Square vs Lightspeed, and what $89 a month buys.
Lightspeed publishes retail plans at $89, $149 and $289 a month on annual billing and publishes no processing rate. Square publishes both and has a free tier. Lightspeed's case is inventory depth, and it is a real case for the right shop.
What this page settles.
Three questions, in the order most people ask them.
The short answer
Lightspeed is the deeper retail system and the more expensive one, and it does not publish its processing rate.
Square publishes 2.6% + 15¢ in person, 3.5% + 15¢ keyed and 3.3% + 30¢ online, with a genuinely free software tier and paid tiers at $49 and $149 a month per location.
Lightspeed publishes retail plans at $89 (Basic), $149 (Core) and $289 (Plus) a month on annual billing — its page notes annual saves up to 18% — and does not publish a processing rate for Lightspeed Payments on either its retail pricing page or its payments page.
So the comparison has two halves. On software, Lightspeed costs $89 to $289 a month against Square’s $0 to $149, and buys considerably more inventory capability. On processing, Square’s figure is knowable and Lightspeed’s is not, which means the total cost of Lightspeed cannot be established without a quote.
The test for whether the software premium is worth it is specific: do you need purchase ordering, supplier catalogues, multi-location stock transfers and matrix inventory? If yes, Lightspeed earns it. If you are tracking a few hundred simple SKUs, you are paying for depth you will not open.
Published pricing, side by side
| Square | Lightspeed | |
|---|---|---|
| In person | 2.6% + 15¢ tapped, dipped or swiped on the free plan; 2.5% + 15¢ on Plus, 2.4% + 15¢ on Premium |
Not published |
| Keyed | 3.5% + 15¢ | Not published |
| Online | 3.3% + 30¢ 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium |
Not published |
| Pricing model | Flat rate | Software published, processing quoted |
| Monthly | $0 on the free plan; $49/mo per location (Plus); $149/mo per location (Premium) | Retail: $89/mo Basic, $149/mo Core, $289/mo Plus, on annual billing (the page says annual saves up to 18%) |
| Contract | No contract. The page says “no hidden fees or locked-in contracts. Cancel or switch anytime.” | Not published |
| Monthly minimum | Not stated | Not published |
| Funding | Next business day free; instant transfer for a fee | Not published |
| Chargeback fee | Not published on the pricing page | Not published |
| Hardware | Sold outright; prices on a separate page | Priced on a separate page |
| Account type | Aggregator (sub-merchant under Square) | Own merchant account through Lightspeed Payments |
Square: squareup.com — read 2026-10-08. Lightspeed: www.lightspeedhq.com — read 2026-10-08.
Published prices change. These were read on the dates above and are list prices for a business buying direct — a quote you are given may differ, and should be compared as a quote rather than against a price list.
Square, also published:
- ACH via invoice 1%, $1 minimum
- Afterpay 6% + 30¢
- EBT 1.8% + 5¢
- Custom pricing available above $250,000 a year
Lightspeed, also published:
- Software plan prices are published; the Lightspeed Payments processing rate is not published on the payments page
Where they actually differ
Inventory. This is Lightspeed’s whole case and it is a strong one. Purchase orders against supplier catalogues, matrix items for size and colour, serialised inventory, stock transfers between locations, built-in supplier ordering. Square’s inventory is competent for a simple catalogue and thins out quickly at the complex end.
Multi-location. Lightspeed is built for it — shared catalogue with per-location pricing, transfers, consolidated reporting. Square charges per location on its paid tiers and handles multi-site adequately rather than well. If a second shop is plausible within two years, weigh this now. Choosing a retail POS.
The free tier. Square’s is genuinely free and unlimited in time, and takes payments properly with basic inventory and reporting. Lightspeed has no free tier. For a small shop with simple stock, that gap is $1,068 a year at Lightspeed’s entry plan.
Annual billing. Lightspeed’s published figures are the annual ones. Monthly billing costs more — its page says annual saves up to 18% — so commit a year or pay the premium.
Processing disclosure. Square publishes its rate, its fee table and next-business-day funding. Lightspeed publishes none of that. Get the rate, the per-item, every monthly fee, the term and the funding timetable in writing before signing. Comparing two quotes.
The processing lock. Lightspeed Payments is tied to the system. Whether an outside processor is permitted, and at what cost, is the clause to settle before you build your catalogue rather than after.
The account. Square is an aggregator — you are a sub-merchant. A Lightspeed Payments account is a merchant account in its own right. Merchant account versus aggregator.
Who each one suits
Lightspeed suits a shop with real inventory complexity — apparel with size and colour matrices, bike or outdoor retail with serialised stock and supplier ordering, anything with purchase orders against catalogues — and particularly a multi-location retailer.
Square suits a single shop with a straightforward catalogue, a business that wants no monthly software fee, and anyone who would rather know their processing rate than negotiate it.
Neither is the cheapest processing. Square is a flat rate. Lightspeed’s is unknown and tied to the system. A shop at $60,000 a month would usually pay less on interchange-plus through its own account, and whether it can depends on the system’s rules.
What the comparison does not show
Get the Lightspeed Payments rate in writing first. The software prices are published and the processing is where most of the money is. Without the rate you have half a comparison.
Price migration honestly. Building a complex catalogue into a new system is days of work, and it is the step that derails most point-of-sale implementations. Ask explicitly whether the import brings costs and barcodes or just names and prices. Choosing a retail POS.
Square’s free tier is not the tier most shops end on. The features a real shop wants sit on the $49 or $149 plans. Compare like for like.
Square’s rate is an average. Flat rates charge the same for a plain debit card and a premium rewards card, and your card mix decides whether that is generous. What rewards cards cost.
How to settle it with your own numbers
Half of this comparison cannot be done from a web page, because Lightspeed publishes no rate. So the comparison has to happen on your own numbers instead, and the figure that makes it possible is your effective rate: total fees for a month divided by total card volume for that month.
Get the Lightspeed quote in writing, with the markup as a number, the per-item, and every monthly fee named individually. Apply all of it to your own volume, your own average ticket and your own card mix, add the monthly fees, and divide by volume. That single number is the only thing comparable to Square’s published figures — or to anybody else’s. A quote that cannot be reduced to it is not a quote.
Comparing two quotes is the full method for an unpublished rate, and the calculator does the arithmetic once you have the figures.
What we charge
Interchange + 0.50% + 10¢ in person, interchange + 0.75% + 25¢ keyed, with no contract, no monthly fee and no monthly minimum.
If you are holding a quote from Lightspeed, send it to us with one page of a statement. We will reduce the quote to an effective rate at your own volume and put it next to Square’s published figures and ours, so you are comparing three numbers of the same kind instead of a price list against a sales conversation.
While we are on the subject
What does Lightspeed charge for processing?
It does not publish a rate on its retail pricing or payments pages. You have to get a quote, and you should get it in writing alongside the software and hardware figures.
Is Lightspeed worth $89 a month over Square's free tier?
If you need purchase ordering against supplier catalogues, matrix inventory, serialised stock or multi-location transfers, yes. For a simple catalogue, no.
Are Lightspeed's prices monthly?
The published figures are for annual billing, and its page says annual saves up to 18%, so monthly billing costs more.
Can I use my own processor with Lightspeed?
That is the clause to settle before signing. Lightspeed Payments is tied to the system, and the terms for an outside processor are not published.