Square's headline rate is easy to find, but it isn't the rate you pay on every sale. Take a card in person and it's one number; take the same card online, key it in by hand, or send an invoice, and it's another. The Free plan has no monthly fee, so what you pay comes down to how the payment is taken, and whether you're on a paid plan that lowers the rate.
This guide lays out every Square fee, what each one costs in practice, and the practical ways to bring your effective rate down.
Quick answer: Square charges 2.6% + $0.15 for in-person card payments, 3.3% + $0.30 online, and 3.5% + $0.15 for manually keyed or card-on-file payments, with no monthly fee on the Free plan. Invoices paid by card use the online rate, ACH bank transfers are 1% (with a $1 minimum), and Afterpay is 6% + $0.30. Paid plans (Plus and Premium) lower the in-person and online rates.Calculate your Square fees
How much does Square charge per transaction?
Square's core US rates on the Free plan are 2.6% + $0.15 in person, 3.3% + $0.30 online, and 3.5% + $0.15 for keyed payments. There's no monthly fee, no setup cost, and no charge for failed payments, so on the Free plan you only pay when a sale goes through.
Payment method | US rate (Free plan) |
|---|---|
In-person (tap, dip, swipe) | 2.6% + $0.15 |
Online and ecommerce | 3.3% + $0.30 |
Manually keyed or card-on-file | 3.5% + $0.15 |
Invoices (paid by card) | 3.3% + $0.30 |
ACH bank transfer | 1% ($1 minimum) |
Afterpay (buy now, pay later) | 6% + $0.30 |
The cheapest way to take a payment is in person, where the card is physically present and fraud risk is lowest. Online and keyed payments cost more because the card isn't there to verify, and Afterpay costs the most because Square pays you upfront while the customer pays in installments.
Square fees by payment method
Square prices each payment method by how much risk it carries, so the same $100 costs $2.75 in person but $3.60 online. Here's what each method covers.
In-person payments
Card payments taken in person through a Square reader, terminal, or register are 2.6% + $0.15 on the Free plan. This covers tap, chip, and swipe, and it's the rate most retail and hospitality businesses pay on the bulk of their sales. It's the lowest rate Square offers because a present card is the least risky kind of payment.
Online and ecommerce payments
Payments taken through Square Online, Square Checkout, or the ecommerce API are 3.3% + $0.30 on the Free plan. This is the rate for a website checkout or payment link, where the card is not physically present. If you sell mostly online, this is the rate that matters most, and it's where paid plans and other processors can save you money.
Manually keyed and card-on-file payments
When you type a card number in by hand, or charge a card you've saved on file, the rate is 3.5% + $0.15, the same across every plan. Keyed entry carries the highest fraud risk, which is why it costs more than a tapped or online payment. It mainly affects phone orders and repeat billing taken from the dashboard.
Invoices
Card payments made through a Square invoice are charged at the online rate, 3.3% + $0.30 on the Free plan. Sending the invoice is free; you only pay when the customer pays. Invoices are a common way for service businesses to bill clients without a full checkout.
ACH bank transfers
Customers can pay a Square invoice by bank transfer, which costs 1% with a $1 minimum. On Plus and Premium plans this fee is capped at $10, so a large invoice paid by ACH costs far less than the same amount on a card. For a $5,000 invoice, ACH on a capped plan is $10 against roughly $165 on a card.
Afterpay
Square offers Afterpay as a buy-now-pay-later option at 6% + $0.30. The rate is higher than a card because Square pays you the full amount upfront and takes on the risk of the customer's installments. It can lift conversion on higher-priced items, but the fee rarely pays for itself on cheap ones.
Square fees by plan tier
Square's processing rate drops on its paid plans, so the fee depends on both how the card is taken and which plan you're on. The Free plan has no monthly cost; Plus and Premium add a monthly software fee that varies by the Square product you use.
Plan | In-person | Online |
|---|---|---|
Free | 2.6% + $0.15 | 3.3% + $0.30 |
Plus | 2.5% + $0.15 | 2.9% + $0.30 |
Premium | 2.4% + $0.15 | 2.9% + $0.30 |
Keyed and card-on-file payments stay at 3.5% + $0.15 on every plan. The paid plans only pay for themselves once your volume is high enough that the lower rate saves more than the monthly fee, so a low-volume seller is usually better off on Free. High-volume businesses can also contact Square for custom pricing.
Square fees in the UK
UK sellers pay 1.75% for in-person card payments and 1.4% + 25p for online payments made with a UK card, with no monthly fee on the standard plan. The structure is similar to the US, but the rates and the treatment of foreign cards differ.
Payment method | UK rate |
|---|---|
In-person (tap, chip, swipe) | 1.75% |
Online (UK cards) | 1.4% + 25p |
Online (non-UK/EEA cards) | 2.5% + 25p |
Manually keyed, card-on-file, or invoice | 2.5% |
A 1.5% surcharge applies to in-person and keyed payments made with cards issued outside the UK. UK in-person rates are noticeably lower than the US equivalent, so the gap between countries is worth knowing if you sell in both.
What you actually keep on a Square sale
Square's fixed per-transaction fee is small, so the effective rate barely moves with price in person, but keyed and online sales cost more across the board. The table shows the fee and what you keep on the Free plan at three price points.
Sale price | In-person (2.6% + $0.15) | Online (3.3% + $0.30) | Keyed (3.5% + $0.15) |
|---|---|---|---|
$25 | $0.80 (3.2%) | $1.13 (4.5%) | $1.03 (4.1%) |
$100 | $2.75 (2.8%) | $3.60 (3.6%) | $3.65 (3.6%) |
$500 | $13.15 (2.6%) | $16.80 (3.4%) | $17.65 (3.5%) |
In person, a $25 sale and a $500 sale cost almost the same rate, because the $0.15 fixed fee is tiny next to the percentage. Online and keyed sales stay noticeably more expensive at every size, which is why an online-first business pays a higher effective rate on Square than a shop taking cards over the counter.
How we calculated these fees: figures use Square's published US Free-plan rates (verified July 2026): 2.6% + $0.15 in person, 3.3% + $0.30 online, and 3.5% + $0.15 keyed. Effective rates are calculated from those published rates. Your real rate varies with your plan, the payment method, and the card type.
How to reduce your Square fees
You can't negotiate Square's standard rates below a high volume, but five changes lower what you actually pay: take payments in person where you can, avoid keyed entry, use ACH for large invoices, move to a paid plan once volume justifies it, and route online-first sales through a lower-fee checkout.
- Take payments in person where possible. At 2.6% + $0.15, an in-person tap is the cheapest way to take a card on Square, well below the online and keyed rates. For a business that can take payment at the counter, this is the single biggest lever.
- Avoid manually keyed payments. Keying a card in costs 3.5% + $0.15 on every plan. Where you can, have the customer tap or pay through a link instead of reading the number over the phone.
- Use ACH for large invoices. On Plus and Premium, ACH is capped at $10, so a $5,000 invoice paid by bank transfer costs $10 rather than about $165 on a card. Offer it as an option for big B2B bills.
- Move to a paid plan once the math works. Plus and Premium drop the in-person and online rates, but only pay off past the volume where the saving beats the monthly fee. Run your monthly card volume against the rate difference before switching.
- Route online sales through a lower-fee checkout. Square's online rate (3.3% + $0.30 on Free) is higher than some Stripe-based checkouts. A checkout on Stripe's standard rate (2.9% + $0.30) with no percentage on top can cost less per online sale, while you keep Square for in-person selling.
Checkout Page runs on your own Stripe account and charges 0% in platform fees, with a free plan that covers up to $3,000 in monthly sales. For an online-first seller, moving the website checkout onto Stripe rates is usually the biggest saving, and our guide to Stripe's processing fees shows how those rates compare. Square remains the stronger choice for in-person and point-of-sale.
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Square fees FAQ
How much does Square charge per transaction?
Square charges 2.6% + $0.15 for in-person card payments on the Free plan, 3.3% + $0.30 online, and 3.5% + $0.15 for manually keyed payments. There's no monthly fee on the Free plan. Paid plans lower the in-person and online rates, and ACH bank transfers cost just 1%.
Does Square have monthly fees?
No, not on the Free plan. You can take payments with no monthly cost and pay only the per-transaction rate. Square's Plus and Premium plans do add a monthly software fee, which varies by product, in exchange for lower processing rates and extra features. Most small sellers start on the Free plan.
Why are Square's keyed-in fees higher?
Manually keyed and card-on-file payments cost 3.5% + $0.15 because the card isn't present to verify, which raises the fraud risk Square takes on. A tapped or dipped card in person is 2.6% + $0.15. Keyed rates are the same across all plans, so a paid plan won't reduce them.
How do Square's fees compare to Stripe's?
For in-person payments they're close: Square is 2.6% + $0.15, Stripe Terminal is 2.7% + $0.05. Online, Stripe's 2.9% + $0.30 is lower than Square's 3.3% + $0.30 on the Free plan, so online-first sellers often pay less on Stripe. Square tends to win for in-person and point-of-sale.
Does Square charge a fee for invoices or ACH?
Sending a Square invoice is free; you pay only when it's paid. A card payment on an invoice uses the online rate (3.3% + $0.30 on Free), and an ACH bank transfer is 1% with a $1 minimum, capped at $10 on Plus and Premium. ACH is much cheaper than a card on large invoices.
