Formerly only available in the United States, Shopify‘s credit card reader technology is now available in Canada. Its card reader is a free device that allows merchants to process credit card payments on-the-go using the Shopify Mobile iPhone app, or in-store using its iPad-based point of sale system, Shopify POS.
For those unfamiliar, Shopify is an Ottawa-based commerce platform that allows anyone to sell online, at a retail location, or pretty much anywhere. Shopify offers an online storefront, a payment solution to accept credit cards, a point of sale system to power retail sales and, now, a card reader to accept payments through mobile phones. The company currently powers over 80,000 online stores around the world, including: Tesla Motors, Budweiser, Gatorade, Amnesty International, Wikimedia Foundation, CrossFit, and others.
Shopify’s card reader was launched about eight months ago in the United States. It has only now launched in Canada, due to delays in Canadian bank approval.
The card reader allows merchants to accept all major credit cards including Visa, MasterCard and American Express all at one rate, based on the merchant’s Shopify plan. The rates on credit card transactions are 2.7% for the basic plan, 2.4% for professional plan, and 2.15% for the unlimited plan.
One can order the free Shopify mobile card reader by logging into the app, navigating to the ‘Accept Payments’ screen and confirming one’s mailing address. Shopify Mobile is free for all existing Shopify merchants, and can be downloaded in the Apple App Store.
Shopify has also opened its Canadian hardware store where one can order Shopify POS hardware kits and other optional accessories like receipt printers and barcode scanners. A pop-up store in Toronto will be open until April 4th, where one can obtain a free mobile card reader or buy Shopify POS hardware kits in person.
