> or processing fees dramatically change in the market (not likely at all) Square started off tacking 1% on top of what most stores paid for most transactions.

> or processing fees dramatically change in the market (not likely at all) Square started off tacking 1% on top of what most stores paid for most transactions. Then processing fees dramatically changed in the market, in 2010, when the "Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act" and the "Durbin Amendment" to said act were passed. This capped interchange rates, and interchange on most debit cards when swiped as credit (the way Square works) dropped to 0.05% + $0.21 per transaction. The free debit/check card you get from your bank is the daily spender card for millions, making Square's fee on a large portion of transactions almost 100% markup at this point. Even among the "dongles for phones with apps" offerings, they're the most expensive. Intuit's dongle is 1% cheaper -- 1.75% -- if you pay $12.95 a month. EMS, which doesn't have name recognition with hackers but has been around for decades, offers a dongle with 2.25% flat rate.