Best POS Systems of November 2024

on Helcim POS's secure website

Monthly fee

$0.00

Unlike flat-rate payment processors that charge the same transaction fee across different types of credit cards, Helcim uses an interchange-plus pricing model. This means your business saves when a customer uses a card with low interchange rates. Helcim also offers volume discounts if you process more than $50,000 monthly, which is a plus for high-volume businesses. And if you need hardware for taking payments in-person, the company sells its own smart terminal and mobile card reader, too.Read full review

Pros

No monthly software fees.
No long-term contract or termination fees.
Offers volume discounts for businesses whose monthly credit card volume surpasses $50,000.
Interchange-plus processing rates can help businesses save money.

Cons

Some hardware, like barcode scanners and cash drawers, are only available through a third-party provider.
No full POS register options.

Our pick for

International businesses

Stripe accepts payments in more than 135 currencies, making it a strong fit for businesses with global reach. Stripe Terminal is not a POS system but an integration that allows you to extend your online business to in-person sales. With some coding, it can be connected to your POS app.

Stripe Terminal

5.0

on Stripe Terminal's secure website

Monthly fee

$0.00

Stripe Terminal extends Stripe Payments functionality to become a full POS solution. Stripe can accept dozens of payment methods and more than 135 currencies. And its advanced developer tools allow you to create a checkout flow that feels custom, provided you know how to use them.

Pros

No monthly software fees.
No long-term contracts or termination fees.
24/7 phone and chat support.

Cons

Does not include a POS app or standard POS capabilities.
Likely requires coding and developer expertise.

Our pick for

Overall POS system

Square’s transparent pricing, lack of long-term contracts, strong integrations and free POS make it a good fit for a range of industries. One potential exception? Square users who run restaurants, bars and breweries often call out that the POS can’t preauthorize credit cards. This means that to start a tab, you have to keep the customer’s card. If you’re worried about the convenience — or security — of that, you may want to consider alternatives.

Square POS

5.0

on Square POS's secure website

Monthly fee

$0.00

and up.

Square’s point-of-sale system stands out with its transparent pricing, live support and many useful features. Unlike most systems, Square offers a free POS software option with no monthly charges. Because Square works on iPhones, Android devices and iPads, you can make sales on the go — for example, at a farmers market, trade show or music festival.

Pros

Free plan option available.
Offers helpful related services, like payroll, that integrate closely with its POS system.
No long-term contracts or termination fees.
All plans include a free online store.

Cons

Can’t run on Windows devices.
Complex industries might prefer a more specialized system.

Our pick for

Online businesses

Shopify seamlessly unites online and in-store sales with its integrated POS and e-commerce plans. And its in-house payment processing solution makes it a one-stop-shop for businesses.

Shopify Retail POS

4.5

on Shopify POS's secure website

Monthly fee

$39.00

and up for e-commerce plans with POS Lite; Can upgrade to POS Pro for an extra $89.

Shopify’s POS system is well equipped to handle all the complexities that come with selling items via an online store. In all subscription tiers, you can set up an online shop and add products almost instantly, sell through multiple channels (including social media), connect with vendors, automatically email customers who abandon their carts, process payments at reasonable rates and make sales in 133 currencies and multiple languages. These features make Shopify one of the best retail POS options.

Pros

No long-term contracts or termination fees.
All plans include an online store.
Built specifically for online sellers.
24/7 chat support.

Cons

No free plan options.
Cannot process cards in offline mode.

Our pick for

Choosing your own payment processor

Clover’s most distinguishing feature is its ability to work with other payment processors. In other words, Clover merchants aren’t locked into using Clover as their payment processor. However, Clover hardware can’t be reprogrammed so you’ll need to purchase it directly from your payment processor of choice and will only be able to use it with that processor.

Clover POS

4.0

on Clover POS's secure website

Monthly fee

$0.00

and up.

Unlike some of its competitors, Clover lets you pair its hardware and software with different merchant services providers, such as Wells Fargo, PNC, BBVA or Citi. This is especially ideal for businesses seeking out an interchange-plus payment processing model as opposed to Clover’s in-house flat-rate model.

Pros

Free plan available if you’re only using a mobile card reader.
24/7 phone and email support.
All restaurant plans include no-fee online ordering, and retail plans let you integrate with existing online stores.

Cons

Promotions require a three-year contract.
Charges termination fees, though they may be waived in certain cases.
Online payment processing rates are more expensive than competitors.
Popular accounting integrations are only available through third-party apps.

Our pick for

Restaurants doing dine-in and online business

Toast lets customers integrate online ordering options with their existing Toast POS system. If your restaurant has multiple locations, customers can choose where they’d like to pick up their order.

Toast POS

4.0

on Toast POS's secure website

Payment processing fees

2.49% + $0.15

if you buy hardware upfront; 3.09% + $0.15 for pay-as-you-go option.

Monthly fee

$0.00

Starter Kit; $69 Point of Sale plan; custom Build Your Own plan.

Toast makes scalable POS systems for quick-service and full-service restaurants, fine dining establishments, bars, cafes and food trucks. It offers a variety of hardware options including countertop terminals, handheld systems for taking orders tableside, self-serve ordering kiosks and kitchen display screens.

Pros

Free plan available for restaurants with up to two POS terminals.
24/7 support via web messaging.
Offers helpful related services, like payroll and team management software, that integrate closely with its POS system.
Built specifically for restaurants with in-house delivery platform available, among other industry-specific features.

Cons

Requires a two-year contract and charges early termination fees.
Online payment processing rates are more expensive than competitors.
Charges setup fee, and offline mode includes hidden cost of backup router.
Online ordering is considered an add-on for all plans.

Our pick for

Restaurant-specific add-on features

SpotOn Restaurant solutions are custom fit for your specific restaurant needs and numerous software integrations can round out your system. The company’s Restaurant Advisory Council provides regular feedback for continual improvement.

SpotOn Restaurant

4.0

NerdWallet rating

on SpotOn Restaurant's secure website

Payment processing fees

1.99% + $0.25

For most cards in paid plans.

Monthly fee

$0.00

and up.

SpotOn’s monthly software fee and payment processing fees along with its ability to integrate with third-party hardware make this system an affordable and appealing option. SpotOn offers customizable add-on features such as a loyalty program and team management software. The company also has a strong reputation for its hands-on approach to customer support, from installation and training to 24/7 availability for assistance.

Pros

Offers a free plan.
Restaurants can customize plans by adding loyalty programs, reservation capabilities, online ordering or employee scheduling software.
24/7 phone support.
No long-term contract or termination fees.

Cons

Charges setup fee.
Offline mode includes the hidden cost of a router.

Our pick for

Automated marketing

SumUp’s Connect Plus and Pro POS plans come with marketing tools that automatically send customers targeted promotions and allow them to accumulate rewards.

SumUp POS

4.0

on SumUp POS's secure website

Monthly fee

$0.00

for card readers only; $99 for Connect Lite plan; $199 for Connect Plus plan; $289 for Connect Pro plan.

SumUp’s POS plans can help businesses build and retain a customer base with a built-in loyalty program and automated marketing campaigns that make it easy to send targeted offers to customers. From there, you can use the loyalty dashboard to measure success and keep track of how many customers opted into or out of your marketing program.Read full review

Pros

Free POS plans for card readers.
Automated marketing tools for sending customers targeted promotions.
Available in more than 30 countries.

Cons

Online transaction rate is more expensive than some competitors.
Money-back guarantee requires a 12-month subscription.

Our pick for

Inventory management

Lightspeed’s POS designed specifically for retailers offers several strong features, but it stands out particularly for its inventory management capabilities. The system is especially well suited for businesses with more than one location.

Lightspeed Retail POS

3.5

on Lightspeed Retail POS's secure website

Monthly fee

$109.00

for Basic plan, $179 for Core plan, $289 for Plus plan.

The Lightspeed POS system’s inventory management capabilities are outstanding at every subscription tier and more comprehensive than those of its competitors. When entering items into your system, you can add plenty of information — such as a description, images, cost, manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), your selling price, tax and discount rules, tags, barcodes, stock-keeping units (SKUs), brands, categories and custom-built fields — which can be used to generate and filter results on reports.

Pros

Includes detailed inventory management tools for creating product variants.
Free one-on-one onboarding session for all new merchants.
24/7 phone and live chat support.
Generate unlimited barcode labels.

Cons

No free plan options.
Lowest-tier plan doesn’t include e-commerce features.
Charges termination fee and may require annual contract.
Does not include a virtual terminal or offline mode.

Our pick for

Offline functionality for restaurants

TouchBistro is a POS system designed specifically for food-industry businesses. And since it stores data both locally and in the cloud, it's a great option for restaurants that don't have a reliable internet connection.

TouchBistro

3.5

on TouchBistro's secure website

Payment processing fees

N/A

Quote-based.

Monthly fee

$69.00

and up.

For restaurants that haven’t warmed to the idea of a totally cloud-based POS system, TouchBistro is a solid option. It’s a hybrid POS, meaning it’s locally installed but data is still sent to the cloud. Although other cloud-based POS systems can accept payments in offline mode, the TouchBistro system will maintain additional capabilities, like real-time reporting, in a Wi-Fi outage.

Pros

24/7 phone, chat and email support.
Includes restaurant-specific features, like table and menu management.
Optional profit management system provides tools for improving margins.
As a hybrid POS system, TouchBistro can operate without the cloud. Offline capabilities include accepting payments, taking orders, editing menus and managing staff.

Cons

Payment processing rates are quote-based, making them difficult to compare to the competition.
Contracts are automatically renewed and can't be terminated early.
No free plan options and charges setup fee.
Ability to accept online orders costs extra.

Our pick for

Bank POS provider

U.S. Bank Merchant Services offers payment processing and business bank accounts in addition to POS solutions, making it a one-stop shop for small businesses.

U.S. Bank Merchant Services POS

3.5

on U.S. Bank Merchant Services POS's secure website, Member FDIC

Monthly fee

$0.00

and up. Varies dependent upon account setup.

U.S. Bank offers business banking, payment processing and point-of-sale solutions for small businesses. The bank also offers Everyday Funding, which allows merchants to receive funds in their deposit account every day of the week, including weekends – not something you’ll find among many competitors.

Pros

No termination fees.
Free plan available if you’re only using a mobile card reader.
24/7 phone support, plus a dedicated customer account manager.
Provides in-house banking services.

Cons

Must contact the bank directly for POS hardware pricing.
May charge setup fee, depending on installation needs.
Only the highest-tier plan includes online ordering.
Offline mode isn’t standard for all plans.

Our pick for

Cash discount program

Lavu makes iPad-based POS systems for different types of restaurants, from delis and coffee shops to full-service dining establishments. The company’s cash discount program helps business owners save on processing fees by passing some of the costs onto customers who choose to pay with cards instead of cash. Those who pay cash can skip the fees, so be sure your business is equipped to handle cash transactions.

Lavu

3.5

on Lavu's secure website

Payment processing fees

N/A

Quote-based.

Monthly fee

$99.00

and up.

All of Lavu’s plans let restaurant owners opt for “dual pricing” options that offer customers discounts for paying in cash instead of with a card. This can be a good option for businesses that want to encourage cash transactions or are concerned about payment processing fees adding up. However, Lavu’s payment processing rates are quote-based, which makes it difficult to estimate processing costs in the first place.

Pros

24/7 phone and chat support.
Highly customizable POS platform for those with programming skills.
Restaurants can set up timed menu changes, start customers’ tabs on one register and cash them out at another.
Dual pricing program can help decrease payment processing fees.

Cons

No free plan options.
Cannot cancel subscription before term is up.
Does not list payment processing fees.
No virtual terminal for accepting transactions remotely.

Our pick for

Mobile POS software

This all-in-one mobile POS and payment processing system is built for quick and easy setup and integrates seamlessly with many big names in business-related software. PayPal Zettle’s POS software is free, so business owners pay only for hardware and payment processing.

PayPal Zettle

4.0

Read Review

Monthly fee

$0.00

PayPal's Zettle system stands out for its free software and no-contract business model, which takes some of the risk out of switching to a new POS system. Its hardware POS packages make it easy to set up quickly, and some decent (though limited) accessories are available.

Pros

No monthly software fees for accepting in-person payments.
No long-term contract or termination fees.
Accepts a variety of payment types, including Venmo and PayPal payments.
Inexpensive card reader with a keypad, plus built-in payment processing and a free mobile app lets you quickly accept in-person payments on the go.

Cons

Accepting online transactions involves additional monthly fees, depending on your gateway.
No offline mode.