Use Braintree if
Teams that value speed and simplicity
Teams already in the PayPal ecosystem or needing deep PayPal integration alongside card processing.
Payment Processors
Braintree vs Square
Square edges out Braintree for the default recommendation.
Use Square if
Teams with more specialized requirements
Square is primarily designed for in-person point-of-sale; online payment features are less mature than Stripe or Paddle.
Head to head
| Tool | Tax Handling | Global Coverage | Transaction Fees | Merchant Of Record | Payout Flexibility | Checkout Experience | Developer Experience | Subscription Billing | Pick |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braintree | None | High | Medium | Medium | Medium | Medium | |||
| Square | Basic | Medium | Medium | Low | Medium | Low | Pick |
Cost at scale
The pricing picture after the free tier
| Tool | Starter | Growth | Enterprise-ish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Braintree | $0 | $2,800 | $5,600 |
| Square | $0 | $2,900 | $5,800 |
Square
Square edges out Braintree for the default recommendation.
Braintree is still credible when its constraints matter more than the default path.