Square for Retail review

Square for Retail ranks first because a small store can open on the free plan and pay for inventory depth only once it needs it. Square Free already creates items and SKUs automatically from GTIN barcodes, handles discounts and refunds and includes sales reporting. Square Plus, at $49 per location per month, adds stock intake, vendor and purchase order management and cost of goods sold reporting, which covers what most single-store retailers need. Premium, at $149 per location, adds transfer orders, cross-location returns and fulfillment and 24/7 phone support for multi-store operators. Low-stock alerts, barcode label printing and an on-the-floor counting tool round out the stock side, and the customer side includes text message marketing with 500 texts a month on Plus. The trade-off is that the most useful inventory tools sit behind the paid plans, so a growing shop should budget for Plus from the start. Businesses processing over $250,000 a year can ask Square about custom pricing.

Who it is for

Small and mid-size shops that want to start free and add inventory tools per location as they grow.

Price

Free plan at $0 a month; Square Plus is $49 per location per month and Premium is $149 per location per month, plus processing fees.

With Square Plus and Square Premium, the monthly fee applies to each location you run. $0/mo. per location $49/mo. per location $149/mo. per location
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 6, 2026.

Key features

• Scan a GTIN barcode to add items, bulk import a catalog and generate SKUs automatically
• Low-stock alerts when counts dip below a set quantity
• Barcode label printing with supported label sizes and printers
• Vendor and purchase order management with cost of goods sold reporting on Plus
• Cross-location returns, fulfillment and transfer orders on Premium

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Square Free has no monthly subscription, only processing fees
• Strength: Plus and Premium each come with a free 30-day trial and can be canceled anytime
• Strength: Full and cycle inventory counts can be done on the floor and exported
• Weakness: Purchase orders and stock intake need Square Plus at $49 per location
• Weakness: Transfer orders and cross-location returns are reserved for Premium
• Weakness: Text message marketing is not available on Square Free

Key facts

• Free plan: Yes, Square Free at $0 a month
• Square Plus: $49 per location per month
• Square Premium: $149 per location per month
• Free trial: 30 days on Plus and Premium
• Texts included: 500 a month on Plus, 2,500 on Premium

Where it ranks

Square for Retail is No. 1 in our Best POS Systems for Retail verdict.