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Square POS is free to install, making it a super cost-effective option for small businesses. The provider charges per transaction, rather than a monthly fee – typically 2.6% + 10¢ for swiped or tapped card transactions, or 3.5% + 15¢ for transactions where the card number is keyed in – which is slightly higher than Clover and Zettle, according to our research. If you’re exploring cost-effective options, the best free POS software for small businesses offers a great way to compare free systems like Square with other alternatives.
Square hardware costs extra, however. You can start things off with a free iPad-compatible card reader, though you’ll need to pay $59 for a contactless, chip or Apple Pay version – plus further costs for stands and full Square cash registers, though our research did find these to be among the best cash registers available.
In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know about Square POS’s transaction fees, its monthly plans, and how much they cost per month, to help you understand how much the POS will set you back. In this guide, we cover:
Pros
- Free to get started
- Slick and stylish hardware that impresses guests
- Serves businesses of all sizes and in all sectors
- Strong analytics, inventory, and third-party integrations
Cons
- Some necessary features for mid-sized businesses cost more
- 3.5% + 15¢ charge for keyed-in transactions
- Support options vary by plan
- Free to install
- No monthly fees, charges transaction fees instead
- 2.6% + 10c fees for card transactions
Why Should You Trust Us?
The Tech.co team pours hundreds of hours into researching the best POS systems because it’s the only way to ensure we’re providing our readers with the most accurate, up-to-date information possible.
We’ve spoken to daily POS users working in restaurants, retail and more, and have tested out more than 20 point-of-sale platforms ourselves, paying close attention to everything from the quality and feel of the hardware to how easy the software is to use, to help you make a clear decision for your business needs.
How Much Does Square POS Cost Per Month?
Square offers dedicated Restaurant and Retail plans, which cost $69 per month and $89 respectively, plus a further 2.5% + 10¢ per sale. If you don’t want to be tied down with monthly fees, Square POS also offers a free plan that charges 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction.
Scroll down for a more granular breakdown of Square’s pricing.
Square’s Free POS Plan
Anyone can download Square’s POS software for free and begin selling immediately. Square’s free plan gives users access to a POS app and credit card reader that takes swipe payments.
However, with Square charging slightly higher transaction rates on its free plan than with its paid packages, the main cost of the POS system kicks in when you make a sale. Here are the key points you should know:
- Square POS software is free to install – the provider doesn’t charge any fees per month on its free plan.
- You can get a free Square magnetic stripe card reader for iPhone or Android, while contactless and chip readers start from $59.
- 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 higher at 3.5% plus 15 cents per transaction.
- Online sales are charged at 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction.
- There are additional hardware costs depending on the setup you want. (Jump to the Square POS hardware costs section to learn more about these expenses.)
As a result, using Square’s free POS plan 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.
However, for a huge operation or a business that makes many sales, the costs of using Square POS will scale up at a rate faster than POS services that typically charge a set monthly fee in order to process unlimited sales. This makes free plans like Square’s a worse deal for them in the long run.
Square’s Paid POS Plans
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. If you opt for one of the Premium plans, you can negotiate pricing for your business, so long as you meet the eligibility criteria.
Square for Retail Plus
Square for Retail Plus will cost you $89 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 Retail Premium
Large retail businesses aren’t out of options, however: Square for Retail Premium 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. Prices for Square Premium are decided on a custom basis.
Square for Restaurants Plus
This plan costs $69 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. User support also becomes available 24/7.
Square for Restaurants Premium
This package starts from $165 per location, per month, which gives users access to everything in the Plus plan, with additional Online Ordering tools, shift, and employee management features, and payroll capabilities.
Read our full guide to learn even more about how much POS systems cost.
| Plan | Price | Best for | Transaction fees | Benefits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Free | Restaurant Plus | Retail Plus | Retail Premium | ||
| Free | $69/month | $89/month | $POA | ||
| Small, mobile food and beverage vendors | Established food and beverage businesses | Growing retail businesses | Established brick-and-motor retail stores | ||
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Square’s 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.
Except for Square Register – Square’s fully integrated POS system – all of its hardware options require a smartphone or iPad to operate. This makes its hardware costs a lot more reasonable than competitors like Toast or Vend, but it also means that businesses will have to factor in the cost of these devices on top of Square’s listed hardware costs.
Here’s a summary of Square’s main hardware prices below:
- $10: non-contactless card reader to fit iPhone/Android (you can get your first one free)
- $59: contactless card reader for chip or Apple Pay
- $299: portable terminal
- $149: iPad stand (second gen) with built-in card reader
- $579: Square stand kit
- $729: Countertop POS Kit for Square Reader
- $1,219: Square register kit
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.
| Price from The typical lowest starting price. The lowest price available for your business will depend on your needs. | Good to know | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  |  |  |  |  |
| Card Reader | Contactless Card Reader | Square POS terminal | Square Stand for iPads (second gen) | Square Stand Kit | Square Register Kit |
| $10 per unit | $49 per unit | $299 per unit | $149 per unit | $579 | $1,219 |
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Square’s card reader costs
One of the most affordable ways to get started with Square POS is to use a portable card reader, connected to an iPhone, iPad, or Android device. Square’s basic card reader is free for new customers and only costs $10 per unit afterward. However, it’s restricted to swipe payments and doesn’t accept PIN and tap payments. If you want to unlock more payment options, however, you can buy Square’s Contactless Card Reader for $49 per unit.
Square’s POS terminals and iPad stand costs
Square’s POS terminal is an all-in-one device that takes payments, tracks orders, and manages inventory, all for $299 per unit. The device is versatile, compact, and can be used by every industry. But if you’re looking to keep costs down you can also utilize your existing technology with Square’s iPad stands. Square’s second-generation iPad stand only costs $149 per unit, and comes with a built-in integrated contactless and chip card reader for businesses to take payments with.
Square also offers a Stand Mount for the same price, which can be mounted onto any surface in your business for extra convenience.
The Square POS terminal, as viewed from the top. Source: Tech.co
Square also offers a Stand Mount for the same price, which can be mounted onto any surface in your business for extra convenience.
Square’s hardware kits costs
Here’s where prices start to escalate – if you’re looking for a POS system kit, including 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.
For instance, Square’s Stand Kit, which includes a 2nd gen Square Stand, Printer-Driven Cash Drawer, and a USB Receipt Printer, costs $579. Square’s Stand Restaurant Station with a Square Terminal includes a Square Stand, a Printer Driven Cash Drawer, Kitchen Printer, Receipt Printer Paper, and USB Receipt Printer, and costs $1,389.
Square POS Added Costs and Extras
While you can certainly get started with Square POS for free, there are numerous additional software add-ons to consider. It’s likely your business will need to factor in at least a few of these.
Some of these features (such as employee management) are essential to running a mid-size business, though a small operation likely won’t need them.
“If you’re only interested in one or two of these add-ons, Square POS likely remains the more cost-effective option.”
- Square Shifts — For $4 per employee per month, you can define roles, allow clock in/out ability, set employee-specific access restrictions, and generate timecard reports.
- Square Marketing — Starting at $15 per month, you can craft and track email marketing campaigns through the Square POS system.
- Square Loyalty — Starting at $45 per month, you can create a loyalty program. Customers can enroll at checkout to receive digital punch cards and/or tiered reward levels. Customers spend 37% more after enrolment, according to Square.
- Gift Cards — Create gift cards, tracking activations, redemptions, and refunds through your POS. Physical custom cards cost 50 cents each, while digital ones come at a 2.5% + 30 cents transaction processing rate.
- Square Payroll — For $35 per month plus $6 per employee paid, you can run an IRS-compliant payroll system that automatically tracks and records your employees’ timecards.
Several of these features are packaged directly into other leading POS vendors’ main services, so depending on how essential these features are, you may want to weigh other POS software options more highly. However, if you’re only interested in one or two of these add-ons, Square POS likely remains the more cost-effective option.
As with any massive software company, “feature bloat” can be a concern with Square, as the service continues expanding with features that might overwhelm you more than is justified by the value they provide. Square’s software alone offers variations for 18 different industries, including Apparel, Groceries, Leisure & Entertainment, and Spas. Still, too many features is a good problem to have, and the system’s interface and abilities remain some of the best in the POS industry.
Is Square POS a Good Value?
Alongside SpotOn, Square is the best value POS we’ve reviewed. Our researchers were so impressed with Square’s forever-free plan, and the average price of its monthly packages that they awarded it a near-perfect pricing score of 4.5/5.
While Square’s transaction rates are slightly higher than Zettle by PayPal – another free POS provider – its fees fall well within the industry average. What’s more, the quality of Square’s packages and its ability to scale over time will still make the POS a great value for most users.
If you’re still unsure if the POS is a good pairing for you, we break down its value offering for different business sizes below:
- For solo traders – Square POS is a great solution, with low cost card readers that make it easy to take mobile payments. The 2.6% + 10 cents transaction fee keeps costs simple.
- For small businesses – Square offers great value, with a high-quality POS for a cost-effective price. Restaurants and stores will need to factor in some extra costs for Square’s hardware.
- For large businesses – Larger businesses may not find Square quite as cost-effective, because of how added costs can mount up. We won’t rule out recommending Square, but our advice is to answer a few quick questions and get a custom POS pricing quote.
Managing a small team? See what other options are available in our guide to the best POS systems for small businesses.
Square POS Review
Square is a modern point-of-service solution designed for businesses across multiple industries. Boasting a simple, easy-to-navigate interface and an excellent free plan, the POS is currently used by 64 million businesses across the globe – and it’s not hard to see why.
Square is as close to an all-rounder as you can get. It performed extremely well in our retail and restaurant testing because of its reliable help and support center, flexible payment features, and wealth of industry-specific capabilities. It’s also one of the most affordable systems out there, which is why we think it’s currently the best POS system small businesses can get their hands on.
Square POS is primarily aimed toward small and medium-sized businesses, but thanks to its scalable paid plans and versatile features, the software can also be an asset to larger organizations. Unlike many other POS providers, Square also retails a range of hardware options in addition to its user-friendly software. This hardware can be bought independently or in bundles and includes devices like registers, terminals, card readers, and tablet stands.
While Square is a very competitive POS system, its till features didn’t impress us as much as Clover in our latest round of research, which is why it wasn’t able to nab our top spot for retail POS. Learn more about how Square vs Clover.
And make sure you read our Square review for a full breakdown on features, pros and cons, and more.
Who Is Square POS Best For?
As a comprehensive POS solution with a robust feature set, merchants from across a variety of industries and verticals will find numerous benefits from Square POS. That being said, there are certain scenarios in which Square will prove a better choice than other options on the market. We’ve unpacked some of them below.
Square for Retail
This is a great option for stores that sell both in-store and online, owing to its built-in inventory management, sales, and staffing tools. For example, users can create and edit vendor profiles that can be used when making barcodes, purchase orders, and reports.
Square for Restaurants
Unsurprisingly, this solution is geared towards hospitality businesses, with some great features on offer. For instance, customers who are members of the Plus tier and above can access “order-ready texts,” to automatically notify their customers when their food is ready. It’s a neat touch for takeout businesses that might not have time to manually notify their customers.
Alternatives to Square POS
It might be our favorite POS provider for small businesses, but Square is far from the only choice. There are plenty of great providers, offering great options, and many with great iPad POS apps that can help.
We’d recommend Toast for established hospitality venues like full-service restaurants, however, because the POS offers the best customer engagement and stock management features out of any other provider we tested. Its free plan charges slightly lower transaction fees than Square too, making it a solid option for smaller food vendors like market stalls and food trucks.
Check out our Toast vs Square guide to see how the POSs compare head to head.
For retail stores with high turnovers, Clover may be a better choice for you. While the cost of its hardware and software packages may be offputting for smaller vendors, Clover’s impressive retail toolkit – which includes perks like multi-store stock management – and low transaction fees make it ideal for established retail stores that are planning to grow even bigger.
If you’re selling across channels, Shopify should be on your radar. Its powerful ecommerce features and seamless integration with its online platform make it a safe bet for POS users with an online store, and it lets users sell online from as little as $5 per month. Learn more about how the provider compares to Square in our Square vs Shopify guide.
Ultimately, it depends on your business priorities. See some of our top-rated options, below.
| Best for Tech.co's verdict to help you identify the most suitable choice for your small business | Price from The typical lowest starting price. The lowest price available for your business will depend on your needs. | Additional costs Any additional costs you'll need to pay to get started | Transaction fees from The lowest possible fee that will be incurred with each transaction. | User limit | Get started | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SPONSORED  | BEST OVERALL |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Best for onboarding new staff quickly | Small businesses aiming to expand | Best for high quality hardware | Businesses that need no upfront expenses | Fast growing restaurants | Online sales | Businesses with complex inventories | |
| $99/month (as per most recently available figures) | Free (with transaction fees) | $0 + $14.95 (virtual terminal) | Free (with transaction fees) | $89/user/month for Retail, $69 for Restaurant (as per most recently available figures) | $299 upfront (+$39/month) | ||
| Unable to verify online | Marketing, customer loyalty, and employee management features cost extra | Accounting integrations cost $19.95 per month | Online ordering, delivery, digital tableside, employee and kitchen management cost extra | $29 per additional register per month | Shopify POS Pro is available for $89 per location, per month | Single training costs $175 or $35 per month for unlimited sessions (as per most recently available figures) | |
| 2.6% + 10 cents for each card-based sale (as per most recently available figures) |
| 2.3% +10 cents | Dependent on third-party payment processor |
| 2.6% + 10 ¢ | N/A | |
| Unlimited user limit | Unlimited — but each till requires a new license | Unlimited — but each till requires a new license | Unlimited user limit | User limit depends on plan | Single user per license across all plans | Single user per license across all plans | |
| Visit Lavu | Visit Square | Compare Prices | Visit SpotOn | Visit Lightspeed | Compare Prices | Compare prices |
Looking for a new POS for your store? Learn how Square compares to the competition in our guide to the best retail POS systems.
Verdict: Should You Pay for Square POS?
Yes – if you’re a retail or restaurant business, then Square POS is an excellent solution. In fact, after testing the product firsthand and analyzing it against hundreds of data points, we think Square’s point of service is one of the best options on the market.
The software’s robust features – combined with its ease of use, and a pricing plan designed to cut down on upfront costs – make it an attractive option to small businesses everywhere. Even when you factor in Square’s paid-for hardware and sales costs, we think it still provides businesses with a great bang for their buck.
For businesses that don’t want to be tied down with monthly fees, Square’s free plan offers an excellent way to get up and running too. Basically, there’s a reason everyone uses this service, and why you keep seeing that little card reader around – we recommend getting one for yourself, too.
However, PayPal charges extra for non-US cards, charges you the original transaction fee for refunds, and charges $20 for chargebacks.
All told, Square might just come out a little bit cheaper. Plus, Square’s POS platform is stronger than PayPal Here.
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