Square pushes Apple Pay contactless reader with new $1/week installment plan

For businesses interested in buying Square's new Apple Pay-compatible contactless terminal but put off by its $49 cost, a new $1-per-week installment plan option is now available.

The new 60-week payment plan carries an $11 premium over the standard cost, but gives merchants more than a year to pay it off in full.

In a statement to AppleInsider, Square revealed that about 20 percent of "micro businesses" take out loans for operational expenses, such as the tools needed to run the day-to-day business. The new payment plan is intended to reach those small-business owners who may be apprehensive about adopting new technology due to upfront costs.

The latest Square reader not only accepts contactless NFC payments such as Apple Pay, but also supports EMV chip cards. It includes a battery and connects wirelessly to iOS devices and the Square point-of-sale app to complete transactions.

The Square contactless and chip reader launched late last year directly through the company, and expanded to Apple's own retail stores this February. Square is one of the most popular payment options for independent businesses, and its push to support Apple Pay could be a major aid to expansion of Apple's tap-to-pay service found in its latest devices.

Businesses using a Square reader must pay the company 2.75 percent for each transaction. In addition to Apple Pay, the new reader supports Android Pay and Samsung Pay.

24 Comments

mknelson 9 Years · 1148 comments

About 8 years ago

If you can't afford $49 up front…

you have bigger problems.

mike1 10 Years · 3437 comments

mknelson said:

If you can't afford $49 up front…

you have bigger problems.

Exactly what I was thinking.

coolfactor 20 Years · 2342 comments

Headline says $1 per month.
Article say $1 per week.

And yes, $49 is not a split-minute decision. All of these costs add up, particularly for small businesses and sole proprietors. I currently pay $300-$400 per month just to keep my small business "in business". Adding $50 here and there is not something I'm willing to do without careful consideration.

adrayven 12 Years · 460 comments

We're the only country without contactless cards. EU, Canada, hell, Mexico is going full tap-and-pay with cards. It's secure but noooo, we have to be 'different' - even though the card readers with ENV chip reader supports tap-and-pay, they refuse to enable it. For some reason dragging the financial processing market into the present day is like pulling teeth in the US of A.

wigby 15 Years · 692 comments

coolfactor said:

Headline says $1 per month.
Article say $1 per week.

And yes, $49 is not a split-minute decision. All of these costs add up, particularly for small businesses and sole proprietors. I currently pay $300-$400 per month just to keep my small business "in business". Adding $50 here and there is not something I'm willing to do without careful consideration.

Disagree. This is not an "it adds up" cost. This is a payment processing system from a lucrative bunch of shoppers for $49! If it was $499, I would pause before buying. Anyone who pauses before buying this either already has a contactless payment solution in place, doesn't have a physical retail location or is just penny-wise and pound foolish and shouldn't be in any business at all.