Pick how the customer pays, then enter the sale amount. The calculator uses the rates for Square Free, the plan with no monthly fee.
Square fee per sale
$2.75
You keep per sale
$97.25
Total fees for 1 sale
$2.75
Uses Square's published rate of 2.6% + 15¢ for in person. Estimate only; other fees (disputes, instant payouts, plans) aren't included.
To receive exactly $100.00, charge $102.82, if your local rules allow passing on fees.
Square’s US rates by plan
Square has three plans. The monthly fee goes up, and the card rates come down. Everything below is from Square’s US pricing page.
| Payment type | Square Free ($0) | Square Plus ($49/mo) | Square Premium ($149/mo) |
|---|---|---|---|
| In person (tap, dip, swipe) | 2.6% + 15¢ | 2.5% + 15¢ | 2.4% + 15¢ |
| Online and invoices | 3.3% + 30¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ | 2.9% + 30¢ |
| Keyed in or card on file | 3.5% + 15¢ | 3.5% + 15¢ | 3.5% + 15¢ |
Plus and Premium are charged per location. Square says, “With Square Plus and Square Premium, the monthly fee applies to each location you run.” Both come with a free 30-day trial, and Square says you “can cancel or switch plans anytime.”
Other Square rates you may see:
- Online API payments (built into your own website or app): 2.9% + 30¢.
- ACH bank transfer by invoice: 1%, with a $1 minimum. Plus and Premium cap the fee at $10. No cap is shown for the free plan.
- Afterpay: 6% + 30¢.
- EBT for SNAP-eligible items: 1.8% + 5¢.
- Instant or same-day transfer: 1.95% per transfer.
Worked examples
All of these use Square’s published rates. They’re our arithmetic, not Square’s.
A $20 coffee and pastry, tapped in person. On Square Free: 2.6% of $20 is 52¢, plus 15¢, so $0.67. You keep $19.33. On Plus it’s $0.65, and on Premium $0.63.
A $100 sale in person. Free: $2.60 + 15¢ = $2.75. Plus: $2.65. Premium: $2.55.
A $100 online order. Free: $3.30 + 30¢ = $3.60. Plus or Premium: $2.90 + 30¢ = $3.20.
A $100 phone order, keyed in. $3.50 + 15¢ = $3.65 on every plan. That’s 90¢ more than the same sale tapped in person on the free plan.
A month in person. Say you take $8,000 across 320 sales. On Square Free, that’s $208 in percentage fees plus $48 in fixed fees, so $256. On Plus, it’s $200 + $48 + the $49 plan, so $297. At this size, Plus costs more unless you need its features.
When does a paid plan pay for itself?
If you’re only looking at card rates, here’s the break-even point per location (our estimate, using Square’s published rates and plan fees):
- Plus vs Free, in person: you save 0.1% of sales. The $49 fee is covered at $49,000 a month in in-person card sales.
- Plus vs Free, online: you save 0.4% of sales. The $49 fee is covered at $12,250 a month in online card sales.
- Premium vs Free, in person: you save 0.2% of sales. The $149 fee is covered at $74,500 a month in in-person card sales.
Most sales mix in-person and online, so your number falls somewhere in between. Plans also include software features, which may matter more to you than the rate.
The fees the calculator doesn’t show
- Refunds. Square says that when you refund a payment, “the processing fees for the payment aren’t refunded back to you.”
- Chargebacks. Square says “There are no fees for dispute management services for chargebacks.” But it says the processing fees aren’t refunded to you either.
- Hardware. Square Reader is $59, Square Terminal is $299 and Square Register is $899.
- Gift cards. On Free and Plus, Square charges a 2.5% load fee when a gift card is loaded.
The calculator also shows what to charge to take home an exact amount. Before you pass fees on to customers, check the rules that apply to your business and your state.
Keep reading
- Square fees, plans and hardware, in full: the downsides as well as the upsides.
- The Stripe fee calculator, if you’re comparing the two.
- Credit card processing fees explained: every line on a statement.
- POS systems compared, if you’re weighing Square against other POS options.
Common questions
How much does Square charge per transaction?
On the free Square plan, Square lists 2.6% + 15¢ for in-person card payments, 3.3% + 30¢ online and 3.5% + 15¢ for keyed-in or card-on-file payments. On a $100 in-person sale, that's $2.75. Square Plus and Premium lower the in-person rate to 2.5% + 15¢ and 2.4% + 15¢, and the online rate to 2.9% + 30¢.
Is Square Plus worth it just for the lower rates?
Only at high volume, if rates are the only reason. Plus costs $49 a month per location and saves 0.1% on in-person sales, so it breaks even at $49,000 a month in in-person card sales. Online sales save 0.4%, so the break-even there is $12,250 a month. Plans also include software features, so rates may not be the main reason to upgrade.
Does Square refund its fee when I refund a customer?
No. Square says that when you refund a payment, "the processing fees for the payment aren't refunded back to you." On a $100 in-person sale on the free plan, you'd lose the $2.75 fee even after giving the customer their money back. Keep this in mind if your business has a lot of returns.
How much does Square charge for instant transfers?
Square charges 1.95% per instant or same-day transfer. Standard transfers are free and arrive the next business day for payments taken before 5 PM Pacific. On $1,000 moved instantly, the fee is $19.50, on top of the processing fees you already paid on those sales.