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Business type solution

Bars & Breweries

Keep every pour, tab, and pickup moving with a bar-ready POS

A busy bar or brewery needs more than a card reader: bartenders need quick open tabs, managers need a live view of sales and staffing, and taprooms need a clean way to connect counter service, pickup, merchandise, and events. Square for Restaurants supports preauthorized bar tabs, split or reopened checks, menu and item availability, bar and kitchen routing, live shift reporting, and tableside or mobile payments.

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A smiling bakery owner holds freshly baked bagels in a warm, bustling neighborhood bakery
Representative photograph for Food & Beverage; it does not depict Bars & Breweries specifically.

Built for your day-to-day

How it fits your business

Use a fixed station for the main bar, handhelds for floor service, and online ordering for pickup when the operation calls for it. Square can also connect loyalty, gift cards, marketing, and team scheduling so regulars and staff stay part of the same operating picture.

Key capabilities

What you can do

  • Open and close tabs with less friction

    Preauthorize a guest’s credit card for a set amount, keep the check open, then close it quickly when the guest is ready. Square also supports split or reopened checks and house accounts for more involved service workflows.

  • Keep the bar and kitchen in sync

    Route drink and food orders from the POS to Square KDS or compatible kitchen printers, with ticket routing, ticket timers, real-time updates, and item availability tools that help reduce missed or sold-out orders.

  • See what is selling during the shift

    Use live section and shift reporting to review open and closed checks, bar or patio sales, covers, tips, and team activity. Menu reports can compare drinks and snacks by menu, item, category, and time period such as happy hour.

  • Serve from the counter, floor, or pickup shelf

    Square Handheld supports mobile ordering and payment, while Square Terminal, Register, or Stand can anchor a fixed bar station. Branded online ordering supports pickup and local delivery workflows where enabled.

  • Turn regulars into repeat business

    Connect customer profiles, loyalty, gift cards, email or text marketing, and event-focused campaigns to promote new releases, live music, tastings, and seasonal menus. These tools are optional additions, not a substitute for local alcohol-marketing compliance.

Explore the details

Product details

Plans, subscriptions, and payment rates

Square Free is $0 per month per location; Square Plus is $49 per month per location; Square Premium is $149 per month per location on the published U.S. restaurant pricing comparison. The restaurant page lists a 30-day Square Plus trial flow and says Square Pro is custom-priced for sellers processing over $250,000 per year. In-person card-present processing is 2.6% + 15¢ on Free, 2.5% + 15¢ on Plus, and 2.4% + 15¢ on Premium per payment. Online card payments are 3.3% + 30¢, 2.9% + 30¢, and 2.9% + 30¢ respectively. Manual entry or card-on-file is 3.5% + 15¢ across the listed plans; Afterpay is 6% + 30¢. ACH via invoice is 1% with a $1 minimum, with a $10 cap on Plus and Premium. Square KDS is not available on Free and costs $30 per device per month on Plus or $20 per device per month on Premium. Square Kiosk costs $99 per device per month; Kiosk Lite costs $50 per device per month on Plus and $30 per device per month on Premium. Gift-card loads are 2.5% on Free and Plus and 0% on Premium. Rates and plan terms should be rechecked at checkout.

Hardware and compatibility

Current U.S. catalog prices are Square Register (2nd generation) $899, Square Handheld $399, Square Terminal $299, Square Stand $149, Square Reader for contactless and chip $59, and Square Reader for magstripe with the first reader free offer limited to one redemption per account holder. Register, Handheld, and Terminal are standalone POS devices; Stand requires a compatible USB-C iPad and can run Square Point of Sale or Square Kiosk Lite. The contactless/chip reader connects by Bluetooth LE to iOS 16+ or Android 9+ and requires a phone or tablet. Terminal can use Wi-Fi or Ethernet with its separately sold Hub. Add receipt or kitchen printers, cash drawers, networking, and other accessories only after confirming the specific model and accessory profile.

Operational limits and eligibility checks

Square POS normally needs internet access and compatible hardware. Offline payments can be enabled for up to 24 hours, but payments are automatically processed only after reconnection; payments may be declined if the device is not reconnected within 24 hours, and the seller bears the risk of expired, declined, or disputed offline payments. Offline payments are not supported on older first-generation contactless/chip readers. Square hardware financing is subject to credit approval, has a 15% APR disclosure, requires purchase amounts of $49–$10,000, and is unavailable to merchants in AL, DE, MO, MS, NH, and TN. Square does not replace state or local liquor licensing, age-verification, alcohol-service, tax, or venue requirements; verify those independently before launch.

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Hardware

Accessories — Printers

Square’s U.S. printer lineup covers the handoff points that keep a busy operation moving: customer receipts at the counter, heat-tolerant kitchen tickets, liner-free labels for takeout, barcode labels for retail stock, and compact mobile receipts away from the register.

Explore Accessories — Printers

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Accessories — Kitchen Displays

Square’s Kitchen Display System turns incoming orders into digital kitchen tickets on Android screens built for prep and expo stations.

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Accessories — Cash Drawers

Square cash drawers give a bakery, café, shop, or service counter a secure place for bills and coins while keeping cash transactions tied to the point of sale.

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Hardware

Accessories — Networking

Keep checkout, printers, kitchen screens, and staff devices connected with commercial-grade UniFi networking equipment sold through Square in the U.S.

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Square Kitchen Display System

Square Kitchen Display System gives a restaurant’s back of house a live, digital view of incoming orders instead of relying on paper tickets.

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Square Online Ordering

Square Online Ordering gives a U.S. food-and-beverage business a branded ordering profile that customers can open from a website, Google, social posts, Yelp, or a QR code.

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Square QR Code Ordering

Square QR Code Ordering gives a restaurant or food-service team a mobile ordering path without adding a dedicated ordering terminal at every table.

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Square Payments

Square Payments gives a U.S. business one account for accepting card-present, online, phone, invoice, ACH, wallet, and eligible Afterpay payments.

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Square Dashboard & Reporting

Square Dashboard gives a U.S. business a web-based command center for sales, transfers, invoices, customers, items, and team activity.

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Square Inventory Management

Square Inventory Management connects stock counts to Square Point of Sale and Square Online, so a sale can reduce the available quantity instead of leaving staff to reconcile spreadsheets later.

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Square Customer Directory / CRM

Square Customer Directory gives a U.S. business one place to organize customer contact details, purchase history, loyalty activity, preferences, and notes across Square sales channels.

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Square Marketing

Square Marketing gives a U.S. business a practical way to follow up after the sale without exporting its customer list to another system.

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Square Email Marketing

Square Email Marketing gives a bakery, café, shop, salon, or other local business a practical way to bring customers back without exporting sales data to a separate email platform.

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Square Text Message Marketing

Square Text Message Marketing gives a bakery, salon, retailer, or service business a direct way to announce time-sensitive offers, bring back lapsed customers, and collect more reviews.

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Square Shifts

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Square Payroll

Square Payroll gives a growing U.S. business one place to pay W-2 employees and 1099 contractors, import hours, tips, and commissions from Square tools, and keep federal and state filings on schedule.

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Related business types

Business type

Quick Service

Quick-service restaurants need a register that can capture a rush of customized orders without losing the kitchen, online, or delivery queue.

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Business type

Coffee Shops

Coffee shops need a checkout that can handle a rush without losing the personal touch.

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Business type

Wine & Liquor

Run a bottle shop or liquor store with a checkout that understands products sold by the bottle, case, or other unit.

Explore Wine & Liquor

Business type

Food Trucks

A food truck needs checkout that travels, stays useful when a signal drops, and helps a small crew turn a rush into repeat business.

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Plan details

Pricing, fees & eligibility

Explore pricing

Published U.S. restaurant plans show Free at $0/month/location, Plus at $49/month/location, and Premium at $149/month/location; Square Pro is custom priced. Hardware is purchased separately. Square KDS and Kiosk add per-device monthly fees, and payment rates depend on plan and payment type.

Upfront hardware (USD)$59
Monthly software (USD)$49

Fees & eligibility

  • In-person card-present, Square Free

    Tap, dip, or swipe; U.S. published rate

    2.6% + $0.15 per payment
  • In-person card-present, Square Plus

    Tap, dip, or swipe; U.S. published rate

    2.5% + $0.15 per payment
  • In-person card-present, Square Premium

    Tap, dip, or swipe; U.S. published rate

    2.4% + $0.15 per payment
  • Online card payment

    Online or invoice card payment

    3.3% + $0.30 per payment on Free; 2.9% + $0.30 on Plus and Premium
  • Manual entry or card on file

    All listed plans

    3.5% + $0.15 per payment
  • Afterpay

    Customer pays in four installments; seller is paid immediately

    6% + $0.30 per transaction
  • Square KDS app

    Not available in Square Free

    $30/month/device on Plus; $20/month/device on Premium
  • Square Kiosk software

    Requires Square Plus or Premium

    $99/month/device
  • Square Kiosk Lite

    iOS app; requires Square Plus or Premium

    $50/month/device on Plus; $30/month/device on Premium

Requirements

  • U.S. Square account and identity/bank verification are required to take payments.
  • Hardware is not included with the software subscription.
  • Square KDS requires Plus or Premium; Kiosk and Kiosk Lite require Plus or Premium.
  • Square Pro custom pricing is presented for sellers processing over $250,000 per year; eligibility is not guaranteed.
  • Hardware installment plans are subject to credit approval and disclosed state and purchase-amount restrictions.

Prices and fees are the published U.S. amounts retrieved on 2026-10-27 and can change; confirm the live plan and checkout pages before purchase.

Hardware financing is not a cash price: Square discloses 15% APR, credit approval, purchase limits of $49–$10,000, and state exclusions.

Offline payments carry seller risk and require reconnection within 24 hours; older first-generation contactless/chip readers are unsupported for offline payments.

Square tools do not establish compliance with liquor licensing, age-verification, responsible-service, tax, or local venue rules.

Square Kiosk requires active Square Plus or Premium; legacy-plan subscribers may need to switch plans.

The record does not assume eligibility for custom pricing, loans, banking, or any financial product.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Can Square keep a bar tab open and preauthorize a card?

Yes. Square for Restaurants lists preauthorized bar tabs that temporarily authorize a customer’s credit card for a set amount, with open checks and later checkout workflows. The seller should still configure procedures that fit its card-network, alcohol-service, and local compliance obligations.

Which plan is needed for a brewery using Square KDS?

Square KDS is not available in Square Free. The published U.S. restaurant comparison lists it at $30 per device per month on Square Plus and $20 per device per month on Square Premium, in addition to the plan’s location fee.

What is the smallest published hardware price for a bar setup?

The current U.S. hardware catalog lists Square Reader for contactless and chip at $59. It needs a compatible iOS or Android phone or tablet. A bar can instead use standalone Square Terminal, Handheld, Register, or an iPad-based Square Stand, with prices and compatibility as listed in the hardware catalog.

Sources & product information

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