Square Online alternative
A Square Online alternative for selling from your own site, with no plan to upgrade.
Square Online’s free plan leaves out connecting your own domain, selling subscriptions, and exchanges. Those start on Square Plus at $49 a month per location, and gift cards carry a 2.5% load fee on top of processing unless you pay for Premium at $149. Flint Pay is the alternative for US sellers who keep their own website or sell from links: products with sizes and stock counts, payment links, gift cards, subscriptions, discounts, shipping and pickup, and returns, all from the dashboard, with no monthly fee and one card rate, 3.79% + 35¢, that includes Stripe’s processing.
3.79% + 35¢ on cards · no monthly fee · free sandbox · no credit card
last reviewed 2026-10-27 · sources
01The alternatives
Square Online alternatives for a small store.
Ranked for a US seller leaving Square Online who wants to keep a website they already like, or pick one, without a plan gate on the store. Every price is from the vendor's own pricing page, checked on the date under Sources.
- 01
Flint Pay
US sellers with a site on any builder, or no site at all, who want payment links, gift cards, subscriptions, shipping, and returns with no monthly plan.
- Monthly
- No monthly fee
- Cards
- 3.79% + 35¢, Stripe's fees included
- Gift cards
- Card rate, no load fee
- 02
Shopify Basic
A hosted store and theme on a monthly plan.
- Plan
- $39/mo, $29 billed yearly
- Shopify Payments
- from 2.9% + 30¢
- Other gateways
- +2% on Basic
- 03
Squarespace Core
A website plan whose first tier with no online store transaction fee is Core.
- Plan
- $39/mo, $29 billed yearly
- Cards
- from 2.9% + 30¢
- Basic plan
- $25/mo plus 2% per store sale
- 04
Big Cartel
A hosted shop on a small monthly plan.
- Platinum
- $15/mo
- Diamond
- $30/mo
02Side by side
Square Online's plan limits, next to Flint.
The Square column is what Square's own online store plans page says for Square Free, Plus, and Premium today, linked under Sources. The Flint column is what every Flint account does, with the API name behind it for your developer.
| What you need | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium | Flint |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly price | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium: Square Free $0, Square Plus $49, and Square Premium $149 a month, each per location. Plus and Premium start with a 30-day free trial. | Flint: No monthly fee and no plan tiers. 3.79% + 35¢ per card payment, with Stripe's processing fees included. |
| Your own domain | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium: Custom domain connect is on Plus and Premium, not on Square Free. | Flint: Your website stays on the host and domain you already have. Checkout and the customer account can also run on your own subdomains, such as pay.yourshop.com, with the $15/month custom domain add-on.POST /v1/custom-domains |
| Subscriptions | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium: Bundles and subscriptions on your site are on Plus and Premium. | Flint: Create a plan in the dashboard and sell it through a payment link, at 0.40% of subscription payments. Subscribers pause, skip, and change cards in their own account.POST /v1/subscription-plans |
| Gift cards | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium: A 2.5% load fee on Square Free and Plus, on top of the processing fee for the sale. No load fee on Premium. | Flint: Create a gift card offer in the dashboard, in a fixed value or any amount the buyer chooses in a range you set, and sell it through a payment link. The sale pays the card rate, with no load fee.gift_card_configuration |
| Exchanges | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium: Exchanges are on Plus and Premium; cross-location returns are on Premium only. | Flint: Returns from a policy you set, resolved as a refund, an exchange, or a replacement, in every account.resolution_type |
| Site design | Square Online on Square Free, Plus, and Premium: Square Free gets basic layouts. Custom fonts, video, animations, custom code embeds, and password-protected pages are on Plus and Premium. | Flint: Flint doesn't build or host websites. Keep the site you designed on Squarespace, Wix, Framer, or WordPress, and put a payment link behind any button on it.POST /v1/payment-links |
03Price check
How much does Square Online cost in 2026?
Since Square’s October 2025 plan change, Square Online’s store features come with Square’s account plans: Square Free at $0, Square Plus at $49, and Square Premium at $149 a month, each charged per location. Online card payments cost 3.3% + 30¢ on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium, and cards issued outside the US add 1.5%.
Flint has one price: 3.79% + 35¢ per card payment with no monthly fee, and the rate covers Stripe’s processing. Subscriptions add 0.40% and automatic US sales tax adds 0.50%, only on the payments that use them. For the full math at several store sizes, see what Square Online costs per order and per month.
04Gift cards
What does it cost to sell a $50 gift card?
On Square Free and Plus, Square charges its processing fee on the sale and a 2.5% load fee on the amount added to the card. At the 2.9% + 30¢ rate Square lists for eGift card purchases, one $50 eGift card costs at least $3.00: $1.75 in processing and $1.25 in load fee. Only Square Premium, at $149 a month, drops the load fee.
On Flint, a gift card sale is a card payment at 3.79% + 35¢, which is $2.25 for the same $50 card, with no load fee. At 30 cards a month in December, that’s $90.00 on Square against $67.35 on Flint. Make a gift card offer in the dashboard with a fixed amount or a range the buyer picks from, sell it through a payment link, and Flint emails the card to the recipient the buyer names, on the date they pick.
05Your own site
How do you sell from your own site without Square Online?
Keep the website you have, or build one on any builder, and let Flint run the store behind it. Everything below works from the dashboard without code.
Create your products with their prices in the Flint dashboard, then make a payment link for each one, or one link for a set of items. A shirt in three sizes is one product with three variants, each with its own price and stock count, and one link where the buyer picks the size. Paste the link into a button on your Squarespace, Wix, Framer, or WordPress page, your Instagram bio, or a QR code at the counter. Each buyer gets a hosted checkout and an order in your dashboard, with the shipping, pickup, or local delivery options you set up. Stock is held per variant as buyers pay, so a size that runs out shows Sold out and the rest keep selling.
A cart where buyers add several products as they browse your site takes a developer or an AI builder working with Flint’s API, and opens the same hosted checkout.
Products made in the dashboard, and options and variants with their own price and stock by API, with no plan to unlock them.
POST /v1/productsPayment links for one product, a multi-item set, an event, a donation, or a subscription plan, with a hosted checkout.
POST /v1/payment-linksStock per location, held when payment starts and committed when it succeeds, on API-made links and orders.
held_quantityDiscount codes and automatic promotions, with rules for which ones stack.
POST /v1/promotionsShipping rates by region, local delivery, and in-store pickup, set up in the dashboard.
POST /v1/delivery-methodsGift card offers with fixed or buyer-chosen amounts, sold at the card rate with no load fee.
gift_card_configurationSubscription plans with trials, retries, and buyer pause and skip.
POST /v1/subscriptionsReturns from a policy you set, with refunds, exchanges, and replacements.
POST /v1/returnsAdd a store to a Framer site →Payment links →Sell online with an AI builder →Big Cartel alternative →
06Your data
What can you take with you when you leave Square Online?
Square’s Support Center describes three exports. Your item library downloads as an Excel or CSV file from Items, Item library, Actions, Export Library. Your customer directory downloads as a CSV from Customers, Customer directory, Import / Export. Saved cards are the exception: Square sends them only to another PCI DSS Level 1 payment processor, after you call Square Support to verify ownership, and the transfer can take up to two weeks.
Flint doesn’t import product spreadsheets or saved cards. Use the item export as your checklist and recreate products in the dashboard, or have a developer or AI builder load the file through the API, variants and stock included. Customers who saved a card on Square save it again on Flint the first time they pay.
07Worked example
Is Flint cheaper than Square Plus for a small store?
Square Plus is the plan you need for your own domain or subscriptions on Square Online. At $50 orders, Flint costs less up to $4,900 a month in sales on one location, because the $49 plan fee is more than the difference in card rates, or up to $3,250 with Flint's automatic sales tax on every order.
| Monthly fees at $50 per order, one location | 20 orders | 40 orders | 60 orders | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly sales | $1,000.00 | $2,000.00 | $3,000.00 | |
| Square Plus, per location | $49.00 | $49.00 | $49.00 | |
| Online processing, 2.9% + 30¢ | $35.00 | $70.00 | $105.00 | |
| Square Online on Plus | $84.00 | $119.00 | $154.00 | |
| Flint, 3.79% + 35¢, no plan | $44.90 | $89.80 | $134.70 | |
| Flint with automatic tax on every order (+0.50%) | $49.90 | $99.80 | $149.70 | |
Assumptions
- Every order is $50, paid online with a US card. Cards issued outside the US add 1.5% on Square and on Flint.
- Square Plus is charged per location: with two locations it is $98 a month, and Flint costs less up to $9,850 a month in sales. Square Premium is $149 a month per location with the same online rate.
- You already have a website, or sell from links. Square includes its site builder on every plan; if you need a new site, add its plan to Flint's column.
- Square Free has no plan fee and charges 3.3% + 30¢ online, $1.95 on a $50 order against $2.25 on Flint, without a custom domain, subscriptions, or exchanges.
- Break-evens are rounded down to a whole $50 order.
08Who Flint is for
Flint is built for US sellers who keep their own site.
Flint is the store and payments behind your website, not a website builder. If that fits how you sell, everything above is running the day you create your account.
US businesses
Flint onboards businesses in the US and pays out in USD to your own bank account. Buyers can pay from anywhere with a card.
Any site, or none
Payment links work behind a button on any site builder, in a bio, an email, or a QR code. No site is needed to start.
No code to start
Products, payment links, gift cards, subscription plans, discounts, shipping, and returns are all set up in the dashboard.
Online sales
Cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, ACH debit, and Affirm online. Flint has no card readers, so in-store sales stay on your current point of sale.
09Switching
How do you move from Square Online to Flint?
Start with your best sellers, check a few orders end to end, then move the rest.
Export your items and customers
In the Square Dashboard, export the item library as Excel or CSV and the customer directory as CSV. Keep both as your checklist.
Recreate your products
POST /v1/productsAdd each product and its price in the Flint dashboard. On the product page, Add option and Add variants give each size or color its own price and SKU, and Track stock for these variants keeps a count for each. For a large item library, a developer or AI builder can load the export through the API instead.
Make payment links and swap your buttons
POST /v1/payment-linksCreate a payment link for each product or set, add your shipping and pickup options, and point your site's buy buttons, bio link, and QR codes at the new links.
Move subscriptions
POST /v1/subscription-plansRecreate each plan in the dashboard and send subscribers its payment link before their next Square renewal, then cancel the Square subscription. Subscribers who already saved a card on Flint can be imported from a CSV so their current period isn't charged twice.
Carry over gift card balances
POST /v1/gift-cardsSell new gift cards from a Flint gift card offer. For Square cards with a balance left, a developer or AI builder creates a Flint card for each balance with import funding, and Flint returns a new code to send the holder.
Go live
Pay each link in your sandbox with a test card, switch to live mode, and share the live links.
10Start
Sign up, make your first link, and pay it yourself.
Sign up, add a product or make a payment link in the dashboard, and open it on your own phone to see exactly what your buyers will see. No code and no monthly plan.
3.79% + 35¢ on cards · no monthly fee · free sandbox · no credit card
Then read these
- 01Square Online feesPlan, processing, and gift card fees per month
- 02
- 03
- 04
Sources
Where each claim comes from.
Square Free $0, Square Plus $49, Square Premium $149 a month per location; 30-day free trial on Plus and Premium; online card payments 3.3% + 30¢ on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium; international cards +1.5%; gift card load fee 2.5% on Free and Plus, 0% on Premium; custom domain connect, custom code embed, expanded site customization, password-protected pages, retail preorders, free shipping progress bar, abandoned cart emails, product reviews, bundles and subscriptions, site and ecommerce data, and exchanges on Plus and Premium; real-time shipping rates and cross-location returns on Premium. Square: Online store plans and pricing
squareup.com · checked 2026-10-26Square pays a load fee plus the processing fee when a gift card is loaded: 2.5% of the amount added, and 2.9% + 30 cents for a card payment on a Square eGift Cards ordering page. Square: Gift cards
squareup.com · checked 2026-10-26Square Free, Square Plus ($49/month per location), and Square Premium ($149/month per location) replaced Square's separate subscriptions; Square Free keeps websites and online ordering. Square press release: unified plans and pricing
squareup.com · checked 2026-10-26Export the item library from Items, Item library, Actions, Export Library, as Excel or CSV. Square Support Center: Bulk import items
squareup.com · checked 2026-10-26Square transfers card on file data only to another PCI DSS Level 1 payment processor, after the account owner calls Square Support, in up to two weeks; customers export as CSV from Customers, Customer directory, Import / Export. Square Support Center: Export card on file data
squareup.com · checked 2026-10-26Basic $39 a month or $29 billed yearly; card rates from 2.9% + 30¢; third-party transaction fee 2% on Basic. Shopify: Pricing
www.shopify.com · checked 2026-10-26Basic $25 a month ($19 annually) with a 2% online store transaction fee; Core $39 a month ($29 annually) with no fees on online store transactions; card rates from 2.9% + $0.30. Squarespace: Pricing
www.squarespace.com · checked 2026-10-26Platinum $15 a month after a 7-day trial; Diamond $30 a month. Big Cartel: Pricing
www.bigcartel.com · checked 2026-10-26
last reviewed 2026-10-27 · corrections: Flint Help
FAQ
Questions people ask.
What is the best Square Online alternative?
For a US seller who wants to keep their own website, or sell from links, Flint Pay. Products, payment links, gift cards, subscriptions, discounts, shipping and pickup, and returns are set up in the dashboard, with no monthly fee and one card rate, 3.79% + 35¢, that includes Stripe's processing. Flint doesn't build websites, so your site stays on the builder you choose.
What are the limits of Square Online's free plan?
Square's plan table leaves these off Square Free: custom domain connect, expanded site customization, custom code embeds, password-protected pages, retail preorders, abandoned cart emails, product reviews, bundles and subscriptions, exchanges, and site and ecommerce reporting. Real-time shipping rates and cross-location returns are on Square Premium only. Online card payments are 3.3% + 30¢ on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium.
How much does Square Online cost?
Square Online’s features come with Square’s plans: Square Free at $0, Square Plus at $49, and Square Premium at $149 a month, each per location. Online card payments are 3.3% + 30¢ on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium, and gift cards carry a 2.5% load fee on Free and Plus. Square Online fees, worked out
Is Flint a good alternative to Square Online?
Yes, for a US seller who sells online from their own site or from links. On one location at $50 orders, Flint costs less than Square Plus up to $4,900 a month in sales, with no plan gate on subscriptions, gift cards, or exchanges. Flint has no site builder and no card readers, so your site stays on its builder and in-store sales stay on your point of sale. Flint vs Square
Can I move my Square Online store to Flint?
Yes, step by step. Export your item library and customer directory from the Square Dashboard, recreate the products in Flint's dashboard, and point your site's buttons at Flint payment links. Square sends saved cards only to another PCI DSS Level 1 processor, and Flint doesn't import them, so returning buyers enter their card once on Flint. Subscribers who have saved a card on Flint can be imported from a CSV without paying twice for the current period.
Can I use Flint on Squarespace, Wix, or Framer?
Yes. Make a payment link in the Flint dashboard and put it behind any button on your page. The buyer pays on Flint’s hosted checkout and you get the order, with shipping and pickup handled. Sizes and colors with their own stock work from the dashboard too: one link lets the buyer pick. A browse-and-add cart across several products needs a developer or an AI builder to call Flint’s API. Add a store to a Framer site
Keep your site. Skip the plan.
Free sandbox, no credit card, no sales call. Add a product, make a payment link, put it behind a button on your site, and pay it with a test card.
Or run npm install -g @flintpay/cli && flint signup to create your account and a sandbox key from the terminal. CLI guide
More comparisons · last reviewed 2026-10-27