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Software review · Pricing verified 2026-10-29
Square review
Verified Oct 29, 2026Square is a point-of-sale and payments system for businesses that sell in person — shops, cafés, salons, market stalls and service businesses with a counter. The core is a free app that takes card, tap and wallet payments, tracks sales and manages an item library. Around it sit optional hardware (readers, terminals, registers), an online store, invoicing, staff management, loyalty and marketing tools. You pay per transaction, plus any paid plan or hardware you choose.
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Unpack Money score: 84/100
Square is a strong fit for businesses that sell in person — shops, cafés, salons, market stalls and service businesses with a counter. It pairs a point-of-sale app with card readers and an online store, and you can start on a plan with no monthly fee. It is a weaker fit for a business that sells mainly online, where its Free-plan online rate is higher than Stripe's or PayPal's standard card rate.
On the Free plan, in-person payments (tap, dip, swipe) cost 2.6% + 15¢ and online payments cost 3.3% + 30¢. A $100 in-person sale costs $2.75; you keep $97.25. A $100 online sale costs $3.60; you keep $96.40. A $20 in-person sale costs $0.67; a $20 online sale costs $0.96. The fixed fee bites hardest on small tickets, and the online/in-person gap widens as volume grows: on $10,000 of online sales at $100 tickets, Square Free costs about $360 against Stripe's $320. Square's own paid plans cut the rate but add a monthly fee: Plus ($49/month per location) brings the online rate to 2.9% + 30¢ — the same $320 on this volume — but the fee takes the all-in cost to $369, so Plus only breaks even on online savings alone at about $12,250/month of $100-ticket online sales; Premium ($149/month per location) matches that online rate and cuts in-person to 2.4% + 15¢, so it pays off on in-person volume and features rather than online rate.
Square's strength is the counter: a complete system — app, hardware, reporting — without assembling separate vendors, with the lowest headline in-person rate among the three flat-rate processors compared here. The trade-offs are the mirror image: online sales cost more on the Free plan than on Stripe (2.9% + 30¢) or PayPal standard card payments (2.99% + $0.49), so if your mix shifts online, re-run the comparison rather than assuming the in-person rate follows you. And you are locked to Square processing while you use Square's point-of-sale system — switching processor means switching system.
Before you commit, answer four questions on your own numbers: what share of sales is in person vs. online, and what does each channel cost on the plan you will actually use? Which hardware do you need on day one, and what does it cost outright or per month? At what monthly volume does a paid plan break even against the Free plan on your average ticket? Which add-ons (staff, loyalty, marketing) will you actually use, and are they included or extra? "Free to start" is accurate; "free to run at scale" is not. Educational only; no hands-on testing is claimed. Unpack Money currently earns $0 affiliate revenue and has no approved affiliate programs.
Pricing
| Plan | Price | For |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan — in person (tap, dip, swipe) | 2.6% + 15¢ | Per in-person transaction |
| Free plan — online | 3.3% + 30¢ | Per online transaction |
| Plus plan — $49/mo per location | 2.5% + 15¢ in person; 2.9% + 30¢ online | Lower processing rates; free 30-day trial |
| Premium plan — $149/mo per location | 2.4% + 15¢ in person; 2.9% + 30¢ online | Lowest processing rates, no gift card load fees; free 30-day trial |
Prices verified 2026-10-29 on the provider's official pricing page. Prices change — confirm before you buy.
What we like
- The lowest headline in-person rate among the three flat-rate processors compared here
- A complete counter system — app, hardware, reporting — without assembling separate vendors
- No monthly fee to start, and no long-term contract on the standard plans as described by Square
Watch out for
- Online sales cost more on the Free plan than on Stripe (2.9% + 30¢) or PayPal standard card payments (2.99% + $0.49)
- Paid plans cost $49/mo (Plus) or $149/mo (Premium) per location — the lower rates only pay for themselves above a certain volume (Plus's $0.40 online saving per $100 sale needs about $12,250/mo of online sales to cover its fee)
- You are locked to Square processing while you use Square's point-of-sale system — switching processor means switching system
How we reviewed Square
We record every plan, price, cap, and add-on from Square's official pricing page — never from review aggregators — and date-stamp the check; this page was last verified on 2026-10-29. Our editorial score weighs what a small business actually gets for the money: the capability of the cheapest useful tier, the true cost once add-ons and renewals are counted, pricing transparency, and contract traps such as auto-renewing trials. Compensation never changes a score or a verdict. Read our full review methodology.
Sources
Every price and feature on this page was verified against the provider's official website on 2026-10-29. We never use aggregator sites as sources.