Henna Artists on Square pay $29/month — $348/year. Over three years, that's $1,168. Nexa is $279 once. Break-even runs about 9.6 months. The median henna artist earns $28,000/year, so Square's annual cost is roughly 1.2% of typical revenue — every year, forever.
That's $1,168 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.
You're not the only one who's had enough.
Henna Artists face unique challenges: Event pricing vs. appointment pricing are completely different models. Seasonal demand around weddings, Eid, Diwali, and summer festivals. Paste shelf life means waste if events cancel. Travel to events and private parties adds unbilled time. On top of all that, Square charges $29/month ($348/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median henna artist earns $28,000/year. Software at $348/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.
Your Henna paste and application cones is yours. You bought it once. Nexa works the same way — $279 once for invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, and full accounting. All connected. All offline-capable. You own it like you own your tools.
Square is just one piece. What else are you losing money on?
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Your exact Square cost, full stack total, and what switching saves. 10 seconds.
| Feature | Square | Nexa |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Scheduling | ✗ | ✓ |
| CRM | ✗ | ✓ |
| Time Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Full Accounting | ✗ | ✓ (SIMPL) |
| Task Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Price | $29/mo forever | $279 once or 3 × $99 |
| 3-Year Cost | $1,168 | $279 |
| Stop paying? | Lose everything | Keep everything forever |
Most henna artists are fully switched before the weekend.
Go to Square Dashboard → Customers → Export. Also export transactions and item library.
15-minute setup. Import your customer list and service/product catalog.
Run both for 1-2 weeks. Test invoicing and booking through Nexa.
Cancel paid subscriptions. Keep free account for records access.
Saturday: South Asian wedding mehendi party ($800, 4 hours, bridal party of 8). Sunday: set up at a street festival doing $15-30 designs for walk-ups all day. Tuesday: private appointment in your studio ($40 for a hand design). Three different business models in one week. Paste costs $3-5 per cone and you go through 4-6 at the wedding alone. Festival booth fee was $100. Your booking is a mix of phone calls, Instagram DMs, and a Google Form.
Real henna artists near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee. Are you a henna artist? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time. Or browse every henna artist on Nexa →
For solo operators and small teams (1-5), yes. Nexa includes invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting. Square may be better if you have a large team (10+) or need enterprise-specific features.
It's $7.75/month over 3 years. Square is $29/month — that's $1,168 over 3 years. Which is more? And if you'd rather split it, Nexa is also available as 3 payments of $99.
Yes. Nexa is $279 as a one-time payment, or 3 payments of $99 ($297 total). Either way it's a one-time purchase — no subscription, no recurring fees ever.
30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund. If Nexa doesn't save you $500 in year one, you get every penny back.
Export your data from Square as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.
The average solo operator there spends about $3,800/year on software — and henna artist face their own version of that math. California 13.3% top rate plus SF Gross Receipts Tax. Among the highest total tax burdens for self-employed in the US. San Francisco requires a Business Registration Certificate and may require additional permits. Oakland has separate business tax requirements.
Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the San Francisco metro. Your situation will vary.
Specific gaps Henna Artists run into with Square, and what Nexa does instead.
If you want to compare notes or see how other henna artists are running their tools, here's where the conversation happens.
$1,168 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.
Get Nexa — $279 Once