Leaving Clover is mostly a contract question: Clover hardware cannot be used with Square, and 36-month hardware subscriptions are non-cancelable. The data move itself is a spreadsheet import.
Quick verdict: Settle the Clover contract first: find your provider (Clover Direct or a bank partner), your remaining hardware payments and any termination fee. Then export Clover’s items and customers, import them into Square with its Excel or CSV templates, and buy Square hardware (reader $59, Terminal $299).
Most buyers only budget for the new subscription. This estimates the hidden labor, data-cleanup, and retraining cost of actually making the switch.
Estimate assumes: 1 hour of data-mapping/cleaning labor per 2,000 records, a blended $75/hr ops rate, tiered migration & cleaning tooling fees, and 4 hours of retraining per seat at a $45/hr fully-loaded rate.
Square says there are no locked-in contracts.
Square Free costs nothing a month; you pay only processing.
Square’s reader is $59 and Terminal $299.
Check your Clover agreement before you switch: hardware on a 36-month subscription is non-cancelable, termination fees vary by provider, and Clover devices will not work with another processor.
| Step | What you do |
|---|---|
| 1Review your Clover agreement | Check your Clover agreement before you switch: hardware on a 36-month subscription is non-cancelable, termination fees vary by provider, and Clover devices will not work with another processor. |
| 2Export your Clover items and customers | On the Clover web dashboard, export items to a spreadsheet from Inventory, and the customer list as CSV from Customers (not from the device). |
| 3Set up Square | Choose Square Free, Plus ($49 a location) or Premium ($149) and order hardware. |
| 4Import items | Use Square’s item library Excel or CSV template: Items, then Item library, then Actions, then Import library. |
| 5Import customers | Customers, then Customer directory, then Import/Export, then Import customers. |
| 6Switch over at close of day | Run the last Clover batch, then start selling on Square the next day. |
What this path doesn’t do for you:
No Clover importer exists on Square; items and customers move by spreadsheet. Clover hardware cannot be reused, and remaining hardware payments may still be owed.
| Plan | Clover | Square |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly software | Essentials $29.95; Growth $84.95–$129.85 (bundles) | Free $0; Plus $49; Premium $149 per location |
| In-person rate | 2.6% + 10¢ (Starter), 2.5% + 10¢ (Essentials), 2.3% + 10¢ (Growth plans) | 2.6% + 15¢ (Free), 2.5% + 15¢ (Plus), 2.4% + 15¢ (Premium) |
| Card reader | Go $199 | $59 |
| Contract | 36-month hardware subscriptions, non-cancelable | No locked-in contracts |
| Processor lock-in | Clover devices work only with Clover | Not stated |
US prices checked on each vendor’s own pricing pages on September 19, 2026. Clover.com prices may differ from bank and reseller offers. Card processing is charged on top of software fees.
| Capability | Clover | Square |
|---|---|---|
| Import from the other tool | Spreadsheet item import | Excel/CSV item and customer templates |
| Monthly fee to start | $29.95 (Essentials) | $0 (Square Free) |
| Contract | 36-month hardware subscription | None |
| Old hardware | Clover devices work only with Clover | Buy Square hardware |
| Support | 24/7/365 | Chat; phone weekdays (24/7 on Premium) |
Going the other direction, or want the full comparison first?
Read the Square vs Clover comparison Switching from Square to Clover instead?Security, offline and access rules that differ between Clover and Square. Rows where both tools are the same (2) are left out; the full side-by-side is on each tool’s page: Clover, Square.
| What changes | Clover (today) | Square (after) |
|---|---|---|
| ISO/IEC 27001 | Not published | Certifiedsource |
| Other certifications | PCI DSS (QSA-validated; level not stated)source | PCI DSS Level 1source |
| Two-factor authentication | Not published | Yessource |
| Encryption | End-to-end encryption and tokenization via Clover Security Plussource | Card-present payments encrypted end to end; no unencrypted payment data touches the devicesource |
| Offline limits | Up to 7 days per device; optional per-payment limit, total offline limit and approval threshold; not for EBT or gift cards; uninstalling the app while offline deletes offline payments.source | Upload within 24 hours, no later than 72 hours; not supported on Square Reader 1st gen v1/v2, Kiosk, Tap to Pay, manually entered cards, gift cards, Afterpay, Cash App Pay, Invoices app or services mode.source |
| Device & session controls | Not published | YesRemote device management: device profiles and codes, printer profiles, monitoring from off-site.source |
| Office & room hardware | Clover sells its own locked POS devices: Go reader ($199), Compact ($349), Flex and Flex Pocket handhelds, Mini, Station Solo, Station Duo ($1,899), Kiosk and Kitchen Display System; they cannot be used with other processors.source | Square sells its own POS hardware: Reader for contactless and chip ($59), Terminal ($299), Handheld ($399), Stand ($149), Kiosk ($149) and Register ($899).source |
No. Clover states its devices cannot be used with other payment processors.
Possibly. Clover says hardware bought on a subscription is non-cancelable; check your agreement and provider.
Yes, by spreadsheet: export items from Clover’s web dashboard and use Square’s item import template.
Not as live records. Download sales reports from the old system for your accounting and tax records before you close the account; the imports cover items and customers.
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