Zeal vs Como: loyalty on the card machine, or a branded app and POS integrations?
Como is an enterprise loyalty and customer-engagement platform for restaurant and retail chains, typically delivered through a branded app and POS integrations. Zeal takes a different route: loyalty runs as software on the payment terminal the merchant already has, so customers are recognised and rewarded during the card payment with no app, no card and no QR code. This page compares the two honestly, based on each company's public materials as of September 2026.
Print your own branded receipt
Type a company name (payment provider or merchant, either works), then keep scrolling. The card machine does the rest: your name on the screen, your receipt out of the printer, and your customer's loyalty balance already on it.
Your brand on the receipt
Works for a payment provider or a merchant. Prefer a click? Use the button.
The World's #1 VAS Solution on Payment Terminals
Where Como and Zeal differ most
The biggest difference is the enrolment step. Como relies on a branded app and POS integrations. Zeal identifies customers at the card machine without an app, so a chain gets estate-wide recognition and reporting without asking customers to download anything.
Enrolment inside the payment
With Zeal the terminal handles recognition and sign-up as part of the transaction the customer is already completing. Nothing is added to the queue and nothing is asked of the person serving, which is where most app- and tablet-based schemes lose their audience.
Hardware and setup compared
Zeal is deployed remotely to supported Android payment terminals, subject to compatibility for the model, firmware and acquirer route; no new hardware arrives and no engineer visits. Como requires a branded app and POS integrations, which means a customer-side or counter-side step that has to be maintained every day.
The card machine is the only thing every customer touches
A loyalty scheme lives or dies on how many people join it, and almost every scheme puts its hardest step first: asking a customer to do something extra while other people wait behind them.
Cards get left at home. Apps get installed once and never opened. QR codes need a phone in hand before payment rather than after. Every mechanic that depends on the customer bringing something loses most of the people it is offered to, and it loses them fastest when the business is busiest.
The card machine has none of those problems. It is already in the customer's hands, it already has their attention for a few seconds, and using it requires nothing they have not already decided to do.
So Zeal puts recognition and enrolment there. A returning customer sees their balance or reward while the payment completes. A new one can join in a couple of taps without giving an email address at the counter or downloading anything.
It also means the scheme does not depend on staff remembering to prompt for an app or a code. New starters need no training on it, and the experience is the same on a quiet Tuesday and a Saturday lunch rush.
When Como is the better choice
Como suits multi-site chains with an app strategy and the resources to run an integrated engagement programme.
If that describes your business, Como may be the right tool. We would rather you pick the platform that fits than switch twice.
When Zeal is the better choice
If most of your customers pay by card at a counter, and you want loyalty that every one of them can join without being asked to do anything, Zeal is built for exactly that moment.
Because a redemption is a real card transaction rather than a click, the reporting describes visits and takings, which is the kind of information an owner or a payment provider can act on.
Data, ownership and your payment provider
Zeal runs alongside the payment application on the terminal. It does not process payments, and it does not change who acquires for you, how you are priced or how you are settled. The merchant owns its customer data.
Switching from Como to Zeal does not require replacing your card machine if it is a supported Android terminal. Compatibility depends on the model, firmware, payment application and acquirer route, which is the first thing we check.
Comparison at a glance
Customer app required: Como yes, Zeal no. Extra counter hardware: Como yes (a branded app and POS integrations), Zeal no. Runs on existing card machine: Como no, Zeal yes on supported Android terminals. Enrolment moment: Como before or after payment, Zeal during payment. Works across acquirers: Zeal yes. Last verified: September 2026 from public materials; tell us if anything has changed.
What Zeal will not do
It will not bring back a customer who did not enjoy the visit; loyalty rewards intent that already exists. It only reaches people who pay by card, so a cash-heavy business sees a smaller audience. And it will not replace an online ordering or email marketing tool if that is what you actually need.
Zeal vs Como questions
Can I move from Como to Zeal?
Yes. Tell us what is on your counter and who acquires for you and we will confirm whether the terminal is supported. Existing Como customers do not need to re-register; they are recognised the next time they pay by card.
Does the customer need to download an app?
No. Everything happens on the terminal during the payment. There is no app, no plastic card and no code to scan, which is the whole reason enrolment holds up instead of tailing off after the first month.
Can I run Como and Zeal together?
Some merchants keep Como for the channel it serves best and use Zeal for walk-in card payments. Whether that makes sense depends on where your customers actually are; we will tell you if running both is unnecessary.
Do I have to change payment provider?
No. Zeal sits alongside the payment application rather than replacing it, so your acquirer, your rates and your settlement stay as they are. What matters is whether your terminal is supported.
If you are comparing Como and Zeal, the fastest way to decide is to tell us what is on your counter. Give us the make of your card machine and your provider, and we will tell you whether it can run Zeal.
See if Zeal runs on my terminal
Activating Zeal on your card machines is a breeze
Choose your integration path
Connect host-to-host through our APIs or embed the on-terminal SDK. You get a sandbox, an integration guide and a reference implementation from day one.
Share your estate details
Send your merchant data file with TIDs, MIDs and terminal models. We prepare signed builds for each terminal type, with release notes and a rollback plan.
Pilot, then roll out
We prove the experience on a pilot cohort with hands-on support, then deploy remotely across your estate through your TMS. No hardware changes, no engineer visits.
Go live and activate
Your merchants get onboarding flows, training material and ready-made campaign templates for their first 90 days, and you track activation and usage by cohort.
This is how we’re revolutionising payments for our partners
See what Zeal delivers in the field. Our partners earn new revenue from their terminal estates, and their merchants get customer identification, loyalty and insight at the point of payment.
Merchants run Zeal on the card machines they already own.
More repeat visits for restaurants running loyalty on Zeal.
Customer profiles created for merchants using Zeal.
Don’t take our word for it
Manos Perdikaris
Business Unit Manager
Jean-Philippe Niedergang
CCO and CEO of EMEA Region
Boris Ferlet
SVP, Android & Partner Ecosystem
Ahmed Hanafi
Founder & CEO
Mostafa Al Sagheer
CEO
Zeal has flexible pricing to fit your business needs
Every agreement is shaped with your commercial team: revenue share on a joint go-to-market, or an annual licence across your MIDs.
Revenue share or annual licence
One integration, two commercial models. Partner on revenue share, where Zeal goes to market inside your merchant proposition and we share the value-added services revenue it creates. Or license annually, a fixed yearly fee that activates Zeal across the MIDs you nominate, with predictable costs from day one.
Enable your card machines to:
Identify customers and offer exclusive rewards
Offer zero-friction card-linked loyalty
Showcase merchant branding and collect feedback
Provide merchants with powerful analytics
Provide you with powerful customer behaviour insights
Want to learn more?
Frequently asked questions
Zeal transforms your card machines into intelligent customer engagement tools, enabling real-time customer insights, visibility over in-store customers, and frictionless loyalty programmes for your merchants.
By integrating Zeal, you open new revenue streams through value-added services, differentiate your offering in a competitive market, and significantly boost merchant retention.
Zeal enables your card machines to identify customers through their payment cards, recognising employees, airline passengers, or telecom customers at the point of sale. This allows you to offer tailored rewards linked to existing corporate benefits or loyalty programmes. With Zeal, you can strengthen strategic partnerships and drive higher transaction volumes for your merchants.
Yes. Zeal is fully compliant with PCI DSS, GDPR, and follows industry best practices for data protection and security. Our technology is designed with privacy and compliance at its core.
Zeal is also recognised by industry leaders such as Visa and Ingenico, and has trusted partners worldwide, reinforcing our commitment to innovation, reliability, and global scalability.
Choose your integration path (host-to-host API or on-terminal SDK), share your merchant data file with TIDs, MIDs and terminal models, and we handle the rest: signed builds, a supported pilot, then remote deployment across your estate through your TMS.
Zeal is card machine-agnostic and works with all devices, both Android models and older Linux-based ones. We support all manufacturers including Ingenico, PAX, Castles, Verifone, Aisino and others, allowing you to activate Zeal across all your existing hardware with ease.
Yes. Zeal is built for global scalability and there are active card machines with Zeal in multiple markets globally. With multilingual support, regional compliance, and flexible integration options, Zeal can be activated anywhere, enabling consistent value-added services for your merchants worldwide.