Square announces Orders API, allowing developers to build solutions that allow sellers to send and manage orders online, in-person and in-app
Launch marks the arrival of a robust and fully functional commerce platform for developers
Today, Square announced the availability of Orders API, enabling developers to build solutions that let buyers place orders online, in-person and in-app. These orders can then be sent directly to a Square seller that is using one of Square’s point of sale products (including Square Point Of Sale, Square for Retail, or Square for Restaurants) or a custom built POS as the central point to manage fulfillment. This feature is just the latest example of how Square’s Developer Platform is expanding beyond payments to serve all aspects of commerce - from orders to customer management, to inventory and beyond.
Orders API enables developers to deliver an enhanced experience to merchants as they no longer have to deploy multiple devices to manage orders and take payments, enabling everything to be done from one central system. Square sellers already use the Square Point Of Sale to ring up an order and take payments from buyers. Now, they have the option to take that experience a step further and use their POS as an online and in-app order fulfilment and management hub.
“Being a part of how a local seller runs their business—not a disruption—is important to us as we continue bridging offline and online commerce. We believe it’s the best way that we can serve them, helping them reach more customers and grow their business,” said James Butts, SVP Product & Design, Postmates. “With Square’s Orders API, we’re able to build local sellers an infrastructure that seamlessly integrates on-demand logistics into the very core of their business.”
The arrival of Orders API showcases how Square’s developer platform is evolving to meet the changing needs of developers and the sellers they serve. The Square Developer Platform now offers a set of APIs and SDKs that enable developers to build solutions that help sellers manage all aspects of their business including: Employees API, Customers API, Inventory API, Catalog API, Payments API, and more.
“Over the past few years, the Square developer team has released tools that enable developers to build solutions that take payments in-person, online and in mobile apps,” said Carl Perry, Square’s Developer Platform lead. “Now, our robust suite of APIs take the platform a step further and enable developers to create full, scalable and buyer friendly commerce experiences for merchants of all sizes, across a variety of industries.”
Developers often complain that they’ve previously had to use several vendors to build complete commerce solutions for sellers. This means that they need to find a payment API provider, a hardware device provider, an order management platform, a POS vendor, and more. The end result is longer development time and a higher maintenance burden. In contrast, the unified Square platform simplifies this process by providing developers with access to a complete set of APIs and SDKs on one cohesive solution. This gives them the flexibility to use a single platform to build end-to-end payment and commerce solutions for sellers.
Orders API is available today in the US, Canada, Australia, Japan and Great Britain. To learn more about the many other commerce APIs and SDKs now available on Square’s Developer Platform, visit https://squareup.com/us/en/developers.