Square

Square

POS System
2.7 / 5.0(6,239 reviews)
A
Our Expert Grade
4.0/5• Independent Analysis
Updated January 1, 1970

Founded

2009

Headquarters

San Francisco, California, USA

Company Size

Enterprise (Parent: Block, Inc.)

Category Ratings

5/5
Pricing Transparency
4/5
Feature Set
5/5
Ease of Use
1/5
Customer Support
5/5
Contract Terms
4/5
Industry Reputation

TL;DR

Perfect for small businesses seeking easy payments with no contracts or hidden fees, but not ideal for high-risk or high-volume merchants due to risk of account holds.

About

Square offers simple, transparent payment processing ideal for small businesses. Flat-rate pricing, no monthly fees, and excellent software make it a top choice — but account holds and limited support are key concerns.

Products & Services

PAYMENT PROCESSING

Square Payments

2.6% + $0.15 in-person, 2.9% + $0.30 online, 3.5% + $0.15 keyed, 1% ACH transfers

Square’s core payment processing service, supporting in-person, online, and remote payments with flat-rate pricing and free POS software.

Key Features

  • In-person card payments (EMV, contactless, magstripe)
  • Online payments (eCommerce, invoices, virtual terminal)
  • POS software (inventory, reporting, customer management)
  • Next-business-day payouts
  • Chargeback protection and dispute management

Pricing

Square Payments

PAYMENT PROCESSING

2.6% + $0.15 in-person, 2.9% + $0.30 online, 3.5% + $0.15 keyed, 1% ACH transfers

Platform Ratings

bbb

539 reviews

Reviewer Notes

Square holds an A+ BBB rating, but customer reviews are overwhelmingly negative, with complaints mostly focused on account holds and frozen funds.

trustpilot

5,700 reviews

Reviewer Notes

Trustpilot reviews are largely positive, praising ease of use and functionality, but a minority report frustrations with account holds and support responsiveness.

Industry Ratings

The Strawhecker Group

Top Innovator Award (2023)

The Strawhecker Group recognized Square for its innovation in POS technology and seamless payment integration. Square consistently scores well in TSG’s benchmarks for SMB-focused payment technology.

Payments Source

Positive Mention (No Formal Score)

Payments Source often references Square as a leader in innovation within the payments space. While no numeric rating is provided, they consistently cite Square’s influence in expanding small business access to card payments.

Card Payment Options

B-

Once rated an 'F' due to numerous complaints about withheld funds and poor customer service, Square's rating at Card Payment Options has improved after better communication practices and policy changes.

CardFellow

4/5

CardFellow commends Square’s pricing transparency and flexibility, but highlights that Square's flat rates are less competitive for high-volume merchants. The review also flags risk of sudden account termination.

Processing Rates

Online

2.9% + $0.30

In-Person

2.6% + $0.15

Keyed

3.5% + $0.15

International

No added fee

Payouts

Standard Time

Next business day

Expedited Time

Instant (1.5% fee)

Minimum Amount

$10

Contract Terms

Length

Month-to-month

Cancellation Process

Cancel any time via dashboard

Support Options

Channels

  • Phone
  • Email
  • Help Center
  • Community Forum

Hours

M-F 6am-6pm PT (phone)

Response Time

Within 1 business day (email)

Developer Tools

API Documentation

https://developer.squareup.com/docs

SDKs

  • Node.js
  • Python
  • Ruby
  • PHP
  • Java
  • C#

Webhooks

Supported

Testing Environment

Available

Security & Compliance

PCI Compliance

Level 1

Data Encryption

End-to-end encryption

Fraud Prevention

Real-time machine learning monitoring

Tokenization

Supported

Accepted Payment Types

Credit Cards

  • Visa
  • Mastercard
  • Amex
  • Discover

Digital Wallets

  • Apple Pay
  • Google Pay

Bank Transfers

  • ACH

Alternative Methods

  • Cash App Pay
  • Square Gift Cards

Integrations

E-commerce

  • Square Online
  • WooCommerce
  • Wix

Accounting

  • QuickBooks
  • Xero

CRM

  • Mailchimp
  • Zoho

Other

  • IFTTT
  • Zapier

Special Features

Subscription Management

Supported

Invoicing

Supported

Virtual Terminal

Supported

Recurring Billing

Supported

Support & Contact

1-855-700-6000
support@squareup.com
None (except for sales)
24_7

Support Types

phoneemailkb

Quality Assessment

Adequate for basics; poor for complex issues.