Anna Lynn Dizon

A recurring payment, also referred to as a subscription, recurring billing, or automatic payment, is an electronically processed payment that repeats according to a preset schedule. Businesses often set up recurring payments to collect fees for memberships, subscriptions, lessons, and services. Recurring payments require customers to sign a one-time authorization form. The easiest way to accept recurring payments is with an all-in-one payment processor or merchant account that handles the payments but also has software to manage the billing process and security features to protect your customers’ information. The best payment processors for recurring payments are: : Best overall recurring payment platform : Best for small businesses needing a free POS system : Best invoice and subscription solution for online businesses : Best (and free) recurring invoicing and accounting software for individuals : Best for online startups managing international or in-app payments : Best traditional merchant account for recurring billing : Best all-in-one platform for managing subscriptions and memberships Payment Processor Dropdown Select a processor from the dropdown for specific details on how to set up recurring payments: How Do Recurring Payments Work? No matter which processor or invoicing solution you choose to manage recurring payments, the basic steps are the same: customers enroll in a subscription or recurring billing invoice and you bill them at designated intervals. Ideally, you will save the customer’s payment information on file so the charges are automated. How Much Does It Cost to Accept Recurring Payments? Recurring payment processing fees are typically a small percentage of the transaction total. Each payment provider sets its credit card processing fees; some tack on monthly account fees. For example, Square charges 3.5% plus 15 cents per recurring payment, so a $100 charge costs $3.65 in fees. With Square, that’s all you’ll pay because Square has no other account fees. In contrast, Stax and PaySimple both charge monthly fees for recurring payments—but both providers have lower per-transaction fees. You’ll also want to consider other payment processing services or perks that these providers offer. Value-added benefits, such as Square’s free business management suite or PaySimple’s event booking management features, might be the deciding factor. Costs of Accepting Recurring Payments With Our Recommended Processors Who Should Use Recurring Payments Invoice-based recurring payments are ideal for: Service providers: Lawn care, house cleaning, personal training, and childcare can process automatic repeat payments via single or batch invoices. Monthly tuition or lesson fees: Fitness clubs, music lesson providers, dance studios, and tutoring businesses can run invoices and automated payments on a monthly basis. Subscription services or club sales: Wine-of-the-month clubs and store loyalty programs can use recurring payments to automate monthly club sales or fees. Online recurring payment solutions are ideal for: Subscription box businesses: Subscription box sellers use online websites and marketplaces to sell subscriptions, then automatically run recurring charges for subscribers before shipping scheduled boxes. E-learning academies: E-learning businesses make online course content and instruction accessible on an ongoing basis via an online checkout with scheduled recurring payments. Membership blogs with restricted content: Informational bloggers can manage access to members-only content using recurring membership payments. Online services: Recurring payments are what make all types of online services possible, including software as a service (SaaS), online advertising, gaming products, virtual service providers, and mobile apps. If you’re selling anything online that auto-renews or requires periodic automatic payments, you’ll need a payment processor that can handle the recurring transactions. The easier you make it for customers to pay you, the better. How Your Business Benefits From Recurring Payments There are two huge benefits to setting up a recurring payment model for your business: Saves time: Instead of manually setting up invoices or calling customers for payment, automatic billing can save hours of your or your employees’ time every billing cycle. Offers predictable revenue: Membership and subscription models offer businesses a more stable revenue stream than ad-hoc billing, as it’s easier to predict revenue when you know how much customers will pay in advance. All the benefits are not just for businesses. Customers enjoy the convenience of a set-it-and-forget-it payment option, which is especially ideal for necessities or services they use consistently and would not want interrupted service on. Bottom Line Based on our evaluation, we recommend Helcim as the best overall recurring payment processor for most small businesses. Affordability and flexibility are the key reasons Helcim tops our list for the best recurring invoice payment provider. A free Helcim account includes card-on-file payments, invoicing software with automation tools, a sleek customer portal, and a mobile app to accept payments online or in-person.

Square is a free point-of-sale (POS) system and payment processor many small businesses use because it’s an affordable, all-in-one solution. Although it once dominated the market, many Square competitors now offer comparable products and services. Depending on your business, you may find better functionality or a lower price point using an alternative. The best Square competitors are: : Best Square alternative for low-cost, industry-specific POS : Best alternative for PayPal users with storefronts : Best discounted payment processing for large-volume sales : Best Square competitor for online payment processing : Best for occasional sellers or low-ticket sales : Best for managing large inventory : Best Square competitor for online retail businesses : Best Square alternative for small, mobile restaurants Top Square Competitors Compared Clover: Best Square Alternative for Fully Integrated, Industry-specific POS is a top Square alternative because it offers a lot of the same features and benefits. It features an advanced and all-in-one POS and payment processor, plus customer loyalty programs, employee scheduling, and proprietary hardware. We also highly recommend Clover if you want a Square alternative for affordable iOS-based credit card readers with payment apps. Unlike Square software, which only works with Square Payments, Clover can be purchased through many different merchant account providers. So, it’s best for businesses wanting to choose their own payment processor or with an existing merchant account. It comes with a monthly fee that businesses should keep in mind when budget planning. PayPal Zettle: Best Square Competitor for PayPal Users With Storefronts uses PayPal for its payment processing and provides a POS system for tablets or mobile. Startups can get a PIN pad card reader and begin accepting payments immediately or purchase an entire POS system. The software is free to use, with affordable processing rates, and allows you to accept PayPal payment options in-store. If you often have customers asking if you accept PayPal at checkout, then PayPal Zettle is your best alternative to Square. Helcim: Best Discounted Payment Processing for Large-volume Sales offers the cheapest payment processing for small businesses, making it an ideal alternative. It comes with ecommerce and POS tools, multichannel features, and built-in invoicing and recurring billing tools, but you may find it lacking in terms of back-office integration. Helcim has also recently upgraded to include multicurrency payment processing features, so you can receive international sales in your local currency at no extra cost. Add to that its zero monthly fees and automated volume discounts and Helcim is a solid option for growing businesses and business-to-business (B2B) retailers with an excellent recurring payments platform. Stripe: Best Square Competitor for Online Payment Processing , which started as an online-only platform but has since released Stripe Terminal to accommodate in-person payments as well, is a solid Square alternative to process online payments for businesses of all sizes. Because it is so popular, many ecommerce platforms and website builders have Stripe Payments built right into their software. Customization is Stripe’s key feature. It offers open API software that allows businesses with the technical resources to build a branded checkout experience, making it a top payment gateway. It is also our leading B2B payment solution because of its compatibility with a variety of payment types and billing processes. SumUp: Best for Occasional Sellers & Low-ticket Sales Not many competitors can compare with Square’s mobile payment solution, but comes close. It is a payment processor with a free payment app and a wide range of very affordable mobile card readers that allow you to access more payment processing features as you upgrade. Like Square, SumUp does not charge any monthly fees and transaction rates are competitive. SumUp also does not charge extra for accepting payments from foreign credit cards, making it a strong solution for businesses that thrive in seasonal tourism. However, this provider’s ecommerce tools are limited, so if you need this feature, consider Shopify instead. Lightspeed: Best Square Alternative for Managing Large Inventory is the best alternative for businesses that have outgrown Square’s inventory management capabilities. It tops our lists of the most recommended POS inventory systems for its advanced inventory features that can handle multiple revenue streams. For its restaurant software, Lightspeed’s inventory tools make it an excellent choice for quick service restaurants. Essentially, Lightspeed sets the standard for inventory management. So, if you’re looking for a POS that has greater functionality and granularity than Square’s, or have a retail or restaurant business, then Lightspeed is your best option. Shopify: Best Square Competitor for Online Retail Businesses is the Square competitor with the most robust ecommerce offering, making it our top recommendation for the best ecommerce platforms. Small businesses can set up and customize an online store and use Shopify’s payment processing and POS tools to build a well-rounded retail command center. The provider also includes integrated social selling, local delivery, and curbside pickup options. In comparison to Square, it offers more advanced and comprehensive features at a higher cost. It’s also our top-ranking multichannel POS system for native online businesses. Payanywhere: Best Square Alternative for Small, Mobile Restaurants is an affordable payment processor with built-in, all-in-one POS. Like Square, it is set up to cater to smaller businesses with low-volume sales―ideally those processing under $5,000 per month―with an average transaction value of below $20. Payanywhere offers a wider range of mobile card reader options and even lets you use your mobile device to scan barcodes, which can help you save on hardware costs. While Payanywhere is not a full-fledged restaurant POS system, it does provide restaurant-specific payment processing features, such as split checks, open tabs, and customizable tips functions. Combined with its basic register, inventory management tools, and offline payment function, Payanywhere is a viable Square alternative for small, mobile, quick-service restaurants. Bottom Line There are many competitors to choose from when it comes to selecting POS and payment processing solutions for your business. The first step is to determine what your main sales platform, such as online, in-person, or multichannel, is and which features are most important to you like inventory management, marketing, and employee management. From there, you should be able to narrow your options down. Though there are scenarios when you would want to use a Square alternative, it is our top-recommended POS and payment processing solution. It has no monthly fee, is easy to set up, and is super simple to use. It’s a great fit for new businesses, mobile businesses, and businesses with small average transactions. Plus, you are never locked into any long-term contract. Create a free Square account today.

A multichannel POS system enables businesses to sell in-store, online, and on the go—all from a centralized program. Each of the multichannel POS software mentioned in this guide offers unified inventory, customer, and order management tools. The best systems are those that connect to several online sales channels and other business management software for less than $100 per month. The top multichannel POS systems for 2023 are: : Best overall : Best for large inventory and multiple locations : Best free multichannel POS for small stores and cafes : Best for restaurants : Best for growing niche retailers accepting custom orders Top Multichannel POS Systems Compared See fullscreen table × *If billed annually and with Lightspeed Payments. Take Our Quiz for a Personalized Recommendation Can’t decide? Take this two-minute quiz to get the best multichannel POS recommendation for your business. Shopify: Best Overall Multichannel POS is the best overall multichannel POS for small businesses because it marries a robust online selling platform with a user-friendly and affordable POS system. The software lets you manage online and in-store sales, inventory, customer data, employee data, marketing and promotions, and cloud reporting in one central dashboard. With a score of 4.67 out of 5, Shopify stands out for its integrated sales channels, online ordering, shipping tools, and online store builder features. It even includes marketing tools for growing your customer base in its basic subscription, which you won’t see from Square, Lightspeed, and Toast. However, you need a paid POS plan if you want multiple registers and access to advanced inventory and online selling tools. What Shopify Is Missing Shopify is an ecommerce platform, so users will have to subscribe to a paid ecommerce plan that provides free POS. However, advanced POS features are only available with the paid POS version. The software also has limited offline capabilities. Consider if you need a free multichannel POS with free ecommerce tools and full offline selling features. Lightspeed Retail: Best for Retailers With Large & Complex Inventories is a cloud-based POS system that’s functional across multiple retail locations and online. With granular inventory tracking, it is recommended for growing businesses that have large and complex inventories along with several brick-and-mortar locations. The software also has excellent ecommerce tools that allow you to sell your products across your website and social media. Lightspeed Retail’s web store builder and online ordering tools are what earned it a high score in our evaluation of multichannel features. However, unlike Shopify, it fell short on the number of integrated sales channels and shipping tools. You’ll also need to upgrade to a standard plan to use Lightspeed’s marketing tools. Lightspeed Retail earned an overall score of 4.54 out of 5. What Lightspeed Retail Is Missing What merchants really could use is a less expensive Lightspeed subscription plan. The software can be a pricey solution for multichannel users if you opt for the plans that have the ecommerce and analytics add-on and are some of Lightspeed’s best features. Also, because Lightspeed Retail offers highly granular control options, it’s also much more complicated to use than a straightforward inventory solution. offers the simplest POS interface on this list. Square: Best Free Multichannel POS for Small Businesses is free POS that gives small multichannel businesses all the key features such as inventory sync, pickup, delivery and shipping options, and social media integration to grow their customer base without the high price point of Lightspeed and Toast. It also lets users create an online store for free to sell items for shipping, pickup, or local delivery. All data from in-person and online orders sync in Square’s Dashboard. For this evaluation, Square earned an overall score of 4.34 out of 5 and remains the most cost-effective choice for all types of small and startup businesses. However, Square’s inventory management features are limited compared to its more expensive counterparts. Its multichannel features—specifically integrated sales channels and online store building tools—are not as expansive as those of Shopify and Lightspeed Retail. What Square Is Missing Because Square POS is free, the app is missing certain features that other multichannel POS systems provide such as robust inventory management. Square for Retail Pro POS has some more advanced features. However, even Square’s Pro plan is not as advanced as and . If customer service is crucial for you, then Square might not be your best fit. Square’s customer service hours are limited, and a majority of poor client reviews are because of unsatisfactory customer service. Lightspeed offers 24/7 phone support. Toast: Best for Restaurants That Need Integrated Online Ordering & Delivery is a highly customizable, cloud-based restaurant POS system that offers online ordering and delivery tools, self-order kiosk options, traditional POS terminals, and handheld mobile terminals for tableside ordering. Its baseline subscription also packs an inventory and menu management system that’s on par with other restaurant POS giants like Lightspeed. Toast POS gained an overall score of 4.29 out of 5, with its inventory management, cloud reporting, and online ordering features earning high marks for this evaluation. Meanwhile, pricing is the major concern with this provider. Although packed with solid restaurant POS features, Toast software and hardware add-ons can quickly increase your monthly costs. While it offers a pay-as-you-go plan, it also ties you to a long-term contract. What Toast Is Missing The downside to an all-in-one package is that Toast users are limited to its proprietary Android-based hardware and payment processor. This means that you can’t save on costs by shopping around for better pricing options. Setting up additional registers, for instance, costs hundreds of dollars with Toast—a huge difference when compared to Square and Shopify, which only charge for the software. If you want payment processing flexibility, consider , which also has a restaurant POS. If you want an iOS-compatible solution, consider Square. Vend by Lightspeed: Best for Large Niche Retailers That Accept Custom Orders is a retail POS software ideal for large niche businesses that deal with high product turnovers and custom products. While the system has adopted Lightspeed’s advanced inventory tracking feature, Vend stands out for its serialization function for tracking unique items being sold. Vend by Lightspeed also offers RACS-certified age verification tools, which makes it compatible with businesses that sell CBD, tobacco, and vape products. A new addition to our roundup, Vend by Lightspeed replaces Revel with an overall score of 4.24 out of 5. The software offers flexible hardware and payment processing options you won’t find in Square. It also supports a wide range of multichannel features, although some tools like ecommerce will require an upgrade to its higher paid plans. This, along with the expensive subscription cost, prevented Vend by Lightspeed from receiving a higher score in our evaluation. What Vend by Lightspeed Is Missing Like Lightspeed, Vend’s biggest downside is the fees. The range of its monthly subscription is among the most expensive and even the basic plan does not yet include ecommerce so the cost to maintain Vend can quickly increase and, therefore, not ideal for small and startup businesses. So, unless you are certain that you need all the advanced functionality that Vend offers, consider more affordable and scalable alternatives like . How We Chose the Top Multichannel POS Systems For this evaluation, we compared the most popular multichannel POS systems based on what’s important to small businesses, including pricing, general features, multichannel tools, and ease of use. We looked for affordable, easy-to-use functionalities and considered our retail and restaurant POS expert’s personal evaluations of each software as well. Because a multichannel system is a specific type of POS meant for selling online and in-person, all the software in this list also have native ecommerce or online ordering platforms. Based on these criteria , again, emerges as the best multichannel POS with an overall score of 4.67 out of 5. Click through the tabs in the box below to view our full evaluation criteria. Bottom Line Of all the multichannel POS systems we evaluated, Shopify offers the most robust features at an affordable price. It combines a popular, top-rated ecommerce platform with a user-friendly and free POS app, as well as native integrations to social media and online marketplaces. That’s on top of a centralized dashboard to manage orders and inventories small and large, all in real time. Shopify also offers a 90-day free trial, so you can explore whether it’s the right POS system for you.

Merchant services allow businesses to accept credit and debit card payments at a point-of-sale (POS) system, online, or through invoices. Technically, there is no way to accept card payments for free. However, there are merchant service and payment service providers with no setup fees, contracts, or monthly fees that offer more affordable alternative payment options. The best free merchant accounts are: : Best overall free merchant account : Best for solopreneurs and occasional sellers : Best for growing storefronts : Best for QuickBooks users : Best for online businesses : Best traditional merchant account : Best for invoicing for solo professionals This guide on free merchant accounts offers ideal solutions for startups and solopreneurs. For businesses with larger monthly sales volume, I recommend more cost-effective payment processors that offer low transaction rates in exchange for a monthly fee. Read our guide to the cheapest credit card processing companies to learn more. Top Free Merchant Accounts Compared Please note that all the providers in our list offer $0 monthly fees, startup costs, and monthly minimums and no long-term contracts. Square Payments: Best Overall Free Merchant Account is a free payment processing and POS solution where anyone can sign up and receive the same processing rates. While not the lowest, Square’s transaction processing rates are competitive, especially if you consider the free POS and ecommerce tools available to its users. Its low startup costs and competitive processing rates, sleek interface, and advanced POS features also make Square a consistent pick for the best overall merchant services. Square tops our list with an overall score of 4.61 out of 5. It is the only provider in our list that offers chargeback protection for up to $250 a month along with a suite of startup-friendly POS features, hardware options, and business management tools. However, limited customer support and reports of account stability issues prevented Square from earning a higher score. PayPal Business: Best Free Merchant Account for Solopreneurs offers low-cost, user-friendly payment processing for individuals and small businesses. It has a sleek mobile POS app with additional payment methods exclusive to PayPal users. PayPal’s One Touch technology creates a faster checkout experience that leads to higher conversion rates for your online store. Solopreneurs, hobbyists, and occasional sellers will find its rates and peer-to-peer payment tools an ideal solution. For this evaluation, PayPal earned a 4.23 out of 5, falling behind Square overall in pricing. That said, PayPal offers affordable mobile and online transaction fees, plus a free mobile POS app and invoicing software. Its online payments also work with just about any website or software. However, it requires a monthly subscription for virtual terminal and recurring payments, has a $20 chargeback fee, and offers limited customer support hours. Helcim: Best Free Merchant Account for Growing Storefronts offers interchange-plus transaction fees and automatic volume discounts for sales above $25,000/month. It also comes with free POS, inventory, invoicing, customer management, and ecommerce features to launch a multichannel business easily. The system can easily be adapted for a wide range of industries, including retail and subscription-based service businesses but, after years of reviewing this software, I find this provider best suited for retailers. In our evaluation, Helcim earned an overall score of 3.96 out of 5, particularly for its free multichannel sales tools and competitive interchange pricing that you won't find in Square or PayPal. However, the system offers limited business integration and an expensive card reader. While its interchange plus pricing scheme makes per transaction cost comparatively low, Helcim’s auto-applied volume discount favors businesses with larger monthly transactions. QuickBooks Payments: Best Free Merchant Account for QuickBooks Users is the natural choice for small businesses already using QuickBooks as an accounting tool. QuickBooks users can send invoices, accept ACH payments, take phone orders, accept payments through a mobile app, and set up recurring billing. Most processors require a $10,000 to $20,000 monthly minimum to qualify for volume discounts, but QuickBooks offers volume discounts for any small business processing over $7,500 monthly. For this evaluation, QuickBooks Payments earned an overall score of 3.94 out of 5 earning high marks for its user-friendly software and multiple options for in-person and online payments. Like Square, QuickBooks requires a subscription to its main product (QuickBooks Accounting), but Square offers a free subscription—while QuickBooks does not. This affected QuickBooks’ budget features scores and, along with high chargeback fees plus limited ecommerce integrations, prevented it from ranking higher in our roundup. Stripe: Best Free Merchant Account for Online Businesses Often compared to Square and PayPal, offers basic and customizable online checkouts with instant setup and no application process. It can also manage subscriptions, recurring fees, and store card data with a range of customization options. Detailed online features, zero startup and monthly fees, and competitive processing rates make Stripe a solid choice for ecommerce businesses and business-to-business (B2B) sellers. Stripe earned an overall score of 3.84 out of 5 for its robust and highly customizable set of payment solutions, security features, and 24-hour customer support. However, when I tested the system by trying to setup an account and found that while Stripe now offers basic checkout options, the set-up process is too complicated for simple mom-and-pop shops or occasional sellers. Slow deposit speed and limited business management tools also prevented it from scoring higher. Chase Payment Solutions: Best Free Traditional Merchant Account is a big name in the banking industry, and it has also acquired key subsidiaries to become one of the most versatile merchant service providers in the market. Chase can give users faster access to their funds, offering both same-day and next-day funding options, and supports in-person, online, and mobile sales with a strong banking infrastructure. It is one of the best choices for business owners who prefer a traditional merchant account. In our evaluation, Chase Merchant Services earned an overall score of 3.66 out of 5, standing out for its breadth of payment options, POS integrations and, most importantly, the speed at which it makes funds available for its users. However, Chase fell short in transaction and budget features, particularly for charging extra to use stored payment and other business management tools. The need for improved seller protection tools and customer service quality prevented it from earning a higher score Wave: Best Free Merchant Account for Invoicing for Solo Professionals is a free accounting and invoicing tool for freelance workers, contractors, and small businesses. Like Square, it can create, customize and send invoices (even estimates) on your computer and from the mobile app, and offer a variety of payment methods, including adding a Pay Now button. However, Wave lets you track and manage your invoices with an accounts receivable (A/R) system integrated with your merchant account, which you can only do with Square through an accounting integration. Wave earned a 3.53 out of 5, offering great value for solo professionals who accept payments through invoicing along with free accounting tools. However, it’s different from the other options on this list because you can’t use Wave to accept payments in person or add it to an ecommerce website. The lack of integration and limited customer support also did not help Wave in our rankings. How We Evaluated Free Merchant Accounts Since there are no “free” merchant accounts, we considered companies that don’t lock you into a contract or have monthly fees, startup costs, and monthly minimums, which considerably narrowed our list. We then tested each software ourselves to identify the most small business-friendly payment processors, evaluating for ease of account application, quality of services offered with its free plan, transaction fees, and payment processing. We also looked at the overall transparency of each company’s pricing structure, affordability, reputation, customer reviews, and integrations. Finally, we considered the value of each provider’s paid plans and cost of add-on features in this update. Based on these criteria, received the highest rating, with an overall score of 4.61 out of 5. Click through the tabs below to see our specific evaluation criteria: Bottom Line Although there are no true merchant services that are 100% free, there are many options that have no monthly fees, startup fees, or processing minimums and come with competitive pay-as-you-go transaction processing fees. Square is our top choice for free merchant accounts because—in addition to having no application process, monthly fees, setup fees, and minimal hardware fees—it has all the basic tools that you need to run a mobile, in-store, online, or multichannel retail business. It comes with a free, top-of-the-line mobile payments app and has other business solutions you can add for a truly affordable, all-in-one payment and POS solution.

is a point-of-sale (POS) system with inventory and order management capabilities that rival top competitors like Lightspeed. It earned an overall score of 4.01 out of 5 in our 31-point criteria for the best POS for small businesses, standing out for its advanced inventory and flexible payment processing at a very competitive price point. It is an ideal choice for small retailers looking for a scalable and more-budget friendly POS. We highly recommend Hike for small specialty retail shops requiring advanced features like composite product management, lay-by and on-account sale, and integrated label printing at a price point well below the competition. If you have seasonal pop-ups or need to add additional registers for your busy season, you can upgrade your plan and then downgrade once the season is over. Hike’s native iPad app offers the mobility and compact size required for on-the-go and popup store sales. On the other hand, while Hike is less expensive than our other recommended POS inventory systems, it does not have a free plan. Monthly fees start at $59 but expect to pay at least $89 per month if you need to manage more than one store location or set up an online store with your POS system. If these are deal breakers, consider a free POS system like , which also provides scalable features, or if you primarily sell online. Hike POS Deciding Factors Hike POS Alternatives Not sure if Hike is right for you? See how it compares with our top POS inventory systems and leading retail POS systems. Hike has three subscription tiers—Essential, Plus, and Enterprise—starting at $69 per month ($59 per month if billed annually). Each of these plans has one register included, but you can purchase extra registers at $39 per month. The main differences between the plans are the ability to sell online and available integrations (multistore management, inventory accounting, marketing, and ecommerce, and marketplaces). Hike offers a wide range of seamless payment processing methods including custom payment types. On top of a touch-screen register and customizable interface, the system can even allow you to easily create unique custom sale items right at checkout. However, ecommerce functionalities are somewhat limited and access to some advanced features will require you to have a higher subscription plan. Hike offers excellent inventory and order management functionalities, customized reporting, and employee management features that easily rival popular retail POS software in the market. However, similar to its register and checkout features, most advanced management tools will require an upgraded subscription. Hike’s marketing features are also limited to integrations. Intuitive user interface Offline mode Touch screen Help center Video tutorials and webinars Dedicated account manager and customized onboarding for those under the Enterprise plan 24/7 email and chat support Customer callback for demos and sales Hike is one out of three POS software that earned a perfect score for ease of use. The system is easy to set up and compatible with a wide range of hardware without the need for professional installation. It also works offline and even offers 24/7 customer support and extensive user guides on its website. Hike nearly earned a perfect score for this category, if not for the fact that it does not have a free plan and a lot of user reviews online. The system can also benefit from improvements on its available ecommerce features. Otherwise, its value for money—a key factor for small businesses—is one of the best when compared to top inventory management POS systems. Some small businesses would not need most of the features that they pay for in a basic POS plan with advanced invoicing tools. So, while Hike does not have a free plan, we particularly like how the system is easily scalable. Allowing users to upgrade or downgrade their subscription at any time means the cost of using Hike will always match the business needs whether it's a busy season or not. What Users Say in Hike POS Reviews At the time of publication, Hike reviews have generally improved, although there are still not many available online. User sentiments still remain mainly positive with Hike consistently receiving excellent feedback for customer support. They said its agents are extremely helpful, are responsive, and would go the extra mile to resolve issues. Hike’s robust inventory features earned praise for the ability to handle complete inventory as well. Recent feedback also mentioned Hike’s excellent messaging app. On the other hand, occasional platform glitches and downtime are still the main concern. Hike earned the following scores on popular user review sites: Trustpilot: 4.8 out of 5 based on over 140 reviews Capterra: 3.9 out of 5 based on around 40 reviews G2: 4.2 out of 5 based on about 5 reviews We also observed user review trends, similar to our previous update: Methodology: How We Evaluated Hike POS We test every POS software ourselves when evaluating small business POS systems. We gauged each one, including Hike, for affordability and value-for-money features that not only include, but also go beyond, basic POS functions—such as the ability to handle complicated inventory, multiple payment methods, and multichannel features. We also evaluated each system’s scalability and flexibility ideal for small businesses. Overall, Hike performed well in our evaluation, standing out for its inventory and order management capabilities, competitive pricing, and ease of use. Click through the tabs below to see the full evaluation criteria. Hike POS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Bottom Line Hike is an inventory POS system that allows you to expand your business without costing an arm and a leg. Its basic plan offers valuable inventory, store management, and accounting integrations to let you efficiently manage your business across multiple locations. It is a perfect POS system if your business needs to be mobile and in several locations (offline, in-store, and even warehouses) where real-time inventory syncing is crucial. Sign up with Hike for a 14-day free trial—no credit card required.

Square is a mobile payment company that offers a suite of business software, point-of-sale (POS) systems, payment hardware products, and small business services. Unlike most payment processors, Square is available to businesses of all sizes and offers the most comprehensive free POS system on the market. The Square payment and POS app has been downloaded more than 33 million times and has more than 2 million active sellers. Should You Use Square? We’ll get into more detail on Square’s specific products below. But, generally, for any small business processing less than $120,000 per month, Square is the best POS and payment processing solution because it comes with no fixed monthly costs and offers incredible value with the free POS system. Visit Square to create your free account. Square’s Services: Why Small Businesses Love It Square is the original mobile payment processing app and card reader. When it first launched, it had high adoption rates because it allowed businesses to accept card payments anywhere instead of having to rely on cash or peer-to-peer payment apps. It also did away with the complex contracts and long-term commitments required by many merchant services. Unlike most credit card processing companies, Square does not require an application or approval process and has no monthly fees or minimum requirements. Every free Square account comes with three main functions: payments, POS software, and online ordering. How Does Square Work? Square starts with simple, flat-rate payment processing that includes credit cards, contactless payments, and ACH transfers. Then, it offers various products within its ecosystem that all work together to form a complete small business management solution. However, some of the solutions, like Payroll, can be used as a standalone. Square continues to add to its offerings for small businesses, from improvements to the software to new systems (like a kitchen display system) to, most recently, banking services. Easy, Flat-Rate Payment Processing You can use Square to complete credit card transactions online, in your brick-and-mortar store, and on your mobile device when you’re on the go. Square charges a flat rate price per credit card transaction. This means that the credit card company, customer’s bank, and merchant account processor fees are all wrapped up into one flat-rate fee. This is regardless of the type of card you are processing. The only differences in rates are whether or not you have to key in the numbers. Square Payment Processing Fees The advantage of this pricing model is its simplicity. You don’t have to worry about figuring out how much you are paying in credit card processing fees because you know in advance exactly how much you’re going to pay. It’s the same flat rate no matter what type of card your customer uses. Top-Rated Merchant Services Square’s affordable and user-friendly payment processing is one of the best merchant services available for small businesses. In addition to mobile and in-store payments, every free Square account comes with a virtual terminal, invoicing, online payments, and tools to monitor and dispute chargebacks. What’s New With Square Free & Low-cost POS Software In addition to excellent merchant services, Square also offers free POS apps that can be downloaded onto iOS and Android smartphones and tablets or used with one of Square’s proprietary hardware products. The free, user-friendly app has an offline mode, making it suitable for both mobile and in-store sales. On top of the standard free Square POS app, Square offers free and paid POS software subscriptions for retail, restaurant, and appointment-based businesses. Each POS software product includes payment processing, inventory management, basic employee management, customer relationship management (CRM), reporting, analytics, and industry-specific functions. For example, in November 2020, Square added a kitchen display (KDS) solution with detailed ticket views, timers, alerts, options for different prep stations, and an Expeditor Mode. Click through the tabs below to learn more about each Square POS offering. Free Online Ordering Website Builder is the third free solution that comes with every Square account. It’s a user-friendly site builder that can be used to create a business website or a basic ecommerce site or to add online ordering or order-ahead functionality to your business. You can also use Square Online for online appointment booking. It includes a range of templates for retail, restaurant, event, appointment, and other business types. It automatically syncs orders, inventory, and customers with your POS and can be used to process curbside pickup, shipping, or local delivery orders. Business Management Solutions In addition to Square’s three free business tools: payments, POS, and online store, Square offers an array of business management solutions that can be used as a standalone tool or in conjunction with any of Square’s other products. One of the advantages of using Square is that businesses can mix and match the solutions they need to create the best setup for their needs. Some of the most popular solutions include: : Track time, pay employees, manage benefits, and automatically file tax forms. Read our Square Payroll review to learn more. : Square offers small business loans of up to $100,000. This is only available for Square sellers but has fast approval and fast funding without a hard credit check. Square also has paid add-ons for email and SMS marketing, team management, customer loyalty programs, and advanced online sales. Square Banking The company has taken the next logical step in its business services with . While Square, Inc. is a financial services company, not a bank, these services are provided by Square’s banking affiliate, Square Financial Services, Inc. or Sutton Bank. It offers business checking and savings accounts, along with the small business loans mentioned above. Your income from Square sales can flow directly into the accounts, giving you greater access to your funds. Square banking comes with no overdraft fees, no minimum balance, no opening deposit, and no account fees, so it’s a no-brainer for businesses that use Square. The savings account earns 0.5% APY. Like other banks, Square has debit cards. It allows automated payments, including paying off business loans through Square Capital. Bottom Line Square has become the go-to solution for pay-as-you-go flat-rate payment processing. Every year, Square continues to enhance the features of its free POS software, including solutions specifically designed for retail, restaurants, and appointment-based businesses like salons, in addition to its generic small business POS. Even more, it offers business tools from payroll and marketing to banking. Overall, Square is one of our favorite solutions for small businesses. Visit Square to create a free account. You May Also Like… Learn about Square’s top competitors. See our top picks for the best merchant services for small businesses and the best POS systems.

Mobile credit card processing allows merchants to sell products and accept card payments from almost anywhere with a smartphone or tablet. The best mobile credit card processor should be reliable, have affordable transaction fees, come with a free business management app, and function offline. Based on our evaluation, the best mobile credit card processors are: : Best overall mobile credit card processing app : Best for businesses with an existing merchant account : Best for small, mobile businesses with low-volume sales : Best for ecommerce businesses expanding to in-person sales : Best for occasional sales and PayPal users : Cheapest for small businesses with high-volume sales Best Mobile Payment Processors Compared See fullscreen table × *Rates will vary depending on your processor. The rates shown are from Fiserv (First Data). Square Offers the Best All-around Payment Solution In general, we recommend Square as the best all-around mobile payment processor for its free iPhone and Android processing solutions, affordable and high-tech mobile card readers, and feature-rich payment app. When You’ll Grow Out of Square Square is geared toward small businesses and individuals, as is PayPal. Once your business grows and is consistently processing over $10,000 monthly, you can get lower fees and a better overall value by switching from either of those to solutions like or , which offer interchange-plus pricing. If your business is ecommerce, you’ll likely want a mobile payment processor that’s connected to your online store. In this case, offers a much more robust online selling solution, and its mobile POS app is the best for multichannel sales. If You Already Have a Merchant Account If you already have a merchant account and just need a mobile card reader, is a popular mobile POS and hardware solution that works with many merchant accounts. Get a Personalized Recommendation Unsure which credit card processor is best for you? Take this four-question quiz to find out. You’ll get a recommendation without being redirected to another page. Square: Best All-purpose Mobile Credit Card Processing is the best mobile credit card processor for small businesses. The mobile payment processing option has no monthly or startup fees, and the application is easy. You can get up and running in no time with the free POS app while you wait for the free credit card reader to arrive. The app works offline, is compatible with Android and iOS, and has an excellent inventory program. Square’s transaction fees are the most expensive on our list. However, it offers the most features. For example, it has banking services, something only PayPal offers to a lesser degree. It has specialty POS software for restaurants and appointment-based businesses, something only Clover offers. Square also has an online store; Shopify, for example, charges for this, although Shopify offers greater features. That said, Square does offer custom volume discounts for businesses processing over $250,000 annually with average transactions over $15. It also has checking and savings, payroll, and other plans you can add as your needs grow. Clover Go: Best for Existing Merchant Account Holders offers everything a standard mobile processor does, including payment processing, inventory management, and analytics reporting. After Square, Clover has the most feature-packed point-of-sale app on this list. Specific plans include credit card pre-authorization, next-day deposits, exchanges, a detailed item library, and a weight-scale integration. What makes Clover interesting is that it requires a traditional merchant account. You can either set up your account through Fiserv, which owns Clover, or one of its authorized resellers. (Fiserv offers three plans for Clover, with different prices.) While Clover provides more variety than any other app on our list, the pricing and support you receive can vary greatly depending on which merchant account provider you choose. SumUp: Best for Small Mobile Businesses With Low-volume Sales After its most recent upgrades, began making its way up our rankings by offering a unique line of advanced, yet cost-effective mobile card reader solutions. Its card readers are some of the most advanced in the industry, supporting both mobile-device-compatible and standalone card readers. User interface ranges from the basic 3-in-1 (swipe, chip, and tap) reader to touch-screen keypads—and all at an affordable price point ($35–$99). SumUp charges a flat, per-transaction fee of 2.75%, which is most economical for small ticket sales. The other options on this list charge a 10–30 cent transaction fee, which can be expensive for businesses selling $5–$20 items. Although the mobile app user reviews have not improved (even after significant upgrades), ratings are still expected to climb and improve as this provider catches up on features. At the moment, SumUp provides in-person payment processing methods, as well as a virtual terminal and online invoicing solution. It also includes a basic inventory management system plus a suite of application programming interfaces (APIs) and software development kits (SDKs) for customizing payment features. However, SumUp can still use additional flexibility with ecommerce and multichannel sales integrations. We recommend SumUp for small retailers and other mobile businesses that have simple inventory needs and an average ticket sale well below $50. Shopify: Best for Online Businesses Needing a Mobile App for In-person Sales If you want to sell primarily online but need a mobile app for in-person sales, then could fit the bill. It’s our top pick for best ecommerce platforms and scores very well for mobile apps and merchant services. Other apps on our list, like Square, come with online stores, but none have the power of Shopify. It ties your online store to your mobile POS so that as you sell items, inventory stays up-to-date in both applications. Like PayPal, Shopify has a wide international reach—133 countries. Its transaction fees are close to Square’s, and, like Square, it offers some business services. However, while Square has banking, Shopify has marketing and shipping tools. PayPal Zettle: Best for Occasional Payments & PayPal Users is one of the most popular payment processors because of its versatility. It works online and in person, and with other payment processors or on its own. Plus, it even handles international sales. It also does not charge monthly fees for inactivity. This makes it great for the solopreneur and hobbyist as well. Like Square, PayPal can deposit sales instantly, but rather than charging, it limits this to deposits into your PayPal account. PayPal recently replaced PayPal Here with Zettle. As of this writing, Zettle’s US version still has a long way to go before it can become as feature-rich as Here, although Zettle’s interface is more modern. We can expect more significant improvements as PayPal develops it further—but right now, Square’s sales features are more robust. Payment Depot: Best for Small, Fast-growing Businesses has adopted feature upgrades since it was acquired by Stax (formerly Fattmerchant). It now offers all-in-one subscription-based plans, wholesale transaction rates, and Stax payment processing tools at a more affordable price range. And, because it is a dedicated payment processor, Payment Depot can offer secure payment processing and reliable software to small, growing businesses processing up to $500,000 per year. As for mobile payments, Payment Depot partners with SwipeSimple for credit card processing. With the SwipeSimple mobile payments app, you can add tips, save payment information, use a product catalog, and process returns. You can also view analytics reports and accept payments offline like Square and PayPal. Note that Payment Depot also offers free equipment reprogramming and free equipment to qualified merchants. Payment Depot Card Readers Payment Depot Mobile App How We Evaluated the Best Mobile Credit Card Processors For this update, we prioritized affordability and value-for-money when evaluating each mobile credit card processor. Our goal is to offer the best recommendations for small merchants—from startups to growing businesses. We made sure each provider is convenient, flexible, and reliable and has low or no upfront costs and competitive processing rates. We evaluated over a dozen mobile credit card processors based on price, ease of use, the mobile app, reliability, and web-based and general account features, then narrowed the list down to the six best solutions. Click through the tabs below for our full evaluation criteria: Mobile Credit Card Processing Fee Calculator Compare your estimated monthly fees when using our recommended mobile credit card processors. Mobile Credit Card Processing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Bottom Line Whether you’re a brand-new business that is starting out with mobile credit card processing or an established store looking to take your business on the go, you need a solution that is cost-effective, reliable, and easy to use. It'd be even better if you didn’t have to deal with monthly transaction minimums, fees, or contracts. Square is a great mobile credit card processing company for small businesses. It is easy to use, has a full POS, and lets you accept payments anywhere, even offline. No applications, startup fees, or hardware costs mean it’s a risk-free investment. Plus, the Square app comes with the point-of-sale features you need to manage a business on the go. Visit Square to get started with a free account and mobile card reader.

is a merchant services provider that enables merchants to process credit card payments at wholesale rates. Standout features include rate protection, free access to its virtual terminal and payment gateway services, and free equipment reprogramming. In our review of merchant service providers, Payment Depot earned an overall score of 4.09 out of 5, offering lower fees compared to most other processors on the market. We highly recommended Payment Depot for established or growing retail, restaurant, and professional services, including B2Bs. Through years of reviewing merchant accounts and payment processors, I don’t often come across subscription-based merchant service providers I would readily recommend for smaller businesses. Payment Depot’s midrange monthly plans combined with zero percentage markup—certainly two of the most significant improvements since it was acquired by Stax—have changed all that. However, startups and businesses with low-volume sales will still find alternatives that provide free merchant accounts more cost-effective. And although Payment Depot works with SwipeSimple to offer mobile processing, merchants will get better support for running a mobile business with a payment processor that offers a native mobile point-of-sale (POS) solution. That said, we consider Payment Depot the best solution for small businesses that have outgrown their startup payment processors. It has made wholesale transaction rates that can potentially provide huge discounts, available to actively growing, established small businesses. Payment Depot Deciding Factors Payment Depot Fees Calculator Enter your monthly sales volume information to get an estimate of Payment Depot fees. Top Payment Depot Alternatives Payment Depot performed better than Stax in terms of pricing, mainly because it offers midrange plans and processing limits that are more compatible for small businesses. And unlike Stax, all Payment Depot features are available at every subscription level. However, one factor to consider is the range of processing limits. Active businesses can easily go from $10,000 to more than $20,000 in monthly sales in less than a year, which means moving to a higher Payment Depot subscription plan. Access to Payment Depot’s range of built-in payment services is covered in the monthly subscription fee. However, this provider does not support its own mobile payment solution and instead integrated with the popular and reliable SwipeSimple for both hardware and mobile apps. It also does not have its own recurring billing and card-on-file payment services, which merchants can instantly get from Stax’s basic subscription plan. Payment Depot does not have a same-day funding option but most transactions (except for ACH) are deposited into your account the next business day. Payment processing services are free to use but key payment methods like recurring billing and card-on-file transactions will require integration. On the other hand, Payment Depot offers 24/7 customer support with excellent user reviews. It also provides your first payment terminal and equipment reprogramming free of charge. Overall, the question we would like to answer here is: “Is Payment Depot worth its price for merchants?” The answer is “Yes, if your goal is to actively grow your small business.” Payment Depot is both cost-effective and reasonably priced for a subscription-based merchant services provider. It also offers a reliable suite of integration options including mobile payments, and while reviews are limited, users unanimously praise Payment Depot’s customer service. What Users Say in Payment Depot Reviews Payment Depot users mostly enjoy using the platform. There are lots of positive reviews about the cost and customer support, though not everyone agrees about its affordability. Trustpilot: 4.6 out of 5 stars based on over 1,200 reviews Capterra: 4.7 out of 5 stars from about 60 reviews Payment Depot has excellent user reviews, which is unusual for a payment processor. However, in addition to limitations on high-risk and international businesses, it does not offer as many internal tools as other processors. For example, it lacks an extensive online knowledge base and doesn’t offer sleek tools like a proprietary mobile app and billing software. Below are trends we noticed when reading through Payment Depot reviews: Methodology—How We Evaluated Payment Depot We test each merchant account service provider ourselves to ensure an extensive review of the products. We also took a closer look into pricing methods and identified providers that offer zero monthly fees, pay-as-you-go terms, and low transaction rates. Finally, we evaluated the range of payment processing features, scalability, and ease of use to compare the overall cost-effectiveness of each product. The result is our list of the best overall merchant services. However, we adjust the criteria when looking at specific use cases such as for different business types and merchant categories. This is why every merchant services provider has multiple scores across our site depending on the use case you are looking for. Click through the tabs below for our overall merchant services evaluation criteria: Payment Depot Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Bottom Line If you are actively growing your small business, Payment Depot’s easy-to-use features and all-in midrange subscription pricing fits the bill. It bridges the gap between payment processing for startups and larger established businesses. So, while you may need third-party integrations for some payment tools (consider upgrading to Stax once you outgrow Payment Depot’s features), access to free payment services and wholesale interchange fees makes Payment Depot a cost-effective solution. New subscribers get a 90-day risk-free trial. To find out if it is a fit for your business, contact Payment Depot for more information.