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Square Review
Merchant Maverick's Rating: To Be Determined (TBD)
Last Updated: August 16th, 2011.
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About Our Ratings | Need Help Choosing? | Leave Your Review
Overview:
Square (also known as Square Up, SquareUp.com and Square, Inc.) is a relatively new company based out of San Francisco, Ca. Founded by Jack Dorsey, whom is also the founder of another well-known company called Twitter.
Square is both a mobile payment processing solution (via iPhone/smartphone), and a cash register for retail merchants (via iPad).
Here's what I like about them:
- You can get up and running pretty quick. Their approval process is faster than most other providers.
- There are no monthly fees or lengthy contracts.
- Their pricing is very transparent. 2.75% per swipe for card-present transactions. 3.5% + 15¢ per transaction for card-not-present (CNP). That's it! Plain and simple.
- Because you can use Square on your smartphone or iPad, you can process transactions anywhere and at any time.
Here's what I don't like about them:
- Their processing limits make life difficult for the larger merchant. For example, if you process more than $1000 in card-not-present (CNP) transactions per week, anything above that $1000 will be held for 30-days. Although they are willing to work with you in raising those limits, for someone that needs to process more than $1000 right out the gate, this can pose some problems. See the Common Complaints section for more info.
- Their pricing is not ideal for those who expect to process a lot of card-not-present (CNP) transactions. Square is best for those who know they will always have physical access to their customer's card, so they can swipe it and get a signature. Otherwise, they'll be paying a pretty penny for each sale. 3.5% + 15¢ per transaction to be exact.
I didn't give Square a rating yet because they're still very new. I also want to hear what you guys have to say about them, so don't forget to leave your own personal review below.
Btw, here's a cool calculator that let's you compare Square vs. traditional merchant account fees.
Date Established:
2009.
Location:
San Francisco, California.
Domain Name(s):
www.squareup.com.
Parent/Partner Company:
Square, Inc. is not a subsidiary of any other company.
Type:
Registered ISO/MSP.
Acquiring Bank(s) (Acquirer):
Chase Paymentech.
Payment Processor(s):
Chase Paymentech.
Payment Gateway(s):
N/A.
Trust Symbols:
You can find the Square BBB profile here. It has an "A-" rating as of this review, with 10 complaints in the last 36 months.
Negative Reviews:
Square is a new company, so you won't find too many complaints. Searching the usual complaints sites like RipOffReport, ComplaintsBoard, etc... will return a few results. This thread on ComplaintWire reflects quite a few customer experiences, both good and bad.
See below for common complaints.
Common Complaints:
Most complaints revolve around four main points...
- $1000 card-not-present limit: If you process more than $1000 in card-not-present (CNP) transactions per week, anything above that $1000 will be held for 30-days. Merchants can apply to have the CNP limit raised as well.
- Withholding of funds for high dollar transactions: Big ticket transactions may throw up a red flag with Square's underwriting department. If that happens, then they may hold those funds for an undetermined amount of time. Make sure you let them know ahead of time if you plan on processing high dollar transaction amounts.
- Poor customer service: There have been mixed reviews about this. When Square first started, their customer service was pretty poor, but it seems like they're getting better as time goes on. Either way, expect some sort of delay in response from their CS team. As a side-note, I personally reached out to Square in regards to their $1000 limits, and they responded to me within a couple hours.
Verifiable Testimonials/References:
You can find quite a few video testimonials on the Square website.
Security/Privacy:
The SquareUp.com website is secured by Verisign.
Customer Service:
I've read a few complaints about Square's customer service. Many of those complaints revolve around Square's response time. Square relies mostly on email and Twitter based support, which might explain it, but to be honest, I personally contacted them via email and received a response the same day.
The lack of a visibly displayed 800 number was another issue for some. For those that want to call Square, try (415) 375-3176.
Contract Duration:
No contract.
Cancellation Fee:
No cancellation fee.
Interchange-Plus Pricing:
Square does not offer Interchange-plus. They offer a flat-rate of 2.75% per swipe. If you enter the card information manually, then that rate jumps to 3.5% + 15¢ per transaction.
Seasonal Downtime:
There are no fixed monthly fees with Square, so if you don't process, you won't be charged.
Product Offering:
Retail Credit/Debit, POS, Mobile Payment Processing (iPhone, iPad, Android platforms).
Specialty:
Mobile Payment Processing (iPhone, iPad, Android platforms).
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September 13th, 2011 - 13:23
Started processing with them Sept. 1st, 2011. So far so good with Square! I am an independent contractor and run an Adult Home Party business. I travel constantly for sales so Square was perfect for me. As long as you swipe the card fast in the reader, the transaction gives you a response quickly. I usually process on Fri and Sat nights and my money is in the bank by Tuesday morning. The fact that it doesn’t automatically save the cardholders name to the history report would be my only complaint but there’s an easy work around: just type it into the description field.
May 8th, 2012 - 15:15
This company is a joke if you are a real company that makes real transactions.
They have been holding a $8200.00 payment for three days now.
I have sent many emails with no response except a auto sent that says they are committed to getting back with in 24hrs. Phone customer service is horrible!
Save the stress just use PayPal This company SUCKS!!!!!
December 13th, 2011 - 11:21
The worst customer service, can’t get funds released, complicated web site. Highly recommend any other credit card services. This one stinks!
March 29th, 2012 - 19:54
Short and Lousy experience with this company! Questionable policies you don’t know of when you sign up…. They held my money forever! NO one to speak to as they hide behind a slow email responses ONLY.
DO NOT USE!! I switched to Intuit as soon as my funds finally released. DO NOT USE THEM!!
December 15th, 2011 - 09:56
Ok…FINALLY deposited funds on December 15 after holding them since December 7 and December 9 respectively. Numerous telephone calls, numerous messages, hours and hours of conversations with representatives that could do NOTHING. Never a returned phone call from emails or messages left on answering machine. Micky Mouse outfit.
December 19th, 2011 - 12:46
I love square. I do sales at the back of the room and it’s wonderful to have the convenience. i have kept my merchant account and authorize.net account for my online purchases. But I do love the additional support of square. No problems with deposits, receipts, or customer service. And I love that I get an email telling me when they deposited the sales. Would like a few more bells and whistles, but so far, so good.
December 22nd, 2011 - 00:27
Have processed 2 relatively small payments so far. No problems yet. The last cc company I signed up with completely ruined my credit (TMS, Merimac Capital…they use about 12 various names) and was a huge scam (still in an expensive legal situation with them) so this one is less frightening than the last while I try to re-build my credit and can research reputable cc processing companies (maybe through my bank next time).
January 4th, 2012 - 12:14
I used square about a year was good until December 2011 they stopped depositing to my bank I suggests use your bank ,It’s safe. Alvin Buckner n.c.
January 10th, 2012 - 09:12
I was trying the 2.75% on some on my current prices that I charge and it is pretty high compared to the .15cent they used to charge for each transaction. Why not continue to charge .15cents on each transaction? I discovered that I would have to pay the transaction fee out of what I charge my customers , I am losing money this way. Do I need to up my prices to cope with these transaction fee’s ? Say at the end of 2 days I make over $1000, does that mean that the fee would then be 3.5% +.15cents , since it takes 2 or more days to reach my account? The fees are too high, I am better off collecting cash then depositing it into my account for free.
January 11th, 2012 - 06:39
I have had square since June 2011.it has worked great for me. I haven’t had more than 1000.00 a week though. I was paying so many extra fees with my last credit card company is why I changed to square. They work really great for me. Only problem Is I am trying to get some kind of statement from they on my fee’s I have paid to them for my tax records. Can’t get it on my account page for all of last year. Called there customer service number and waiting for them to call.
January 21st, 2012 - 15:25
Is square up PCI compliant? I understand credit card transactions via phones are not.
January 23rd, 2012 - 23:54
Hello Mo Castro,
I have worked in merchant services for over 10 years. A great website to educate yourself on what you need to do as a merchant to become PCI compliant is http://www.pcisecuritystandards.org
Credit Card transactions over the phone are one of the more risky ways to accept credit cards. However, it really depends on the company you choose to process your mobile transactions and their security measures. Make sure that you do your research and compare to the PCI Security Standards before you choose. Some processors charge a monthly PCI fee to assist you with becoming compliant and offer $50k to $100k indemnification… which helps protect your business in the unfortunate event of a breach.
I hope this helps!
Lyndi Heckaman
January 25th, 2012 - 08:00
I recently started using Square Up and absolutely LOVE IT! I, too, am with an in-home party business and recommend all my consultants use Square Up. I find my customers LOVE being able to swipe and sign at the parties and this way, I don’t need to keep confidential information such as credit card numbers on file. The merchant fee with Square Up is lower than what my company offers so I am saving money. I had to contact Square Up Customer Service and was highly impressed with their timely response, professionalism and ability to solve my issue very quickly. I give Square Up an A+ for my business!
February 7th, 2012 - 23:08
I recently had 4 processing machines break down in a couple of days. I Went to square to do some processing to solve the emergency. Loving it! However winter is my slow season and we rarely process more than $1000.00 a day or weekend, Summer we work very fast sometimes with three persons competing to swipe one terminal @ multiple sites. I fear that I will need some other service unless Square finds a swipe and sign system that operates as fast as conventional systems. In my business where many of us experience high sales volume I could sell Square faster than ice boxes for igloos as a backup to peoples current processing options. I am dumping the current merchant processor for a no contract processor so I can continue to take advantage of the Squareup system as much as possible.
February 18th, 2012 - 10:03
I have been ripped off enough. I am tired of the games. You will find me on all the complaint sites. All of you who take little transactions think your safe. In a few months you will know better. We who take single payments over a thousand know the truth. They are destroying people’s lives and businesses everyday and they don’t care one bit. The NO-CARD-PRESENT game is their money game. They have the money to use for investment in interest bearing vehicles. Without your knowledge. Making this securities fraud I believe. I have began a complaint and report with the U.S. Attorney General and will be talking with the California States Attorney General in person to explain the facts so as to overcome the clever deceptive wording used by Square. As long as we sit here and complain they couldn’t care less. Try to call them and see. If you take large payments, you can just F-off. Go to other sites and see. This site may be supported by square and filled with plants who post love letters. I know many companies do this. Only 44 complaints at the BBB? There have been thousands on the internet in the last six months. Why the difference? Try to get the required field information for the BBB complaint form. Square is good at hiding that information. Have an address or even zip code? Then you worked at it. The DOJ fraud web address is ffetf@usdoj.gov Let’s get to reporting the facts to those who can get to the bottom of it and quit the whining here.
April 9th, 2012 - 11:32
did you ever get your money? They are holing 35k from me.
April 11th, 2012 - 14:58
Laura,
I did finally get my money but, it was because there was no way for them to hold it without facing criminal charges from the state contractors license board. All monies paid to a contractor in the state of California are monies in Trust. Meaning they cannot be used, transferred or held in any manner until the contracted work is substantially completed for the amount being paid. This is a serious matter in the state of California. However Square already had this info from me last year. They were just holding the funds as long as they could until I complained. They released them immediately when I finally got through. They knew, they just hold money as long as possible. I feel for those of you who have no such leverage on them. They clearly are using your money for investment vehicles. It is a smart play on their part, although an immoral and hurtful action without any regard for the people they damage. When you contact them FINALLY, they couldn’t care less what hardship they are creating. We have trashed all there equipment now. As I stated before, we ran ten dollar transactions and swiped them, then five minutes later tried to swipe the card for the actual payment of 3-5 thousand dollars and it would not swipe. In our test the manually entered transaction sailed through. This is not some glitch or system error, it is a pre-programmed intentional action developed and fostered by Square. They are probably one of the most dishonest and thieving companies on the internet that isn’t based in Nigeria. IN my opinion everyone who needs to do transactions over $800.00 per should cancel them immediately. YOU WILL NOT GET YOUR MONEY FOR 30-60 DAYS. NO WAY!!!
February 19th, 2012 - 12:20
I’ve tried two card readers, and cannot swipe yet. I have a Droid HTC Inspire. The volume goes crazy sometimes when I plug in the reader, and I believe my problems are connected to the jack. Customer services do stink. So far, it’s not working. Trying to get away from the ridiculous fees my other processor charges.
February 28th, 2012 - 10:17
We own a bail bond business. I signed up with Square as a business. Well, a couple of days ago we process two payments in the amounts of $2400 and $1239. Three days went by and we did not receive a email from Square sayinf anything about funds on the $2400 being transfered to our bank. SO I login in to our Square Account to see what’s going on with that transaction. We had to notify Square by email to see what was going on. So 24 hours later they replied and this what they said the first time:
[edited: name removed]
FEB 27, 2012 | 09:26AM PST
Hello,
Thanks for writing in.
We are temporarily holding one or more payments in your Square balance because you exceeded your payout amount of $1,000 per week for manually entered transactions (payments where a card is not swiped). You can read more about our deposit policy here: https://help.squareup.com/customer/portal/articles/11863
To increase your payout amount for such transactions, visit the link below to complete a short online application with a few questions about your business and how you use Square.
https://www.squareup.com/increase-immediate-payout/
We will review your application and get back to you within 1-2 business days. If your application is approved, we will increase your payout amount and release any held payments to your bank account.
Also remember that businesses that swipe credit cards using the Square card reader will have all their funds sent to their bank for deposit the next day. Swiped payments do not have a deposit limit, regardless of the transaction size.
Please let us know if you have any other questions.
[edited: name removed]
Square Support
help.squareup.com
So, I sent a email back to them asking them to increase the limit, just like they said to do and this is what they replied back to me:
” Hello Steve,
Square has concluded an investigation into your usage and has labeled your account as high-risk. For security reasons, we have elected to de-activate your account.
We are exercising our discretion under paragraph 42 of the Square User Agreement to terminate your account. From the date of this letter forward, you will not be able to process transactions using Square.
Any funds currently in your account will be held for 30 days before being released.
If you do not want to wait 30 days to receive funds, you can still refund the payments back to the original cards (if you are unsure of how to refund a payment, please see: https://help.squareup.com/customer/portal/articles/163698 )
Our decision is final.
Sincerely,
[edited: name removed]
”
What a company! Needless to say we have contacted our Business Attorney, It looks like we are going to court about ths matter and Ohio Attorney General will be getting involved….
April 9th, 2012 - 11:34
Did you get any results? They have 35k o mine.
March 10th, 2012 - 12:34
Don’t use square!
They stole from me
They do not answer phones
They made me send them all my company’s llc licence our tax id numbers letter of incorporation and certificate of good standing from state of missouri
They held funds for 30 days they make one deposit of 2,000 out of $35,000 of mine they are holding
They then will not call me or e mail back
They said they can keep money as long as they want
They can put every ones money in a account to just hold it to collect interest for no reason
My family lost all we had because we let square take the cc payments .
I i’m a business man and swear by law all is true to best of my knowing
Call square up at 415-375-3176 this is there office number they hide it. My attorney had to find it. Let them know what you think about all this
April 2nd, 2012 - 15:43
Please do NOT sign up with square. I don’t want what happened to my company happen to you. I signed up for it, did 2 test transactions which worked fine. Then I charged my client for some air sampling. I got a weird email from them late at night that they “wanted more information” about my company. They listed out a bunch of things. Red flags went off. Bottom line, they keep your company’s money and I guess day trade it or whatever. Report them to the FTC at (202) 326-2222 and OCC 800-613-6743 and hopefull we can get these scammers shut down.
April 9th, 2012 - 11:29
Square is holding over 35 thousand dollars on our Company account, they say for 90 days. Who knows if we will EVER get it.
There have been 70 complaints file with the San Francisco BBB alone in the past 12 months.
YES, use this company if you can AFFORD to HAVE YOUR FUNDS HELD INDEFINITELY AT THEIR WHIM.
They just assume this is O.K. No problem, we don’t need the 35k that we worked so hard for to pay our bills. PLEASE! I have heard from MANY customers who have experienced the same thing.
If you are reading this, chances are you too have had a problem. Report them to the Following: States Attorney General in California AND your own State (do both), and the BBB.
They need to be STOPPED!
April 16th, 2012 - 13:50
I am currently setup with Square for my credit card transactions. I joined the beginning of April and did a total of $2650.00 in transactions for the day of April 10,2012 and have yet to receive it in my bank account. Their customer service is very poor and I email daily sometimes 3 times a day and I have received 2 responses, neither giving me a solution to my problem. I sent in required documents they requested and notified them in application process of my particular situation and how I would be processing each month with dollar amounts. I assume they did not read notes in application process or ecnored it. I am sitting as on April 16,2012 now with no solution to my problem or a timeframe on when I will be getting my funds. I would like any suggestions or a company you could refer that I could switch to. I have more transactions to process for this particular company but I am afraid to process anything else with SQUARE because of the response time and holds. By the way no one answers the phone when you call, just a recording. I also had to get the phone number from complaint blogs because it is not posted on Square website anywhere.
April 18th, 2012 - 07:51
More of a question…concerning customer privacy; has there been any problems of identity fraud? after having used tis system?
May 11th, 2012 - 17:35
So far so good. I am a retail store and use Square monthly for over $20K in transactions. The need for billing zip codes can be an obstacle but for the most part I like Sq.