Square, Stripe, and Tyro: Which Payment Gateway Is Right for Your Business?

Trimsy integrates with Australia's three most widely used payment gateways: Square, Stripe, and Tyro. Each has genuine strengths, and the right choice depends on your specific setup.

Square Terminal

Square is the most recognisable mobile payment solution in the Australian small business market. Its hardware — the Square Reader and Square Terminal — is affordable, reliable, and familiar to most clients.

Best for: Businesses that take the majority of payments in person at the chair or counter. Square Terminal's offline mode is useful for businesses in areas with unreliable internet connectivity.

Trimsy integration: Bookings made in Trimsy flow to the Square payment screen. Online deposit payments and in-person final payments are reconciled against the same booking automatically.

Fees: Square charges a flat rate per transaction with no monthly fee for the basic terminal.

Stripe

Stripe is the industry standard for online payment processing and the most powerful option for card-on-file, deposits, and upfront payment collection.

Best for: Businesses that take significant upfront deposits at booking time, or that want to store cards on file for no-show charges. Stripe's online payment flow is the smoothest of the three for digital-first payments.

Trimsy integration: Connects via Stripe Connect (OAuth). Deposits charged at booking time land directly in your Stripe account minus Stripe's processing fee. Trimsy takes no additional cut.

Fees: Stripe charges 1.7% + 30¢ for domestic cards (Australian rates). No monthly fee.

Tyro

Tyro is the EFTPOS-native option, purpose-built for Australian businesses. It integrates directly with major point-of-sale systems and offers fast settlement.

Best for: Businesses with high transaction volumes who want the most familiar EFTPOS experience for Australian clients and fast next-business-day settlement.

Trimsy integration: Tyro's EFTPOS terminal integration allows payments taken in Trimsy to flow directly to your Tyro terminal. No manual double-entry required.

Fees: Tyro charges a monthly rental for hardware plus per-transaction fees that can be competitive at high transaction volumes.

Can You Use More Than One?

Yes. Many Trimsy businesses use Stripe for online deposits and Square or Tyro for in-person final payments. Trimsy tracks both payments against the same booking and shows the outstanding balance automatically. The most powerful setup is a Stripe deposit at booking time combined with a Square or Tyro terminal for the balance at checkout.

Which to Start With

• Solo or small team, mostly in-person: Start with Square Terminal. Low barrier, no monthly fees, simple setup.
• High volume of online bookings or deposits: Add Stripe for the online payment flow.
• Established business with high transaction volume: Tyro may offer better EFTPOS economics at scale.