What a card reader location is
To take card payments on a physical card reader — including Tap to Pay on your POS or Kiosk — Stripe needs a Terminal location for the store. The location ties your readers to the store's address and Stripe account. Without it, your POS and Kiosk readers will not connect, and in-store card payments fail.
Note: This is only needed for in-store card readers (POS and Kiosk, including Tap to Pay). It is separate from online card payments on your website and app — those are covered in Setup guide: Card payments for website and app.
Before you start
- You must have Stripe connected for the store first. If you haven't done this yet, follow Setup guide: Card payments for website and app up to the point where the store shows a Connected badge.
- This is set up per store. You need a store selected in the top-right store switcher — the Stripe page is at store level.
Step 1: Open the Stripe page
- Pick the store from the top-right store switcher.
- Go to Setup > Integrations > Stripe.
- Make sure the Connection Status card shows a Connected badge. If it doesn't, connect Stripe first.
Step 2: Connect the card reader location
- Find the Card reader settings card, below Connection Status.
- If no location exists yet, you'll see a yellow warning — "Your card readers (POS & Kiosk, incl. Tap to Pay) won't connect until you connect a location." — and a Connect location button.
- Click Connect location.
- The badge changes to Connected. Your store's Stripe Terminal location is now created from the store name and address.
That's it — your POS and Kiosk readers can now connect and take card payments.
Note: The location is built from your store's name and address in the Back Office. Make sure these are correct under Setup > Store Details before connecting, so the location matches your real store.
Disconnecting a card reader location
If you need to remove the location (for example, you're moving the store to a different Stripe account):
- Go to Setup > Integrations > Stripe at the store level.
- In the Card reader settings card, click Disconnect location.
- Confirm.
Your POS and Kiosk readers will stop connecting until you connect a location again.
Troubleshooting
My card reader won't connect / says it can't find a location. Open Setup > Integrations > Stripe and check the Card reader settings card. If it shows Not connected, click Connect location, then try connecting the reader again.
I connected Stripe in the Back Office but readers still won't connect. Connecting Stripe and connecting a card reader location are two separate steps. Connecting Stripe alone is enough for online payments, but in-store readers also need the location — complete Step 2 above.
The Connect location button shows an error. The error message comes straight from Stripe (shown in a red banner at the top of the page). The most common cause is an incomplete store address — check Setup > Store Details, fix the address, and try again. If it persists, contact support.