Hardware and devices
Take card payments at the till with a reader
Send the amount from the till to a Stripe smart reader, the guest taps, and the payment records itself.
Updated
What you get
Your own Stripe account
Readers connect through your branch's own Stripe account, so the money and the card fees are between you and Stripe.
Tap, insert or swipe
The till sends the amount to the reader, and the guest pays on the reader.
Tips included
A tip added at the till is included in the amount sent to the reader.
Clear when it goes wrong
If the reader is offline or the connection is lost, the till says so, and says whether the card was charged.
Switched on per location
Terminal payments are an opt in for each location, so a location is never switched on by accident.
What it does
Card readers let a team take payment at the till or the table without keying in a card number. DineHarbor works with Stripe smart readers. The till tells Stripe how much to take, Stripe pushes the payment to the reader, the guest pays on the reader, and the outcome is read back and recorded against the order.
How it works
- Connect Stripe as a payment provider for the location, with your own Stripe keys.
- In the POS app, open Card readers and connect a reader with the registration code it shows.
- Take an order and choose card. The till shows Send the amount to your reader.
- The guest taps, inserts or swipes their card on the reader.
- The payment is recorded by itself. If a tip was added, it is part of the amount.
Money safety
The till never retries a charge on its own. If a request loses its connection it is resent with the same key, so Stripe returns the first payment instead of making a second. If the connection is lost mid payment, the till says it is still checking and tells you not to take the card again. A cancelled payment says nothing was charged.
Setting up
Terminal payments are switched on per location, which protects a location that only uses Stripe for online checkout. You can test with a simulated reader in test mode before buying hardware.
Fees and hardware
Card fees depend on your agreement with Stripe, and you buy the reader hardware separately. DineHarbor adds no fee to a payment. Payments on the till need a connection, so see offline mode for what to expect during an outage.
What it replaces
It replaces a separate card machine whose payments you key into the till by hand. See the POS page for the rest of the till, and printers for receipts.
Watch the video guide
Questions and answers
Which readers work?
Stripe smart readers that you register with the code shown on the reader.
What are the card fees?
They are set by your agreement with Stripe. DineHarbor adds no fee.
Can I test it?
Yes. In test mode you can add a simulated reader and simulate a tap or a declined card.
What if the reader loses its connection mid payment?
The till tells you it is still checking, and asks you not to take the card again, so a guest is not charged twice.
Related features
- Restaurant POS SystemA fast till for restaurants on tablets: search first ordering, card payments, split bills, shifts and cash up, linked to your kitchen and online orders.
- Receipt and Kitchen Printer SupportPrint receipts and kitchen tickets over Bluetooth, network or USB on standard thermal printers, with cash drawer, cutter and copies settings per printer.
- Restaurant POS That Keeps Working OfflineOrders on the till, waiter and kitchen apps are saved on the device first and sent when the connection returns. Card payments still need a connection.
- Online Ordering System for RestaurantsTake collection, delivery and table orders on your own website, with your menu, your payment provider and every order landing on the kitchen screen.
For your kind of business
- Food Truck POS and OrderingRun a food truck from a tablet and a phone: a quick till, a card reader, a QR code for your menu and orders that wait for a signal at the pitch.
- Cafe POS and Online OrderingA fast cafe till with search first ordering, stamp cards that guests keep, QR ordering at the table and orders that survive a patchy connection.
Comparisons
Read more
- How Much Does a Restaurant POS Cost in 2026?Compare restaurant POS costs, card fees, hardware, support and add ons so you can calculate the real price before choosing the right system for your venue.
- Restaurant Technology Checklist for Opening DayPlan the till, kitchen, printers, card reader, menu, ordering, delivery and reports your new restaurant needs, with important UK setup duties kept in view.