Square is opening up its payment processing tools to developers for the first time now thanks to its new Square Reader SDK. Square’s new software development kit lets third-party apps integrate with Square Reader hardware so vendors can accept payments in their own apps while still benefiting from Square’s card readers.
Here’s the announcement from Square today:
Today we’re excited to announce the Square Reader SDK, a complete toolkit that enables developers to reimagine the checkout experience for sellers and buyers. While we’ve built some of the best point of sale software on the market, we know that many industries have niche needs and businesses may crave unique experiences that aren’t served by our existing products. That’s why we’re opening up our platform and providing developers direct access to Square hardware for the very first time.
Square Reader SDK supports mobile apps on both iOS and Android, and Square believes it will allow new verticals that haven’t been able to deploy Square before like transportation and healthcare. Square has already tested its SDK in the wild with partners like Shake Shack and Infinite Peripherals.
Through a partnership with development agency Fuzz, Shake Shack has deployed self-service kiosks that let customers in New York City and pop-up locations order and pay for food with shorter wait times. Infinite Peripherals used the SDK to build the ezMetr digital taxi meter (pictured above) that modernizes taxi cab fare payments in Washington D.C. with more cities on the way.
Square will continue to support its own point-of-sale app for the easiest deployment, but giving developers direct access to Square Reader hardware will expand where Square can be accepted. Square works with debit and credit card swipes as well as contactless payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay. You can learn more about Square’s developer tools here.
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