Connect a printer to your point of sale
About printers
Connect your printer to your device or Square hardware to print the following:
Receipts
In-person order tickets
Online and kiosk order tickets
Order ticket stubs
Void tickets
Barcode labels
A printer profile is a collection of settings used to configure one or more devices with preset printer settings. You can use a printer profile with default settings to quickly set up, assign a printer profile and connect your printer to print, then edit the settings later to better fit your printing needs. You can also use a custom profile to customise your printer profile settings before or during the connection process.
There are five printer connection types:
Ethernet printer
Wi-Fi printer
USB printer
Bluetooth printer
AirPrint printer
Before you begin
You need to use a compatible device or Square hardware to connect a printer. To check what printers are compatible with your device or Square hardware, go to our accessory compatibility page. To connect a printer to Square Terminal, you need Hub for Square Terminal.
You also need to use a printer profile to configure your printer settings and connect to a device. You have two options for creating printer profiles:
Create a printer profile from Square Dashboard or the Square Point of Sale apps before you connect your printer. Learn how to Set up printer profiles.
Create a printer profile from the Square Point of Sale apps as you connect your printer. Once you plug your printer in, you should see a pop-up on your screen to automatically connect your printer.
You have two options for printer profiles when connecting a printer from the Square Point of Sale apps:
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Use default settings: Automatically set up your printer with default settings to print all items, ticket types and receipts. The default settings have the following print settings enabled:
Receipts: On
-
In-person order tickets: On
Single item per ticket: Off
Print kitchen names: On
Compact ticket: Off
Categories to print: All categories
-
Online and kiosk order tickets: On
Single item per ticket: Off
Print kitchen names: On
Automatically print new orders: On
Categories to print: All categories
Void tickets: On
Use a custom profile: Manually set your up printer with custom settings by using a printer profile. You can create a printer profile before or during the setup process.
Option 1: Connect an Ethernet printer
Ethernet printers plug into your router or switch using an Ethernet cable. Once connected to your router via the Ethernet cable, your hardware accessories will connect to your POS device through the Wi-Fi connection. You won’t be able to use an Ethernet connection with offline payments.
Before trying to connect an Ethernet printer to your point of sale:
Make sure your printer is connected to wall power using the cable supplied by the manufacturer.
Turn the printer on using the power switch located on the back or underside of the device.
Locate the Ethernet port you want to connect your printer to. You can use an open Ethernet port on your router or switch, or you may want to plug directly into an Ethernet port installed in your store.
Connect one end of the Ethernet cable into the rear panel of the printer, and plug the other end of the cable into the selected Ethernet port.
Once you plug your printer in, you should see a pop-up on your screen to automatically connect your printer with default or custom profile settings.
To manually connect your printer from the Square Point of Sale apps:
- Open your Point of Sale app.
- Tap ≡ More > Settings > Hardware > Printers. If your Ethernet printer is properly connected to the same network as your POS device you should see it listed.
- Set up or assign a printer profile.
- Tap Save and then tap Assign printer.
- Select the printer from the list of connected printers and follow the prompts to connect.
- Tap Save.
Option 2: Connect a Wi-Fi printer
Wi-Fi printers connect wirelessly to your router. Make sure your device and hardware accessories are connected to the same network via Wi-Fi or Ethernet. If they are on different networks, the connection will not be successful.
Before trying to connect a Wi-Fi printer to your point of sale:
Make sure your printer is connected to wall power using the cable supplied by the manufacturer.
Turn the printer on using the power switch located on the back or underside of the device.
Move your printer close to your router to establish a strong Wi-Fi signal.
Follow the instructions provided by the printer manufacturer to connect your printer to the same Wi-Fi network that your POS devices operate on.
Once you plug your printer in, you should see a pop-up on your screen to automatically connect your printer with default or custom profile settings.
To manually connect your printer from the Square Point of Sale apps:
- Open your Point of Sale app.
- Tap ≡ More > Settings > Hardware > Printers.
- Tap the Printers tab if it has not already been selected. If your Wi-Fi printer is properly connected to the same network as your POS device you should see it listed.
- Set up or assign a printer profile.
- Tap Save and then tap Assign printer.
- Select the printer from the list of connected printers and follow the prompts to connect.
- Tap Save.
Option 3: Connect a USB printer
USB printers connect directly and are hardwired to a single, compatible POS device. Only that specific POS device can print to the connected USB printer.
If you are using Square Stand, Square Register or Square Terminal, you can plug your USB accessory directly into the USB hub on the power cord.
For Android devices, you’ll need to connect through a USB OTG (On-The-Go) adapter. Check that your Android device supports USB OTG or USB Host mode.
Connecting a printer into an iOS device directly via a Lightning or USB-C is not supported.
Once you plug your printer in, you should see a pop-up on your screen to automatically connect your printer with default or custom profile settings.
To manually connect your printer from the Square Point of Sale apps:
- Open your Point of Sale app.
- Tap ≡ More > Settings > Hardware > Printers.
- Tap the Printers tab if it has not already been selected. If your USB printer is properly connected to the USB hub, you should see it listed.
- Set up or assign a printer profile.
- Tap Save and then tap Assign printer.
- Select the printer from the list of connected printers and follow the prompts to connect.
- Tap Save.
Option 4: Connect a Bluetooth printer
Bluetooth printers connect to your device wirelessly using the Bluetooth connection. Bluetooth works best in close proximity (within 10 ft).
Bluetooth printers can only be wirelessly connected to one POS device at a time and only that POS can print to the Bluetooth printer.
Before trying to connect a Bluetooth printer to your point of sale:
Connect your printer to a grounded power socket using the cable supplied by the manufacturer. Some Bluetooth printers operate on battery power, in which case make sure your printer is charged.
Turn the printer on using the power switch located on the back or underside of the device.
Move your printer close to your device to establish a strong Bluetooth connection.
For iOS devices, Square needs Bluetooth access in order to connect to Bluetooth printers. Toggle Bluetooth ON in your device Settings > Square > Bluetooth to enable access, then relaunch your Point of Sale app.
Put your printer into Bluetooth pairing mode by following the manufacturer’s instructions.
Once you plug your printer in, you should see a pop-up on your screen to automatically connect your printer with default or custom profile settings.
To manually connect your printer from the Square Point of Sale apps:
- Open your Point of Sale app.
- Tap ≡ More > Settings > Hardware > Printers.
- Select Connect printer > Select printer > Connect to Bluetooth printer.
- Follow the steps on how to connect a Bluetooth printer:
- Turn the printer on.
- Go to your device’s Settings > Bluetooth > toggle Bluetooth ON.
- Select the printer.
- If prompted for a PIN, enter 1234.
- Return to the previous page.
- Once your printer is paired, return to the Square Point of Sale app, and a ‘Printer Connected’ message will appear.
- Add a Printer name.
- Set up or assign a printer profile.
- Tap Save and then tap Assign printer.
- Select the printer from the list of connected printers and follow the prompts to connect.
- Tap Save.
Option 5: Connect an AirPrint printer
AirPrint support helps the integration with any printer that supports AirPrint protocol. You can now connect to popular AirPrint-enabled printers. Learn more about AirPrint on Apple’s Support site.
Before trying to connect an AirPrint printer to your point of sale:
Connect your printer to a grounded power socket using the cable supplied by the manufacturer.
Turn the printer on using the power switch located on the back or underside of the device.
If your printer supports an Ethernet connection: Locate the Ethernet port you want to connect your printer to. You can use an open Ethernet port on your router or switch, or you may want to plug directly into an Ethernet port installed in your store.
Connect one end of the Ethernet cable into the rear panel of the printer, and plug the other end of the cable into the selected Ethernet port.
If your printer supports a Wi-Fi connection and an Ethernet cable isn’t in use: Follow the instructions provided by the printer manufacturer to connect your printer to the same Wi-Fi network that your POS devices operate on.
Once you plug your printer in, you should see a pop-up on your screen to automatically connect your printer with default or custom profile settings.
To manually connect your printer from the Square Point of Sale apps:
- Open your Point of Sale app.
- Tap ≡ More > Settings > Hardware > Printers.
- Select Connect printer > Select printer > Connect to AirPrint printer.
- Choose your printer and tap Save.
- Set up or assign a printer profile.
- Tap Save and then tap Assign printer.
- Select the printer from the list of connected printers and follow the prompts to connect.
- Tap Save.
Edit printer settings
If you connect a printer without assigning a printer profile, the printer status will show as Not configured and you can only do a print test, rename the printer and manage the paper-size printer setting.
Open your Square Point of Sale app.
Tap ≡ More > Settings > Hardware > Printers.
Select the entire printer row by tapping the printer under the Name column.
Tap Print test to perform a test, which will print a fake receipt.
Tap Rename to rename your printer.
Tap Change next to Paper size to manage the paper size settings.