Head to head
Square POS vs Lightspeed Retail
Which POS system keeps more in your pocket? We rank both purely on estimated card costs — then weigh contract and settlement. Ranked on cost, with no paid placements.
How Compayr makes money: some providers pay Compayr when a merchant switches via our links — a one-off amount, an ongoing share while you process, or both. Others pay us nothing. This never affects rankings, which are ordered purely on lowest estimated card acceptance cost. How we compare
Lightspeed Retail
Annual contractNo relationshipThe "Compayr pick" is editorial — decided by the weighted side-by-side comparison below, led by lowest estimated card cost. It cannot be bought or influenced by any provider. How we compare
The Compayr verdict
Weighing card costs, contract and settlement together, Lightspeed Retail edges out Square POS as the stronger all-round choice for most merchants.
Lightspeed Retail lands about $38/month — roughly $459/year — cheaper at a sample $42,500 in monthly card sales.
Any savings shown exclude exit or early-termination fees payable to your current provider — check your agreement before switching. Not all products offered by each provider are compared: we compare one standard published plan per provider, and actual savings depend on your circumstances.
Choose Square POS if you want…
- little or no fixed monthly fee
- a cleaner, more flexible contract
Choose Lightspeed Retail if you want…
- the lowest card processing cost at a typical volume
- a lower headline card rate
- cheaper hardware to get started
Side by side
| Feature | Square POS | Lightspeed Retail |
|---|---|---|
| Card processing costs / month | $616/mo | $578/mo |
| Card rate (ex-GST) | 1.45% | 1.36% |
| Fixed monthly fee | $0 | $145 |
| Hardware from | $59 | $0 |
| Chargeback fee | — | — |
| Settlement speed | Next business day | Next business day |
| Contract | No lock-in | Annual contract |
Figures ex-GST, estimated at a sample $42,500 in monthly card sales. A highlighted cell marks the better result on that row.
Square POS
Typical use case: Cafes, retail and services wanting a free POS with integrated payments and no lock-in. (as positioned by the provider)
Lightspeed Retail
Typical use case: Inventory-heavy retail and hospitality wanting deep stock, reporting and integrations. (as positioned by the provider)
Leaning towards Lightspeed Retail?
Run your own numbers by sector in our free calculator — ranked on estimated card acceptance cost.
Compayr may earn a referral fee when a merchant switches via our links. This never affects rankings, which are based purely on lowest card processing costs. Quote-only providers are never ranked as cheapest while a complete-cost option exists. Rates last verified 2026-09-03. This head-to-head is generated from published pricing and third-party review scores — always confirm current pricing with each provider before switching.