Charge prefix guide
What is a Square charge?
Square is the card reader on the counter of small businesses everywhere: cafes, barbers, food trucks, market stalls, tradespeople, small salons. If the charge is from a real-world small purchase — especially one where you tapped a little white reader — SQ * is why. The text after the asterisk is the seller's business name, often truncated, and sometimes it's just the owner's personal name, because sole traders can register under whatever name they signed up with.
Important: a processor prefix identifies who processed the payment — not necessarily who you bought from.
Real examples of how it appears
- SQ *BLUE BOTTLE COF San Francisco CA
- SQ *THE BARBER SHOP gosq.com
- SQU*COFFEE CART 0412
- SQ *J SMITH Chicago IL
Formats vary by bank — reference fragments, cities and codes come and go, but the prefix shape stays recognisable.
Descriptor formats to look for
- SQ* …
- GOSQ.COM …
How to verify the charge
Find your Square receipt ↗- Square runs a receipt lookup at squareup.com/receipts — enter your card number and it shows recent Square purchases on that card, with the seller's full name and contact details. This resolves most SQ * mysteries in under a minute.
- If the descriptor includes 'gosq.com' plus a code, that code is a receipt link — visiting gosq.com with it pulls up the exact purchase.
- Match the date against your movements: Square charges settle quickly, usually within a day, so the purchase date is close to the statement date.
- Still nothing? Paste the full line into the identifier on our homepage — truncated Square names ('BLUE BOTTL', 'THE BARBER S') match against known-merchant variations.
Is it fraud?
Genuine fraud through Square exists but is uncommon and traceable — every charge maps to a registered seller Square can identify. Before disputing, run the receipt lookup: an unfamiliar SQ * line is nearly always a real small purchase whose business name doesn't match the shopfront. If the receipt lookup shows a seller you've genuinely never transacted with, contact your bank and report it to Square as well.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the SQ * charge show a name I don't recognise?
Square sellers register under their legal or trading name, which often differs from the sign on the door — a cafe can bill under its owner's name or a holding company. The receipt lookup at squareup.com/receipts shows the seller's full details.
Why is the city wrong on my SQ * charge?
The location fragment is the seller's registered address, not where the card was tapped. A market stall registered at the owner's home address will show that suburb.
Can I get a receipt for a Square purchase?
Yes — squareup.com/receipts, with the card you paid on. Square can email receipts automatically if you've ever entered your email at one of their terminals.
Common misunderstandings
- The city or state shown is often the company's registered address, not where you made the purchase.
- Charges can post days or weeks after the purchase.
- Small businesses may bill under a legal or holding-company name.
For investigators: legal/records requests for Square — https://squareup.com/us/en/police. Square publishes a law-enforcement request process. Example entry — verify the current process before serving.
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