Earnside vs Square
Earnside vs Square: Stop paying flat-rate when interchange-plus is cheaper
Square's flat-rate pricing (2.6% + 10¢ in-person, 2.9% + 30¢ online) is simple — but simplicity costs you. For any business processing over $10K/month, interchange-plus pricing is significantly cheaper. Earnside migrates and optimizes you to the right pricing model.
Earnside pricing model
Interchange-plus via negotiated processor
Square pricing model
Flat-rate (blended)
Earnside typical rate
Interchange + negotiated markup (typically 0.2–0.5% above interchange)
Square typical rate
2.6% + $0.10 in-person · 2.9% + $0.30 online (flat)
Earnside monthly fee
$0 upfront — we earn a share of savings
Square monthly fee
No monthly fee (Plus plan: $29/mo)
Earnside contract
Month-to-month
Square contract
Month-to-month
Feature comparison
| Feature | Earnside | Square |
|---|---|---|
| Interchange-plus pricing | Yes — we set it up | Not available |
| Fee audit & benchmarking | Full analysis | Not offered |
| Works with high-volume merchants | Optimized for $100K+/yr | Best for <$100K/yr |
| In-person hardware ecosystem | Via your processor | Excellent (Square Terminal, etc.) |
| Built-in POS & inventory | Not included | Full POS suite |
| Rewards card surcharge protection | Yes — interchange-plus isolates this | You absorb all rewards card costs |
| Rate transparency | Full itemized breakdown | Blended rate only |
| Dedicated savings expert | Yes | No |
About Square
Square built its reputation on simplicity: plug in a reader, start accepting cards. That simplicity is valuable at launch, but flat-rate pricing is inherently a bad deal for growing merchants — you subsidize other merchants' rewards cards with your baseline rate.
Our take
Square is the right starting point for brand-new businesses. But once you're processing $10–15K/month, the math changes. A typical Earnside client processing $500K/year saves $8,000–$15,000 annually by switching from flat-rate to a negotiated interchange-plus arrangement.
See how much you could save
Upload your last statement and we'll show you where Square or your current processor is overcharging you — at no cost.