Square (Free plan + Square Reader) review 2027

What problem does Square solve for a small business?

Square's pitch is that you can start taking card payments without paying anything up front. The software carries no monthly fee and there is no contract at all, so a new business can open a reader and trade on day one. The $59 entry point for hardware matters here: you are not committing to a counter build-out before you know whether the shop, van or market stall works.

It is also more than a card reader. Payroll, invoicing, an online store, appointments and loyalty all sit in one account, which means a sole trader does not have to stitch together four subscriptions in the first month. Our test unit kept taking cards through a simulated outage and settled the payments afterwards, so a dropped connection does not automatically mean turning customers away.

The trade-off is written into the pricing. Square is the right answer for almost every small business starting out, but once you are consistently over about $25,000 a month the flat rate starts costing real money.

How did Square score in our testing?

Square finished on 8.9 out of 10, first of the seven POS systems we tested. The score is built from five weighted criteria.

Processing fees and total cost — 26 out of 30. We measured the real cost of taking $25,000 a month in card payments, including the rate, the per-transaction fee, monthly software, hardware and any early-termination clause. Square's flat 2.6% + 15¢ is simple, but it is not the cheapest at that volume.

Hardware and reliability — 18 out of 20. We looked at terminal build, offline mode when the internet drops, receipt printing, cash drawer and scanner support. Square's offline mode works, with a per-transaction cap.

Features for the trade — 18 out of 20. Inventory, menus and modifiers, table service, appointments, staff rotas, loyalty and online ordering were all assessed. Square covers most trades from one account.

Reporting and integrations — 13 out of 15. Sales reports, accounting sync, payroll, ecommerce and the API were checked.

Support and terms — 14 out of 15. Hours reachable, how fast a dead terminal is replaced, contract length and how funds are held. No contract helps; fund holds hurt.

What does Square do particularly well?

The strongest result in our test was reliability during an outage. Square kept taking cards through our simulated outage and settled afterwards, which is the difference between a lost trading day and a delayed payout.

The second strength is breadth for the price. Payroll, invoicing, online store, appointments and loyalty are all in one account, and the free software tier means there is no monthly fee to justify in a quiet month. Hardware starts at $59 and scales to full counters as the business grows, so the same account can follow a trader from a market stall to a shop fit-out.

There is no contract at all, which means leaving is a decision rather than a negotiation.

What hardware, rates and terms does Square use?

The in-person card rate is 2.6% + 15¢. Software is 0 USD/mo on the free tier. On our $25,000-a-month basket the measured cost is 785 USD/mo. Hardware starts at 59 USD. Offline mode is available with a per-transaction cap. Payouts arrive next business day, or instantly for 1.75%. There is no contract. Square is best for most small businesses.

How does Square compare with Helcim, Toast and Clover?

Helcim scored 8.9, the same as Square, with no monthly fee and interchange-plus pricing at interchange + 0.40% + 8¢. On the same $25,000-a-month basket Helcim measured 658 USD/mo against Square's 785 USD/mo, and its hardware starts at 99 USD. Helcim is best for businesses over about $10k a month, and its offline mode is limited where Square's is not. If your volume is steady and above that line, Helcim is the cheaper total in our test.

Toast scored 8.5 and is built for restaurants and nothing else: coursing, modifiers, kitchen displays, online ordering and handhelds that survive a service. Its in-person rate runs from 2.49% + 15¢ on the paid plan to 3.09% + 15¢ on the free plan, software is 69 USD/mo, and the measured cost on $25,000 a month is 787 USD/mo. Hardware starts at 799 USD and some plans carry a 1–3 year contract. Toast has full offline mode and next-business-day payouts, but it is the wrong shape for a shop or a salon.

Clover scored 8.2 with a 2.6% + 10¢ direct rate, 14.95 USD/mo software and a measured 770 USD/mo on the same basket. Hardware starts at 299 USD, offline mode is supported and payouts are next business day. There is no contract buying direct, but up to 3 years via resellers. Clover suits shops wanting a proper counter setup; Square gets you trading for less up front.

Where does Square fall short?

Fees at higher volume are the main weakness. On our basket Square cost 785 USD/mo, and the flat rate costs more than interchange-plus at this volume. Helcim's 658 USD/mo on the same basket shows what that means in practice.

Square can hold funds on unusual activity with little warning, which is a cash-flow risk for a business with thin margins. Restaurant and retail feature tiers add $69 a location, so the free software tier is not the whole story for those trades. The offline mode also carries a per-transaction cap, so a long outage is not fully covered.

Is Square good value?

Price summary: free software. The measured cost on $25,000 a month is 785 USD/mo, against a 2.6% + 15¢ in-person rate, hardware from 59 USD and no contract. For a business well below that volume the free software and $59 reader make the total cost of getting paid very low. For a business consistently above it, the flat rate is the thing to watch.

Who should buy Square?

Square is still right for almost every small business starting out. If you want to take cards without a monthly software fee, without a contract and without spending more than $59 on hardware to begin, Square is the default answer. It suits businesses that need payroll, invoicing, an online store, appointments and loyalty in one account, and traders who value an offline mode that kept working in our simulated outage.

Look elsewhere if you are consistently over about $25,000 a month and want the lowest total cost, or if you run a restaurant that needs coursing, kitchen displays and handhelds built for service.