Square POS Pricing – How Much Does Square POS Cost?

Square POS Plans and Pricing

Anyone can download Square's POS software and begin selling immediately, though they'll likely need to grab a card reader as well (a single dongle comes for as little as ten dollars). However, the main cost of the POS system kicks in when its users make a sale.

• Square POS software is free to install
• You can get a free Square card reader for iPhone or Android (contactless readers aren't free)
• Square charges 2.6% of each card-based sale, plus 10 cents.
• If card payments are manually keyed in rather than processed via card reader, the charge is a little more: 3.5% of the transaction's cost, plus another 15 cents per transaction.
• Online sales are charged at $2.9% + 30 cents per transaction.
• There are additional hardware costs depending on the setup (for more, see our Square POS Hardware Costs section)

Some software add-ons also cost an additional percentage or a small monthly fee, but the core features we've listed above are available with the basic Square POS system for free.

As a result, using Square POS will mean that most businesses will see a small percentage of their total monthly revenue go towards paying their POS costs, but that's it.

For small operations, such as market stalls, food trucks, and small coffee shops, it's a great deal – and the secret to Square's market dominance. Most POS vendors bill for their service annually, which can be tough for a business on a budget.

For a huge operation or a business with many sales, the costs for using Square POS will scale up at a rate faster than most other POS services

For a huge operation or a business with many sales, the costs for using Square POS will scale up at a rate faster than most other POS services, which typically charge a set monthly fee in order to process unlimited sales.

Large businesses aren't out of options, however: Square offers custom rates to businesses with enough sales volume to qualify. If your business processes over $250,000 in card sales and sees an average ticket size over $15, it may be eligible.

Square for Retail and Restaurant Plus

Square does offer upgraded plans for retail and restaurant businesses, which can be used to augment the features you already get from your free POS software.

Square for Retail Plus costs $60 per month, per location. Transaction fees are reduced to 2.5% + 10¢ for in-person sales and 2.9% + 30¢ for online sales. You get everything from the free plan, plus product exchanges, advanced inventory tools, advanced retail reports, and Square Team Management.

Square for Restaurants Plus costs $60 per month, per location as well, but you get a 30-day free trial, and it costs just $40 per month per added POS device.

In return, you get all the features from the regular free plan, plus more advanced features including advanced discounts, cash management, and the ability to open checks. You also get extra kitchen display features, including ticket routing and real-time order updates. Support also becomes 24/7.

Square POS Hardware Costs

Free software is all well and good, but if you're a bricks and mortar store looking to use Square POS, it's inevitable you'll need to take on some Square POS hardware costs, too. You can keep these costs down by using iPad payment systems, for example – in these cases, you'll likely only need to buy Square card readers or an iPad stand. Nevertheless, let's look into the various costs of Square's hardware below:

• $10: non-contactless card reader to fit iPhone/Android (you can get your first one free)
• $49: contactless card reader for chip or Apple Pay
• $299: portable terminal
• $169: iPad stand and card reader
• $799: Square terminal and stand
• $646: register kit with stand for iPad
• $1,329: full Square register and terminal

The above list isn't exhaustive, but covers most of the main ways you can take payments on a Square POS system. See below for more on each type of Square POS hardware, and their associated costs.

Square POS card reader costs

One of the most affordable ways of getting started with Square POS is to use a portable card reader, connected to an iPhone, iPad, or Android device. There are a few to choose from, though be warned that the very cheapest ones won't work with contactless cards, or with NFC mobile phone payments such as Apple Pay.

Card reader to fit Android or iPhone (non-contactless payments)

• $10 per unit

Contactless card reader (works with chip or Apple Pay)

• $49 per unit

Square POS terminal (all major cards, contactless payments, prints receipts)

• $299 per unit

Square POS terminals and iPad stand costs

To keep your Square POS costs down, you can use the software on an iPad. This can work out cheaper than paying for a Square terminal. However, for a professional look that will impress and reassure your customers, it's a smart move to consider an iPad stand and card reader. Otherwise, a Square Stand is a neat all-in-one solution (though at a higher cost).

Square stand for iPads plus contactless card reader

• $169 per unit

Square POS Stand with contactless card reader

• $799 per unit

Square POS register costs

Here's where prices start to escalate – if you're looking for an all-singing, all-dancing Square Register (or a register for an iPad setup) then costs can get into the hundreds, or even thousands of dollars. We explain the options, below:

Square Register for iPad plus contactless card reader and receipt printer

• $646 per unit

Square POS full Register kit with Stand and receipt printer

• $1,329 per unit

Square POS: Core Features

Sales

With Square POS, you can accept credit and debit, contactless, and chip payments, all within seconds. It sends a digital receipt, and prompts customers to add an optional tip. If you're on the go, Square's card reader can plug into an iPhone, iPad, and Android phone or tablet.

You can create and send custom invoices through Square POS as well. Managers can track the status of each invoice online, see when they've been read, and send reminders for those that remain unpaid. Square can forecast sales, too, helping you plan for the future and set your business up for success.

Payment processing is a piece of cake with Square's own integrated system. This means that payments won't be lost, and you won't have to pay two companies to do two essential business functions.

Square also accepts payments in its offline mode – useful if your internet drops out or you're running a mobile food truck, for example.

Analytics and Reporting

Square POS has class-leading analytics and reporting tools, with more than 20 detailed options for both business and staff performance.

Like most POS providers, Square tracks sales, but it also breaks them down item-by-item so managers can tell at a glance which products are out-performing expectations. Square can help you identify which payment methods are the most popular, and how discounts are performing.

Sales performances can be easily compared to performance over the past week, month, or six-month period. In addition, summary reports can be auto-delivered to managers' emails on a daily basis.

Customer purchase histories are also monitored. Managers can track new customers against returning ones, or see the average spend per visit and average visits per month.

Customer Feedback

Square POS throws in a CRM system free of charge. You can use it to let customers give their thoughts on their experiences, by asking them on their digital receipt.

Managers can see the feedback paired with that customer's transaction history, letting them know how highly to prioritize the information. They can also look at data visualizations showing which elements of their experience were the most or least satisfying. Plus, managers can respond to the feedback if they'd like, starting a private message chat with the customer in question.