Smartpay built its Australian following on a surcharge model, where the card fee is passed to the customer and the venue can pay close to nothing. That model is directly affected by the October 2026 surcharge ban, so this is the one provider where timing matters most. Here is our honest read.
Smartpay's core proposition has been simple: pass the card fee to the customer as a surcharge, and the venue's own cost of accepting cards drops close to zero. For a lot of venues that was a genuinely attractive way to take cards without eroding margin, and the hardware and service around it are solid.
The honest complication is timing. From 1 October 2026 you cannot surcharge eftpos, Mastercard or Visa, which is the mechanism the model relied on. Smartpay and venues using it will need to adapt to a world where the fee can no longer be passed on, so anyone weighing it now should be clear on what the post ban pricing looks like rather than the surcharge era pricing.
The historic appeal: pass the card fee to the customer so the venue pays close to nothing. Directly affected by the 2026 ban.
Reliable terminals and service that venues have generally rated well.
Easy to understand while surcharging was allowed, take cards at near zero venue cost.
The key thing to confirm now: what you actually pay once surcharging ends in October 2026.
Smartpay is the one provider where the surcharge ban changes the story most directly. The model that made it attractive, passing the fee to the customer, will not be allowed on the major card types from October 2026. That does not make Smartpay a bad choice, but it does mean you must look at the post ban pricing rather than the surcharge era pricing when you compare. We can help you see that clearly.
We rate suppliers independently. We do not earn a referral fee from Smartpay. Here is the balanced picture, the good and the points to weigh up.
Smartpay now trades as Shift4 in Australia after a 2025 acquisition, with the same terminal and a changed pricing structure. Its best known plan is a surcharging model, marketed as Zero Cost, where the customer pays the card fee through a surcharge so the venue cost approaches zero. A minimum monthly fee of $100 plus GST applies across plans, and there is a separate flat rate option. With surcharging on Visa, Mastercard and EFTPOS banned from 1 October 2026, the figure that matters is what the venue pays directly afterwards. Always confirm current pricing and the post ban plan before you commit.
| Item | How it works | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Zero Cost EFTPOS | surcharge model | The card fee is passed to the customer as an automated surcharge, so the venue pays little or nothing directly. Ends with the October 2026 surcharge ban. |
| Simple Flat Rate | one rate | An alternative plan where the venue pays a single negotiated merchant service rate each month rather than surcharging. |
| Minimum monthly fee | $100 + GST | Applies across plans. If your surcharged or paid fees for the month are less, you are billed the difference. A higher low transaction fee has been reported for terminals under about $999 a month. |
| Terminal | rented | Hardware is leased, not bought. Free 4G SIM, Wi Fi or broadband connectivity. 24/7 support. |
| Contract | 90 day notice | No lock in is advertised, but a 90 day cancellation notice has been reported, so read the terms. |
Shift4 can be genuinely cheap for a venue over roughly $10,000 a month whose customers accept a surcharge, but the model rests on surcharging, which ends on 1 October 2026 for Visa, Mastercard and EFTPOS. The minimum monthly fee, the reported low transaction charge for quieter terminals, and the 90 day notice period are the things to check closely before signing, and customer reviews on billing have been mixed. The honest comparison is what you will pay directly after the ban, lined up against providers that publish a simple rate. We can model that post ban figure for you, free.
Smartpay is one option. Here is how it sits alongside the other payment providers we review, so you can weigh them side by side.
If you are on Smartpay or considering it, the October 2026 ban changes the maths. We will show you honestly what you would pay after the ban and how it compares to other providers. Free, no obligation, and we will be in touch within 48 hours.
