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E-Commerce · head to head

Heartland Retail vs Square

Heartland Retail logo

Heartland Retail

E-Commerce

Cloud point of sale and inventory management sold alongside Heartland card processing

From
$150/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Square logo

Square

E-Commerce

Powering the economy

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Square has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Heartland Retail the software is sold as part of a card processing relationship, so the monthly licence understates the real cost and the processing rate is the number that determines what you pay over a year.; Square plus plan pricing not specified in documentation
  • They diverge on capability: Heartland Retail covers Multi-store inventory, Square covers Payment processing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Heartland Retail and Square actually diverge.

Attributes where Heartland Retail and Square differ
AttributeHeartland RetailSquare
Starting price$150/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebPOS (Mobile app), Web
Founded19972009

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (E-Commerce).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Heartland Retail

  • Multi-store inventory
  • Cloud point of sale
  • Purchasing and receiving
  • Customer records
  • Sales and stock reporting
  • Integrated card processing
  • E-commerce integrations

Only in Square

  • Payment processing
  • Point of sale
  • Invoicing
  • Payroll
  • Banking
  • QuickBooks
  • WooCommerce
  • Wix

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Heartland Retail

  • A specialty retailer opening a third or fourth site that needs one stock position across all of themnot Square
  • Replacing a legacy on-premise till system that requires a server in the back office of every storenot Square
  • A retailer whose buying team needs purchase orders and receiving rather than just a cash registernot Square
  • An existing Heartland processing customer consolidating software and payments under one suppliernot Square

Square

  • Accept payments with all-in-one POS applicationnot Heartland Retail
  • Online ordering and basic website creationnot Heartland Retail
  • Invoicing and appointment bookingnot Heartland Retail
  • Staff scheduling and loyalty programmesnot Heartland Retail

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Heartland Retail

  • The software is sold as part of a card processing relationship, so the monthly licence understates the real cost and the processing rate is the number that determines what you pay over a year.
  • Leaving means changing till software and merchant account together, and since the payment terminals, the reporting history and the staff training are all tied to the same supplier, the switching cost is far higher than a software migration alone.
  • It is not an online store platform, so a merchant selling on the web still buys and maintains a separate e-commerce platform, and the stock and order integration between the two is an ongoing operational dependency rather than a one-off setup.
  • Historical sales and customer purchase history rarely migrate cleanly out of a point of sale system, so a retailer who switches typically starts with an empty history and keeps the old system read-only, paying for it, for years.
  • Heartland sits within Global Payments, a group that has repeatedly restructured its portfolio through acquisitions and divestitures, so which entity owns and invests in this specific product is not stable over a long contract term.

Square

  • Plus plan pricing not specified in documentation
  • Processing fees differ by tier but exact rates not detailed
  • Free plan pricing mentioned but specific features for Plus unclear
  • Text marketing charged at 3¢ per message after first 500 included

Pricing, plan by plan

Heartland Retail

$150/month
  • Core$150/month
    • POS system
    • Inventory management
    • Customer management
  • Professional$350/month
    • All Core features
    • Omnichannel
    • Advanced analytics

Square

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Accept payments with all-in-one POS app
    • Online site builder (ordering profiles, basic websites, online stores, booking sites)
    • Item library and inventory tracking
  • Plus$null/mo
    • All Free plan features
    • Advanced POS features for food, retail, and appointments
    • Lower processing fees on card transactions

Which should you pick?

Choose Heartland Retail if

  • You need multi-store inventory.
  • You also want cloud point of sale.
Heartland Retail review

Choose Square if

  • You need payment processing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on POS (Mobile app), Web.
  • You also want point of sale.
Square review

Questions people ask

Is Heartland Retail or Square better?
Neither clearly leads. Heartland Retail starts at $150/month and Square at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Heartland Retail or Square?
Square has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $150/month for Heartland Retail and Free for Square.
Does Heartland Retail or Square run on more platforms?
Heartland Retail runs on Web. Square runs on POS (Mobile app), Web.
Can I use Square for free?
Yes. Square has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heartland Retail starts at $150/month.
What is Heartland Retail best used for?
Heartland Retail is most often used for a specialty retailer opening a third or fourth site that needs one stock position across all of them, replacing a legacy on-premise till system that requires a server in the back office of every store, a retailer whose buying team needs purchase orders and receiving rather than just a cash register, an existing heartland processing customer consolidating software and payments under one supplier. Of those, a specialty retailer opening a third or fourth site that needs one stock position across all of them and replacing a legacy on-premise till system that requires a server in the back office of every store are not what Square is typically brought in for.
What can Heartland Retail do that Square cannot?
Heartland Retail covers Multi-store inventory, Cloud point of sale, Purchasing and receiving, Customer records. Square covers Payment processing, Point of sale, Invoicing, Payroll.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Heartland Retail: Can I use it as my online store?

No. It manages the shop floor and stock. Selling online means a separate e-commerce platform and an integration to keep the catalogue and stock aligned.

Square: Does Square offer a free plan?

Yes, Square's free plan includes an all-in-one POS app, online site builder, item library and inventory tracking, invoicing, appointment scheduling, staff calendars, and checking and savings account access. No subscription fees are charged.

Source
Heartland Retail: Do I have to use Heartland for card processing?

The product is sold as part of a payments relationship, and that is where the supplier's margin sits. Ask explicitly what the software costs standalone before assuming you have a choice.

Square: What does Square Plus add compared to the free plan?

Square Plus adds advanced POS features for food and retail, lower processing fees on card transactions, custom loyalty programs, unlimited email marketing campaigns, text messaging, and staff scheduling and attendance tracking.

Source
Heartland Retail: What should I negotiate hardest on?

The card processing rate and the contract term, not the software subscription. Ask for interchange-plus pricing in writing rather than a blended rate.

Heartland Retail: What happens to my sales history if I leave?

Assume products and current stock export cleanly and that years of transaction history do not. Budget for keeping the old system available read-only during any transition.

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