Stripe is a developer-friendly payment processing solution best for online businesses wanting to add a customizable checkout to their website or sales applications. Square is an out-of-the-box point-of-sale (POS) and payment processing platform that’s best for small businesses needing an all-in-one solution.
When comparing Square and Stripe, the main difference is Stripe requires technical knowledge and needs to be installed on a separate website or app to accept payments. Square requires no technical skills and offers both a free POS system and a free website that has Square payment processing automatically built-in.
Square: Best for individuals, brick and mortar businesses, and basic online sales.
Stripe: Best for tech-savvy startups and growing ecommerce businesses, B2B, and international sales.
Stripe and Square both:
- Allow businesses of all sizes to accept online payments
- Provide user-friendly solutions and top-rated merchant services
- Offer average—but not the lowest—transaction fees
- Do not offer the stability of a traditional merchant account
Stripe vs Square At-a-Glance
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Best for | Businesses focused on online sales and international markets | New or small businesses, brick and mortar shops, businesses on a budget |
Monthly fee | $0 | $0 |
Processing fee | 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction | 2.6% + 10 cents to 3.5% + 15 cents per transaction |
Invoice fee | $7 per successful payment | 2.9% + 30 cents or 3.5% + 15 cents if processed using Card on File |
Average payout | 2 business days, per a schedule you set; instant payout for 1%, minimum 50 cents | Free 1–2 day funding; instant funding for 1.5% |
Online payments | Integrate with ecommerce, mobile apps, CRM software, and more | Square Online store, payment links, add checkout to an existing site, Facebook, Instagram, virtual terminal |
POS features | Custom build or connect to existing POS | Basic POS is free; advanced available starting $60/month |
POS Hardware | Offers pre-certified card readers only | Full suite of products and accessories; compatible with third-party devices as well |
Integrations | 710 in areas of payments, operations, marketing, and finance | 150 apps in 16 categories |
Inactivity fee | $0 | $0 |
Ease of use | Good | Excellent |
Customer service | 24/7chat and phone support, email, resource library | Monday–Friday phone support, 24/7 automated chat support, seller community, and resource library |
If you’re looking for a specific type of payments solution, Stripe and Square both often make our lists of the:
- Best PayPal alternatives
- Best payment gateways for small businesses
- Best merchant services
- Best B2B payment solutions
- Best free merchant accounts
Most Affordable: Square
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Monthly POS subscription | Varies (third-party) | $0–$299 with add-on programs |
Monthly ecommerce subscription | Varies (third-party) | $0–$72 with add-on programs |
Card reader pricing | $59–$299 | $0–$49 |
Terminal and register pricing | Does not supply terminals | $299–$799 (all-inclusive) |
Card-present transaction fees | 2.7% + 5 cents, 2.9% + 30 cents for touchless | 2.5% + 10 cents to 2.6% + 10 cents |
Ecommerce transaction fees | 2.9% + 30 cents | 2.9% + 30 cents |
ACH transaction fee | 0.8%, $5 cap | 2.9% + 30 cents, plus 1% processing fee, minimum $1 |
Invoice fee | $7 per successful payment | 2.9% + 30 cents or 3.5% + 15 cents if processed using Card on File |
Chargeback fee | $15 | $0 |
Failed transactions fee | $4 to $15, depending on the type of transaction | $5 to $15, depending on the transaction |
Overall, for affordability, Square beats Stripe. That’s because as a payment processor, Stripe integrates with third-party applications. Even your online store will be third-party or you’ll use Stripe’s tools to create one to host on your website. Meanwhile, Square offers a fully functional POS system and online store free, with charges for upgrades and additions. Learn more about Square’s pricing and fees.
Stripe may beat Square for ACH transactions and invoices, depending on the dollar amount. For example, if your invoices are generally more than $237, Stripe is the cheaper option. This makes Stripe better for B2B sales, and it tops our list for the best B2B payment solutions.
Best for Payment Processing: Stripe
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Best for | Online payment processing, international payment processing, integrations | Processing <$10,000 per month in credit card fees |
Integrations | 700+ | 150 |
High volume discounts | Offers custom rates | Offers custom rates |
Payment types | Credit card, debit card, contactless payments, gift cards | Credit card, debit card, contactless payments, gift cards |
Card on file | Included | Included |
PCI Compliance | Included | Included |
Fraud Protection | Chargeback protection, advanced machine-learning fraud protection | No chargeback fees, basic machine learning fraud protection |
In our evaluation of the best merchant services for small businesses, you’ll see that Square ranks higher than Stripe. However, that article takes into account features beyond pure payment processing: price, POS, and business management tools. When looking solely at payment processing features, we find Stripe the winner.
Why Stripe Is Better for Payment Processing
Flexibility gives Stripe the edge in payment processing. Square, for all its advantages, only works for Square and apps that integrate with its POS. Stripe, meanwhile, can integrate with a wide variety of applications.
Stripe also offers advanced fraud protection, with an app that uses machine learning to detect fraudulent charges before they go through and lets you set customized rules and lists of trusted customers. Stripe, therefore, is best when you have third-party solutions needing a payment processing tool. Stipe is also your choice if you handle international payments.
When to Use Square
Use Square when you want a complete sales system with few third-party sales channels. Square is easier to work with but not as versatile as Stripe for payment processing, as it’s meant for transactions within the Square ecosystem. It integrates with fewer applications, and most of those are not for payment processing but other areas of business.
Square also uses machine learning risk evaluation, updated from its own pool of data coming from Square transactions across the world. It’s free, but not as customizable as Stripe.
Best for Sales: Square
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Best for | Online sales, integrations, subscriptions, international | Combination in-person and online sales |
POS Features | Custom build, unifies online and in-store payments, customer management, fleet management tools | Free basic register, inventory, customer management, employee management. Plus plans include advanced features, and add-on programs add more functions |
Invoicing | Simple, recurring | Simple, recurring, autopay |
Virtual terminal | Same as POS | Included |
Ecommerce | 355 ecommerce integrations, including crowdfunding, online stores, online sales funnels, and more | Square Online store, payment links, add checkout to an existing site, Facebook, Instagram, mobile POS, in-store, local delivery |
Mobile app | Back-end management, no sales processing | Sales with complete POS |
Product catalog | Custom build in POS or use third-party | Variations, photos, inventory tracking, low-stock alerts, reports, barcode scanning |
Customer management | Basic customer information | Customer information and purchase tracking, loyalty features, marketing |
Employee management | Third-party apps | Time clock, permissioning, can add on Square Payroll and Team Management |
Payment features | Split tender, discounts, tips, digital receipts, refunds, chargeback protection, international payments | Split tender, discounts, tips, digital receipts, refunds, chargeback protection |
Integrations | 710 in 27 categories | 150 in 16 categories |
Square beats Stripe for sales overall because its system is designed for online and in-person sales out-of-the-box, whereas Stripe requires integrations and development. However, Stripe is better for international sales and invoices.
Why Square Is Better for Overall Sales
Square is a user-friendly, one-stop shop for online or in-person sales. Its POS system works for mobile or PC, and you can sync inventories between your online store and your brick-and-mortar store. The POS system works for both retail and restaurants. While Stripe requires you to build your POS using its tools, Square comes ready to populate with your business-specific information.
You can add payment links to your website and some social media channels, and it integrates with several delivery services. Square lets you send invoices and take recurring payments. Square is perfect for food trucks, farmer’s markets, and trade shows, as the app and card reader let you take payments with your smartphone or tablet. (Stripe’s app is for business management only.)
Square also has tools for customer relationship management, marketing, loyalty programs, time clocks, appointments, team management, and more. (Some require Plus programs or additional fees.) You can even purchase an additional program for payroll. Stripe, on the other hand, works primarily through third-party apps.
Square has a complete online store solution, where Stripe integrates into your existing ecommerce.
When to Use Stripe
- If you do regular international business, you need Stripe, as Square does not let you change the currencies of your existing account. Stipe processes over 135 currencies.
- If you want to integrate Stripe into your existing ecommerce or billing software, including CRM software like Salesforce. This is what Stripe is designed for.
- If you primarily handle large-ticket invoices such as wholesale or B2B sales.
- If you have recurring billing or subscriptions. Stripe’s recurring payment fees are far cheaper than Square’s.
Best for Integrations: Stripe
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Apps in North America, Great Britain, Australia | 622 | 71 |
International Apps | 710 | 150 |
Categories | 28 | 16 |
Industries Covered | 10 | 7 |
App Marketplace Search | Search by need, industry, geographic area or country, search bar | Search by category, collections, search bar |
API | Yes | Yes |
Developer Tools | CLI, Visual Studio Code, live event monitoring, advanced SDKs | Sandbox, API explorer, live event monitoring, backend SDKs, secure payment SDKs |
Developer Support | Documentation, YouTube tutorials, newsletter, live chat with developers, 24/7 support | Documentation, forums, Slack, contact support via online form |
Stripe is especially suited for developers, making it a good choice for tech-savvy businesses.
Why Stripe Is Best for Integrations
With over 700 partner apps, Stripe is a clear leader in payment processing software for integrations. You can search for apps by name, or use the menus to narrow it down by industry, need, and location. You’ll find popular apps like Salesforce, Harvest, Shopify, QuickBooks, and Eventzilla.
If you need to create your own app, Stripe offers API support with documentation, video tutorials, and live chat with developers through Freenode IRC. You can build, test, and manage your integration from your terminal through its CLI. Its Visual Studio Code extension lets you generate sample code, view API request logs, forward events to your application, and use Stripe within your editor.
Stripe has a searchable database of over 700 partner apps.
When to Use Square
Square is no slouch when it comes to integrations, working with 150 apps in its Marketplace. It’s easy to find apps by searching the categories, or if you know the name, put it in the search bar. Square also creates collections of recommended apps for specific purposes that you can browse. You’ll find integrations with popular software like QuickBooks, BigCommerce, Zoho, and Mailchimp. Some have free plans or free trials.
It has a strong API program as well, with a sandbox for testing, documentation, and SDKs. There’s a forum for reaching out to other developers, or contact support via Slack or an online form. While Square also makes it easy to connect to other software, it’s hard to compete with Stripe’s 700+ partner apps and famous developer-friendly platform.
Bottom Line
When debating between choosing Square vs Stripe for your business, it comes down to one question: Are you a tech-savvy startup or a business owner looking for a user-friendly solution? For tech-savvy startups wanting lots of flexibility, Stripe is best for you. Square offers a plug-and-play solution for accepting payments anywhere, along with a suite of free business management tools that is the better fit for most small businesses.
You May Also Like …
- Learn more about Square in our reviews of Square Payments and Square POS
- See more on Stripe’s pricing and features in our Stripe review
- Read more about merchant accounts and how they work
- Learn how to use Square to process credit cards
