Square Register Guide

Learn all about how to set up, run, and troubleshoot your Square Register.
Get Started
Square Register is a purpose-built, all in one point of sale, creating a seamless buying experience for both you and your customer utilizing the included customer display.
Plug in and power on your Square Register then log into your existing Square account or follow one of the steps below to create a new account:
Scan the QR code to create an account with a separate device.
Select Continue to sign in to create an account on Square Register
Select Email a link instead to receive a sign up link to your email address.
Set Up Hardware
Once you receive your Square Register, set up is a breeze.
From printers to cash drawers, connecting hardware usually requires a few simple steps to get you up and running. Refer to the instructions below for commonly used, third-party hardware accessories.
Note: Prior to connecting hardware, ensure that your Square Register is connected to the USB accessory hub, power adapter, and power adapter cable.
- Depending on the model of printer, plug the appropriate cord directly into your USB accessory hub or router.
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Settings > Hardware.
- Tap Printers > Create printer station.
- Enter a printer name, select the appropriate printer from the Printer list, and specify what the printer will be used for (e.g. _Receipts, Bills and Reports, Order Tickets, Order Ticket Stubs).
- Review your printer settings - including the option to Automatically Print Receipts, Entering a Custom Name or Number for the order, or selecting the specific categories to print on the ticket.
- Tap Save. Tap Test Printer to ensure the hardware is working properly.
- After successfully connecting your printer by following the instructions above and creating a printer station, connect the cash drawer’s interface cable directly into your receipt printer.
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Settings > Hardware.
- Tap Cash drawers > tap Test Cash Drawer to ensure the hardware is working as needed.
Note: Printer-driven cash drawers will not appear under Available Cash Drawers, but you can ensure they work by tapping Test Cash Drawer as noted above.
- Connect the cash drawer’s USB cable directly into your USB accessory hub.
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Settings > Hardware.
- Tap Cash drawers > confirm the appropriate cash drawer is listed under Available Cash Drawers.
- Tap Test Cash Drawer to ensure the hardware is working as needed.
- With your Square Register running Square Point of Sale, plug your barcode scanner into the USB accessory hub.
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Settings > Hardware.
- Tap Barcode scanners > confirm the appropriate barcode scanner is listed under Available Barcode Scanners.
Review the following video to learn more about mounting the Square Register to your countertop once you’ve finished setting up your hardware. For more versatility, you can also mount your customer display using the Bosstab Countertop Mount for Square Register. Learn more about the Bosstab Countertop Mount and find answers to commonly asked questions in our FAQ article.
You can also reference the articles below if you run into any issues:
Set Up Software
Square Register comes with Square Point of Sale software installed and ready to use once powered on — simply log in with your email address and password to get started. Refer to the instructions below to learn more about common actions like creating items, setting up taxes, creating discounts, and more.
To create an item:
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Items > All Items.
- Tap Create Item > enter the appropriate information like Name, Price, SKU, etc.
- Tap Save.
Note: To change the appearance of how your items show on the Favorites screen, tap the down arrow > Settings > Checkout > Item Appearance and select text-based items or image-based items.
Learn more about creating items for Square Register.
To create modifier sets:
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Items > Modifiers.
- Tap Create Modifier Set.
- From the New Modifier Set screen, provide a name, select the item(s) you want to assign the modifier set to under Apply Set, and input your modifier names and prices under the Modifiers section.
- Tap Save.
Note: If you’re editing or adding multiple items and/or modifiers, we suggest doing so through the online Square Dashboard by visiting Items. Changes made through the Dashboard will immediately appear on your Square Register.
Learn more about creating modifier sets for Square Register.
To create a new tax:
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Settings > Checkout.
- Tap Taxes.
- Click the ”+” icon to add a new tax.
- From the New Tax screen, provide a name and percentage, configure the Item Pricing, and select which item(s) and/or service(s) you’d like the tax applied to during checkout.
- Tap Save.
To create a new discount:
- On your Square Point of Sale screen, tap More > Items > Discounts.
- Tap Create Discount.
- From the Create Discount screen, provide a name and specify the percentage or amount you’d like the discount to be worth.
- Tap Save.
To create a new location:
- From your online Square Dashboard, navigate to Account & Settings > Business > Locations.
- Click Create Location and enter the appropriate information, such as location name, address, business logo, business hours, etc > Save.
You can access your new location by logging out of your Square Point of Sale account and logging back in with the same email address and password. From here, you should see the option to select your new location. Learn more about managing multiple locations with Square Point of Sale.
To manage locations with device codes:
- From your online Square Dashboard, navigate to Account & Settings > Business > Devices.
- Click Create Device, enter a nickname for your Square Register and select the appropriate location.
- Click Create.
You can send your device code by text message or email. This device code will be associated with the corresponding location and can be used to log in to the account associated with your location instead of using an email address and password. Learn more about device codes and how they work with your business locations.
Learn more about viewing and customizing reports from the online Square Dashboard and from the Square Point of Sale app.
Using Square Register with other Square Products
Using your Square Register
After you’ve set up your new Square Register, you’ll be ready to start accepting payments!
Whether you need to quickly process a sale for one of your customers or review your transaction reporting for a specific time frame, Square Register allows you to do it all — and the customer facing display allows for easy, contactless payments to ensure safety for both your buyers and team members.
Note: Square Register does not support or read file attachments.
- From the Checkout screen, enter a custom amount, add an item from your Library or Favorites page, or use a barcode scanner to scan the item’s UPC/SKU.
- Tap Charge.
- Your customer can either insert, tap, or swipe their card using the customer-facing display, as well as choose to enter their information after the sale to receive an email or text message receipt.
In the case that your internet becomes temporarily unavailable, you can continue to take payments in Offline Mode. To do so, tap ≡ More > Settings > Checkout > Offline Mode on your Square Register and toggle on Allow Offline Mode. Learn more about accepting payments on your Square Register.
Note: For your team members to enable or disable Offline Mode, they will need to have the Configure Checkout Settings box checked in their Permissions setting. Team members without this permission granted can still process payments in Offline Mode, but will be unable to enable or disable Offline Mode.
Learn more about accepting payments in Offline Mode.
- From the Checkout screen, tap Add a customer when reviewing your sale.
- Select an existing customer from your directory, or tap Create Customer to add a new customer.
- From the existing customer’s directory profile, or from the newly created customer’s directory profile, tap Add to Sale.
- Tap Charge to complete the sale as normal.
Learn more about managing your Customer Directory through the online Square Dashboard.
- From the navigation bar on your Square Point of Sale screen, tap Transactions.
- Review your transaction history in chronological order, or use the search bar to locate transactions based on card number, phone number, customer name, receipt number, notes and/or item name.
Once you’ve located the transaction in question, you can take actions such as issuing a refund or resending a receipt. You’ll also have insights into the transaction as a whole, including items sold, payment method used, and customers associated with the transaction. Learn more about reviewing your transaction history through the online Square Dashboard.
Troubleshooting
If you have any trouble with your Square Register, check out the following articles for help.