Square is one of the most popular credit card processing companies in the market currently. This is because of the overall popularity of the Square card reader that enables customers to accept credit cards directly from their mobile devices. Businesses of all scales and sizes can use the POS (Point of Sale) and payment processing solutions -both in-person and online.

Who is Square Best for?

Square is quite popular with small-scale businesses. The company was introduced in 2009, and there are several reasons for the overall popularity of the credit card payment processing provider. The company has been given its name after the square-shaped mobile-based card reader it provides to its customers for free. This feature of the company allows customers to ensure payments almost everywhere. The company also comes forth with its all-in-one credit card processing solution that is easy to use and quick to set up. Companies can start taking payments through credit cards within minutes with the help of the free mobile-based credit card reader of Square. The card reader is capable of plugging into any tablet or smartphone and is a free POS software solution. There is the absence of any contracts, upfront costs, or monthly minimum requirements while using Square and its credit card processing services. Therefore, Square serves as the ideal solution for small businesses that do not want to invest money into a dedicated credit card processing system.

What are Squares Fees?

Typically, Square is known to charge three types of fees from merchants -hardware fees, software fees, and credit card processing fees. On an overall basis, there is the absence of any monthly fee for using its standard Square POS application. Instead of this, you are only required to pay the amount of 2.6 percent, along with $0.10 as the transaction fee for the acceptance of in-person payments. The Square fees you will be paying will ultimately depend on the respective software you are using and how you are accepting payments. Additionally, there is a one-time cost for the hardware you will use. Most payment processing companies are known to be quite complicated about issuing different types of fees levied by popular card companies, compliance standards, and banks. This tends to leave small-scale businesses confused about how much they are expected to pay. Square is known to eliminate all such confusion by coming up with a flat fee structure for processing transactions. Square will not charge any subscription, startup, or refund fees. Moreover, Square also extends its free-to-use Square card reader available for both Android and iPhone to enable organizations to ensure payments on the go. Every additional card reader will be available for $10.

Credit Card Payments Through Square

Square is known to charge 2.6 percent along with 10 cents for every transaction every time a customer taps, swipes, or dips a card at the time of an in-person transaction. It will include features like cards including Mastercard, Visa, JCB, American Express, and Discover, along with gift cards and mobile wallets -including Samsung Pay, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. Square is also known to charge 3.5 percent along with 30 cents for ensuring purchases that are made with the help of an online store, online invoices, e-commerce API (Application Programming Interface), or online checkout. The credit card processing fees by Square are not the most affordable in the market. Still, you should note that the POS app, activation, advanced reporting tools, support, chargebacks, PCI (Payment Card Industry) compliance, the first Square credit card reader, and next-business day deposits -all these factors are made completely free by Square. Square also comes forth with customized pricing plans for organizations that are capable of processing more than $250,000 in the form of sales through cards while having an average ticket size of over $15. Business owners who might be interested in the concept of custom pricing can reach out to the sales department of the company to obtain an estimate. For ensuring faster access to the money, businesses can also consider instantly transferring around $10,000 at the cost of 1.5% of the total transaction -along with the standard fee for credit card processing. In addition to these variants of common fees, Square is not known to charge any other fees. For instance, the company is not known to charge for the following;
  • PCI compliance
  • Dispute management and chargebacks
  • Recording check, cash, or gift card payments
  • Fraud protection
  • Customer support
  • Account Termination
  • Downloading the Square POS application or activating the account
Square also features a free-of-use magstripe credit card reader with the respective business account. There is no involvement of any monthly fee for credit card processing. At the same time, the overall transaction fees remain the same irrespective of the brand of credit card that is being used.

Square POS (Point of Sale) Software

For the default software, Square POS, the company will not charge any extra costs. It only charges the standard Square credit card processing fees that you will have to pay for every credit card transaction that is processed through the POS system of the company. It serves to be a great deal for businesses as there are several functions implemented by the Square POS software -right from processing all types of payments to tracking inventory, providing functions of employee management, and working offline.

Square for Restaurants Software Solutions

As the name implies, Square for Restaurants is available, particularly for restaurants. The restaurant-centric software solution by Square comes with a free plan without any monthly charges. The Plus plan of the software is available for $60 per month for every location. At the same time, the Premium Plan of the software starts at around $299. The processing rates will vary for each plan. However, the software for restaurants by Square offers high-end, industry-centric features -including the ability to manage the menus, arrange for takeout & delivery orders, reconcile tips, floor plans, and so more.

Square for Retail Software Solutions

Quite similar to the features of the restaurant-specific software by Square, the retail version of the software offers access to advanced retail-centric tools -including the ability to execute purchase orders from the POS, management of customer profiles, set permissions for custom employees, and much more. The retail software by Square is available with a free plan without any monthly charges. The Plus plan of the software is available for $60 per month for every location. At the same time, the Premium plan of the retail software starts at around $299. The processing rates for the software plans might vary from time to time. In addition to the existing plans, if you are processing transactions through the retail app of Square, you will be paying a reduced in-person transaction fee. You are expected to pay only 2.5 percent and $0.10 for every swipe, tap, or dip. It is in contrast to the standard fee of 2.6 percent, along with 10 cents for every transaction. However, it is important to understand that the existing low rate will apply only to the retail app offered by Square. Even when you have access to the subscription for retail by Square, but you still continue using the Square Point of Sale application to process the respective transactions, then you will have to end up paying a higher rate (2.6 percent plus $0.10) in association with the POS of Square.

Square Appointments Software Solutions

Square Appointments serves to be a unique form of the software solution. Unlike Square for Retail, Square for Restaurants, or Square POS, Square Appointments is available as the appointment-booking solution. The software has been designed to assist service-based businesses in scheduling customers and clients while organizing their schedules. Rather than a single option for a monthly fee, the cost of the software solution will depend on the number of employees you have:
  • Single individual: $0 every month
  • 2-5 employees: $50 every month
  • 6-10 employees: $90 every month
Additionally, like Square for Retail, the paid versions of the Square Appointments software will be available with a low processing fee for transactions carried out in-person -2.5 percent along with 10 cents rather than the standard 2.6 percent along with 10 cents.

Magstripe Reader by Square

As you sign up for Square, you will get shipped a magstripe reader. The device can be effectively plugged into the lightning port or the headphone jack of the mobile device while allowing you to run transactions related to magstripe credit cards along with the Square POS app. The hardware also remains compatible with Square for Restaurants, Square for Retail, and Square Appointments. If you require access to additional magstripe credit card readers, then you are expected to pay $10 for each unit.

Conclusion

While you might find it difficult to understand the fee structure of Square initially, it is still easier to break the overall structure into different aspects like hardware, software, payment processing, and other types of fees.