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Square is built around its POS hardware. Shopolo is built around selling gift cards, loyalty programs and online ordering without any hardware at all, with no monthly fee on the core and no charge per location. On the card rate itself Square is the cheaper processor — that comparison is below.
Square figures are from Square's own US pricing and support pages, checked October 2026; Canadian and Australian rates differ. Shopolo's 1.9% platform fee applies in addition to Stripe's processing, which the merchant pays either way. Subject to change.
Square's gift cards, loyalty, and ordering are add-ons to a point-of-sale system. If you want to sell gift cards online or run a loyalty program without buying hardware, Square adds friction and cost. Shopolo is designed from the ground up for that use case — no hardware, no POS, just a link.
Square Loyalty is a separate paid add-on starting at US$45 per location per month, rising with your monthly loyalty visits. On Shopolo, loyalty is the Plus addon — one optional addon rather than a charge per location, so the gap widens with every site you run. Multi-location support itself is the Premium addon.
Square Loyalty is billed per location per month, so a third site triples that line. On Shopolo the Plus addon covers the business, and multi-location is the Premium addon — one bill whether you run one shop or five. Payout speed is not our advantage and we will not pretend otherwise: Square transfers before 5 PM PT land next business day, or instantly for a 1.95% fee, while Stripe pays your own bank on its standard rolling schedule.
Square is a great fit if you need a full point-of-sale system — card reader, receipt printer, cash drawer, inventory management. It is also the cheaper processor: its all-in online rate is about 2.9% + 30¢, where Shopolo is 1.9% on top of Stripe's 2.9% + 30¢, so on card volume alone Square costs you less, and it pays out faster. If you run a single location with real card volume and do not need loyalty across sites, Square will probably work out cheaper. Shopolo is better if you want gift cards, bookings and loyalty with no hardware and no per-location charge, or if you already have a POS and just need the customer-facing programs.
Gift cards, yes: on Shopolo digital gift cards are free core — no hardware, no monthly fee, a flat 1.9% platform fee plus Stripe processing on the sale. Loyalty is not free on either platform: Square Loyalty starts at US$45 per location per month, while on Shopolo loyalty stamp cards are part of the Plus addon, one price that does not multiply by location.
On the card rate, yes — Square's all-in online rate is about 2.9% + 30¢, where Shopolo adds 1.9% on top of Stripe's 2.9% + 30¢, and Square pays out faster. Where Shopolo wins is everything per location: Square Loyalty alone is US$45+ per location per month, so running loyalty across three sites costs more than US$135/month before the POS — on Shopolo the Plus addon covers the business.
Yes — that is the design. Everything runs from a browser and a link: gift cards, bookings, ordering, reservations and the QR menu, free core. Square's gift cards and loyalty are add-ons to a point-of-sale system and most of its features assume Square hardware at the counter.
No hardware. No setup fees. Bookings, gift cards, ordering and your storefront — live in under 10 minutes.
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