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ToggleAuthorize.net vs Square: Cost and Fees Calculator
Enter your volumes to compare estimated monthly costs and fees for Authorize.net and Square across the selling types both offer, using published US pricing.
Selling online (eCommerce)
Estimates combine processing fees and monthly subscriptions on the plans noted above. One-time hardware, setup, and add-ons are excluded. Rates are published or typical US pricing as of mid-2026 and may have changed.
How the Authorize.net vs Square calculator works, and how the two compare
Authorize.net is Visa's long-running payment gateway, sold either as a gateway for an existing merchant account or as all-in-one processing. Authorize.net's all-in-one option costs $25 per month plus 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction; the gateway-only option is $25 per month plus $0.10 per transaction and a $0.10 daily batch fee on top of your own merchant account. Square is an all-in-one flat-rate payments company covering card readers, full POS systems, and online stores. Square charges 2.6% + $0.15 in person on its free plan (readers from $59, Square Terminal $299), and 3.3% + $0.30 online on the free plan; paid plans at $49 and $149 per month lower those rates.
How they are similar: Where they overlap: both Authorize.net and Square cover selling online, which is what this calculator compares. In both cases the bill is driven by a percentage of each sale plus any fixed per-transaction fee, which is why your average transaction size changes the effective rate as much as the headline percentage does.
How they differ: Only Square offers in-person card readers and a full POS system, so that side of the business is not part of this comparison. Authorize.net operates as a payment gateway with a monthly fee that can pair with your own merchant account, while Square operates as flat-rate card processing with published per-transaction fees. Authorize.net is a gateway first: it shines when paired with a cheap interchange-plus merchant account, but its $25 monthly fee makes the all-in-one plan pricier than Stripe or Square for small volumes. Square is the strongest all-rounder: one account covers in-person, POS, invoices, and a free online store, with no monthly fee required to start.
Assumptions used in this calculator
- Authorize.net is modeled on: All-in-one: $25 per month plus 2.9% + $0.30 (gateway-only: $25 per month plus $0.10 per transaction).
- Square is modeled on: 3.3% + $0.30 online on the free plan (2.9% + $0.30 on paid plans).
- Rates are published or typical US pricing as of mid-2026 and change often; quote-based providers are modeled at representative rates. Always confirm current pricing with the provider.
- One-time hardware, setup, add-on apps, keyed-in transactions, international cards, and chargeback fees are excluded from the monthly figures.