The self-hosted Square POS alternative
Vendra — POS & Inventory System (PHP + MySQL, Self-Hosted) — Self-hosted POS & inventory engineered so overselling is impossible. Own it once, run it on your own server, and stop paying Square POS every month.
Stop renting Square POS
2 months of Square POS equals this one-time price.
Assumption: Per location. Figures verified on Square's own press page announcing the Free/Plus/Premium plans (the pricing page renders prices via JS). Honest note: Square's software is free because it earns on every card transaction - and Vendra records card tenders, it does not process cards. If you need software that takes the payment itself, Square is your tool; if you have a card terminal and want the till, stock ledger and data to be yours, that is Vendra.
How Square POS pricing grows with you
Square's Plus plan costs $49 per month per business location, so pricing scales up as a business opens more locations.
“Square Plus ($49/month per location) offers everything in Square Free, along with advanced POS features across all seven point-of-sale modes” — their own page, read 2026-08-11
What Square POS does that we don't
Square's top Premium tier includes 24/7 phone support and advanced reporting, plus the lowest in-person card-processing rate.
“as well as 24/7 phone support and advanced reporting, at the lowest processing rate of 2.4% + 15¢ for in person payments.” — their own page
Who should stay with Square POS
If you need built-in online card payment processing or plan to run multiple store locations under one HQ, stay with Square — Vendra only records cash/card tender (it doesn't process cards online) and is single-store in 1.0 with no multi-store chain. Full honest limitations are on the product page.
Why owning beats renting Square POS
- One payment. No monthly, per-seat, or per-location fees — the license is perpetual.
- Your data stays on your server. It never lives in Square POS's cloud.
- No plan ceilings. Records and users are limited by your hosting, not a pricing tier.
- It keeps working if the vendor doesn't. Self-hosted software can't be sunset or price-hiked out from under you.
Fair trade-offs: you host it, back it up, and apply updates yourself — see the product page for honest limitations, and the full Vendra — POS & Inventory System (PHP + MySQL, Self-Hosted) vs Square POS comparison.
Sources
- Square POS — price checked 2026-08-02 —
source “$49/month per location”
Competitor prices change — always confirm on the linked page. We only print figures we could verify on the date shown. This vendor is tracked in the Price Observatory — every figure verbatim, dated, re-checked quarterly.