5 Best Grocery Store POS Systems for Small Businesses

There are many ways to make your business run more efficiently, but the best ones are those that help you sell more. This is especially true for small businesses that often find themselves struggling to keep afloat. By implementing a point-of-sale system with an integrated inventory management application, retailers can increase their profits and streamline operations.

Grocery point-of-sale (POS) systems include conventional POS functionality as well as industry-specific features including scale and scanner connections, online grocery sales, self-checkout choices, and interactive customer-facing displays. These additional functions, however, usually come at a greater price. To discover the best value supermarket POS systems for small companies, we looked at hundreds of options.

How Did We Assess Grocery POS Systems?

Grocery businesses, such as supermarkets and corner stores, need a point-of-sale system that can handle huge amounts of perishable inventory, monitor and manage staff, and use customer relationship management (CRM) capabilities to promote consumer loyalty. Grocers often need long-lasting, industry-specific gear, such as scale and scanner connections, deli and butcher integration, and self-checkout choices. Given the low margins of grocery shops, it’s particularly critical that POS systems be cheap and provide good value for money.

Revel Systems is a software development company that specializes on is the finest overall supermarket POS system in our opinion. With points for grocery-specific hardware and payment processing capabilities, as well as a self-checkout option, SNAP EBT payments, FIFO and perishable inventory monitoring, tools for online grocery sales, and a comprehensive CRM feature set, the program received a near-perfect 4.94 out of 5.

35% of the overall score

We looked at systems that have comprehensive inventory management capabilities and can account for various factors, such as expiry dates and first-in, first-out (FIFO) schedules since supermarkets contain tens of thousands of items. We also looked at what CRM features are included, such as loyalty programs, personalized discounts, and marketing tools, as well as if the software can control staff permission levels, scheduling, and productivity. Furthermore, with more consumers ordering online these days, having an online grocery option is critical.

25% of the overall score

Two of the most significant factors in our assessment of supermarket POS software are hardware and integrated payment processing capabilities. First, we checked to see whether the system had market-specific hardware, easy payment processing, and a customer-facing display. Because supermarkets usually sell fruit and goods by weight, we looked into whether or not they have scale and scanner connections. We also double-checked if self-checkout alternatives are available, due to the large volume of customers in a grocery store.

20% of the overall score

We looked at unique features, simplicity of use, and whether or not the system is cost-effective. We also looked to see whether it’s a popular option among grocery shop owners and if it gets mainly favorable feedback.

10% of the overall score

Price is a key consideration when searching for the best grocery POS for small companies. We looked at if it provides a monthly subscription for less than $100 and how much software for additional registers costs. We also gave points to individuals who paid less than $20 for software.

10% of the overall score

Because grocery shops had such a fast-paced sales atmosphere, we looked for companies who provided round-the-clock phone and email customer service. We also awarded points to companies with several counters or branches that have a hybrid structure, which indicates they are not completely reliant on an internet connection to run their activities. Finally, we looked at how easy it is for workers to set up and utilize each system.

Revel Systems

PROS

• Online ordering and delivery are both excellent.
• There are many hardware choices available for customer-facing displays and kiosks.
• Reports that can be customized and synced across several places
• The registration provides access to back-office administration tools.

CONS

• It’s a pricey system that doesn’t come with a free trial.
• A three-year commitment is required under the contract.
• Due to its many features, it has a steep learning curve.

Total Points 4.94 OUT OF 5

Revel Systems is a cloud-based point-of-sale system that allows you to customize customer-facing displays, online ordering, and self-order kiosks. Although the program is popular among restaurants with numerous locations, it also has strong inventory and customer management features, as well as configurable hardware configurations and scale and scanner interfaces, making it ideal for grocery shops of any size.

Revel Systems received a total score of 4.94 out of 5 based on our assessment criteria. For grocery-specific functionality (such as inventory management, CRM, online sales, and loyalty), as well as hardware, payment processing, simplicity of use, and price criteria, the program got a flawless grade. However, our expert’s evaluation of value for money stopped it from receiving a complete 5. This is due to the fact that the overall cost of installation and setup (which will be estimated based on your needs) may be prohibitively expensive for small companies.

Pricing

• Software subscription fee: $99 a month, per terminal (billed annually and includes a three-year Revel Advantage contract); two terminals are required as a minimum purchase.
• Additional register software is $99 per terminal (billed annually)
• Hardware prices are determined by a quote based on your company’s requirements.
• Other costs: Quote-based fixed payment processing fees; onboarding fees start at $674.

Revel uses the iPad’s capability to create a user-friendly POS system for grocery shops.

Features

• Inventory management: You may arrange goods into categories, check stock counts in real-time, issue automated stock low-stock warnings, and create purchase orders with the capacity to handle complicated matrix inventories. Aside from the barcode scanner, you may scan things with your phone, and the activity will be automatically synchronized from the app to your dashboard.
• Self-checkout options: Use smart self-service kiosks to increase service speeds without sacrificing customer care, particularly during busy hours.
• Scale and scanner integrations: Integrate scales directly into your POS system to prevent duplicate input and expensive mistakes. The National Conference on Weights and Measures certifies all Revel Systems scales.
• Create your own loyalty program and CRM based on how your customers wish to earn—for example, gaining points for each transaction, for purchasing particular products, or based on the amount spent. You may use the app’s administration interface to gather data in order to create a rewards program (e.g., special discounts and promotions) that will increase client happiness.
• Set up administrator rights, assign responsibilities and salaries, track timecards, and handle payroll for your employees. You may also use the system to establish employee schedules and standardize time sheet standards in accordance with local legislation.
• Payment processing: The administration interface of Revel Systems allows you to monitor credit card transactions over time and check on deposited money. It’s also EMV-compliant, and it connects with QuickBooks for smooth bookkeeping.
• Customer assistance is accessible online, phone, and email 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Reporting and analytics: The program produces detailed sales, inventory, and labor reports that include information like cost of goods sold (COGS), product mix, and staff costs vs. sales income.

IT Retail

The Best Low-Cost Grocery Point-of-Sale

PROS

• Features unique to the grocery store and the market
• Customer service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Scale integration and on-site installation are available.

CONS

• The software and hardware pricing information aren’t easily accessible.
• There is no free trial; the learning curve is high.

Total Points 4.65 OUT OF 5

The POS system from IT Retail is one of the few grocery-focused systems designed specifically for small and independent companies. Its base plan contains all of the typical grocery-specific capabilities that other software lacks (or only offers as a premium add-on)—features like multiple-scale integration, robust hardware, bottle deposit management, self-checkout choices, marketing tools, and loyalty programs, to name a few. IT Retail is ideal for small grocers, but it can be expanded as your company develops.

IT Retail received a total score of 4.65 out of 5 stars in our review. The program received flawless ratings in all categories, including grocery functionality, hardware, and payment processing. The program didn’t earn a perfect grade because of its ambiguous price and restricted customer support hours, therefore it came in second on our list.

Pricing

• For local markets, the software subscription price starts at $79 per month. For a quotation on supermarkets and bigger businesses, contact IT Retail.
• Hardware prices are based on a quote. IT Retail sells inventory, customer display, scanning scale, self-checkout, and PIN hardware, but you’ll need to get a quotation from its sales staff.
• Installation fee: For on-site installation costs, get a quotation.

IT Retail was created with the goal of providing independent grocers with cutting-edge POS systems.

Features

• Inventory management: With IT Retail’s mobile inventory and reporting capabilities, you can keep track of your stock levels across different locations in real-time. The program may also be used to receive goods, create shelf tags and purchase orders, as well as create, print, and scan barcode labels.
• Self-checkout options: Self-checkout kiosks help you save money on labor by allowing you to assign just one person to monitor two to six lanes. During busy hours, the system may quickly transition between cashier-assisted and self-checkout modes.
• Scale and scanner integrations: For fast swipe-and-go capabilities, IT Retail provides customized scale and scanner hardware (depending on your store’s traffic). It also offers technical assistance and programming upgrades on a regular basis.
• Customer loyalty program and CRM: Improve customer engagement by offering a customized incentives system that encourages them to return. For example, you may give customers loyalty points for every purchase, which they can later redeem for cash or a percentage off a purchase.
• Employee management: Use the built-in time clock to track employee activities and limit POS access by job level. The system also tracks real-time employee performance at the POS, enabling you to view the number of cancellations, voids, transactions, and other metrics.
• Payment processing: Debit card, cheque, gift card, NFC, EMV, eWIC, and EBT food and cash payments are all supported by IT Retail.
• Customer service: For emergency situations, tech support experts are accessible by phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific time.
• Reports and analytics: From any device, generate a variety of employee, inventory, customer, and sales reports, including profitability reports, end-of-day analysis, and suspicious transactions.

POS Nation is a company that specializes in point-

The Most Customizable Grocery Point-of-Sale

PROS

• Hardware and features tailored to the supermarket industry
• Highly adaptable to your store’s requirements
• The required hardware is already included in the base design.

CONS

• It’s necessary to utilize POS Nation’s hardware.
• When compared to other carriers, it’s very pricey.

Total Points 4.58 OUT OF 5

POS Nation is a completely configurable supermarket POS system that scales with your business. Its basic plan already includes grocery-specific functionality and technology, such as receipt printers, touch PCs, cash drawers, chip, and card readers, and scanners, that other software usually provides as expensive add-ons.

According to our evaluation, POS Nation came in the third position with a total score of 4.58 out of 5. Hardware, grocery-specific tools, payment processing capabilities, and customer service all received flawless scores. The high learning curve, owing to its strong features, stopped it from receiving a perfect grade. Its software costs are likewise high, with extra software costing more than $20.

Pricing

• Flex Monthly POS, the company’s most basic option, costs $99 per month and includes both software and minimal hardware. For a one-time $999 charge, POS Nation also provides a locally installed POS (Freedom POS), as well as a bespoke build based on your business’s requirements.
• Software for additional registers costs between $69 and $849.
• Hardware prices start at $1,149 for an all-in-one configuration. A 15-inch touch screen, 4GB RAM, 120GB SSD, Celeron Quad Core 2.4GHz, Windows 10 Pro, and a mag swipe card reader are included in this entry-level kit.

A multi-interface capability and a mix-and-match pricing tool are included in POS Nation.

Features

• Purchase orders, vendor management, and tracking of perishables, case breakage, and carton-pack inventories are all part of inventory management. A mix-and-match pricing tool is one of the additional features.
• Customizable interface: POS Nation offers a variety of interface layouts, allowing you to choose the one that best suits your team. Clerks and cashiers may utilize the buttons to quickly locate a particular item and see information such as its SKU, price, and availability.
• Self-checkout options: Use the mobile checkout function on its wireless scanners and tablets to bring the sale to your consumer. You may go around the shop and approach clients who want to check out right away, avoiding long lines.
• Integrations with scales and scanners: Automate the ringing up of weighed and scanned goods to speed up the checkout process.
• Customer loyalty program and CRM: The built-in customer tracking function in POS Nation uses purchase data to offer a more customized approach to customer care. You may also utilize the system to build loyalty and rewards programs in order to encourage repeat business and greater transaction values.
• Employee management: Using the clock in and out features, user rights, and automatic payroll and payroll deduction reports, you may streamline employee administration.
• Payment processing: Accepts cash, credit card, debit card, check, and EBT as well as other forms of payment. You may also apply discounts, bulk pricing, and even time-based prices to particular products at specified times.
• Customer service: POS Nation offers phone and email assistance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Reports and analytics: The system comes with over 55 pre-built reports, including a comprehensive monthly 1014 file for customers in Pennsylvania, which is required by the state to keep track of malt beverage purchases and sales.

eHopper

PROS

• Has a free option that comes pre-loaded with grocery-related functionality.
• Multiple currencies, units of measurement, and languages are supported.

CONS

• In the free plan, there is no payment processing integration (need to upgrade to a paid package)
• Customer feedback reveals shaky software integrations and restricted reporting possibilities.

Total Points 4.36 OUT OF 5

eHopper is a cloud-based specialized retail point-of-sale system that works with a variety of hardware and computer systems. Grocers will benefit from its comprehensive inventory management capabilities, which include the option to sell produce and bulk food goods by weight. With a free subscription, eHopper is also accessible to small companies.

Another aspect worth mentioning about this software is that its free version is ideal for small grocers since it already has sales, customer, and inventory management capabilities. You’ll need to upgrade to a higher plan if you want merchant services and payment processing integrations.

eHopper has a 4.36 out of 5 rating from us, with excellent ratings for grocery-specific features, simplicity of use, payment processing tools, hardware, and customer service. However, because of its restricted feature set and minimal reporting capabilities, eHopper was unable to achieve a higher grade, since companies may outgrow it and, in general, find greater value in another software.

Pricing

• Fees for software subscriptions: eHopper’s basic model (Essential) is free, whereas premium plans (Freedom) and ($39.99 per registration) cost $29.99 and $39.99 per register, respectively (Restaurant and OmniChannel).
• Additional software for additional registers costs $29.99 for the Freedom plan and $39.99 for the Restaurant and OmniChannel subscriptions.
• Hardware costs: Depending on your company requirements, all-in-one hardware solutions start at $799. A 14-inch touch-screen monitor, a customer display screen, a Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU, an integrated 80mm receipt printer, and support for compatible accessories are included in the starter package (e.g., barcode scanner and cash drawer).

eHopper works on a variety of platforms.

Features

• Inventory management: eHopper’s inventory management system is very conventional. For prepared food, you can monitor inventory down to the ingredient level, set custom low-stock alerts, and manage all vendor and purchase order information directly from the POS. Barcode generation, administration, and printing are all included in the premium plans.
• Hardware integrations: eHopper offers a self-service kiosk but no direct scale solution. However, you may get around this by controlling pricing by weight in the backend and creating your own solution. Input the price per pound sold in the POS and synchronize. The system will then automatically calculate the product’s pricing depending on its weight.
• Customer loyalty program and CRM: Enable your team to offer more effective customer service by storing personal or business information, buying preferences, frequency of visits, and other pertinent notes in the system.
• Employee management: Assign each employee particular responsibilities and rights, as well as the software language, if appropriate. eHopper can also track sales per employee, and it can be set up to track inventory-related activities such as stock changes. A time clock is included in paid programs to keep track of staff hours.
• Payment processing: eHopper accepts card payments from First Data, Global, Elavon, Evo Payments International, and TSYS, as well as contactless payments from Google Pay and Apple Pay, using NFC technology. PAX s300, PAX D210, Dejavoo Z1, and Dejavoo Z11 terminals may all be used for this.
• Customer service: Free users may access the knowledge base and video lessons at any time, while premium plan customers can contact the technical support staff through chat, phone, or email.

Nextar

The Best Point-of-Sale System Installed Locally

PROS

• A free version with a low-cost, pay-as-you-go premium plan is available.
• It’s completely functioning even if you’re not connected to the internet.
• Barcode scanning and precise scale capabilities are built-in.
• Supports the handling of delivery and sales orders.

CONS

• There isn’t an in-house or integrated payment processor.
• Only premium users have the ability to register several times.
• Online sales are not supported.
• A premium subscription is required for several payment methods.

Total Points 3.34 OUT OF 5

Nextar is a free POS system for supermarkets, bakeries, liquor businesses, and auto repair companies that may be implemented locally. Nextar is also available in a premium plan with pay-as-you-go options, making it an excellent program for small food shops. The system is simple to set up and use, having a user-friendly interface. It does not, however, have an integrated payment processor or the option to link to your payment system. Nextar is a great alternative if you want to choose your own payment processing supplier.

We awarded Nextar a 3.34 out of 5 rating after thorough analysis, including top points for price, which reflects its affordability and value-for-money characteristics. The software’s premium subscription is just $19 per month and gives you access to all of the software’s features on an infinite number of terminals. Because the system is deployed locally, it is completely functional even when there is no internet connection.

While there are benefits to a locally installed system, Nextar also has drawbacks. Nextar lacks native online selling capabilities and a simple setup for a self-checkout lane due to its absence of cloud-based data storage—two important criteria in our grading methodology. The absence of an integrated payment processing system, as well as the lack of a hybrid configuration, kept Nextar from scoring higher in our assessment.

Pricing

• Fees for software subscriptions: Provides a free plan. The Premium plan costs $19 per month if paid monthly, or $190 if paid annually.
• Additional register software costs nothing; however, multiple register capabilities are only accessible with the premium subscription.
• Nextar can operate on current PCs at no cost.
• Payment processing fee: This is determined by the payment provider you choose. Nextar does not have a payment processor or integration in-house.

Features

• Inventory management: You may add goods and establish expiry dates, define your sales tax, and build a supplier list using Nextar’s free plan. You can establish promotional pricing, print product labels, and control inventory counts with the premium plan.
• Cash register management: The “Quick Seller Switch” function keeps track of your cash balance, allowing you to complete transactions quickly and avoid lengthy lines. On a single screen, it has an edit or cancels transaction option, a money counter tool, and discrepancy warning triggers. Each user’s cash register actions are likewise recorded.
• System for managing deliveries: Make a list of your delivery personnel and keep track of orders for each of them. Nextar also allows you to see pending orders in real-time and publishes the delivery address on both the sales invoice and the sales receipt. With an optional internet connection, you can obtain directions directly from the POS screen and use Google Maps to choose the best path.
• Customer loyalty program and CRM: You may register customer information, including an ID picture and other details like a preferred delivery person, multiple address registration, and parentage for minor consumers. Activate the built-in loyalty program, adjust your redeemable point conversion rates, and provide redemption choices such as shop credit and incentive items.
• Set up staff logins, commission rules, and control user rights using Nextar’s employee administration features. You may also keep track of shift schedules and compare them to cash register transactions. With the login processes at the start and conclusion of a shift, cash registers may be recognized by the user.
• For the free plan, Nextar customer assistance is accessible through live chat and email during extended hours. WhatsApp provides phone assistance as well. A knowledge base and video lessons are also available in the support area.
• Reports and analytics: Get real-time access to company data. Transaction reports, sales tax reports, accounts payable records, and sales reports may all be generated by product, customer, and employee. Customized statistical reports on inventory expenses, stock movement, consumer behavior, and more are also available. For additional flexibility, drag and drop column headings, apply filters and export your results to an excel file.

Conclusion

Grocery POS systems need capabilities that aren’t usually found in retail POS systems, such as robust hardware, scale integrations, time-sensitive inventory monitoring, and complex loyalty and promotion tools. There is a lot of feature-rich small company POS software on the market, but only a handful of them are ideal for grocery stores.

Because the majority of grocery shops are low-margin businesses, having a POS and management software that can operate within their budgets is critical. For less than $100 a month, Revel Systems’ POS includes all of these grocery-specific features and more.