myPOS Ireland review: card terminals with plenty of online account features

Our opinion: products have improved

myPOS is great for instant access to funds, a commitment-free business account and mobile card processing on the go. The system allows you to transfer money internationally in multiple currencies, distribute business debit cards to staff and process payments through a multichannel solution.

The card machines are for straightforward transactions, with the added benefit of working in all EEA countries and the UK for the same consumer Visa and Mastercard fee. If you’re trading across the border as well as domestically, it could therefore be your go-to card solution.

“We love the new myPOS Go 2 – a step up from the old card reader that looked and felt like a basic calculator. In our tests, it works well and feels ergonomic with its push-button PIN pad. Getting it with the receipt printer is a tad expensive, though.”

– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, MobileTransaction

The latest Go and Pro terminals are great quality and look smart like other market-leading card machines. They come with enough features for on-the-go transactions in different trades and situations.

That being said, we’ve seen mixed reviews about the service, and the hidden costs of payouts, transfers and miscellaneous things like SEPA Direct Debits and cash withdrawals can make it more expensive than small-business alternatives like SumUp.

The fact that you have to close the account to avoid excessive inactivity fees is another minus, as it makes myPOS not totally commitment-free. It is, however, a potentially valuable service with many tools to draw from.

Bottom line: Ideal for those who need a mobile card machine connected to an online business account with instant access to funds.

Mobile terminals for independent use, with a few extras

myPOS Ireland currently sells these models:

• myPOS Go 2
• myPOS Go Combo
• myPOS Pro

They all connect with 4G with the help of a free SIM card that includes unlimited data, valid across the EU and UK. This makes them great if you travel a lot and frequently need to take payments in other countries, for example Northern Ireland. If mobile connectivity is not an option, they all connect with WiFi.

If you’re looking to accept just simple payments, i.e. manually entering the card total to process, we found the terminals quite sufficient in our tests. Features include tipping, multiple staff accounts and customised receipts.

For the most point of sale (POS) features, we recommend the Pro terminal that has free POS register software built in. Here, you can add products to an inventory library, track stock levels, set discounts and more directly on the touchscreen. We didn’t find it as advanced as tablet-based POS systems, but it does the trick for e.g. table-service staff and corner shops.

The myPOS Go 2 card reader, on the other hand, performs more basic functions like accepting chip, contactless and swipe cards. It’s white with a small (but colour) display. While most other card readers in Ireland now have a touchscreen or flat PIN pad, we like that myPOS Go stands out with its ergonomic push-button PIN pad that’s better suited for some people with e.g. visual impairments.

And myPOS Go 2 is the cheapest independently-working card reader in Ireland that doesn’t require a Bluetooth connection with a smartphone to function. This alone is a top factor for many merchants we come across.

myPOS Pro has a built-in receipt printer, while myPOS Go 2 only sends receipts via text or email. Go’s lack of receipt printing enables it to be smaller and lighter than Pro.

If you want to print receipts with Go 2, you should buy the myPOS Go Combo package which has a charging-and-printing dock included alongside a Go 2 terminal. This is considerably pricier than the card reader on its own, but it looks and works well on a countertop.

The Pro terminal can sell mobile top-ups and issue gift cards, and even Go 2 comes with useful features like preauthorisation and payment links. There is also a myPOS app for your phone where you can monitor sales remotely, manage your myPOS accounts, and more.

“I’d only mostly myPOS card machines independently of a stationary point of sale system, because that’s what they’re best for with their versatile features. If you’re looking for a full-fledged POS system, there are cheaper card processors out there.”

– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, MobileTransaction

For more complex features, you can integrate Pro with POS systems through APIs and SDKs (the myPOS website gives technical information on setting it up).

Signing up takes some effort

Getting started with myPOS is done in three steps (if all goes well). First, you go to the website, click “sign up” and complete the required details like company and director information, ownership structure and projected turnover. You then receive a 4-digit code via a text message to enter on the sign-up form.

After submitting all this, you get an email about the next step: identity verification. A 5-minute video call with a myPOS team member is required, along with proof of ID and documents to verify your identity. This, myPOS says, is a requirement from the EU Fourth Money Laundering Directive, which – maybe because the devices by default work across Europe – they need to comply with.

“SumUp and other payment companies haven’t typically got myPOS’s lengthy verification process – perhaps because their card readers by default only work within the country of registration.”

– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, MobileTransaction

After the video identification, you will receive confirmation within 8 business hours of whether you can proceed with the application. Then you are required to provide legal documents to verify your company’s identity. The type of documents will depend on your company.

Only after these submissions have been accepted do we recommend purchasing a card machine, since some businesses will be rejected if they do not fit in with the accepted business models.

It is cheapest to buy a terminal on myPOS’s own website. Sometimes, you can find them in other shops too, like Desertcart in Ireland.

Fees not entirely simple

In some regards, myPOS has simple fees. They have no monthly costs and seemingly “no hidden fees”, but if you buy into the service expecting to receive transactions in your bank account, you’ve got another think coming.

Their advertised transaction fee is 1.69% + €0.05, but this applies only to consumer Visa, Mastercard, V Pay and Maestro cards issued in Ireland, elsewhere in the EEA or the UK. American Express cards cost 2.49% + € 0.05 to process. All other cards cost 2.89% + €0.05, including JCB, UnionPay, Bancontact, commercial and non-EEA and non-UK debit and credit cards that are not Amex.

UK-issued cards are grouped into the non-EEA category of fees for remote and online transactions (which have higher fees, as seen in table above), whereas UK cards incur the EEA (lower) fees for chip and contactless card payments through a terminal.

In contrast to other mobile card machines in Ireland, you have to pay a transfer fee to pay out money from the myPOS E-money Account to a bank account. Settlement is not automatic, but it is instant (or up to 2 hours in the slower cases) when you submit the transfer to an Irish bank account.

If your account has been inactive for ten months, a monthly charge of €15 + €30 is taken until your next myPOS transaction. In other words, you can’t just open a myPOS account and leave it unused indefinitely without paying something eventually.

Apart from the above-mentioned fees, there are several other fees specific to international money transfers, myPOS Business Card use and more. And let’s not forget the €5 + VAT shipping charge on all myPOS card machines.

myPOS account and Business Visa cards

Merchants operating internationally will like that myPOS works through a “merchant account” – which is an e-money/online account – with its own IBAN. (Note: The myPOS merchant account is different from a traditional merchant account purely for card processing purposes.)

In fact, you can create multiple currency accounts in the online dashboard, sort of like different virtual wallets for designated currencies. This allows you to transfer foreign currencies across the border without paying currency conversion fees (if the recipient has the same currency as the one you send).

The e-money account is where your money goes immediately after accepting a card payment on a card machine, and where the money stays and can be spent in stores with the complimentary myPOS Business Mastercard.

myPOS’s free Business Mastercard.

This is great if you’re happy using the e-money account as your main business account and the myPOS Business Card for spending. But if you need to transfer money to a bank account, it costs €3 per transfer to an Irish bank account, and by default, you do these transfers manually. There is, however, an option to schedule automatic or mass transfers.

The first card is free, after which you can buy extra ones (€5 each) for e.g. employees. This is a great way to manage expenses, as you can set spending limits and get push notifications for transactions. The cards can be used for cash withdrawals.

The account and card are integrated with the POS terminals, enabling a complete and real-time sales overview in your web- or app-based dashboard.

If a Standard (free) myPOS Business Card is too basic for your needs, you can subscribe to a Premium (€8.90 monthly) or Metal (€15.90 monthly) type of card that can be added to your Google Pay wallet. These come with extras like 2-3 free cash withdrawals per month, higher spending limits and free reissuing.

Online and remote payments

myPOS has in recent years added a plethora of online payment methods that don’t have monthly fees, just pay-as-you-go transaction fees. This makes myPOS a direct competitor to Square and SumUp that also offers multichannel payment tools for no monthly cost, in additional to in-person card machines.

You can send payment links and electronic (email) invoices from the online account in the myPOS app or browser dashboard. There is also a website builder with a choice of online store templates, making it easy to start an online business.

If eligible, you can have the myPOS Virtual Terminal activated in the account for Mail Order and Telephone Order (MOTO) payments. This is also accessible on any device – whether desktop, tablet or smartphone – and employee permissions can be set so only some team members can access the virtual terminal.

As with card machine payments, online and remote transactions are immediately settled in your myPOS account.

Who is it best for?

Rocky startups and low-volume merchants prioritising instant access to money – whether through card or cash – might prefer myPOS.

The myPOS business model is centred around the e-money account making things easy for multichannel businesses. If you’re happy either using this as your main business account for money processing or paying settlement fees, myPOS could be an effective, contract-free solution for you.

The terminals meet the needs of those who just need to get paid in person, simply and anywhere. This makes it suitable for street vendors and small food-and-drink outlets. If you need more features, myPOS Pro can utilise third-party apps, provided they are developed for myPOS and made for Android.

Customer service and myPOS Ireland reviews

Judging by customer reviews, it’s hit-and-miss how good your experience of myPOS’s customer service will be. Some countries have no phone number to call, but in Ireland, there is a 24/7 customer support line on hand when you need it.

We have seen more user reviews mentioning myPOS’s requests for additional documentation to verify certain payments than we have for other providers, so it appears you can expect them to take more anti-fraud precautions than other payment companies.

According to myPOS, they are following the same European laws as any other payment provider, but at least during the sign-up process, they are asking for more proof and documentation than other Ireland-based payment providers.

An example of more paperwork is account holds. Some users have entered into ongoing communication loops with myPOS who requested documentation and proof to verify payments, and sometimes it appears the merchant ends up not getting the money (though it’s hard to tell if the user really did provide the correct details). There have also been reports of merchants whose accounts were shut down due to myPOS not accepting their business type, even though it was accepted during the application.