Accept Payments with the Square Reader

There are two generations of Square Reader: Square Reader (1st generation) and Square Reader (2nd generation). Processing fees, supported card brands, device setup and payment acceptance are the same across the generations. Learn more about the differences and how to identify your Square Reader.

Square’s standard processing fee of 2.65% per transaction applies to all credit card payment types while debit cards have a fee of 0.75% + $0.07 per transaction. You can read more about how processing fees and rates are calculated.

You can accept credit and Interac debit cards through tap or chip & PIN for any amount. To accept payments over $250, customers will be prompted to insert their card and enter a PIN. Square Reader is not compatible with Offline Mode at this time.

Square Reader connects to your device via Bluetooth LE, so it’s compatible with a wide range of devices.

Accept EMV Chip Cards

Watch this video to learn how to accept chip cards on Square Reader:

Insert a Chip Card

Follow these steps to accept EMV chip cards with both generations of the Square Reader: 

1. Make sure your reader is connected with your device.

2. Open the Square app, add items to your current sale, and then tap Charge. You can tap Charge before or after the chip card is inserted. Note: If you’re using a mobile device, or your tablet is being used in portrait mode (vertically), tap Review Sale > Charge.

3. Insert the chip card (chip-side first with the front of the card facing up) into the wide port on the top of your reader.

4. Leave the card in the reader for the whole transaction.

5. Have your customer enter their PIN on your device.

When you see four green lights on the reader, hear a beep and see a confirmation message in the app, the payment has successfully completed and you can remove the chip card. If the customer wants a digital receipt, they can enter their phone number or email address on the confirmation screen.

Accept Contactless (NFC) Payments

Watch this video to learn how to accept contactless payments:

You can accept the following contactless payment options: Apple Pay, Google Pay and contactless debit and credit cards. Follow these steps to accept contactless payments with both generations of the Square Reader:

When you’re ready to ring up your customer:

1. Make sure your reader is connected with your device.

2. From the Square app, add items to your current sale, and then tap Charge to prepare the reader for the payment. Keep in mind, if you are accepting a tip and your customer wants to tap, you’ll need to select Contactless as the payment type before your customer taps.

   1. If you’re using a mobile device, or your tablet is being used in portrait mode (vertically), tap Review Sale > Charge.

3. When you see one green light on the reader, it’s ready to take your customer’s payment. Ask your customer to hold their device or card over the reader to complete the sale.

Note: If you don’t see a green light, tap “Re-enable Apple Pay and Contactless” from the app.

When you see four green lights, hear a beep and see a confirmation in the Square app, the payment has successfully completed. If the customer wants a digital receipt, they can enter their phone number or email address on the confirmation screen.

Keep in mind: Only transactions up to $250 can be processed with card tap. For debit transactions over $250, sellers will be prompted to insert their debit card and enter a PIN.

Enable Card Network Sounds

To enable or disable the card network audio tone for the Square POS app at the completion of a successful transaction:

1. Tap ≡ More. 

2. Tap Settings > Checkout > Payment sounds.

3. Toggle on or off Allow card network sounds.

If enabled, the tone will only be heard for inserted or tapped on applicable card network debit and credit cards.

For more information, review frequently asked questions about the Square Reader.