Accept payments in person with Square

Collect payments and tips at an appointment using Tap to Pay or a Square card reader.

If you use Square as your Acuity payment processor, you can collect payments and tips for appointments in the admin mobile app. This helps when you book appointments at an event, over the phone, or at the end of an appointment.

Square card readers can only be used with Acuity in the United States. Your admin mobile app needs to be on version 56.0.0 or higher.

Also try: Accepting Acuity payments in person with Stripe.

How clients can pay in person

Clients can pay with cash or a credit card. For contactless payments, you can take the payment with Tap to Pay, a paired Square reader or Square Stand.

Accept Tap to Pay payments

Tap to Pay takes contactless payments without a reader. To use it with Square in the app, you need to:

• Be based in the US and take payment in USD.
• Use app version 81.0.0 or later.
• Use an iPhone XS or later, running iOS 16.0 or later. Tap to Pay isn't available on an iPad.
• For Android, your device needs to be running Android 9 or later.

Enable Tap to Pay

With Tap to Pay, clients can pay with any accepted payment method, or with a device that supports an NFC mobile wallet, including Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay.

If your Apple ID is already linked with Square, Tap to Pay is enabled automatically.

To enable Tap to Pay:

1. On the app home screen, tap More, then tap Payments.
2. Tap Enable now.
3. Tap through the tutorial, or tap Skip Tutorial.
4. On an iOS device, tap Continue with this Apple ID to finish the setup.

Connect Tap to Pay to a different Apple ID

You can't disconnect Tap to Pay, but you can connect it to a different Apple ID:

1. Open a mobile browser window on your device and copy and paste this URL into the search bar: https://register.apple.com/tap-to-pay-on-iphone/dash.
2. Find the merchant ID Square created, then remove it.

Connect a Square reader

With a reader, clients swipe their cards in a magstripe reader, or insert or tap them with a contactless/chip reader, so you don't enter card details by hand. You need to connect your Square account and one of the three readers that work with Acuity: a magstripe reader, a contactless/chip reader, or a Square Stand. You can buy one from Square or pair a second-hand reader with your Square account.

Connect a magstripe reader

To connect a magstripe reader for the first time:

1. Open the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app and log in.
2. Plug the reader into your device's headphone jack. The app recognizes the reader.
3. If prompted, give the app access to your device's headphone jack or microphone. The prompt varies by device.

Connect a contactless/chip reader or Square Stand

These readers connect to your device over Bluetooth. To connect one for the first time:

1. Open the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app and log in.
2. Tap More, then tap Payments.
3. In the Payment Methods section, tap Manage, then tap Connect a Reader.
4. Follow the prompts to finish pairing your device and reader.

You can also pair a reader during checkout. Tap Card reader, then follow the prompts to finish pairing.

Can I use the Square terminal or Square Register with Acuity?

No. The Square Terminal and the Square Register don't work with Acuity

Can I use Square readers with Acuity outside the US?

No. You can’t use Square readers with the admin mobile app if you’re outside the United States.

Take an in-person payment from a client

To charge a client in person:

1. On the app home screen, tap the appointment you want to collect payment for. You can also start checkout from the checkout tab for appointments that happened in the past eight hours, are happening now, or start within the next 10 hours.
2. Tap Start checkout.
3. Optional: to add an add-on, tap Add-ons, tap the add-ons you want, then tap Apply.
4. Optional: to apply a gift certificate, package, or discount code, tap Code, select a code from the list or find one with the search bar, then tap Apply. To remove a code or an add-on, swipe left on the Checkout screen, then tap the trash can icon.
5. To email the client a receipt, check Send email receipt. If you've enabled receipts for client payments in your scheduler, it's checked already, so uncheck it to skip the receipt.
6. Tap Next, then tap a payment option.

Payment options at checkout

Each option finishes the payment a different way:

• Tap to Pay: if tipping is enabled, the client can add a tip, then tap Next. Hold the accepted payment method near the device until the payment goes through.
• Card Reader: if tipping is enabled, the client can add a tip, then tap Make payment. Tap, swipe, or insert a credit card into the reader until the payment goes through. The client can choose a receipt by email, a receipt by text, or no receipt.
• Credit Card: select a card on file or add a new credit card, then tap Continue. If tipping is enabled, the client can add a tip, then tap Complete Payment.
• Cash: enter the amount and a payment description, then tap Record Payment. You can send a receipt for a cash payment if receipts for client payments are enabled.
• Send Payment Link: send a link to your client with your device's built-in share apps, like text message, email, or another messaging app.

Do I need the Square app to take payments?

No. You don’t need the Square app to connect a card reader to the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app, and you cannot take Acuity payments in person with the Square payment app. Instead, connect your Square reader to the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app to take payments in person.

A reader connects to one device at a time. To use your reader with another app, like the Square app or the Squarespace app, you may need to disconnect it from the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app first.

Disconnect a contactless/chip reader or Square Stand from your device

To disconnect a reader:

1. Tap More, then tap Payments.
2. In the Payment Methods section, tap Manage next to the reader you want to disconnect, then tap Forget This Reader.

Nothing happens when I try to process a payment

If you tap a payment option with a connected reader and nothing happens:

1. In your device's settings, confirm the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app can access the microphone.
2. If it can, force close the app, then log in again.

Note: Our support team can help you use the Acuity Scheduling Admin mobile app, set Square as your payment processor, and connect a Square reader to the app, but we can't help with payment failures or your Square account. For payment failures, contact Square.