For automotive businesses outgrowing Square Appointments
When Square stops fitting the car
Square got you booked and paid. It never learned what a vehicle is: no record, size pricing typed into every service, review asks that fire after a third purchase, no memberships, and reminders from a number the customer can't reach you on. Strata is built around the car, from $39/month. Import your Square customers by CSV.
30-day free trial · Cancel anytime · Plans from $39/month
This page is for the detailing, tint, PPF or mobile business that started on Square because it was already there. Every fact about Square below was read from Square's own pricing, fees and help pages on one day, with the source. Square is ahead on several rows, and the table says which.
What you would pay
The month's bill, with texting and the add-ons counted
Strata Pro, month to month
$89/month
Square Appointments Plus, per location
$49/month
- Strata:
- Vehicle records, size-priced booking, estimates with customer-picked options, two-way texting, memberships, review requests after every job, the AI assistant. 5 logins. Stripe's rates, nothing added.
- Square Appointments:
- Cheaper per month. Confirmations, two-way Messages with your own number, multi-package estimates and review campaigns begin here. Online cards 2.9% + 30c. Free is $0 with reminders only and 3.3% + 30c online.
Side by side
How Strata compares, line by line
| Capability | Strata | Square Appointments |
|---|---|---|
| The vehicle | Strata On every customer: year, make, model, plate, VIN, history. Booking priced by size. | Square Appointments No vehicle record. Up to five optional booking fields on paid plans; size pricing retyped per service. |
| Texting the customer | Strata Two-way on Pro and Premier, replies in your inbox, own number on Premier. | Square Appointments Reminders from a Square number on Solo, Pro and Premier; your own number and outbound conversations need Plus and carrier verification. |
| Options on the estimate | Strata The customer ticks options and add-ons, signs, pays the deposit. | Square Appointments Pick one of several packages on Plus; no tick-the-options estimate found; no templates. |
| Memberships | Strata Solo, Pro and Premier, on your own Stripe. | Square Appointments No membership product; packages and item subscriptions on Plus. |
| Where Square is ahead | Strata No reader of its own, no loyalty, no classes, 1 to 5 logins below Premier. | Square Appointments Free to start, a reader, unlimited staff, loyalty and email marketing on Plus, 195,000 iPhone ratings. |
3 more rows
| Capability | Strata | Square Appointments |
|---|---|---|
| Review requests | Strata After each completed job, every plan. | Square Appointments Campaigns on Plus, triggered by three purchases in twelve months or positive feedback. |
| Card payments | Strata Stripe's published rates, your own account, nothing added. | Square Appointments 3.3% + 30c online on Free; 2.9% + 30c on Plus; 3.5% + 15c keyed on Solo, Pro and Premier. |
| Trial | Strata 30 days; a card added on web and iPhone before the trial starts, none on Android. | Square Appointments Free is free; Plus and Premium have 30 days. |
Square Appointments’s prices and terms were read from its own pages on 29 October 2026. If something here has changed since, tell us and we will correct it.
See Square Appointments and Strata side by sideOn the record
What Square Appointments charges, gates and leaves out
- 1
Free $0, Plus $49, Premium $149 a month per location, no per-staff charge.
Source: Square Appointments pricing - 2
Online and invoice card payments: 3.3% + 30c on Free, 2.9% + 30c on Plus and Premium.
Source: Square processing fees - 3
Reminders send from a Square toll-free number, and replies to it don't reach the business.
Source: Square help: troubleshoot customer appointment communications
3 more, each with its source
- 4
Custom booking fields are limited to five, optional, on Plus and Premium only.
Source: Square help: collect customer profile fields in online booking - 5
Google review campaigns are Plus and up and trigger on a customer becoming a regular or leaving positive feedback, not on a finished appointment.
Source: Square help: collect Google reviews - 6
Booking add-ons arrived on 13 August 2026 as modifier sets; Square's own community threads report them missing from the deposit and the calendar.
Source: Square community: add-ons in Square Appointments, 2026
Why businesses choose Strata
The car is the record
Vehicles on file, booking priced by size, the estimate and the invoice tied to the right car. Nothing retyped per service.
Texts the customer can answer
The reply to a reminder lands in your inbox, on Pro, the day you sign up.
2 more reasons
Reviews after the job
The ask goes out when the job is done, with your Google or Yelp link, on Solo, Pro and Premier.
Plain about where Square is ahead
Free to start, a reader in your hand, unlimited staff and the most-reviewed scheduling app there is. If most of your money is tapped in person, weigh that.
Bring your data with you
Bring your Square customers with you
Export customers from the Square Dashboard and import them by CSV, then add vehicles as the next jobs come in. Strata previews the file first, and the trial runs long enough to keep both open.
See how import worksCommon questions
Isn't Square free?
The Free plan has no monthly fee and takes 3.3% + 30c on every online or invoice card payment. Plus is $49 with 2.9% + 30c. Strata Pro is $89 list with payments in your own Stripe account at Stripe's rates.
What will I lose leaving Square?
The Square reader, loyalty, classes, and an app with 195,000 ratings. Strata has no reader of its own today.
Does Square track vehicles?
No. Five optional booking questions on paid plans and size pricing typed into each service. Strata keeps the vehicle on the customer.
How does the import work?
Export customers from the Square Dashboard and import by CSV. Strata previews the file first.
Get started
Try Strata next to Square
30-day free trial, the full product, month to month after. Import your Square customers and take a size-priced booking the same day.
