Authorize.net
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Buy if you want a battle-tested US gateway that can bundle a merchant account and plug into your bank's processing, as Chase does.
New check
Comparison
Authorize.net vs Square
Authorize.net and Square both land on Depends.
Square
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Buy if you're a small or new seller who wants a free, easy POS and can tolerate flat fees and occasional account reviews.
| Compare | Authorize.net | Square |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Depends | Depends |
| Best for | US merchants wanting gateway + merchant account | Pop-ups, markets, and mobile vendors |
| Who it's not for | Small startups wanting instant self-serve signup | High-volume merchants . flat-rate fees erode margin |
| Privacy | No direct flaws in the core gateway found; a third-party WooCommerce plugin had CVE-2025-68013, an authorization bypass.⁹ | Payments encrypt card data, but parent company Block's Cash App breach exposed 8M users and Square-linked WordPress plugin CVEs exist. |
| Support quality | Reseller support model described, quality unverified | Reviews report difficulty reaching support |
| Public sentiment | No verifiable user reviews surfaced; sources were vendor pages and one vendor comparison.⁷ | Sentiment is polarized: G2 users consistently praise Square while r/smallbusiness threads brand it the worst, citing holds, fees, and support.12 |
| Biggest gotcha | WooCommerce CIM plugin had an authorization-bypass CVE; keep integrations patched.⁹ | Account reviews can hold your funds for days before you can process |
Pick Authorize.net when
- US merchants wanting gateway + merchant account
- Subscription businesses
- Retail and mobile sellers
- Bank/reseller-led purchasing
When Authorize.net is not a fit
- Small startups wanting instant self-serve signup
- Anyone needing transparent published pricing
- WooCommerce stores unwilling to patch plugins fast
- Micro-sellers better served by Stripe or Square
Pick Square when
- Pop-ups, markets, and mobile vendors
- Small retail and cafés starting out
- Sellers wanting in-person plus online in one system
- Anyone wanting a free POS with no monthly fee
When Square is not a fit
- High-volume merchants . flat-rate fees erode margin
- Businesses that can't tolerate sudden fund holds
- Full-service restaurants . use Toast instead
- Teams needing reliable, reachable support
Sources
- Authorize.net homepageauthorize.netofficial
- How payment processing systems workauthorize.netofficial
- Processor list (partner page)authorize.netofficial
- Payment choice and customer experience blogauthorize.netofficial
- Authorize.net security page (empty on scan)authorize.netofficial
- Authorize.Net . Wikipediaen.wikipedia.orgnews
- Stripe vs. Authorize.net comparisonbusiness.comreview
- Chase business payment gatewaychase.comofficial
- CVE-2025-68013 . SentinelOne vulnerability databasesentinelone.comsecurity
- OpenCVE . Authorize.net CIM for WooCommerceapp.opencve.iosecurity
- Square US Reviews | Trustpilottrustpilot.comreview
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