit from transaction syncing. A merchant looking only for a single basic reader, or one that needs a clear combined price before choosing tools and hardware, may find the tiered choices less direct.

Pros and cons

• Pro: Supports in-person, online, phone, mobile and tableside payment, giving merchants several channels within one payment service.
• Pro: Sidekick combines refunds, reconciliation and real-time insights, including for multiple locations, which can help operators manage payments beyond the checkout.
• Pro: More than 450 EPOS partnerships and transaction syncing give businesses a broad integration route for reconciliation.
• Con: Device charges, transaction rates and plan-dependent tools mean the zero-price plans are not a complete guide to operating cost.
• Con: Hardware offers a choice of monthly or upfront payment, but buyers must select among distinct device types and costs to match their setup.

Alternatives

Consider Heartland Retail if you want a freemium alternative with Android, iOS, web and API platforms; its Retail POS starting price is $89 a month. TableSend is a free, web-based alternative. Choose PayFacto if you want customized payment solutions with pricing by sales quote. DISH Payment Solutions is another paid option, available on web, Android and iOS.

Lightspeed Restaurant may suit buyers seeking a paid restaurant POS with a listed Starter plan at $69 a month, including a customizable POS, menu manager, floor plans, Advanced Insights, offline mode and 24/7 support. Olo Pay is another paid, web-based option. For a pay-at-table alternative, consider QikServe Pay at Table. qlub offers a paid service with a free trial, plus a qlub+ membership at 15 AED a month that can be cancelled anytime and offers discounts at participating UAE restaurants.

For focused comparisons, browse Restaurant Payment Processing Software, Virtual Terminal Software and Payment Link Software.

Verdict

Choose Dojo if your business needs flexible payment channels, card-machine options and reconciliation tools that can serve multiple locations, especially alongside an EPOS system. Its combination of Sidekick, integrations and payment methods is the central reason to choose it. Look elsewhere if you need one simple, fully predictable total price upfront: transaction processing, software choices and hardware costs must be considered together.