Square POS pricing is straightforward, designed to be transparent and accessible for small and medium-sized businesses.
Square’s pricing offers an affordable entry-level option for the smallest type of retailer and scales up from there. However, merchants must also consider hardware costs, additional features, and payment processing fees.
In this post, we’ll break down Square’s pricing key components to help you determine whether it’s the right fit for your business.
We’ll also introduce you to Square POS alternatives so you can decide which one is right for your business.
Square Pricing Plan: At a Glance
Square Plan | Subscription Price | Transaction Fees | Benefits |
Square for Retail | Free: $0/mo per location Plus: $89/mo per location Premium: Custom Pricing | 2.6% + $0.10 -2.9% + $0.30 per transaction |
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Square for Restaurants | Free: $0/mo per location Plus: $69/mo per location Premium: $165 | 2.6% + $0.10 -2.9% + $0.30 per transaction |
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Square Appointments | Free (Individual): $0/mo per location Plus: $29/mo per location Premium: $69/ per location | 2.6% + $0.10 -2.9% + $0.30 per transaction |
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Additional Costs | Square payroll: $35/mo | 3.5% + $0.15 for manually keyed-in transactions |
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Monthly Subscription Costs of Square POS
Square POS offers a range of pricing options depending on your business type and needs. The core Square POS software is free. Square POS offers three specialized plans for businesses: Square for Retail, Square for Restaurants, and Square Appointments.
Square for Retail
Its most popular software, Square Retail offers a Free plan with essential tools for automatically creating items and editing product options, a Plus plan at $89 per month (per location) for advanced inventory management, and a Premium plan with custom pricing based on your business needs. The Premium plan includes one-on-one onboarding support. Custom processing rates are available when you contact sales.
Square for Restaurants
Square’s restaurant solution includes a Free plan for basic features, a Plus plan at $69 per month (per location) for more in-depth order and menu management, and a Premium plan with $165 per month per location, ideal for multi-location setups. Square is considered one of the best pos systems for restaurants.
Square Appointments
This subscription is designed for service-based businesses. It has a Free plan for individuals, a Plus plan at $29 per month for multiple calendars, and a Premium plan at $69 per month, which adds advanced management features for larger teams.
These are just the monthly subscription fees. You’ll also need to pay for hardware and transaction fees. The total cost of using Square POS will depend on your specific business needs and transaction volume.
Square Payment Processing Fees
Square POS charges a flat fee for each transaction, depending on the type of payment processed. Square’s payment processing fees are relatively straightforward, thought they can be quite expensive for merchants that have a large transaction volume.
Read below for more details:
In-person payments
The fee applies at 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction when you accept payments in person using one of Square’s hardware devices(using Square Reader, Terminal, or Register). It’s ideal for retail businesses, restaurants, and service providers that process face-to-face transactions.
Check out the guide below if you’re interested in learning more about some of the cheapest credit card processing companies.
Payment processors
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Online payments
Processing online is slightly more expensive at 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction through Square Online Store or eCommerce integrations. These fees apply to online transactions, including those made through Square’s eCommerce platform, integrations with other online stores, or invoices sent via Square.
Manually keyed-in payments
As with any processor, manually keying in card information is the most costly for merchants. Square charges 3.5% + $0.15 per transaction. When you manually enter card details for a sale (e.g., phone orders or invoice payments), the fees are slightly higher due to the increased risk of fraud.
ACH bank transfers
At just 1% per transaction, with a minimum of $1, ACH payments offer a cost-effective alternative to card payments, especially for larger transactions. However, these payments may take a few days to process and are not realistic to use at a standard retail checkout.
Afterpay installments
Square also offers a buy-now-pay-later option with rates at 6% + $0.30 per transaction. Using solutions such as Afterpay will always result in higher processing fees.
High-Volume Transaction Processing
You may be able to negotiate custom rates with Square if your business qualifies as an enterprise-level account, typically processing over $250,000 annually.
Find out how much you’re spending.
Square POS Hardware Pricing
Square offers merchants several simple hardware options, including both a la carte and bundled sets. Using a simple iPad checkout system is cost-effective but comes with several performance limitations.
Square POS Terminal Cost
Source: Square Hardware
The Square Terminal is an all-in-one device that is a sleek mini POS terminal with a built-in card reader and touchscreen display, making it ideal for mobile businesses and transactions.
Priced at $299, the Terminal offers a compact, portable solution for handling payments, printing receipts, and processing refunds. Businesses looking for a simple and effective POS option often find the Square Terminal to be a great fit, given its reasonable cost and basic functionality.
Square POS Card Reader Cost
The Square Reader for magstripe is free with sign-up (Square makes money off of the processing fees), while the Square Reader for contactless and chip payments is priced at $49.
The latter enables both chip and contactless payments and pairs seamlessly with mobile devices, making it ideal for quick and secure transactions. This affordability and versatility make Square’s card readers popular among small businesses.
Square Hardware Bundles
While the Terminal and the Reader are adequate for the simple types of small businesses, most retailers need something with a bit more functionality. Square’s iPad bundles are the most popular option for these types of needs.
Square offers hardware bundles that combine essential components for streamlined POS setups. The Square Register Kit costs about $799 and includes the Square Register, a receipt printer, and a cash drawer.
Another popular bundle, the Square Stand Restaurant Kit, priced at $1,089, includes an iPad stand, cash drawer, and receipt printer tailored for restaurant businesses.
These bundles are cost-effective options for businesses needing multiple hardware items for a complete POS setup.
Square iPad Stand Cost
Source: Square iPad Stand
Square also offers a simple stand for it’s iPad terminals. Square’s iPad Stand costs around $149 and transforms an iPad into a full POS setup, keeping the device stable and accessible. It includes a built-in card reader for magstripe, chip, and contactless payments, adding versatility and convenience.
Perfect for countertop use, the stand works well for businesses looking to utilize an iPad as a main POS device.
Square POS Extra Features Pricing
For businesses requiring more advanced features, Square POS offers a suite of additional features designed to streamline business operations and enhance customer engagement.
These extra tools help businesses manage finances, accept payments remotely, and build stronger customer relationships.
Square Loyalty
Square’s loyalty solution starts at $45/mo per location and enables businesses to set up loyalty programs to reward repeat customers.
Square Loans
Square offers financing options through its Square Loans program, allowing eligible businesses to access funds quickly to support growth, manage cash flow, or cover unexpected expenses. Loan amounts are based on a business’s sales history with Square, and repayment is automatically deducted as a percentage of daily sales, ensuring flexible repayment terms.
This is comparable to cash advances and the loans come with a fixed fee between 10 and 20% of the value of the loan rather than an interest rate on each monthly payment.
Virtual Terminal
The Virtual Terminal feature allows businesses to accept payments over the phone or by manually entering credit card information from any internet-enabled device. It is particularly useful for service-based businesses or those that take orders remotely. No additional hardware is required, and all transactions are securely processed through Square.
Square’s Virtual Terminal rates are the same as their keyed-in rates: 3.5% + $0.15 per transaction.
Customer Directory
Square’s Customer Directory is free and helps businesses build and manage a centralized database of customer profiles. It automatically saves customer information like purchase history, contact details, and feedback, allowing for personalized marketing and improved customer service.
Text Message Marketing
With Square’s Text Message Marketing, businesses can easily connect with customers via SMS to promote sales, special offers, and events. It allows quick setup of automated campaigns, personalized messages, and scheduling of text blasts. It also provides analytics to track engagement and effectiveness.
Pricing for Square’s Text Message Marketing is $10/mo plus an additional amount based on the total number of messages sent. This structure is outlined below:
- 1-250 text messages per month: $20
- 251 – 500 text messages per month: $25
- 501 – 1,000 text messages per month: $35
- 1,001 – 5,000 text messages per month: $60
- 5,001 – 15,000 text messages per month: $130
- 15,001 – 25,000 text messages per month: $195
- 25,001 – 50,000 text messages per month: $385
- 50,001 – 75,000 text messages per month: $570
- 75,001 – 100,000 text messages per month: $760
- 100,001 – 150,000 text messages per month: $1,135
- 150,001 – 200,000 text messages per month: $1,510
- 200,001 – 300,000 text messages per month: $2,260
- 300,001 – 400,000 text messages per month: $3,010
- $400,001 – 500,000 text messages per month: $3,760
- More than 500,000 text messages per month: Contact Square
Email Marketing
Square offers email marketing as another important feature in its suite of marketing tools. It includes unlimited email sends, POS integration, prebuilt campaign templates, and coupon redemption.
Pricing is $15 per month plus an additional monthly fee based on the number of customer contacts. These details are outlined below:
- 1 – 500: $15
- 501 – 1,000 – $30
- 1,001 – 2,000 – $40
- 2,001 – 4,000 – $55
- 4,001 – 9,000 – $90
- 9,001 – 15,000 – $150
- 15,001 – 30,000 – $225
- 30,001 – 50,000 – $350
- 50,001 – 75,000 – $425
- More than 75,000 – Contact Square
Square Payroll
Square Payroll simplifies employee management by handling payroll processing, tax calculations, and filing. Square Appointment provides a native employee scheduling software. It supports hourly and salaried employees and contractors and offers direct deposits, automatic tax withholding, and timecard integration features. Square Payroll is a comprehensive solution that ensures compliance with labor laws and tax regulations.
Square offers two different payment options for its Payroll feature:
- Full-service payroll: $35/mo plus a $6 monthly fee per person paid
- Contractor-only payroll: $6/mo per person paid
Square POS Customer Reviews
Square is easy to set up, offers seamless invoicing capabilities, and allows users to accept payments through various methods. However, it’s not without its drawbacks, particularly regarding transaction fees and unexpected account holds.
Positive Reviews
Many users commend Square POS. Square’s hardware is praised for its plug-and-play functionality. The consistent software-hardware integration ensures a smooth experience, even on mobile devices. Here are other pros of using Square:
- Easy to use: Square’s setup is incredibly straightforward, with a clean interface that’s perfect for beginners
- Efficient invoicing: Creating and sending invoices is quick, allowing easy payment collection via email
- Flexible payment options: Supports multiple hardware and payment methods.
Complaints
According to Square reviews on Software Advice, some users have experienced issues with system updates that change the layout and disrupt workflows. Another common complaint is the occasional delays due to random account reviews, which can temporarily restrict access to funds. Here are other negative reviews about Square:
- Frequent updates: Mandatory updates often change settings locations, causing inconvenience for regular users
- Account holds: Occasional random checks can lead to temporary bans on withdrawing funds, impacting cash flow
- High transaction fees: Processing fees can be high, especially for businesses handling large transactions
Square POS Alternatives and Competitors
POS System | Best For | Transaction and Processing Fees | Software Plan | Benefits |
 KORONA POS | Retail stores, vape shops, liquor stores, quick-service restaurants | Processing-agnostic; fees depend on the integrated payment processor | Starts at $59/month (no additional transaction fees) | Unlimited free trial, customizable reporting, processing flexibility, inventory management, 24/7 support |
 Lightspeed POS | Retail and restaurant businesses | 2.6% + 10¢ per in-person transaction; 2.9% + 30¢ online | Starts at $69/month | Advanced inventory management, multi-location support, customizable eCommerce platform, 24/7 support |
 Shopify POS | eCommerce retailers with physical stores | Card rates start at 2.9% + 30¢ online, and 2.6% + 10¢ USD in person | Starts at $32/month;Advanced plan at $339/month | Seamless online-to-offline integration, centralized inventory, social media selling, built-in payment gateway |
 Toast POS | Full-service restaurants and bars | - | Starts at $0/month- Custom Pricing | Industry-specific features, menu management, built-in payroll, online ordering, extensive hardware options |
 Clover POS | Small to medium-sized businesses | 2.3% + 10¢ (in-person); 3.5% + 10¢ (keyed-in transactions) | Starts at $0/month (payments only); Essentials plan at $14.95/month | Easy setup, versatile hardware options, built-in payment processor, loyalty programs, integrations with 200+ apps |
Square POS Overall Review
Square POS is ideal for small to medium-sized businesses, including retail shops, restaurants, and service-based industries like salons and appointment-based businesses. It’s easy to use and provides seamless integration with Square’s payment processing.
One of the key advantages of Square POS is transparent pricing. Businesses can start with a free plan and upgrade as needed. The system is also highly flexible, with hardware options ranging from mobile card readers to full-fledged registers.
However, some drawbacks include limited customization for larger enterprises, occasional fund holds for high-risk transactions, and higher fees for manually keyed-in payments. Overall, it’s a cost-effective, user-friendly solution for small businesses. Square isn’t ideal for certain businesses like high-risk retail businesses (Liquor stores, vape, and smoke shops, convenience stores, etc)
KORONA POS: A Popular Alternative to Square
KORONA POS offers a range of features that make it ideal for retail stores, from its intuitive interface to its sophisticated feature set. Some of the most noteworthy features of KORONA POS include the following:
Automatic Minimum and Maximum Inventory Levels
Most point of sale software enables manual inventory replenishment. If you have close to 1000 products, this process can take hours. On the other hand, KORONA POS helps you streamline this process with its auto-stock replenishment feature, saving you a whole lot of time and labor.
Processing-agnostic
KORONA POS is processing-agnostic, meaning merchants have the freedom and flexibility of using any payment processor with their POS. It’s particularly ideal for vape shops, liquor stores, and other businesses that need flexibility in their payment options.
Security
KORONA POS has strict security protocols, including regular vulnerability penetration testing and encrypting all payment data according to industry standards (PCI-DSS). You can also set up two-factor authentication in KORONA Studio.
With Square POS, you are at greater risk of being scammed. Most of Square POS’s consumer support is done via email. You may receive suspicious emails claiming a problem with depositing funds or asking for personal details with clickable links containing malware.
Flexible Integrations
KORONA POS also offers seamless integrations into various online platforms, like eCommerce and loyalty software, so merchants can manage online and offline operations from a unified point of sale system. An open API means that any retailer can easily build custom integrations into the platform.
Real-Time Inventory Tracking
With robust inventory tracking, you can always stay on top of your store’s inventory levels and be sure that you have the right amount on hand without worrying about overstocking or running out unexpectedly. Square offers no in-depth inventory management, supplier relationship management, stock notifications, or automated inventory features.
Comprehensive Reports and Analytics
The reports and analytics tool in KORONA POS allows you to track and monitor your retail store’s performance in real-time so that you can make informed decisions about how best to run your business. With detailed insights into every aspect of your sales data, KORONA POS also makes forecasting easier.
Square POS Costs FAQs
Square offers several card readers, with costs ranging from $0 for a basic magstripe reader to $49 for the contactless and chip reader. The Square Terminal costs $299 and includes more advanced features like printing receipts. These readers don’t have monthly fees, but they do charge processing fees for each transaction.
Square’s payment processing fees typically range from 2.6% + $0.10 per tap, dip, or swipe to 3.5% + $0.15 per manually keyed-in transaction. However, these rates can vary depending on the merchant’s specific plan with the Square and the individual transaction type.
Square is generally transparent about its fees. However, there might be additional charges for specific services, such as:
– International fees: processing international transactions
– Chargeback fees: a customer disputes a charge
– Refund fees: refunding a transaction
Yes, Square is popular with small businesses due to its easy setup, affordable pricing, and all-in-one POS and payment solutions. Square’s range of tools—from basic POS features to inventory and customer management—supports small businesses without extensive upfront costs or long-term commitments.
While you can’t directly charge customers a fee for using Square, you can choose to include the processing fee in your overall product or service price. This is a common practice in many industries. However, surcharging is regulated and varies by state, so it’s essential to check local laws.
Calculate the total transaction cost, including Square’s processing fee, and increase the price accordingly to pass on fees. For instance, add a small percentage to cover the 2.6% + $0.10 in-person fee. Be transparent with customers and ensure compliance with state regulations on surcharging. This is also sometimes referred to as cash discounting.
Yes, Square reports sales data to the IRS for businesses processing over $20,000 and completing over 200 transactions per year. The tax report information is reported on a 1099-K form, which Square provides to eligible businesses each tax season to help them file accurately.
Square POS Pricing Wrap-Up
This article has provided a detailed overview of Square’s POS pricing and why it may or may not be ideal for some businesses. While Square is a popular choice that works well for some merchants, it’s essential to consider multiple options when searching for a new POS.
KORONA POS is an alternative that offers competitive pricing for a complete retail POS system. It is ideal for retailers looking for a more feature-rich solution with more transparent pricing.
So, if you want to cut down on Square’s high fees and save money on your POS system, you can try KORONA POS now. Check us out today and see what we can do for your business. Click below to get started.
