Yes, on a recent phone, through a provider that supports tap to pay. The phone becomes the contactless reader and no hardware is needed. The limits are real though: contactless only, one device, and your own phone battery carrying the day's takings. Several providers price tap to pay differently from a physical reader, so check the rate as well as the capability.
What tap to pay on a phone can and cannot do
It accepts contactless cards and phone wallets. It cannot accept a chip and PIN card, so any sale above the contactless ceiling or any card that asks for verification cannot be completed. For a market stall selling coffee that is rarely a problem; for a garage taking a 400 pound repair bill it is a lost sale every time.
What it costs
Tide prints a separate tap to pay rate in the same table as its card reader rate, and Lopay's published add-on schedule adds a per transaction charge for tap to pay on top of its account rate. So phone acceptance is not automatically the cheapest route, even though it needs no hardware. Compare the tap to pay row rather than the headline.
Practical limits nobody mentions
One phone means one queue. Staff taking payments on the owner's phone is a problem the first time somebody rings it. And a phone that dies at four o'clock takes the till with it. A reader at 11 to 39 pounds solves all three cheaply, which is why most businesses that start on a phone end up buying one anyway.
Questions people ask about can i use my phone as a card reader
Can you take card payments on your phone in the UK?
Yes, on a supported recent phone through a provider that offers tap to pay. It accepts contactless cards and wallets only, so there is no chip and PIN fallback.
Does taking payments on a phone cost more?
Sometimes. Tide prints a separate tap to pay rate, and Lopay's published schedule adds a per transaction charge for it. Check the specific row rather than assuming the account's headline rate applies.
Is a phone secure enough to take payments?
The card data is handled inside the phone's secure hardware by the provider's app, which is what the certification covers. The practical risks are operational rather than technical: one device, one battery and staff using a personal phone.