Set up Drive-Thru mode and fulfillment
About Drive-Thru mode and fulfillment
Drive-Thru mode optimizes your Square Point of Sale for drive-thru operations. When enabled, it automatically activates the Drive-Thru fulfillment method, captures vehicle information (color and type) for each order, and provides a dedicated Drive-Thru tab in Order Manager for streamlined order tracking.
Drive-Thru mode works alongside Send & Stay to let your team send items to the kitchen immediately while continuing to build the order — keeping your line moving.
Before you begin
You need a Square Premium subscription.
Drive-Thru mode is available on Square Register, iPad, and Square Terminal devices.
You need account and settings permissions to manage device settings.
Enabling Drive-Thru mode automatically creates a Drive-Thru fulfillment method. You do not need to create one manually.
Vehicle information (color and type) is visible to your team in Order Manager and on KDS/kitchen tickets. It does not appear on customer receipts.
Set up Drive-Thru mode
In Dashboard, go to Settings > Device settings > Modes.
Click + Create mode.
Select Drive-thru as the mode type, then name it (for example, Drive-thru window).
Review mode settings. The drive-thru fulfillment method is automatically attached to this mode.
(Optional) Choose which locations can use this mode, then click Save.
Assign Drive-thru mode to devices
In Device settings, go to Devices.
Select the POS device you use at your drive-thru lane.
In the device details, find the mode setting and choose your Drive-thru mode from the dropdown.
Click Save, then confirm the device now shows as using Drive-thru mode.
When Drive-thru mode is active, the drive-thru fulfillment method is always available on that device regardless of location-level settings.
Turn on drive-thru fulfillment for your locations
You can make drive-thru available as a fulfillment method from Dashboard.
Sign in to Square Dashboard.
Go to Settings > Account & Settings > Fulfillment > Fulfillment methods.
Find Drive-thru in the list of fulfillment types.
Toggle Drive-thru on for the locations where you offer drive-thru service.
Click Save.
Once enabled, Drive-thru appears as a fulfillment option on F&B POS devices at those locations. You can enable it for some locations and not others if only certain stores have drive-thru lanes.
Take a drive-thru order on POS
Drive-thru fulfillment works with or without Drive-thru mode. The workflow on POS is the same.
On your POS, start a new checkout and begin adding items to the cart.
Tap Actions > Fulfillment method, then select Drive-thru.
-
Enter vehicle information:
Vehicle color (for example, red, blue, white, black, silver)
Vehicle type (for example, SUV, sedan, truck, van)
Vehicle information is optional but recommended. If you skip it, the order may show as "Unknown vehicle" on internal views. Vehicle details are for internal use in the kitchen and Order Manager and don't appear on customer receipts.
(Optional) Add a guest or customer name to help staff identify the order.
Finish adding items, then tap Pay (or Send if you're also using Send & Stay) to complete the order.
Drive-thru orders appear in both the All orders tab and the dedicated Drive-thru tab in Order Manager when at least one drive-thru fulfillment method is configured for your device or location. On kitchen tickets and KDS, vehicle information appears at the top of the order (for example, Red SUV), with the customer name on the next line if provided. Drive-thru orders also appear in your standard sales reports and can be filtered or identified by fulfillment method where available.