Comparison

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader vs Zulio

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader

Transform your mobile device into a complete point-of-sale system. Easily manage products, track inventory, accept various payment types, and generate real-time reports. This app is designed for businesses of all types, offering a powerful and free solution.

Highlights
  • Product management with photos and pricing
  • Inventory tracking
  • Record credit cards, cash, and checks
  • Add modifiers for restaurants
  • Set discounts on products and orders
  • Track tips and taxes
  • Real-time reports and sales history
  • Email, text, or print receipts
Read full description

Free Credit Card Reader & Point of Sale System. Transform your iPhone or iPad into a Point of Sale System (POS) and manage your retail or mobile business from anywhere.   Easily manage products and payments anywhere your business takes you. Whether you are a retail business, food truck, hair stylist, pop up business or have a restaurant, SmartSwipe is catered for any and all business types. This free card reader is powerful, and is loaded with many features. Most POS apps charge you monthly or require you to activate a merchant account to use their application, but not us! Use our app for free and we will grow with you. SIMPLE SET UP 1. Download app 2. Create a username and password 3. Start managing your business CALL 866-925-5007 for quick set up FEATURES SmartSwipe has everything you need to manage and grow your business. All features are free and we continue to add new and innovative technology. - Manage products with photos, names, and pricing – Our merchant account solutions make it easy to manage your payments. - Track inventory – With this all in one, credit card reader cum payment management app. - Record credit cards, cash and checks – Never lose track of your payments. An easy, all in one way of tracking your payments. - Add modifiers for restaurants – Payment App that allows you to label the locations. - Set discounts on products and orders – Keep your customers happier. Do more with with less charge on credit card processing fee, but also - Track tips and taxes – A full purpose solution that lets you track the tips that you receive, along with tracking the taxes. A reliable payment solution cum financial app. - Real-time reports and sales history – Quick and swift reporting, a glimpse to sales history, and much more. Now, don’t just accept payments, but manage everything right from your point of sale system app. - Email, text or print receipts – A formidable credit card reader for iPhone. With this credit card reader app, you can email, text or print receipts to anyone. https://www.merchantaccountsolutions.com/?utm_source=app&utm_campaign=APPSTORE-APPLE

About

Zulio

Empower your business to accept card payments without incurring additional costs. This app allows you to automatically include credit card fees in your pricing and offer cash discounts. Enjoy no processing fees, simple reporting, and dedicated customer support.

Highlights
  • Accept card payments
  • No processing fees
  • Auto-calculate fees
  • Offer cash discounts
  • Send invoices
  • Clean reporting
  • Personal customer support
Features
Read full description

Give customers choice in how they pay without increasing your costs. Accepting card payments using traditional processors with high fees, and complicated PCI requirements can feel unfair. You shouldn't have to pay another “gross income tax” to get paid for the work you do. Auto calculate and include the credit card fee in your regular price and offer discount for paying with cash. No Processing Fees Accept Payments Send Invoices Personal Customer Support No Annual PCI Requirements Clean reporting. Keep 100% of everything that hits your account.

Screenshots

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader4 screens
Zulio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader at 4.3 against Zulio's 3.8. SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader also leads on review sentiment (65% vs 50%) and ratings volume (45 vs 11). Zulio's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 45 and 11 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader's written reviews are positive against 50% of Zulio's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader ships an update every 2 months, Zulio every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader versus Zulio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSmartSwipe Credit Card ReaderZulio
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (45 ratings) — better3.8 (11 ratings)
Positive reviews64.5% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings45 — better11
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.4
Further details — not scored
Size31 MB62 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJohn KennedyProvident Payments Central LLC

Customer experience

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader

All ratings45 ratings
Positive82.2%
Neutral2.2%
Negative15.6%
Written reviews62 reviews
Positive64.5%
Neutral3.2%
Negative32.3%

Zulio

All ratings10 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Bugs and requests

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • App crashes
  • Card reader not reading cards
  • Email verification not sent
  • Login screen freezes
  • Demo not working initially

Requested features

4 requests
  • Support for Canadian businesses
  • Clearer contract terms
  • Improved customer service responsiveness
  • More transparent fee structure

Zulio

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader

No in-app purchases

None

Zulio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader free?
SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Zulio free?
Zulio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader or Zulio?
SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader is rated higher. SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 45 ratings, while Zulio averages 3.8 from 11 ratings.
Do SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader or Zulio have ads?
Neither SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader nor Zulio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader or Zulio?
SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader ships an update every 2 months, and Zulio every 3 weeks. Most recently, SmartSwipe Credit Card Reader was updated on October 22, 2026 and Zulio on October 24, 2026.

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