Square for Restaurants Pricing (2026): Free vs Plus vs Premium, Card Fees and Add-ons
By the HospitalityStack editors · written from hotel & resort F&B experience
Square for Restaurants plans at a glance
Square's restaurant pricing page lists three plans, each priced per location per month (checked Oct 2026):
Square Free: $0. In person (tap, dip or swipe) 2.6% + 15¢; online 3.3% + 30¢. Item and menu management, pickup and local delivery, branded online ordering page.
Square Plus: $49. In person 2.5% + 15¢; online 2.9% + 30¢. Adds integrated inventory tracking and close-of-day reports; Square KDS app $30/device a month; Square Kiosk $99/device; Kiosk Lite (iOS) $50/device. 30-day free trial.
Square Premium: $149. In person 2.4% + 15¢; online 2.9% + 30¢. Adds coursing and seat management and 24/7 phone support; KDS $20/device; Kiosk $99/device; Kiosk Lite $30/device. 30-day free trial.
Businesses processing over $250,000 a year can ask Square about custom pricing and processing fees.
Fees that are the same on every plan
Manually keyed or card-on-file payments: 3.5% + 15¢. Online API payments: 2.9% + 30¢. ACH bank transfer via invoice: 1% with a $1 minimum (capped at $10 on Plus and Premium). Afterpay: 6% + 30¢. Cash and checks: free. Gift card loads: 2.5% on Free and Plus, 0% on Premium. Phone support runs 6am–6pm PT on weekdays (only for the first 90 days on Free) and 24/7 on Premium (checked Oct 2026).
When does upgrading pay for itself?
Each step up lowers the in-person rate by 0.1 percentage point, so the math is simple:
Free → Plus costs $49 more and saves 0.1% of in-person card sales, which breaks even at $49,000 a month in card sales. Below that, Plus is worth it only for its features (KDS, kiosks, inventory, the lower online rate).
Plus → Premium costs $100 more and saves another 0.1%, which breaks even at $100,000 a month, before counting the cheaper KDS ($10 less per device) and 0% gift card loads.
Example at $30,000 a month and a $30 average ticket (1,000 payments): fees are about $930 on Free, $900 + $49 = $949 on Plus and $870 + $149 = $1,019 on Premium.
Hardware
Square sells its own hardware; recent prices on Square's hardware store were Square Reader $59, Square Stand (iPad POS) $149, Square Terminal $299, Square Handheld $399, Square Register $899 and Square Kiosk $1,999, and Tap to Pay on iPhone and Android takes contactless payments with no extra hardware (checked Oct 2026 for our coffee shop POS guide). A full-service setup usually needs at least one Register or Stand, a handheld or two, and a KDS screen with the KDS app fee.
Restaurant features to check by plan
Square's restaurant page lists service charges and automatic gratuity by party size, open checks and house accounts, order-ready texts from KDS, split or reopened checks, pre-authorized bar tabs, tableside ordering, timecards with breaks and overtime, tip pooling, shift scheduling with trades, and labor cost reporting. Not every feature is on every plan: KDS and kiosks aren't available on Free, and coursing and seat management are a Premium feature. Confirm the plan for any must-have feature in the comparison table on Square's pricing page before you switch.
Square vs the alternatives
Square is the only big restaurant POS with a $0 plan, published card rates and no contract. Toast and SpotOn quote their card rates; Clover publishes a lower 2.3% + 10¢ in-person rate but sells hardware on 36-month subscriptions that can't be canceled. See Toast vs Square, Square vs Clover and the full best POS for restaurants guide.
Sources (checked Oct 2026)
FAQ
How much is Square for Restaurants per month?
Square Free is $0, Square Plus is $49 and Square Premium is $149 per location per month. Card fees, KDS ($30 or $20 per device), kiosks ($99 per device) and hardware are extra (checked Oct 2026).
What are Square's restaurant card fees?
In person: 2.6% + 15¢ on Free, 2.5% + 15¢ on Plus, 2.4% + 15¢ on Premium. Online: 3.3% + 30¢ on Free, 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium. Keyed-in or card on file: 3.5% + 15¢ on all plans (checked Oct 2026).
Is Square Plus worth it for a restaurant?
On card fees alone, Plus pays for itself above about $49,000 a month in in-person card sales. Below that, choose it for the features: KDS, kiosks, inventory tracking and the lower online rate (checked Oct 2026).
Does Square for Restaurants have a contract?
Square's plans are monthly per location, and Plus and Premium start with a 30-day free trial (checked Oct 2026).