You took the payments, Square shows the sale, and the money isn't in your bank. Or the transfer sits on 'Pending' and you can't tell whether that is normal or a problem.
Square's troubleshooting list comes down to a few things: the transfer is still inside the schedule, the linked bank account has an issue, the money was never part of that transfer, or the account is under review. The timings below come from Square's US help pages. Other countries differ. Square's Irish page, for example, describes a 17:00 to 17:00 schedule, so outside the US, read your own country's page.
Start here: find the transfer and read its status
Square's own record tells you which cause to look at.
- Sign in to Square Dashboard and go to 'Banking' > 'Transfers'. In the Square app, go to 'More' > 'Money' > 'Balance' > 'View all activity'.
- If you have more than one location, choose the location, then use the date selector to narrow the range.
- Select the transfer. Square shows its status (Pending, Completed or Failed), the last three digits of the destination account and any estimated arrival date and time. The details also list the transfer mechanism, the card payments included and related trace details.
- Check your speed under 'Settings' > 'Account & settings' > 'Banking' > 'Transfers'. It tells you whether you are on next-business-day, same-day or instant transfers.
- Pending: compare it with the schedule in cause 1, then work through the causes below.
- Completed but not in your bank: check the last three digits against your statement, then see cause 3.
- Failed: go straight to the bank account checks in cause 3.
Cause 1: It is still inside the schedule (cutoff, weekend or bank holiday)
New sellers start on the standard next-business-day schedule, which is free. Your day closes at 5 PM PT/8 PM ET unless you have set a custom close of day. That cutoff decides which transfer a payment joins, so a payment taken a few minutes late can arrive a day later than you expect.
Here is how Square's documented timing plays out on the default cutoff:
- Tuesday, before 5 PM PT: available in your bank account the next business day, so Wednesday.
- Tuesday, after 5 PM PT: available by the second business day, so by Thursday.
- Friday, before 5 PM PT: posts by Monday morning, depending on your bank's processing speed.
- Friday's transfer, default setting: Square keeps it in your balance over the weekend, so you can transfer it instantly if you want. Otherwise it arrives by Monday, or by Tuesday if Monday is a bank holiday.
- Friday evening: Square's pages don't line up exactly. One says Friday and Saturday payments arrive Monday morning, and another says payments after the cutoff arrive by the second business day. Allow until Tuesday before treating it as late.
- Any bank holiday: your regular transfer arrives the day after the holiday. Instant transfers stay available during the holiday.
Cause 2: You expected instant or same-day, and it isn't available
Instant and same-day transfers run on different rules, and each costs 1.95% per transfer. Instant transfers can be started 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from the Dashboard's Home page with 'Transfer Now' > 'Transfer', or from 'Banking' > 'Balance' > 'Transfer Now'. Same-day transfers are sent at 5:15 PM PT/8:15 PM ET, or 15 minutes after your close of day. Square emails you once either kind goes through.
Square's fine print says funds are subject to your bank's availability schedule, and these pages don't promise a number of minutes. If the option is missing or the money took a slower route, check these limits:
- Instant transfers need at least $25 and can't exceed $10,000, both after Square's fees.
- Same-day transfers need at least $1 after fees. A daily balance over $10,000 is split into multiple transfers.
- New sellers start with one instant transfer per day of up to $2,000, and the limit rises as you keep processing.
- An individual payment over $10,000 can't go by instant or same-day transfer. It moves by next-business-day transfer, within one to two business days.
- Instant transfers may not be available to sellers using Square APIs until they have enough account history.
Cause 3: A problem with the linked bank account
Square assumes your linked account is open and active until your bank says otherwise, and it only hears about a closure after a transfer has been sent. So a bank problem often shows up as a late transfer, not as a warning. Work through these in order:
- Not verified yet. Manual verification can take up to 4 business days, excluding weekends and holidays, and Square can't speed it up. You can keep taking payments, and the funds stay in your Square balance until verification finishes. Plaid links instantly from the Dashboard with no manual verification.
- Verification failed. Square's listed reasons are a mistyped routing or account number, an account that isn't transactional (prepaid cards aren't supported), less than $1 in the account for the test amount, or 'Cancel Verification' having been clicked. Credit unions may use an electronic ACH account number that differs from the number on your checks, so confirm the right one with them.
- Wrong account. This is common with several locations and bank accounts. Compare the last three digits in the transfer details with the account you are checking. To see what each location uses, go to 'Settings' > 'Account & Settings' > 'Banking' > 'Bank Accounts' and look under 'All locations'.
- Debit card or old details. If you use instant or same-day transfers, update the linked bank account or debit card in your transfer settings too. Square warns that funds can otherwise go to a previous account.
- Closed account. The funds should bounce back to Square, which can take up to 7 business days. Square then sends them to your newly linked account, or holds them in your Square balance until a new one is verified. Your bank may instead mail a check to your address on file, or keep the account open and have a record of the transfer.
- Square shows it sent, and the bank can't see it. Ask the bank whether it has a record of the transfer. Square suggests asking for a bank manager or the ACH department when tracing a transfer to a closed account, which is a sensible start for any missing one. Have the amount, date and trace details handy. If the bank can't find it, contact Square, which says it can help your bank locate the funds.
Cause 4: The money was never in that transfer
Sometimes the transfer is fine, and the total is lower than you expected or no transfer exists at all. Check how the money was taken and how your account sends it, and make sure the payments you are counting actually completed.
- Manual transfers. On this setting, funds stay in your Square balance until you send them. They then arrive the next business day, at no extra cost.
- Cash, check and other tender. These are only recorded in Square. No money moves through Square, so nothing is transferred.
- Offline payments. These are sent on your schedule once they have been uploaded.
- Sign and tip on printed receipt. These are transferred once they have been settled.
- Slower payment types. A Pending status is normal here: ACH bank transfer payments for invoices typically clear in 3 to 5 business days, mobile check deposits in 2 to 6, and Bill Pay payments may take 1 to 4. Weekends and bank holidays don't count.
Cause 5: Your account is under review or has an information request
If Square's systems notice something out of the ordinary, it suspends all transfers, including instant ones, until the review is done. Square says reviews usually finish within one business day and that it will email you if it needs more information. Check your spam folder for that email.
If there is an outstanding request, complete it under 'Settings' > 'Account & settings' > 'Information requests'. Transfers stay suspended until you provide what was asked for. Answer it accurately and in full. Because a review stops every kind of transfer, switching to a faster speed won't help. We cover held funds separately in our guide to Square funds on hold.
How to stop it catching you out next time
A few settings and one habit make these delays easier to predict.
- Set a close of day that suits your hours. If you stay open after 5 PM PT/8 PM ET, a later close of day keeps a full day's sales in one transfer. Square suggests one hour after you actually close. Payments taken after 5 PM PT/8 PM ET still arrive by the second business day on next-business-day transfers, excluding weekends and holidays.
- Decide on Weekend Balance. To send your Friday transfer on Friday night, go to 'Savings' in the Dashboard, open your Friday transfer settings and toggle off 'Weekend Balance'.
- Plan around bank holidays. If you need money on a set date, allow for the extra day or the 1.95% instant option.
- Link new accounts before you close old ones. Use Plaid where you can, and don't close the old account until the new one is verified and selected for each location.
- Read Square's emails. A missed information request can leave transfers suspended.
Taking payments on a OneSol page
A OneSol page on Pro can take payments through your own Stripe, PayPal, Razorpay or Square account, so payouts come to you directly from your processor and OneSol takes no cut. Payout timing stays with your processor and your bank, so everything above still applies if you connect Square.