Build your customer’s basket
About building your customer’s basket
Begin the checkout process by building your customer’s basket with items. Depending on your preferred workflow, you can build your customer’s basket in multiple ways from the Square Point of Sale app – choose from keyword search, scrolling through your item categories, scanning an item barcode or using your item grid.
Before you begin
You can build your customer’s basket from the Square Point of Sale app on iOS and Android devices, Square Register, Square Terminal and Square Handheld. You can also complete customer checkout from the Square Dashboard using Virtual Terminal.
To add an item to your customer’s basket by scanning a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN), you need a compatible barcode scanner connected or an iOS device with a camera connected to the Square Point of Sale app. If you use Full service, Quick service or Bar mode, orders are created from your floor plan or menu. Learn how to Set up your restaurants point of sale. If you are enrolled in the real-time bill view open beta, learn how to Set up and manage Real Time Check View for restaurants.
Add items to basket
These are the various ways you can add an item to your basket: tapping from the item grid, adding from category navigation, scanning a barcode or searching.
If you have set up an item grid, you can quickly add items to your basket from the checkout screen. Learn how to set up your item grid.
- Open your Square Point of Sale app and tap Checkout.
- Tap an item tile on your item grid to add it to the basket. If the item has variations or modifiers, the item details screen opens for you to configure the item before adding it to the basket.
- Swipe between item grid pages to access additional items, categories or shortcuts.
If you’ve added category tiles to your item grid, you can browse items by category at checkout.
- Open your Square Point of Sale app and tap Checkout.
- On your item grid, tap a category tile.
- Browse the list of items in that category. Tap an item to add it to your basket.
- If the item has variations or modifiers, the item details screen opens. Make your selections and tap Add to basket.
- Tap the back arrow to return to your item grid.
Note: Category tiles are set up in your item grid configuration. If you don’t see category tiles, learn how to set up your item grid.
Once a GTIN is associated with an item, you can add the item to your customer’s basket by scanning the barcode with a compatible barcode scanner or your device’s camera.
Scan from the Square Dashboard:
- Log in to your Square Dashboard and click Virtual Terminal.
- Click Take a payment > Itemised sale.
- Click the barcode scanner icon.
- Tap Charge.
Scan from Point of Sale:
- Open Square POS.
- Tap Checkout.
- Scan the barcode using a connected barcode scanner.
- Tap Done on the pop-up notification.
- Tap Checkout > Charge.
Note: When adding a new item, the screen automatically advances to the next single-select modifier section as you complete each required selection. Multi-select modifier sections (where you can choose more than one option) remain in place until you tap to continue. Auto-progression is only active when adding an item – if you tap an item already in your basket to edit it, you scroll through sections manually. You can turn auto-progression off and adjust other item details settings. Learn how to Manage item details settings.
Tip: If modifier or variation names appear truncated on the item details screen, you can switch to a wider tile layout. Learn how to Manage item details settings.
Configure items in basket
When you add an item that has variations or modifiers – or tap an item already in your basket – the item details screen opens. From here, you can select variations, choose modifiers, adjust the quantity, add notes and modify the price.
If an item has variations or modifiers, you can configure them from the item details screen.
Standard and services modes:
- Tap an item in your basket to open the item details screen.
- Choose a variation (for example, size) if prompted.
- Select required and optional modifiers (for example, milk type, toppings, add-ons).
- Review your selections and tap Add to basket.
Note: When adding a new item, the screen automatically advances to the next section as you complete each required selection. Use the section headings to navigate between modifier groups. Auto-progression is only active when adding an item – if you tap an item already in your basket to edit it, you’ll scroll through sections manually. Auto-progression cannot be turned off.
Retail mode:
- Tap an item in your basket to open the item details screen.
- Select a variation if the item has multiple options.
- Choose any applicable modifiers.
- Tap Save.
- Tap the item from your basket.
- On the item details screen, toggle Item note on and add any additional information.
- Tap Save.
Notes appear on your customer’s receipt and in your sales reports.
Remove items from your basket
If you accidentally add an item to your basket, you can remove it at any time before the sale is complete.
Save your customer’s basket for later
If your customer wants to look at more items before checking out, you can save the current basket to keep your line moving until they’re ready to pay. When your customer returns, you can pick up right where you left off.
Saved baskets function as open tickets. Saving a basket with kitchen-eligible items will create a Square KDS ticket. Adding new items and re-saving or charging the basket will also send those updates to the kitchen.
If you have Square KDS enabled, some Square for Retail POS basket functionality will be either disabled or different.
- Once a saved basket is sent to Square KDS, order-preparation details cannot be edited. The relevant fields will be locked in item details.
- To change an order after it has been saved and sent to Square KDS, the whole item must be voided and re-added to the basket with the desired details. Information such as price and taxes can still be edited.
- Items and baskets cannot be deleted, only voided. This allows you to keep track of orders that change after already being sent to Square KDS.
- These changes will apply to all of your saved baskets, regardless of whether they include kitchen items.
To save a basket:
- If you have items added to your basket, tap Save basket.
- Enter the basket name or swipe your customer’s card to add their name – you can also add an additional note to help you and your employees locate a saved basket. When you add a customer to the basket, the basket name will default to the customer’s name.
- Tap Create.
If you override the item price and then save a basket, the item will revert back to the default sale price. In order to charge your customer the adjusted price, you’ll need to manually update from the basket view before completing the transaction.
Once your customer is ready to check out, tap Saved baskets to view your saved basket list. Saved baskets can be customised as a checkout page or added as a tile to any created page. Baskets left open longer than 180 days will be removed from your account.
- Tap Saved baskets > Edit.
- Select multiple baskets > Merge.
- Select the basket to merge baskets into > Merge.
Merging multiple baskets means you’re choosing to transfer information from one basket to another. For example: If you have customers added to Basket A and Basket B, when you merge Basket A to Basket B, the name and information for Basket A will be overridden by Basket B – only the customer from Basket B will be included in the sale.