Stripe excels for online businesses and developers with superior API flexibility and lower per-transaction fees (2.2% + $0.30), while Square dominates in-person retail with integrated hardware, offline capability, and all-in-one POS solutions. Stripe charges 2.2% + $0.30 per online transaction versus Square's 2.6% + $0.30, making Stripe 18% cheaper for digital payments.
Stripe vs Square — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Developer-friendly payment platform with 135+ integrations, 99.99% uptime, and transparent pricing.
Cloud-based POS and payment platform owned by Block, Inc., designed for small business simplicity
Online Transaction Fee. In-Person Transaction Fee. API Documentation Quality. Hardware Integration. Offline Capability. Monthly Subscription Cost (Base). Merchant Count (2024)
Choose Stripe if you prioritize developer flexibility, cost efficiency for online payments, and subscription/SaaS billing—it's 18% cheaper per online transaction and offers superior API customization. Choose Square if you operate a physical retail location, need integrated hardware, offline functionality, and an all-in-one POS system with minimal technical setup.
Stripe: Standard rates apply | Square: 0% through 2026
Stripe: Highly Customizable | Square: Limited Custom Integration
Stripe: Terminal API (custom builds) | Square: Full hardware suite included
Stripe: Complex (requires developers) | Square: Simple (plug-and-play)
Stripe: Online-focused only | Square: N/A
Stripe: Mid-market optimized | Square: N/A
Stripe: Excellent API documentation | Square: N/A
Stripe: Industry standard compliance | Square: N/A
Stripe: Excellent, comprehensive, interactive | Square: N/A
Stripe: Advanced with usage-based billing | Square: N/A
Stripe: 4-6 weeks (developer-required) | Square: N/A
Stripe: Manual per-region (limited native support) | Square: N/A
Stripe: Available via Billing product (separate setup) | Square: N/A
Stripe: Merchant handles compliance | Square: N/A
Stripe: 1000+ via App Marketplace | Square: N/A
Stripe: Email + community documentation | Square: N/A
Stripe: $0 (pay-per-transaction) | Square: $0-$299 (tiered)
Stripe: 195 countries | Square: 38 countries
Stripe: 135+ currencies | Square: 95+ currencies
Stripe: Not available | Square: Full offline mode (Square Terminal)
Stripe: 4.8/5 (Developer-first design) | Square: 4.2/5 (Business-focused)
Stripe: 3+ million (2024) | Square: 1+ million (2024)
Stripe: Manual/Third-party integration required | Square: N/A
Stripe: 1-2 (email, webhook) | Square: N/A
Stripe: 65-70% (with custom logic) | Square: N/A
Subscription Management Features (Native)
Stripe: 20-30 (requires Billing API integration) | Square: N/A
Stripe: 195 countries, 150+ methods | Square: N/A
Standard Transaction Fee (Card Payments)
API Documentation Quality (GitHub Stars)
Stripe: Manual; requires third-party integration | Square: N/A
Stripe: Requires Stripe Billing addon | Square: N/A
Stripe: Steep; requires advanced developer knowledge | Square: N/A
Stripe: 3D Secure 2.0, Radar machine learning | Square: N/A
Stripe: 135+ currencies | Square: Primarily USD, CAD, AUD
Stripe: N/A | Square: No (3rd party required)
Stripe: N/A | Square: Yes (multi-location)
Stripe: N/A | Square: ~10% (basic reminders)
Stripe: N/A | Square: 4 (in-person, online, invoices, social)
Stripe: N/A | Square: Multiple with basic sync
Stripe: N/A | Square: $299 (Premium plan)
Stripe: N/A | Square: 34 new features and improvements
Stripe: N/A | Square: Unlimited (with basic reporting)
Stripe: N/A | Square: Basic time tracking only
Stripe: N/A | Square: Full mobile POS with Square Reader
Customer Acquisition Cost (Industry Avg)
Stripe: N/A | Square: 12M+ businesses using; free-to-try model
Stripe: N/A | Square: $0 (purchase model)
Stripe: N/A | Square: 1,200+ integrations
Stripe: N/A | Square: 4 certified models
Stripe: N/A | Square: Unlimited (via separate accounts)
Stripe: N/A | Square: 3+ million merchants
Stripe: N/A | Square: Advanced (Multi-location sync, SKU tracking)
Credit Card Processing Fee (Visa/Mastercard)
Stripe: N/A | Square: Limited (requires Plus plan)
Stripe: N/A | Square: Basic timekeeping only
Customer Satisfaction Rating (2024-2025)
Stripe: N/A | Square: 3+ million sellers
Stripe: N/A | Square: Limited (30-day sync window)
Stripe: N/A | Square: Mobile-first (iOS/Android app priority)
Stripe vs Square — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Stripe vs Square. Contains 136 attribute comparisons, 4 FAQ pairs.
Stripe vs Square — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Stripe vs Square.
Yes — many businesses use both simultaneously. Square handles in-store POS and hardware payments while Stripe powers the online store checkout. The two platforms can operate independently for different sales channels.
For in-person payments, Square (2.6% + $0.10) is slightly cheaper than Stripe (2.7% + $0.05) for smaller transactions. For online payments, both charge 2.9% + $0.30. Stripe offers custom pricing (typically lower) for businesses processing over $1M/year.
Square does support online payments through Square Online (free website builder with e-commerce) and a basic API, but Stripe is significantly more powerful for custom online checkout, recurring billing, and marketplace payment flows. Square Online is best for existing Square brick-and-mortar sellers adding an e-commerce channel.
Square dominates restaurant payment processing. Square for Restaurants offers table management, floor plans, coursing, kitchen display systems, and a complete restaurant POS — all included. Stripe has no restaurant-specific POS tools.
Online Transaction Fee: Stripe has 2.2% + $0.30, while Square has 2.6% + $0.30.
In-Person Transaction Fee: Stripe has 2.7% + $0.05, while Square has 2.6% + $0.10.
API Documentation Quality: Stripe has Extensive, developer-first (4.8/5 stars), while Square has Good but less comprehensive (4.2/5 stars).
Hardware Integration: Stripe has Requires third-party partnerships, while Square has Integrated readers (Square Reader, Terminal, Contactless).
Offline Capability: Stripe has Not available, while Square has Full offline mode with Square Terminal.
Consider: Monthly Subscription Cost (Base)
Monthly Subscription Cost (Base): Stripe has $0 (pay-per-transaction), while Square has $0-$299 (depending on plan).
Merchant Count (2024): Stripe has Over 3 million, while Square has Over 1 million.
Stripe excels for online businesses and developers with superior API flexibility and lower per-transaction fees (2.2% + $0.30), while Square dominates in-person retail with integrated hardware, offline capability, and all-in-one POS solutions. Stripe charges 2.2% + $0.30 per online transaction versu