Software solution
Square Messages
Square Messages gives a U.S. small business one place to answer customer texts, emails, feedback, order questions, and service updates from Square Dashboard or the Square POS app. A free Messages inbox can reply to inbound conversations, share photos, and send payment links.
Built for your day-to-day
Businesses that need to start new conversations, use a dedicated toll-free number, send coupons or email files, or receive voicemail transcriptions need Square Messages Plus, Square Plus, or Square Premium. That makes it useful for a salon confirming an appointment, a bakery resolving an order substitution, or a contractor answering a quote question without exposing a personal number.
Key capabilities
Bring text, email, feedback, receipts, invoices, order updates, appointment updates, and loyalty-status replies into Messages, accessible from Square Dashboard and supported POS apps.
Reply to inbound conversations, send photos, and handle live-order questions such as substitutions or last-minute changes. Replies stay on the channel the customer used: email or text.
Send a Square payment link from a message thread and keep transaction questions with the conversation. Payment links are included with Square Free; starting new conversations requires an eligible paid plan.
Eligible paid locations can claim a dedicated toll-free number for calls, voicemails, texts, emails, missed-call notifications, and voicemail transcription, subject to carrier verification.
Owners can grant Messages permissions through Square Advanced Access and control which locations a team member can access. Email and push notifications help staff notice new conversations.
Explore the details
Adding Messages from Square Dashboard or a Square POS app costs nothing. Square Free or Square Messages Free includes replies to inbound text and email, replies to service messages, photos, and payment links. Starting a new text or email, a dedicated business number, coupons, email PDF files, voicemail transcription, and redirecting calls to text require Square Messages Plus or a Square Plus or Premium subscription.
Before initiating a text conversation, the business must confirm it has the customer’s consent. Marketing texts require explicit marketing consent. A dedicated number is subject to an industry verification process that usually takes up to seven business days. Carriers may reject or restrict SHAFT-C categories, high-risk financial services, certain prescription medicines, multilevel marketing, and other traffic; alcohol businesses need robust age-gating on their website. Square also says Messages does not currently support texts to Philippine phone numbers.
File attachments are email-only and must be under 7 MB; multiple files together must stay below 7 MB. Attachments are not intended for financial, cardholder, medical, health, biometric, government-ID, or other sensitive personal information. Teams can use Dashboard or the Square POS app on compatible iOS and Android devices, with notification and do-not-disturb controls in Dashboard.
Plan details
Messages inbox access is available at no cost through Square Dashboard or Square POS apps. Advanced features require Square Messages Plus or Square Plus/Premium. Square’s U.S. pricing page lists Square Free at $0 per location per month, Square Plus at $49 per location per month, and Square Premium at $149 per location per month, each with a 30-day trial for Plus and Premium. The reviewed U.S. pages do not publish a standalone dollar price for Square Messages Plus.
U.S. Square pricing page; no monthly subscription cost, with payment processing fees when taking payments.
U.S. Square pricing page; advanced plan that unlocks advanced Messages features; 30-day trial stated by Square.
U.S. Square pricing page; advanced plan that unlocks advanced Messages features; 30-day trial stated by Square.
Square documents the standalone subscription and its advanced features but does not state a current dollar amount in the reviewed product or support pages; confirm the price in Dashboard before purchase.
Sending a payment link through Messages does not make payment processing free; the applicable Square plan and payment method determine the fee.
Verified against official Square U.S. pages on 2026-10-27; plan pricing and feature packaging can change.
Square Messages is not a replacement for a customer’s text or email service; it consolidates those conversations and notifications in Square.
The standalone Square Messages Plus monthly price was not published in the reviewed official U.S. pages and is left unpriced rather than estimated.
Dedicated toll-free numbers are carrier-regulated, require verification, and may be unavailable to restricted business categories or message traffic.
Square’s support article says text messages to phone numbers in the Philippines are not currently supported.
No hardware is required specifically for Messages; hardware recommendations are omitted because the official sources do not establish a Messages-specific hardware dependency.
Questions
Yes. Square says you can add Messages and access the inbox at no cost. Free access supports replies to inbound texts and emails, service-message replies, photos, and payment links. New conversations and other advanced features require Square Messages Plus or Square Plus/Premium.
Only on an eligible advanced plan: Square Messages Plus, Square Plus, or Square Premium. Before initiating a text conversation, confirm customer consent; marketing texts require explicit marketing consent.
Eligible paid locations can claim a dedicated toll-free business number for calls, voicemails, texts, emails, and missed-call notifications. The number is subject to carrier verification, usually up to seven business days, and may be rejected for restricted businesses or traffic.
Information as of 2026-10-27. Product details date: 2026-10-27.
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