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Software solution

Square Gift Cards

Give regulars an easy reason to come back

Square Gift Cards gives a bakery, salon, café, retailer, or service business a branded way to sell value before the visit. Offer physical cards at checkout and digital eGift cards online or in store, then let customers redeem them at your Square Point of Sale locations or Square Online site.

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Built for your day-to-day

How it fits your business

QR codes, barcodes, 16-digit codes, and cards saved to a customer profile support different checkout habits. Gift cards do not expire, can be reloaded, and can also be used for store-credit-style refunds. The program has no required monthly subscription, but card loads still carry plan- and payment-method-dependent fees, so budget for those costs before promoting a campaign.

Key capabilities

What you can do

  • Sell physical and digital gifts

    Offer custom plastic cards in person and branded eGift cards through a free online ordering page or the Square POS app. Digital cards can be delivered by email, and online settings support scheduled delivery and bulk ordering.

  • Redeem across your Square locations

    Customers can use physical and eGift cards in person, over the phone, and online. eGift cards are redeemable at all of your locations, while Square Online supports web checkout redemption.

  • Keep the checkout flexible

    Staff can accept a 16-digit code, scan an eGift QR code or barcode, swipe a physical card, use a compatible scanner, or charge a gift card saved in Customer Directory. Split tender is available when a physical card does not cover the full sale.

  • Encourage repeat visits

    Cards do not expire, customers can check and reload balances, and businesses can issue refunds to a gift card without a load fee. Gift-card activity syncs with Square Point of Sale reporting.

  • Use your own brand treatment

    Choose a pre-designed card or upload a custom eGift design. Square's setup guidance suggests a 640 x 400 pixel image for custom eGift artwork.

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Product details

Plans, fees, and what you need

Square eGift Cards are free to set up and physical-card pricing varies by order quantity; there is no required gift-card subscription or long-term contract. On Square Free and Square Plus, loading or reloading a physical or digital card carries a 2.5% load fee; Square Premium lists a 0% load fee. The payment-processing fee is additional and depends on how the card is sold: the U.S. gift-card page lists 2.6% + $0.15 for card-present payments, 3.5% + $0.15 for keyed or card-on-file payments, 2.9% + $0.30 for an eGift Card ordering page, and 6% + $0.30 for Afterpay. Cash, checks, and other recorded payment types have no processing fee. Square says there is no additional fee when a gift card is redeemed.

Hardware and software fit

Use the current Square POS app on a compatible device. Square identifies Square Register, Square Stand, Square Kiosk, and Square Reader for Contactless & Chip as gift-card-capable hardware, and recommends a Square Reader for Magstripe for those four setups. Online sales use the Square eGift Card ordering page or Square Online. Only plastic cards ordered through eCard Systems can be loaded, sold, or accepted through Square POS or a Square website.

Limits to plan around

A single gift card can hold up to $2,000, and one person cannot be issued more than $10,000 in gift cards in one day. eGift cards do not work with custom domains, eCommerce partners, or API integrations. QR-code and barcode loading or redemption is currently limited to iOS devices, and Square Gift Cards are not supported with offline payments. Text-message selling from the POS app is not available; text delivery requires sharing the online ordering page.

Plan details

Pricing, fees & eligibility

Explore pricing

No separate monthly Square Gift Cards subscription is required. eGift setup is free; physical-card price varies by quantity. Square Free and Square Plus charge a 2.5% load fee, while Square Premium lists a 0% load fee. Payment processing is charged in addition when a card is loaded.

Monthly software (USD)$0

Fees & eligibility

  • Gift-card load fee

    Square Free and Square Plus; applies to physical and digital gift-card loads/reloads. Square Premium lists 0%.

    2.5% of the amount loaded
  • Card-present processing

    U.S. published rate shown for swipe, dip, or tap; plan-dependent rates may differ.

    2.6% + $0.15 per payment
  • eGift Card ordering-page processing

    Credit-card-not-present rate listed for cards sold through the Square eGift Card ordering page; plan-dependent rates may differ.

    2.9% + $0.30 per payment
  • Manually keyed or card-on-file processing

    U.S. published rate for the listed payment method; plan-dependent rates may differ.

    3.5% + $0.15 per payment
  • Afterpay processing

    When Afterpay is used to load a gift card.

    6% + $0.30 per card payment
  • Redemption fee

    Square says there is no additional fee when a gift card is redeemed.

    $0
  • Cash, check, or other recorded payment

    When the gift-card load is recorded using these tender types.

    $0 processing fee

Requirements

  • A U.S. Square account with the current Square POS app on a compatible device.
  • Account owner or team member needs the Items permission to set up, order, sell, or accept gift cards.
  • Only plastic gift cards ordered through Square's linked eCard Systems flow can be loaded, sold, or accepted through Square POS or a Square website.
  • An online eGift Card ordering page is used for online sales; eGift cards do not work with custom domains, eCommerce partners, or API integrations.

Square's published processing rates are U.S. rates shown as of 2026-10-27 and can vary by Square plan; verify the account's Dashboard pricing before publishing a quote.

Physical gift-card unit pricing is quantity-dependent and was not assigned a number because the official page does not expose one fixed current unit price.

A gift-card load fee is separate from payment processing; redemption itself has no additional fee according to Square.

QR/barcode gift-card loading and redemption are currently limited to iOS devices, and gift cards do not work with offline payments.

Do not imply that Square Gift Cards can be used with custom domains, third-party eCommerce partners, or API integrations; Square's U.S. support article explicitly excludes those routes.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Do Square Gift Cards expire?

No. Square says its physical and digital gift cards do not expire.

Do I need a paid Square plan or special hardware?

No paid gift-card subscription is required, and Square says no extra software or hardware is needed beyond a compatible Square setup. You do need the current Square POS app for in-person use, and Square recommends a Magstripe Reader for gift-card acceptance on Register, Stand, Kiosk, and Reader for Contactless & Chip setups.

What does it cost to load a gift card?

Square Free and Square Plus list a 2.5% load fee, while Square Premium lists 0%. The applicable card-payment processing fee is additional; for example, Square lists 2.9% + $0.30 for credit cards sold through the online eGift Card ordering page and 2.6% + $0.15 for card-present payments.

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