Talstok vs Square, for UK shops
Square gives away its till and earns on each card payment. Talstok costs from £20 a month, and online card payments go into your own Stripe account at Stripe’s own rates.
Which to choose
Square suits you if
you want to start for nothing a month, take cards on a reader connected to the till, or run several locations.
Talstok suits you if
you want a monthly price, already have a card machine, or buy and sell second-hand.
Prices side by side
Three usual Square set-ups for a shop with a website, beside Talstok’s starting price.
| Set-up | Per month |
|---|---|
| Talstok | From £20 |
| Square POS with Square Online Free | £0 |
| Square POS with Square Online Plus | £20 |
| Square for Retail Plus with Square Online Plus | £69 |
| Set-up | Online | In person |
|---|---|---|
| Talstok | 1.5% + 20p | Your machine |
| Square, with Square POS | 1.4% + 25p | 1.75% |
| Square, with Square for Retail Plus | 1.4% + 25p | 1.6% |
Talstok costs from £20 a month for each shop that takes real money, billed monthly. Plans for each kind of shop, with add-ons on top, are being decided. The pricing page will say what each includes once they are. Square’s card rates are the same for every UK card; on a premium UK card, Stripe charges 2.8% + 20p. Square Online Plus, at £20 a month billed yearly, is the cheapest plan that gives you your own domain; Premium is £64 a month, also billed yearly. Square for Retail Plus is £49 a month per location. Payments keyed in or by invoice cost 2.5%. Square’s card readers, plus VAT: Reader £19, Terminal £149, Register £699. Square says “No long-term contracts; cancel anytime” and that its “prices exclude VAT where applicable”. Read on 5 October 2026: squareup.com/gb/en/pricing, Square for Retail pricing, Square Online plans and Square hardware.
What a small shop really pays Square
The software bill is small next to the card fees.
| Line | Lean | Growing |
|---|---|---|
| Online shop: Square Online Plus | £20.00 | £20.00 |
| Till: Square POS, or Square for Retail Plus | £0 | £49.00 |
| Stock shared by the till and the website | £0 | £0 |
| Domain (a credit for the first year) | £1.00 | £1.00 |
| Total | £21 | about £70 |
Card fees on top, for a shop taking £10,000 a month by card (£6,000 online in 150 orders, £4,000 at the counter in 200 sales): £191.50 a month lean and £185.50 growing. With Talstok, the same shop pays Stripe about £120 for its online sales, plus its card machine’s fee at the counter. Square’s marketing and loyalty add-ons were not priced.
Where Square is ahead
A till for nothing a month
Square POS costs £0 a month. You pay only the card fees.
Its own card readers
Reader £19, Terminal £149 and Register £699, plus VAT, connected to its till. Talstok does not connect to card readers.
A lower online fee
On a standard UK card, Square’s 1.4% + 25p costs less than Stripe’s 1.5% + 20p on any order over £50. On a premium UK card, where Stripe charges 2.8% + 20p, Square costs less on any order over £3.57.
Several locations
Stock kept across locations, with Retail Plus priced per location. In Talstok, each shop has one stock count.
Working offline
Once a shop allows offline payments, Square’s till takes cash, and cards from most major card brands, without a connection. They go through when the device reconnects, within 72 hours at the latest, and the shop is responsible for any that are declined (Square’s UK help page, read 5 October 2026). Talstok’s till needs an internet connection, and working offline is not built.
Sign up online today
Anyone can open a Square account online. Talstok’s shops join by email for now.
Where Talstok differs
Talstok records every way of paying at one till.
- From £20 a month for each shop that takes real money. Card fees are Stripe’s online and your card machine’s at the counter.
- Online card payments go into your own Stripe account.
- Cash, card machine, bank transfer and cheque, all recorded at the same till.
- Grades, buy prices and items kept one by one, for second-hand goods.
Questions
Square vs Shopify: which costs less for a small UK shop?
On 5 October 2026, for a shop selling online and at a counter, the lean software bill was about £21 a month on Square (Square Online Plus with the free till) and £20 on Shopify (Basic, paid yearly). A growing shop paid about £70 on Square and about £234 on Shopify, though Square’s marketing and loyalty add-ons were not priced.
Card fees are the bigger cost. On £10,000 a month of card takings they came to about £191.50 with Square and £225.50 with Shopify on Basic.
What are Square’s fees in the UK?
1.75% for an in-person UK card payment (1.6% on Square for Retail Plus), 1.4% + 25p online, and 2.5% keyed in or by invoice, read on 5 October 2026. Square POS itself is free, Square for Retail Plus is £49 a month per location, and Square’s prices exclude VAT where applicable.
Square is free. Why pay a monthly price?
Square’s free till is paid for through card fees: 1.75% of each in-person payment. Talstok costs from £20 a month for each shop that takes real money. Card fees are Stripe’s online, and your card machine provider’s at the counter. Which costs less depends on how much you take by card, and how.
Can I use a Square card reader with Talstok?
You can take the payment on any card machine, including a Square reader in Square’s own app, and record it at the Talstok till as a card-machine payment. Talstok does not connect to card readers.
Other comparisons
See it with your own products
A test shop is free. Nothing in it is real: no money moves, and it never emails a customer. You pay only once a shop takes real money.