Home / Payment Processing / PayPal vs Square
vs

PayPal vs Square

PayPal is global payment platform for online and in-person payments, invoicing, and transfers, while Square is payment processing with point-of-sale hardware, online payments, and business tools. PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance, whereas Square targets small businesses wanting pos and online payments.

At a glance

PayPal Square
Best for Businesses wanting universal payment acceptance Small businesses wanting POS and online payments
Starting price 2.9% + $0.30 2.6% + $0.10
Free tier ✓ ✓
Open source — —
Free tier available ✓ ✓
Open source — —
Checkout ✓ —
Global ✓ —
Hardware — ✓
Invoicing ✓ ✓
Online Payments — ✓
POS — ✓
Payments ✓ —

PayPal

Strengths

  • Includes Payments as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows
  • Includes Invoicing as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows
  • No monthly fees — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
  • Established product with 28+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

  • Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
  • Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
  • Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in payment processing
  • Mobile experience lags behind the desktop version in features and polish
Try PayPal → Full review

Square

Strengths

  • Includes POS as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows
  • Includes Online Payments as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows
  • No monthly fees — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
  • Established product with 17+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

  • Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
  • Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
  • Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in payment processing
  • Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up
Try Square → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Both tools offer free tiers, so you can test each before committing. PayPal's free plan: No monthly fees. Square's free plan: No monthly fees.

Feature gaps: PayPal offers Checkout, Global and Payments that Square lacks. Square brings Hardware, Online Payments and POS that PayPal does not have. Both share Invoicing.

Team fit: PayPal is geared toward any size teams, while Square is aimed at small teams teams. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Where each tool shines: PayPal's biggest strengths are: includes payments as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows. includes invoicing as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows. Square's biggest strengths are: includes pos as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows. includes online payments as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows.

Watch out for: With PayPal, users commonly note that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade. With Square, the main complaint is that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade.

Choose PayPal if...

  • Your profile matches its sweet spot: businesses wanting universal payment acceptance
  • You specifically need Checkout and Global
  • You care about includes invoicing as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows
  • Your team size fits the any size profile PayPal is designed for
  • The free tier works for you: no monthly fees

Choose Square if...

  • You need a tool built for small businesses wanting pos and online payments
  • You specifically need Hardware and Online Payments
  • You care about includes online payments as a core feature, purpose-built for payment processing workflows
  • Your team size fits the small teams profile Square is designed for
  • The free tier works for you: no monthly fees

Looking for more options?

PayPal alternatives
See all 5 alternatives to PayPal
Square alternatives
See all 5 alternatives to Square

Related comparisons

Stripe vs PayPal
Stripe vs PayPal
Stripe is built for developers wanting the best payment api. PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance. Pick the one that fits.
Paddle vs PayPal
Paddle vs PayPal
Paddle is built for saas companies wanting a merchant of record. PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance. Pick the one that fits.
Lemon Squeezy vs PayPal
Lemon Squeezy vs PayPal
Lemon Squeezy is built for indie developers wanting simple digital product sales. PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance. Pick the one that fits.
Gumroad vs PayPal
Gumroad vs PayPal
Gumroad is built for creators wanting the simplest way to sell online. PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance. Pick the one that fits.
PayPal vs
PayPal vs Braintree
PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance. Braintree is built for businesses that need paypal, venmo, and credit card processing in one integration. Pick the one that fits.
PayPal vs
PayPal vs Adyen
PayPal is built for businesses wanting universal payment acceptance. Adyen is built for enterprise and large businesses that process high volumes internationally. Pick the one that fits.

Explore more

Popular tools

Categories

Comparisons