Square vs Braintree(2026)
Square is better for teams that need best in-person payment hardware. Braintree is the stronger choice if paypal ecosystem integration. Square is paid (from 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction) and Braintree is paid (from 2.59% + 49¢ per transaction).
Full feature breakdown, pricing details, and pros & cons below.
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Square
Square is a payment platform for both in-person and online payments, popular with retail and food businesses.
Starting at 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction
Visit SquareBraintree
Braintree is a full-stack payments platform owned by PayPal with support for cards, PayPal, Venmo, and global currencies.
Starting at 2.59% + 49¢ per transaction
Visit BraintreeHow Do Square and Braintree Compare on Features?
| Feature | Square | Braintree |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | paid | paid |
| Starting price | 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction | 2.59% + 49¢ per transaction |
| In-person POS | ✓ | — |
| Online payments | ✓ | — |
| Invoicing | ✓ | — |
| Inventory management | ✓ | — |
| Payroll | ✓ | — |
| Appointments | ✓ | — |
| Card payments | — | ✓ |
| PayPal & Venmo | — | ✓ |
| Global currencies | — | ✓ |
| Vault tokenization | — | ✓ |
| Fraud protection | — | ✓ |
| Recurring billing | — | ✓ |
Square Pros and Cons vs Braintree
Square
Braintree
Should You Use Square or Braintree?
Choose Square if…
- •Best in-person payment hardware
- •Free POS app
- •Good for retail/food
Choose Braintree if…
- •PayPal ecosystem integration
- •Good global coverage
- •Developer-friendly SDK