Card Readers (Stripe Terminal)

Web and Mobile

Tattoo Studio Pro accepts in-person card payments through Stripe Terminal, on both the web app and the mobile app. Set the reader up once, then collect contactless, chip, or swipe payments, with optional tip, directly inside the checkout flow.

You buy the reader from Stripe directly. Tattoo Studio Pro does not sell or ship hardware. For prices and the full compatibility list, see Hardware Compatibility.

Which reader you want depends on where you take payment:

Where you check outReadersHow it connects
Web app, at a counterStripe Reader S710, S700, BBPOS WisePOS EWi-Fi (or cellular on the S710)
Mobile app, anywhereStripe Reader M2Bluetooth

Available since v4.2.0 on both platforms.

Requirements

The card reader sits on top of your Stripe Connect account, so a few things need to be in place first.

  • A Stripe Terminal reader, ordered from Stripe.
  • Your Stripe Connect account status must be “Complete” in Settings > Payments. If onboarding is not finished, the reader section will not appear.
  • For a counter reader: the reader and the computer running Tattoo Studio Pro on the same network, and the reader powered on.
  • For the M2 on mobile: the mobile app v4.2.0 or later, Bluetooth turned on, Location permission granted to the app (required by the Stripe Terminal SDK for Bluetooth discovery), and the reader charged and powered on.

Setting Up a Counter Reader (Web)

Counter readers are registered to your Stripe account once, then connected at checkout.

  1. Go to Settings > Payments and scroll to the Card Reader section
  2. Power on the reader and wait for it to display a three-word registration code (for example, tire-worry-apple)
  3. Click Register a new reader
  4. Enter the registration code, and optionally a label such as “Front Desk” so you can tell readers apart later
  5. Click Register reader

Once registered, the reader shows up in the reader list as Online whenever it is powered on and connected to your network. Click it to connect.

You only register a reader once. After that it is available to connect from Settings or straight from checkout.

Pairing an M2 (Mobile)

  1. Open the mobile app and go to Settings > Payments
  2. Scroll to the Card Reader section
  3. Tap Discover readers. The app scans over Bluetooth (this can take up to about 30 seconds)
  4. Tap your reader in the list when it appears
  5. The app connects, runs any pending firmware update Stripe requires, and shows a green Connected badge with the reader’s serial number

The pairing persists across app launches. You don’t have to re-pair every shift; the app remembers the reader and reconnects automatically when it’s nearby and powered on.

Simulated Reader (for testing)

Both platforms can run the full flow against Stripe’s simulated reader, with no hardware. Use this to test checkout before your reader arrives, or to walk a new staff member through the payment screen without taking a real card.

  • Mobile: toggle on Use simulated reader in the Card Reader section.
  • Web: add ?simulated=1 to the URL.

Simulated payments don’t move real money, don’t appear on your Stripe payouts, and are clearly flagged in reports as test transactions. Turn simulation back off before going live.

Taking a Payment

Once a reader is set up, checkout adds a Card Reader payment option on both platforms.

  1. From the Queue, tap or click Checkout on the client
  2. Add services and products as usual
  3. On the payment step, pick Card Reader as the payment method
  4. Connect to your reader if it isn’t already connected
  5. Start the charge. The reader wakes up and prompts the client to tap, insert, or swipe
  6. The reader handles the transaction while the app shows its progress
  7. On success, the checkout completes, the appointment auto-marks Completed (if there’s a linked appointment), and you can email a receipt if your studio has that enabled

If a paired mobile reader is offline (out of Bluetooth range, battery dead, powered off), the Card Reader option is greyed out with a status hint so staff don’t tap it and stall the line.

Tips

Tips work differently on the two platforms, and it’s worth knowing which one your front desk is using.

  • Counter readers (web): the client is prompted to choose a tip on the reader’s own screen. The charge is started for the pre-tip amount and Stripe updates the total once the client picks. Because the customer taps the tip themselves, this generally produces better tipping than being asked out loud.
  • M2 (mobile): staff enter the tip amount on the payment step before charging. The reader then collects the sale and tip together in one authorization.

Either way, the tip is recorded against the assigned artist for the commission and tips reports.

Reports

Card-reader transactions appear in your reports the same way as hosted-checkout card payments, with one extra detail.

  • Payment method: each transaction is tagged as Card (Reader) vs Card (Hosted) so you can split out in-person volume from online checkout volume. Reports group both under “Stripe” when filtering
  • Stripe payouts: settlements land in your connected Stripe account just like any other Stripe charge
  • Tips: rolled into the Tips report against the assigned artist

Troubleshooting

The Card Reader section doesn’t appear in Settings > Payments

  • Your Stripe Connect account status must be Complete. Finish onboarding first.
  • On mobile, confirm you’re on app v4.2.0 or later. Pre-4.2 builds don’t include the SDK.

Counter reader won’t register

  • Check the registration code is still on screen. The codes expire, so if the reader has been sitting a while, restart it to generate a fresh one.
  • Enter the code exactly as shown, including the hyphens.
  • Confirm the reader is connected to your network. A reader that can’t reach the internet can’t be registered.

Reader connected fine yesterday, now it won’t connect (web)

If you signed out of one studio and into another in the same browser session, refresh the page (Cmd+Shift+R or Ctrl+Shift+R) and try again. The reader connection binds to one Stripe account per browser session, so switching accounts without a refresh will fail to pair. This only affects people who manage more than one studio account.

M2 doesn’t appear in the discover list

  • Power-cycle the reader (hold the power button until it shuts off, wait five seconds, power it back on).
  • Confirm Bluetooth is on, on the device running the app.
  • Confirm the app has Location permission. iOS and Android both require Location for Bluetooth Low Energy discovery, even though the app doesn’t track your location.
  • Check the reader’s battery. A nearly-dead reader will not advertise itself.
  • Move the reader within about 10 feet of the phone or tablet. Walls and metal counter underframes cut Bluetooth range fast.

Reader connects but checkout says “reader offline”

  • Step away from sources of interference (microwaves, dense Wi-Fi access points, USB-3 hubs all create 2.4 GHz noise).
  • Bring the reader closer to the device. If it works at 2 feet but not at 6 feet, it’s a Bluetooth range issue.
  • Power-cycle the reader and set it up again from Settings > Payments.

Firmware update appears stuck

  • Don’t quit the app or power the reader off mid-update. Firmware updates can take up to 10 minutes the first time you set up a new reader.
  • Keep the reader plugged in or fully charged while updating. A reader that loses power mid-update may need Stripe support to recover.
  • If the update has been spinning for more than 15 minutes with no progress, force-quit the app, power-cycle the reader, and set it up again. The SDK resumes the update from where it left off.

Payment is declined

  • Ask the client to try a different card or a different payment method (Apple Pay, Google Pay, or a swap to a chip card if the contactless tap is failing).
  • Try the swipe magnetic stripe as a last resort.
  • Check the client’s bank for issuer-side blocks (large or out-of-pattern charges sometimes trigger holds).
  • If declines are repeated across multiple cards, contact Stripe support to confirm your account is in good standing.

Tip didn’t make it to the report

  • On mobile, confirm the tip was entered on the payment step before charging. Tips added after the charge don’t post.
  • Refresh the Tips report. There can be a short delay between checkout and report population.
  • Verify the artist was assigned on the line item (commission and tip attribution both key off the assigned artist).

Best Practices

  1. Keep the reader charged. Put a mobile reader on its dock or cable at the end of every shift. A dead reader during peak hours kills throughput.
  2. Set up once, leave it. Both a registered counter reader and a paired M2 are remembered. If one stops reconnecting reliably, that’s usually a network or Bluetooth setting on the device, not the reader.
  3. Label your counter readers. If you run more than one, a label like “Front Desk” or “Back Room” saves confusion in the connect list.
  4. Have a fallback ready. Even with a reader set up, keep the hosted-checkout card option enabled so you can fall back if the reader has a problem mid-shift.
  5. Use the simulated reader for training. Walk new front-desk staff through the payment screen with simulation on, before the first live transaction.
  6. One reader per device. Pairing is one-to-one. If you want two cash wraps taking in-person card simultaneously, set up a separate reader on each.

Already Have a Square or Clover Terminal?

That hardware won’t connect to Tattoo Studio Pro, because in-person card payments here run through Stripe Terminal. You can keep using your existing terminal alongside it and record the sale as a Card (External) payment so it still lands in your reports against the client and the artist. You can rename that label (to “Square”, for example) in Settings > Payments so the books read cleanly. See Hardware Compatibility.

Was this article helpful?

See how it works

Book a 20 min demo