4 Best Retail POS Systems for Small Businesses in 2022

Retail POS systems are a necessary part of running a small business. These systems allow businesses to use their own unique apps, while also providing an attractive yet reliable way for customers to pay without the need for cash or cards. Here is some information on what you should consider before purchasing one in 2022 and reviews of 4 top options currently available today.

The “cheapest pos system for small business” is a retail POS system that will be available in 2022. These systems are the best of the best and are expected to be used by many small businesses.

In today’s competitive environment, retailers want more than just payment processing capability. Inventory control, multichannel sales tools, simplified customer relationship management (CRM) capabilities, and insights into which items and people work best are all required in retail POS systems.

The greatest retail POS systems include all of these capabilities, as well as contactless payments and mobile sales, in a cost-effective, user-friendly package. Based on our findings, the following are our top recommendations:

• Retailers should use Square.: The greatest free retail POS system in the world.
• Shopify POS (Point of Sale) is the best option for multichannel retailing.
• Retail at Lightspeed is the best option for inventory management and bespoke order processing.
• Vend by Lightspeed is the best solution for flexible payment processing.

Are you looking for something unique? Take a look at our top POS system recommendations for convenience businesses, liquor stores, grocery stores, petrol stations, and niche stores like vape shops.

Comparison of the Best Retail Point-of-Sale Systems

*You must buy a Shopify ecommerce subscription, which runs from $9–$299 per month, in order to utilize Shopify POS (Point of Sale).

**Vend does not have its own payment processor, but it can work with Square, PayPal, and other third-party payment processors.

Not sure which retail point-of-sale system is right for you? For a customised suggestion (without being sent to another website), take our brief four-question quiz:

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Retailers should use Square.: The Best All-Around Retail Point-of-Sale System

Retailers should use Square.

4.54 OUT OF 5 STARS FOR THE OVERALL PERFORMANCE

What We Enjoy

• Plan that is always free
• Advanced reporting tools and inventory capabilities are included in the Plus subscription, which provides exceptional value.
• The ability to grow with your company
• iOS devices (iPads and iPhones) are supported.

What Isn’t There

• The free plan offers fewer inventory features and has a higher processing cost.
• The registration screen is not editable.
• On Android, it is not accessible.
• Customer service hours are limited.

Best for:

• New retailers with growth plans: Its Plan that is always free is practical for retailers just starting out, while its advanced plans are perfect for scaling businesses.
• Square is our top recommendation for a free POS system for small businesses.
• Businesses that are transitioning away from cash registers include: Square is a wonderful alternative for individuals looking to upgrade from a cash register because of its user-friendly design and general simplicity.

Overall, Square is one of the finest POS systems for all small companies, but it is our favorite for retail. The base plan is free to use, while the Plus tier adds more advanced capabilities and the Premium tier gives you access to practically all of Square’s products. The technology is cloud-based, works with iPads or Square Register, and is very simple to use.

Built-in payments, a free online shop for ecommerce and curbside pickup, digital receipts and customer feedback collecting, a barcode-based user interface, and customer profiles with marketing data are all included with every plan.

In my experience, the free plan offers more than enough tools to run a business smoothly and efficiently. The biggest difference between the free and paid plans are the inventory forecasting features, bulk ordering tools, and order Features of Management.

In our evaluation, Retailers should use Square. earned a 4.54 out of 5. It is the only system on our list to earn a perfect score for pricing due to the rich offerings of its Plan that is always free. Square also stands out for its user-friendly system, unbeatable value, and plans that can scale with your business. The POS software lost points for a lack of customization options, limited free inventory reporting, and restricted support hours.

Retailers should use Square. Pricing Plans

• Processing rates are 2.5 percent–2.6 percent + 10 cents for card-present purchases and 2.9 percent + 30 cents for online and invoicing transactions.
• Magnetic strip readers start at $49.00, and there are interest-free payment plans available for qualified hardware purchases.

Retailers should use Square. Features

If you require POS hardware, the Square Register is a wonderful choice. (Image courtesy of Square)

Square’s iPad app allows you to use it on the go. (Image courtesy of Square)

The Square desktop interface is highly user-friendly, allowing you to upload inventory, check transactions, and manage your team all from one place. (Image courtesy of Square)

• Checkout tools: To get started, you can either pair your Retailers should use Square. POS account with a Square Hardware Device or a checkout terminal you already own. From there, checkout tools include a barcode-based user interface with advanced product search, return and exchange processing, and options for mobile, contactless, QR codes, gift cards, and invoicing. Not only that, but once Square is integrated with your site, all online orders will also automatically appear on your dashboard.
• Inventory management includes monitoring and controlling variants, setting up low stock alerts, creating and printing barcodes, receiving product in bulk through the app, creating and tracking purchase orders as they arrive, managing suppliers, and doing stock counts and COGS tracking. When it comes to adding inventory, Square’s user interface is quite user-friendly, and you can even import current inventory data if you’re moving platforms. You may also look at transactions and inventory data to help you improve your company.
• Sophisticated hardware: In addition to running on iPads, Retailers should use Square. operates on Square Register, a countertop POS with a detachable customer-facing display with built-in chip, swipe, and contactless payments. It also has a number of other hardware options for you to shop.
• Every account comes with a free online shop, Instagram selling capabilities, a unique website builder, inventory sync, and omnichannel solutions like in-store pickup and local delivery. Square makes it simple to set up an online business. There are instructional videos, tutorials, and a wealth of materials available to take you through each stage and assist you in creating a beautiful (and sales-driving) ecommerce site that integrates with your POS system.
• CRM tools: Create and segment customer groups, add shopper details, and send custom digital receipts with feedback surveys automatically based on the payment method.
• Square ecosystem: Having a seamless interface with all of Square’s extra business capabilities, such as payroll, team management, appointments, loyalty, and an online shop, is one of the most major advantages of utilizing Square. You may add and delete software as needed to create a solution that is tailored to your needs. But don’t worry: most software interacts with Square POS, so you’re not confined to Square’s offerings.
• Employee management: Retailers should use Square. Plus includes advanced team Features of Management like shift scheduling and swapping, custom permission settings, activity logs, and advanced reporting. You can set employee permissions, manage timecards, and view individual employee performances all from your Square POS dashboard.

What Retailers should use Square. Is Missing

Retailers should use Square. provides almost all the essential POS features you need in starting and scaling a retail store. However, advanced features such as COGS reporting and return management are only available under its Plus plan. It is still a more cost-efficient choice at $60 per month, per location, compared to our other top picks with starter plans starting at $79 per month (Lightspeed).

It doesn’t have a customisable mobile checkout option, unlike Shopify does. It also lacks specialty/custom orders (which Retail at Lightspeed offers) and layaway payment options (which Vend’s POS system offers).

Shopify POS (Point of Sale) is the best solution for omnichannel sales.

Shopify POS (Point of Sale)

4.43 OUT OF 5 STARS FOR THE OVERALL PERFORMANCE

What We Enjoy

• Features that are best-in-class when it comes to omnichannel marketing
• The user interface of the smartphone app is simple and easy to use.
• Checkout on a mobile device that may be customized
• Accept a variety of payment methods

What Isn’t There

• POS is only accessible with an ecommerce plan.
• The free plan has a limited quantity.
• Offline payment alternatives are limited.
• Subscriptions are costly.

Best for:

• Retail businesses that primarily sell online: Shopify is our top pick for best ecommerce platforms, and Shopify POS (Point of Sale) comes for free in any of its ecommerce subscription plans.
• Shopify is the finest multichannel POS solution for multichannel businesses. It allows you to connect online and in-store sales, process curbside and pickup orders, and start and end transactions in-store.

Shopify POS (Point of Sale) is an add-on to Shopify’s industry-leading ecommerce platform. It’s only available to Shopify ecommerce sellers, so it’s best for online stores looking to expand to in-person sales or small businesses looking to sell online and upgrade their in-store software program.

It does, however, include robust, full omnichannel selling capabilities that make it the perfect choice for merchants looking to increase online sales or promote curbside pickup, which is becoming more important in today’s retail environment. By putting all of your brick-and-mortar and online sales and activities on one dashboard and synchronizing them together, the software makes it simple to keep track of them all.

Not only that, but throughout the POS setup process, Shopify assists you in adding your store to your social networks and Google listings, and puts those shops on your main screen for simple maintenance.

In our evaluation, Shopify earned a 4.43 out of 5 with near-perfect marks for User-Friendliness and Feature Registration. It offers sophisticated sales tools in a customizable, user-friendly package that can grow with your business. Ecommerce subscription requirements, along with limited functionality in the free POS plan, prevented Shopify from earning a higher score.

Shopify POS (Point of Sale) Pricing Plans

*In addition to a monthly Shopify ecommerce subscription, which runs from $9 to $299.

• Processing fees: Depending on the ecommerce plan, rates vary from 2.4 percent to 2.7 percent (all types of card transactions)
• Hardware options: Bundles start at $229, not including the iPad; hardware purchases may be paid in installments.

Shopify POS (Point of Sale) Features

Shopify offers a variety of hardware solutions for your POS system. (Image courtesy of Shopify)

Shopify simplifies the setup process by providing a wealth of instructional videos and guides. (Image courtesy of Shopify)

Shopify POS (Point of Sale) lets you track your customers and inventory for every transaction. (Source: Shopify)

You may link your Shopify shop to your Facebook and Instagram profiles. (Image courtesy of PageFly)

• Customers may explore in-store and get item information through email, scan QR codes to visit product pages on your website, and receive real-time shipment updates. You may provide curbside pickup, accept online returns and exchanges in-store, and ship in-store purchases directly to consumers’ homes. Between ecommerce and your physical shop, all data is effortlessly synced.
• Customize the checkout screen, add shortcuts, sell on the go, personalize receipts, and save carts. You may also scan barcodes with your device’s camera using the Shopify app.
• Create collections and item variations, manage numerous locations, watch stock levels, manage purchase orders, receive vendor shipments, set up low stock alerts, anticipate product demand, and get ideas for discounted goods. All of your inventory is organized in an easy-to-manage directory, and adding goods is as simple as a few clicks.
• View analytics at a glance, examine financial flows, check finance reports, and track cash and daily sales with reporting.
• Individual PINs may be assigned, unique permissions can be specified, and sales can be attributed to grant commissions.
• Create customer profiles, segment consumers, add comments to profiles and individual orders, define marketing preferences, and construct loyalty programs with customer management. Client profiles may be used to monitor points and purchase histories as well as to increase customer loyalty.
• Gather product reviews, develop email marketing campaigns, connect social media accounts, tie Shopify to your Google listing, and create Google Ad ads as part of your marketing strategy. When you join up for Shopify’s program, it creates a whole marketing profile for you. You can track your marketing expenses, evaluate the success of your campaigns, and quickly link your business with marketing applications like Pinterest and email campaign platforms.

What Shopify POS (Point of Sale) Is Missing

If you plan to use a POS mainly for brick-and-mortar operations for your store, Shopify would not be a good option. It only comes free if you subscribe to Shopify’s ecommerce solution, and if you need to use its POS offline, an $89 fee per location is added to your billing. Retailers should use Square. remains to be a better fit for brick-and-mortar operations; it has a free plan (and a free ecommerce solution called Square Online).

Shopify also lacks some basic employee Features of Management like individual sales tracking and timecard reporting in its free plan. Additionally, multiple user permissions are only available under the Pro plan. Most POS systems such as Retailers should use Square. and Vend, have this in their primary offerings. Further, in my experience, while Shopify provides a lot of helpful setup tools, I thought it had a less Interface that is simple to use and setup was more cumbersome than with Square.

Shopify and Square are two options if you want to sell online or require a multichannel sales solution for online and in-person transactions. For a detailed comparison, see our Shopify versus Square comparison.

Retail at Lightspeed: Best for Inventory Management & Custom Orders

Retail at Lightspeed

4.38 OUT OF 5 STARS FOR THE OVERALL PERFORMANCE

What We Enjoy

• Analytical data that is both detailed and actionable
• Inventory management at the granular level, incorporating matrices
• RACS compliance is built-in.
• Native ecommerce platform with a lot of power

What Isn’t There

• Interface that is difficult to use
• There isn’t a built-in tool for local distribution.
• On Android, it is not accessible.
• Pricey

Best for:

• Businesses that need an advanced inventory management system: Storefronts with high SKU counts can be easily managed by Retail at Lightspeed’s product tracking and customizable matrix inventory. It’s the best POS for inventory.
• Specialty retailers—bike shops, repair businesses, and electronic shops: Retail at Lightspeed’s detailed inventory and work-order management tools make it a great fit for more specialized and niche shops.

Retail at Lightspeed is a robust retail POS system that includes more than 40 sales and inventory reports, analytics tools, and detailed inventory Features of Management. Lightspeed also has top-of-the-line ecommerce and loyalty program add-ons.

Overall, Retail at Lightspeed is one of the best retail POS systems because of its sophisticated inventory and analytics tools. It makes it easy to add products and include tons of information like custom product codes and automatically generated barcodes. It can also run the most high-level inventory reports of all of our POS options, including segmented tracking, demand forecasting, and inventory counts.

In addition to its inventory Features of Management, Lightspeed is also unique for its ability to process custom and work orders. This makes the software especially great for specialty shops, like bike stores or jewelers, that need to process repairs or order individual parts.

In our evaluation, the platform earned a 4.38 out of 5 with a nearly perfect score for User-Friendliness and its advanced inventory Features of Management. It’s our top-recommended POS for inventory management. Expensive subscriptions and a complex checkout screen prevented Retail at Lightspeed from earning a higher score. Square is a better option for those looking to avoid paying monthly fees.

Retail at Lightspeed Pricing Plans

• For card-present payments, the processing charge is 2.6 percent + 10 cents.
• Every account comes with POS and payment processing, as well as a free payment terminal. (Each additional registration costs $29 more.) Hardware packages for startups start at roughly $699.

Retail at Lightspeed Features

For mobile and brick and mortar enterprises, Lightspeed provides an iPad or PC hardware solution. (Photo courtesy of Lightspeed)

Lightspeed features a fantastic user interface that focuses on all of your important metrics for the day. (Photo courtesy of Lightspeed)

Lightspeed allows you to generate detailed reports to keep track of your sales and inventory. (Photo courtesy of Lightspeed)

• Inventory management: Manage consumer custom orders, bundle goods for gift baskets, provide segmented reports, and forecast inventory requirements. Lightspeed stands apart from the competition because to its forecasting tool and ability to anticipate shopping patterns.
• Lightspeed POS comes with over 8 million goods from the supplier directory integrated into its system. This means you can simply input precise product information and generate, manage, and submit purchase orders from inside the system. You may also instantly add goods from this catalog to your inventory list, eliminating the need to manually input everything.
• Create customer profiles, monitor transactions, assign VIP status, manage promo codes, and sell and redeem gift cards using customer management. Standard and Advanced subscriptions include an automated loyalty program.
• Lightspeed’s reporting and analytics dashboard contains over 40 built-in reports that cover inventory, sales, staff performance, and more. What makes Lightspeed unique is that it converts data into practical business advice. It may, for example, transform sales and traffic data into staffing and inventory reports to assist you in preparing for busy hours. It also sends daily sales data to your email every night, allowing you to remain on top of things on a daily basis.
• Lightspeed eCom connects easily with the POS software and provides ecommerce and omnichannel features. Manage inventory, product pages, shipping, returns and exchanges, marketing, and reporting using one of many mobile-responsive and configurable online shop themes. Lightspeed eCom supports numerous languages and currencies, as well as worldwide delivery. Connect your social networks, use Lightspeed’s SEO tools, and send newsletters and notice emails to increase traffic.

What Retail at Lightspeed Is Missing

The main drawback of Retail at Lightspeed is that all of its inventory and reporting tools come with a high price tag—one of the most expensive options on this list. If you are looking for an affordable option, then consider Retailers should use Square.. Additionally, unlike Square and Shopify, where your online sales channels are included in your POS interface, this is not the case with Lightspeed, making it less convenient to manage multiple sales channels from its system.

Read our Retail at Lightspeed review for more details on the cloud-based POS software’s features, user reviews, and more.

Vend by Lightspeed: Best for Payment Flexibility

Vend

3.66 OUT OF 5 STARS FOR THE OVERALL PERFORMANCE

What We Enjoy

• Interface that is simple to use
• There are no extra charges for using third-party payment processors.
• Payment alternatives that are unique
• Apps for inventory scanning and customer-facing displays are available for free.

What Isn’t There

• The pricing is rather high.
• Its base plan has a transaction volume cap.
• There are no built-in ecommerce features.
• Tools for basic reporting

Best for:

• Gift shops, homeware stores, fashion boutiques, and health and supplement stores are examples of high-volume or multi-location merchants. Vend by Lightspeed provides advanced multi-location inventory monitoring as well as unified warehouse management.

Vend by Lightspeed is a simple POS system with built-in loyalty programs, mobile checkout, a customer-facing display app, and a mobile scanner app for rapid inventory counts. Vend also distinguishes out for its customizable payment alternatives, such as layaway, shop credit, and on-account sales. You may pick your own merchant account and set up bespoke payment kinds like layaway, store credit, and on-account sales. Some suppliers even provide shops that use Vend a discount on their processing fees.

In terms of the in-store checkout procedure, including ringing up returns and exchanges, the platform’s checkout page is likewise one of the simplest to navigate. Vend concentrates on offering amazing in-store retail capabilities and allows third-party applications handle everything else, including payments, website, and personnel management tools, whereas many POS systems strive to provide every functionality for every company.

Vend received a 3.66 out of 5 rating in our review. Although it has excellent functionality, its exorbitant price stopped it from receiving a better rating. When you consider that you’ll need a separate merchant account, ecommerce software, and personnel management tools, it’s very costly. While this design allows for flexibility, it also comes at a high cost over time.

Check out our entire Vend review to learn more about what we think of the service.

Pricing Plans for Vendors Based on Lighting

Optional hardware: Vend sells POS hardware packages for as little as $600.

Features of Lightspeed Vend

Vend offers a variety of hardware solutions for your cashwrap. (Image courtesy of Vend)

Vend’s user interface is simple to use, making in-store functionality a pleasure. (Image courtesy of Vend)

Vend interacts smoothly with the majority of the leading payment processors, allowing you to choose the solution that best suits your needs. (Image courtesy of Vend)

• Checkout: Add comments and line items to transactions and customer receipts, store transactions for later completion, manage gift cards, and set up layaway and on-account payments using the POS app. The user interface is simple and straightforward, guiding you through the checkout process so you don’t make any mistakes.
• Vend by Lightspeed interfaces with CardConnect (First Data), Chase, Elavon, Klarna, PayPal, Square, Worldpay, and other payment processors so you can compare prices. With options like shop credit and layaway payments, Vend provides a lot of flexibility.
• Inventory management includes tracking inventory across numerous shops, creating a centralized product database, mass editing goods, automating purchase orders, creating variations and composites, and printing labels and barcodes. Vend includes a scanner mobile app that allows you to search up items by barcode, do inventory counts, change stock counts, and add new products to the catalog.
• Customer management includes creating customer profiles, importing existing client lists, selling and redeeming gift cards, segmenting customer groups, exporting customers to email marketing tools, issuing shop credit, and developing a customized loyalty program. There is no purchase history information, unlike Square.
• Integrations and add-ons: MailSync synchronizes data. Send data from your POS to Mailchimp, Constant Contact, and other email services. Connect with other marketing tools such as Yotpo and Perkville, inventory management programs such as Orderhive and SkuIQ, accounting software such as QuickBooks and Gusto, ecommerce platforms such as BigCommerce and Shopify, and more.
• Create unique user logins and permissions for employees, need employee passwords for each sale to measure performance, and get register and shift data. Setting individual employee and team sales objectives and average basket sizes is a unique feature of Vend.
• Customize reports and alter filters and variables to examine data on customers, inventory, and workers using Vend’s reporting feature. Vend’s reporting capabilities, on the other hand, are somewhat restricted compared to Lightspeed’s, with no segmentation or extensive CRM features.

What Lightspeed Vend Is Missing

Vend has the most expensive basic plan among our top picks. In addition, the need for a separate merchant account, ecommerce software, and employee management tools make this POS option not-so-ideal for businesses on a budget. For a free option, consider going with Retailers should use Square. and sign up for its free plan.

How We Assessed Retail Point-of-Sale Systems

We emphasized POS systems that are cost-effective, dependable, and simple to use. Inventory management tools, online shop and multichannel selling capabilities, customer and personnel management, payment processing alternatives, reporting and accounting tools, customer service hours and quality, and third-party connectors were all taken into consideration. Not only that, but we put each of these product’s promises to the test by using it ourselves and evaluating its efficacy based on our own personal experiences.

While every system on this list is cloud-based (you can use them with equipment that you already have), all offer multiple hardware options, like iPad tablets and card readers. Each POS system on this list also offers mobile iPad apps for sales on the go, tools for selling online, and multiple plans so the software can grow with your business. Based on our evaluation, Retailers should use Square. is the best overall retail POS system, earning it a 4.54 out of 5.

Our in-depth assessment criteria may be found by clicking through the tabs below:

15% of the overall score

We prioritized systems with a starter plan with monthly fees less than $75, awarding extra points to systems that offer a free plan. We also considered payment processing fees and whether each system offers negotiable or volume discount rates. Finally, we penalized systems that cap the number of users, products, transactions, or sales you can process without upgrading plans. Retailers should use Square. is the only provider that got a perfect score in this criteria.

20% of the overall score

Retailers need speedy checkout tools like customizable hotkeys and easy product lookup, return management, and mobility to ring sales curbside or on the sales floor. We also prioritized systems with flexible payment tools like contactless, gift card, store credit, layaway, and order-ahead options. Finally, we considered whether each system could process custom, work, or service orders such as repairs. Shopify POS (Point of Sale) was the runaway winner in this category with its Checkout on a mobile device that may be customized feature.

35% of the overall score

Inventory management was the most significant consideration—low-stock warnings, matrix inventory, and purchase orders, as well as quick stock counts and shipment receipt. CRM technologies such as directories, loyalty programs, marketing, and customer feedback collecting were also investigated.

Additional points were given for employee Features of Management, including logins, scheduling, and commission reporting. Seamless omnichannel management for creating an online store and processing ecommerce orders and detailed reporting for products, sales, customers, and employees were also considered. Retail at Lightspeed won this category with its standout inventory and analytics tools.

15% of the overall score

We looked for ease of installation, extensive training materials, and 24/7 customer assistance in this area. We also gave preference to systems with a hybrid installation or those have an offline mode so you can continue to work even if the internet goes down.

We also awarded points to software that can run on various hardware so retailers can choose their preferred devices. Finally, we took our own experience using the software into account, examining how features performed in practice. Retail at Lightspeed, Shopify POS (Point of Sale), and Vend by Lightspeed all got perfect scores in this criteria. Retailers should use Square.’s only minus was Customer service hours are limited..

15% of the overall score

In this section, we evaluated each system by its comprehensive feature set (including any standout tools), the value it offers for the price, popularity and user reviews, whether or not the system experiences a lot of downtime, and the overall experience of navigating the system’s interface. Retailers should use Square. and Shopify POS (Point of Sale) got our top votes.

*Percentages based on total score

Conclusion

A retail POS system is an important instrument that acts as the center of your retail operation. Retail POS systems gather and analyze data to assist influence buying and staffing choices, manage personnel and inventory, and develop your client base via loyalty and marketing campaigns, in addition to processing purchases.

Retailers should use Square. is our top pick because it has a free plan to help new businesses (or businesses new to using a point of sale) get started, with plans and add-ons to grow with your operations. The platform also makes it easy to set up a basic online store with in-store pickup options, manage customers, and track sales. Create a free Square account today.

Visit Retailers should use Square.

The “point of sale systems” are a collection of electronic devices that are used to process transactions in retail stores. In 2022, the 4 best retail POS systems for small businesses will be:
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