# Square as a Stripe alternative

Title: Square: Stripe alternative

Description: Square: 3.3% + $0.30 online · 2.6% + $0.15 in person. Dispute $0 Square dispute fee. Payment service provider. Checked November 9, 2026 on the provider page.

Square is a payment service provider. On November 9, 2026 the rate line is 3.3% + $0.30 online · 2.6% + $0.15 in person. The dispute line is $0 Square dispute fee. Confirm the billed row before you leave Stripe.

## What is Square?

Square is built around point of sale. Online rates on the free plan are higher than Square's online API rate and higher than Stripe's domestic card rate. Square says it does not charge a dispute-management fee.

## Who should choose Square?

Square fits: In-person sellers who also want a simple online checkout. A listing here is not an approval, and a published rate is not a quote.

## Who should look elsewhere?

What Square replaces: In-person and straightforward online selling. Not a high-risk specialist. Look elsewhere when you need something outside that.

Underwriting: Instant signup, with later review.

## How does Square charge?

Square has 5 fee lines in this dataset, each read on November 9, 2026. Headline rate: 3.3% + $0.30 online · 2.6% + $0.15 in person.

| Fee | Amount | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Square Free, online or invoices | 3.3% + $0.30 | [Source](https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5068-what-are-square-s-fees?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com) |
| Square Free, online API | 2.9% + $0.30 | [Source](https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5068-what-are-square-s-fees?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com) |
| Square Free, tap, dip, or swipe | 2.6% + $0.15 | [Source](https://squareup.com/us/en/pricing?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com) |
| International cards | +1.5% | [Source](https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5068-what-are-square-s-fees?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com) |
| Dispute management | No Square fee. Square says it covers the fee for disputes you challenge together. The disputed amount is held. | [Source](https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/3882-payment-disputes-walkthrough?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com) |

## What does Square cost at $10,000, $100,000, and $1 million a month?

The arithmetic below uses a $50 average ticket and successful charges only. It is not a quote for international cards or disputes.

| Monthly volume | Stripe US cards | Square Free, online or invoices | Square Free, online API |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| $10,000.00 | $350.00 (200 × $0.30 + 2.9% of $10,000.00) | $390.00 (200 × $0.30 + 3.3% of $10,000.00) | $350.00 (200 × $0.30 + 2.9% of $10,000.00) |
| $100,000.00 | $3,500.00 (2000 × $0.30 + 2.9% of $100,000.00) | $3,900.00 (2000 × $0.30 + 3.3% of $100,000.00) | $3,500.00 (2000 × $0.30 + 2.9% of $100,000.00) |
| $1,000,000.00 | $35,000.00 (20000 × $0.30 + 2.9% of $1,000,000.00) | $39,000.00 (20000 × $0.30 + 3.3% of $1,000,000.00) | $35,000.00 (20000 × $0.30 + 2.9% of $1,000,000.00) |

US Square Free. Plus and Premium publish a lower online rate and charge a monthly plan fee. See Square's pricing page.

## Where does Square operate?

Coverage: Rates here are Square's US fees. That is where Square operates, not a list of industries it accepts.

Do not treat a processor logo as an industry approval. If the business is on Stripe's prohibited list, switching the logo does not make the card payment lawful. The [restricted-business guide](/guides/stripe-restricted-businesses) is the map of Stripe's own words.

## How does Square differ from Stripe?

Stripe is a payment service provider at 2.9% + $0.30 for US domestic cards, read November 9, 2026, and it can review an account after you have started processing. Square is a payment service provider with the rate line 3.3% + $0.30 online · 2.6% + $0.15 in person and the dispute line $0 Square dispute fee.

Square and Stripe can both process cards, and the bill still depends on which published row matches the payment type you actually take.

## How do you switch from Stripe to Square?

Stripe's data export page, read November 10, 2026, says Stripe transfers saved cards only to a PCI DSS Level 1 processor and does not export subscriptions or payment history. The [switching guide](/guides/switching-from-stripe) covers what moves, what needs Stripe's approval, and how to keep subscriptions billing. Read it before you cancel the Stripe account.

1. Export Stripe customers, prices, and dispute history while the dashboard still allows it.
2. Ask Square, in writing, whether it can receive a card transfer from Stripe. The switching guide names the providers whose own pages describe one.
3. Recreate plans and the next billing date. Run five real customers in a test mode, including one annual plan and one past-due plan.
4. Map webhooks and payout reconciliation before the cutover. Do not bill the same period on both systems.
5. If Stripe has already closed the account, plan for customers to enter cards again.

## What usually goes wrong?

The dispute fee is the small line. The disputed amount and the card-network ratio are the ones that close accounts.

The other failure is comparing a different product, such as a merchant-of-record percent or a gateway monthly fee, to Stripe's card rate as if they were the same line.

## Which providers are similar?

These listings share Square's type. The order is alphabetical, not a rank.

- [Stax](/alternatives/stax): Subscription + interchange.
- [Stripe](/alternatives/stripe): 2.9% + $0.30.
- [Worldpay](/alternatives/worldpay): Custom.
- [Adyen](/alternatives/adyen): Custom, interchange-plus.

Also read [Stripe's fee breakdown](/guides/stripe-fees-explained) and the [pricing dataset](/data/pricing).

## Questions

### What does Square publish as its card rate?

Square's rate line in this directory is 3.3% + $0.30 online · 2.6% + $0.15 in person, read on November 9, 2026. Use that line only for the product it describes.

### What is Square's dispute fee?

Square's dispute line is $0 Square dispute fee. Stripe's published fee to receive a dispute is $15 on the same date, November 9, 2026.

### Is Square the merchant of record?

Square is a payment service provider, not a merchant of record in this directory. You remain the merchant unless a contract you sign says otherwise.

### Where does Square operate?

Rates here are Square's US fees. That is the coverage note stored with the November 9, 2026 reading. It is not a list of merchant category codes Square has approved.

### Should you leave Stripe for Square?

Only when this is the fit: In-person sellers who also want a simple online checkout. If the Stripe account is healthy and Stripe's other products are part of why you chose it, staying is often the smaller move. Square does not become a yes just because it is on this page.

### How much is Square at $10,000 a month?

At $10,000 a month and a $50 ticket, Square Free, online or invoices is $390.00 using the published rate read on November 9, 2026. Stripe on the same assumptions is $350.00. US Square Free. Plus and Premium publish a lower online rate and charge a monthly plan fee. See Square's pricing page.

## Sources

Last verified November 9, 2026.

- Square pricing: https://squareup.com/us/en/pricing?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com
- Square website: https://squareup.com/?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com
- Square: Square Free, online or invoices: https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5068-what-are-square-s-fees?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com
- Square: Dispute management: https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/3882-payment-disputes-walkthrough?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com
- Stripe pricing: https://stripe.com/pricing?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com
- Stripe: payment data export: https://docs.stripe.com/get-started/data-migrations/pan-export?ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.stripealternatives.com

## Related

- [Stripe pricing profile](/alternatives/stripe.md)
- [Stripe vs Square](/compare/stripe-vs-square.md)
- [How Stripe's US fees add up](/guides/stripe-fees-explained.md)
- [How to switch from Stripe](/guides/switching-from-stripe.md)
- [Lowest-fee Stripe alternatives](/best/lowest-fees.md)
- [Pricing dataset for November 9, 2026](/data/pricing.md)
- [All provider profiles](/alternatives.md)
- [Stax profile](/alternatives/stax.md)