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Updated Oct 03, 2024

Square POS Review and Pricing

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Written By: Jamie JohnsonBusiness Operations Insider and Senior Analyst
Verified Check With BorderEditor Reviewed:
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This guide was reviewed by a Business News Daily editor to ensure it provides comprehensive and accurate information to aid your buying decision.
Monica Dyer
Business Operations Insider and Senior Editor
Business News Daily earns compensation from some listed companies. Editorial Guidelines.
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Editors Score:9.3/10
Square is our pick as the best POS system for small businesses. It's an affordable, easy-to-use POS solution with three pricing tiers, including a free plan. Use Square to accept payments, track sales, send invoices and manage payroll.
Plus Sign Pros
  • No charge-back fees: Square doesn’t issue charge-back fees, which is rare for a POS provider.
  • Straightforward pricing: Square is very transparent about its pricing and any fees charged, so you’ll know exactly what you need to pay for the service.
  • Plenty of hardware options: Square offers all the hardware options you need, including a terminal, card reader and plenty of add-on accessories.
Minus Sign Cons
  • Limited use: Square works on iOS and Android devices but won’t work on a Windows desktop or tablet.
  • Limited customer support: The company doesn’t offer 24/7 phone support with its free plan.
  • High fees: Square charges higher payment processing fees than some other POS providers.
Square company logo
Editor's Rating9.3/10

If you’re looking for an affordable and intuitive point-of-sale (POS) system, Square is an excellent option that’s popular among retailers, restaurants and service providers. It provides an excellent starting point for new businesses and those setting up a POS system for the first time at a price that fits any budget.

Square POS Editor's Rating:

9.3 / 10

Affordable pricing
10/10
Free trial
10/10
Robust integrations
10/10
Invoicing and bill pay
8/10
Mobile app
8.5/10

Why Square Is Best for Small Businesses

Companies of all sizes can use Square, but it’s best for small businesses thanks to its free plan. The free plan is surprisingly comprehensive, and its payment processing fees are straightforward and easy to understand. With Square, new and very small businesses can get the sophistication of advanced POS systems at a cost-effective price point.

Square also offers a variety of affordable hardware options and accessories. The Square Register has a display for you and one for your customers, and it comes with a two-year warranty. You can also accept contactless mobile payments without needing any additional hardware. This allows new businesses to start accepting payments without a large upfront investment.

Did You Know?Did you know
Square is a hybrid POS system, which means the software runs via an on-site server and uses cloud-based storage for your data.
Square POS system

Square is an excellent POS system for small businesses and startups. Source: Square

Usability

Square is easy to set up, and you’ll need very little training to begin using the software. The interface is highly intuitive, and you and your team should be able to manage the setup on your own. If you do run into problems, you can reach out to customer service via chat or in-app support. This is especially useful for new businesses or mom and pop operations that need to get something effective up and running quickly without difficulty and at an affordable cost.

Square also provides an extensive list of online resources, including how-to articles, guided tutorials and a community forum. Square’s Seller Community forum is quite active, so you should always be able to find answers to your questions.

Square’s software also integrates with dozens of third-party apps, so you can create a customized solution for your business. For example, Square integrates with popular software like Wix, WooCommerce and QuickBooks Online.

TipTip
Many of the best business accounting software platforms integrate with QuickBooks.

Square Features

Payment processing

Square’s POS system allows you to accept payments online, in person and over the phone.

Hardware

Square offers a register, stand, terminal and two different card readers.

Square for Retail

Square provides features that allow you to sell products online and in person.

Square for Restaurants

You can use Square to manage your menu and run your restaurant.

Appointment booking

Your customers can easily schedule appointments with you through Square’s appointment-booking feature.

Payment Processing

Square allows you to accept online, in-person and remote payments. If you largely need to accept in-person customer payments, the Square reader makes it easy to accept chip, mobile and contactless payments. Customers can also pay online using a secure Square link or after you send them an invoice. You can also accept keyed-in transactions or keep a customer’s card on file.

We also like that Square comes with detailed POS reporting and analytics features. You can track payments and monitor your company’s sales with Square’s custom POS sales reports. You can also monitor customer preferences and learn why customers return to make repeat sales.

You can also create a customer loyalty program and a digital gift card program to drive repeat visits. We found this especially useful for new businesses trying to make a name for themselves and local, independent businesses that rely on a loyal customer base in order to compete with bigger companies.

Square customer preferences

Use Square’s POS features to track customer preferences and build loyalty programs. Source: Square

Hardware

We appreciate that Square provides several hardware options so businesses can choose the best setup for their needs. Here’s an overview of Square’s hardware:

  • Square Register: The fully integrated Square Register comes with a dedicated customer display. It includes protection from eligible charge-backs and a two-year limited warranty.
  • Square Stand: The Square Stand turns your iPad into a POS system. It comes with a customer-driven checkout and a built-in card reader.
  • Square Terminal: The Square Terminal is an all-in-one credit card machine that lets you accept payments and print receipts. Customers can use the terminal to tap, swipe or dip their cards.
  • Square Reader: The Square Reader lets you accept chip cards and contactless payments.
  • Square Reader for Magstripe: You can plug this reader into your phone to accept magstripe payments.
Square hardware options

Square provides all the hardware options you need to run your business. Source: Square

Square for Retail

Square’s retail features make it easy for businesses to sell products online or at a brick-and-mortar location. You can use the software to accept payments, manage inventory and streamline operations. We also like that you can use Square to set up a free e-commerce account or integrate an existing online store.

Square for retail

Square for Retail includes inventory management features that help small businesses streamline operations. Source: Square

Key TakeawayKey takeaway
Square offers buy now, pay later plans that let customers pay for a purchase in installments using Afterpay.

Square for Restaurants

Square is best known for serving retailers, but the company also offers a restaurant POS solution. You can use the software to manage front- and back-of-house operations, handle your menu, keep the line moving, and offer free delivery or pickup on all orders. And Square’s mobile POS features let you accept tableside payments, which helps you turn over tables at a faster pace.

Square for Restaurants

Square for Restaurants includes menu-management features. Source: Square

Key TakeawayKey takeaway
If you need more comprehensive restaurant POS features, check out our in-depth review of Toast and our TouchBistro review.

Appointment Booking

Square also offers an appointment-scheduling feature, which is rare for a POS provider. You can manage your availability from the app and let customers book appointments or classes with you online. This feature makes Square an excellent option for service providers.

Square appointment booking

Square’s appointment-booking feature simplifies scheduling. Source: Square

Square Costs

Square offers three software plans: Free, Plus and Premium.

  • Free: Square’s free plan impressed us, allowing businesses to accept payments online, in person or over the phone. Not many competing POS solutions offer such a full-featured free plan, Not many competing POS solutions offer such a full-featured free plan, which is beneficial to sole proprietors, new businesses and very small operations on a tight budget.
  • Plus: The Plus plan costs $29 per month and comes with advanced features for restaurants, retailers and service-based businesses.
  • Premium: The Premium plan costs $79 per month and is designed for companies with more comprehensive needs.

You must also pay the following payment processing fees:

  • In Person: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction
  • Online: 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction
  • Manual: 3.5% + $0.15 per transaction
  • Invoices: 3.3% + $0.30 per transaction

Square Setup

Square makes setting up your POS system seamless, and it’s a great choice for businesses that want to start accepting payments immediately. Here’s how to get your Square system set up:

  • Download the Square app to your mobile device.
  • Once you create your account, Square will ship you a free card reader.
  • After entering your banking information, Square will make two small deposits to your account.
  • Once the deposits appear, log in to your Square account to verify your information and the deposit amounts.
  • Once you receive your card reader, plug it into your mobile device and begin accepting payments from anywhere.

Square Customer Service

Compared to some of the other POS providers we reviewed, we found that Square falls a bit short on customer service. Square has a spotty customer service record, with some complaints online. Many customers report that the company is difficult to get a hold of and say they had challenges resolving certain issues. And the free plan doesn’t come with 24/7 phone support.

Square Drawbacks

Square is an excellent POS provider, but there are a few drawbacks to consider. The biggest drawback is that Square’s customer support isn’t as highly rated as what many of its competitors provide. And if you choose the free plan, you won’t receive 24/7 phone support. And Square probably isn’t the best choice for companies with complex payment processing needs.

TipTip
Check out our review of Lightspeed if you're interested in a POS provider with more highly rated customer support and more robust payment processing compatibility.

Methodology

When researching the best POS systems for small businesses, we looked for affordable pricing, comprehensive features and overall ease of use. We also compared Square to over a dozen POS system competitors. Our in-depth research helped us determine where Square stands out among its competitors and where it needs some improvement.

Square FAQs

There are no monthly fees to get started with Square — the company offers a free plan; plus, you’ll only pay money when you accept a customer payment. If you need something more comprehensive, Square does offer two other paid software plans.
Square’s payment processing fees are a bit higher than what other providers charge, especially if you have a lot of manually keyed-in transactions.

Overall Value

We recommend Square for …

  • Businesses that don’t want to sign up for a long-term contract.
  • Businesses that use iOS or Android devices.
  • Any business looking to avoid chargeback fees.

We don’t recommend Square for …

  • Businesses that need a POS system with advanced functionality and industry-specific features.
  • Anyone who wants to run the POS system on a Windows desktop or tablet.
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author image
Written By: Jamie JohnsonBusiness Operations Insider and Senior Analyst
For more than five years, Jamie Johnson has been guiding business owners on financial matters both big and small. This includes investment advice, insights on business loans and funding options, recommendations on insurance and more. Johnson excels at delivering easy-to-understand direction so entrepreneurs can make the best financial decisions for their businesses and, as a solopreneur herself, she regularly tests business strategies and services. At Business News Daily, Johnson covers financial services like payroll processing and credit card processing, as well as topics like business liabilities, peer-to-peer lending, accounting standards and more. Johnson's expertise can also be found in a variety of finance publications, including InvestorPlace, Credit Karma, Insurify and Rocket Mortgage. She has also demonstrated a deep understanding of other B2B topics — including sales, payroll, marketing and social media — for the likes of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, U.S. News & World Report, CNN, USA Today and Business Insider.
Square company logo
Editor's Rating9.3/10
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