15 Best Point of Sale Software & Platforms

Point of Sale software is not merely a digital cash register for ringing up the sales. It delivers a proper system to help you streamline your operations.

With decent Point of Sale software, you can track your inventory, manage orders, handle your staff schedule, and run promotions–all from one place.

Here, I have reviewed some top Point of Sales software products. Discover the key functions of a POS system and find the top available tools in the market.

What Is A Point of Sale Software

Point of Sales Software (POS) is a digital system that allows you to manage orders and sales. Its core function is sales transaction processing, but you typically get it with operation management tools, such as inventory and reporting.

Top Features To Look For In a POS Software;

• Sales recording.
• Customer management.
• Inventory tracking.
• Payment integration.
• Loyalty program–if available.

POS systems generally come in both cloud-based and on-premise versions. Cloud-based apps, however, are widely popular for their accessibility and budget-friendly packages. 

You can also get hybrid models to accommodate your business needs.

Below, I have compiled a list of the 15 best POS software for comparison. Most are cloud-based, but some offer flexible solutions as well.

1. Micros

Micros POS is an Oracle product. It’s incredibly versatile, offering a wide range of features tailored to support several industries.

You can incorporate Micros POS in restaurants, hotels, entertainment establishments, and retail stores. The software is enterprise-grade and can manage high volumes with ease.

You’ll get both desktop and mobile systems, and also cloud and on-premise solutions. Hardware support is also included in the product line.

Core Features

• POS for hospitality and retail businesses.
• Order and inventory management.
• Employee scheduling.
• Analytics and reporting.
• Loyalty programs.
• Desktop, tablet, and mobile system.
• Software and hardware.
• Global coverage.
• Third-party integrations.

Price

You can request Micros prices with a free product tour.

2. NCR

NCR has a suite of restaurant and retail management tools for businesses of all sizes. 

Its cloud POS system is intuitive and user-friendly, providing robust features and end-to-end support.

Here, you’ll receive essential functions with several add-ons to extend your system functionality. You’ll also get side products to monitor your software’s performance.

You can incorporate multiple self-checkout options in your brick-and-mortar store and integrate a POS into your e-commerce website. NCR sells both basic and advanced software and also delivers hardware.

Core Features

• Cloud POS system.
• Kitchen operations.
• Employee portal.
• E-commerce integration.
• Self-checkout.
• Multi-channel payments.
• Loyalty program.
• Monitoring and analytics.
• Hardware support.
• Mobile app.

Price

NCR’s quick-service restaurant tools are free. To get custom prices, contact sales.

3. Toast

Toast is well-suited for retail shops and restaurants located in the US, Canada, the UK, and Ireland.

You’ll receive a starter kit and a free demo to explore its features. The starter kit comes with a “pay-as-you-go” option for hardware and installation. 

If you like the product, you can upgrade to a standard premium subscription, or ask for the custom package. The software can be scaled to fit your business needs. 

Toast’s product line includes several support services with essential tools. For example, you can get its delivery services for online orders. 

You can access Toast from anywhere and use it online and offline. Its mobile apps are available on both Android and Apple stores.

Core Features

• Sales transactions.
• Order and inventory management.
• Retail and restaurant features, including event catering.
• Marketing and loyalty programs.
• Employee scheduling.
• Payroll add-on and side services.
• Integration.
• Hardware.
• Mobile app.

Price

Toast’s basic plan is free and the premium plan costs $69 per month.

4. Clover

Clover is a convenient payment processing platform. It offers a versatile point-of-sale system and a wide range of payment options.

Some of the operations you can manage via Clover are online ordering, sales transactions, inventory tracking, and staff scheduling. You can add discounts, tips, and deals to the system and get real-time data to keep track of everything.

Clover also provides an email invoicing. You can send payment requests to clients and allow them to pay you online.

What makes Clover stand out is its financial services. You will get the option to access your sales deposits early for same-day expenses.

Core Features

• Flexible payment methods.
• Online ordering.
• Inventory management.
• Employee scheduling.
• Real-time insights.
• Loyalty program.
• Marketing tools.
• Funding options.
• POS hardware.

Price

Clover prices start from $13. Contact sales to get tailored prices.

5. Square

Square is built for small businesses. It’s simple, affordable, and rich in features.

You can try its POS software for free and get hardware for on-site sales. You’ll get a virtual terminal with a built-in payment processor for remote credit card transactions.

A POS for appointment-based business is also available. It includes a free website for booking, workflows to manage cancellation fees, and Instagram integration.

I recommend exploring its website. You’ll find tons of interesting products for business operations.

Core Features

• POS software and hardware.
• Features for restaurant, retail, and services.
• Virtual terminal.
• Flexible payments.
• Free online site.
• Order management.
• Marketing.
• Integration.
• Mobile app.

Price

Square’s packages start at $29 per month. The basic plan is free.

6. Lightspeed

Lightspeed sells POS systems for retail, restaurants, and golf clubs. The industries it supports are highly specific, which makes it an excellent choice for related businesses.

You’ll get user-friendly software with third-party integrations and multi-location support. Plus, you’ll receive several side features to improve your work efficiency. For example, there’s a supplier catalog for B2B workflows and a scanner mobile app for inventory tracking.

Lightspeed works in multiple countries and provides e-commerce features for online sales.

Core Features

• POS for retail, restaurant, and golf course.
• Real-time tracking.
• Analytics and reporting.
• Inventory management with forecasting.
• E-commerce features.
• Loyalty.
• Merchant cash advance program.
• Mobile app.
• Integrations.
• Hardware.

Price

Lightspeed prices start at $89. You can take a free trial.

7. Zoho POS

ZOHO is globally recognized for its usability and affordability. It offers some of the best business management solutions, including a POS software for small shops.

The POS is part of ZOHO’s Creator product, offering instant invoicing, sales transactions, and refunds. Inventory management is also available and you can get reporting features too.

The app is completely customizable and comes with a mobile version. You can integrate it with Google Workforce and PayPal.

Core Features

• Online invoice.
• Inventory management.
• Staff scheduling.
• CRM.
• Customization.
• Reporting.
• Papal integration.
• Mobile app.

Price

ZOHO Creator packages range between $12 and $37. You can take a free trial and ask for a custom plan.

8. Shopify POS

If you have a store on Shopify, you probably don’t need to look elsewhere for a point-of-sale system. Shopify offers both software and hardware to handle online and in-person sales transactions.

Top notable features of Shopify POS are omnichannel selling, order management, inventory tracking, and customer engagement. You can add multiple payment methods, refunds, and discounts to improve the shopping experience.

Overall, it’s an excellent app for Shopify owners.

Core Features

• Flexible selling and payment methods.
• Order and inventory management.
• Shipping.
• Staff scheduling.
• Customer engagement.
• Mobile hardware.
• CRM.
• Marketing.
• Integration.

Price

Shopify POS prices start at $5. You can try it for free to test the features.

9. Heartland

Heartland has some pretty decent features for both restaurant and retail businesses. For $89 a month, you can get user-friendly software with full POS functionality.

You’ll receive inventory and staff management with essential features, and mobile POS for easy accessibility. Heartland also sells financial and payroll products, including office and invoicing software.

You can use Heartland for e-commerce businesses, brick-and-mortar stores, and in-person sales. Heartland sells a separate payment processor for in-person transactions.

Core Features

• POS for restaurants, retail, and services.
• Inventory management.
• Staff scheduling.
• Loyalty program.
• Add-ons.
• Payroll.
• Reporting.
• Integration.
• Mobile app.
• Hardware and software.

Price

Heartland charges $89 per site. 

10. Spot On

Spot On has a good reputation as a restaurant POS system. It delivers industry-specific features with customization options.

The platform supports reservation workflows, tableside ordering, kitchen operations, and guest management. If you want to manage your operations and staff from one place, you can do that with Spot On. It allows staff scheduling, tip management, and payroll preparation.

You can also run online ordering services and loyalty programs.

Core Features

• Sales transactions.
• Online ordering and delivery.
• Kitchen operations.
• Staff management.
• Customer engagement.
• Marketing.
• Integration.
• Analytics and reporting.
• Software and hardware.
• Employee app.

Price

Spot On’s basic plan is free. For premium features, it charges $99 to $135 per month. You can ask for a demo.

11. ConnectPOS

ConnectPOS sells a series of cloud POS systems. Its system supports over a dozen businesses and integrates with over seven major e-commerce platforms, including Shopify and WooCommerce.

You can get POS for your Shopify store and incorporate user-friendly self-service payment methods at your brick-and-mortar shop. The software is scalable, allowing you to manage multiple locations from one place.

There’s also an option for custom POS. Mid-to-large-size companies can tailor the features to match their business requirements. 

Core Features

• POS for brick-and-mortar and e-commerce.
• Order fulfillment.
• CRM.
• Loyalty program.
• Self-service checkout.
• Mobile POS.
• Customer experience.
• Global coverage.
• Customization.
• Analytics and reporting.

Price

ConnectPOS shares prices on request. Contact sales to book a demo.

12. POS Nation

POS Nation is for retail businesses. It serves several niche industries, including liquor and smoke stores.

The product’s starting price is $39, with the option to scale it as you grow. The rates, however, may vary depending on your business type. For example, the starter price of a cell phone repair business is $49, but for a liquor store, it’s $59.

Inventory management and marketing are included in the package. You can also integrate it with your e-commerce store for online deliveries.

Overall, it’s a good option to consider.

Core Features

• Payment processing.
• Inventory management.
• Marketing and loyalty program.
• E-commerce integration.
• Compliance tools for liquor stores.
• Retail ERP.
• Workflow automation.
• Reporting.
• Software and hardware.

Price

POS Nation charges $39 to $59 for the basic features. Contact sales for growth packages.

13. Odoo

Odoo is ideal for emerging businesses. It offers an open-source POS system that works well on multiple devices. 

The POS system is flexible and rich in features.  You can handle both online and offline payments, manage product availability, and keep track of your inventory. 

Checkout features are also built into the system to run loyalty programs.

Core Features

• Online and offline payments.
• Invoicing and bill splitting feature.
• Store management.
• Product availability.
• Discounts and loyalty cards.
• Self-checkout.
• Multi-device support.
• Integration.

Price

Odoo is free for one app.  Its premium features cost $10 to $14 per month.

14. KORONA

KORONA has attractive benefits for retail business owners. The platform provides affordable solutions with free demos and a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Ticketing businesses like event management companies can also use KORONA to improve their operation efficiency. It can generate tickets, handle large volumes, and perform necessary functions like adjusting discounted prices. 

Separate packages are available for food and beverage businesses as well. You’ll receive niche features with essential tools.

Core Features

• POS for retail, service, and ticketing businesses.
• E-commerce integration.
• Inventory management.
• Real-time tracking.
• Loyalty program and gift cards.
• Self-checkout kiosks.
• Reporting.
• Multi-location support.
• Integration.

Price

KORONA charges $59 for its core system and $59 for retail. Niche functions are add-ons. 

You can try it for free.

15. Sapaad

Sapaad offers some of the best restaurant features. Via this tool, you can manage both your front-end and back-end operations.

The software is cloud-based and user-friendly. You’ll get a kitchen display system to handle orders and a delivery manager to keep track of your workflows.

With functions like QR scanners and loyalty programs, you can make order payments convenient and engaging.

The best feature of Sapaad is its package customization. You’ll get several tools as add-ons to customize your package.

Core Features

• Cloud-based POS.
• Contactless payment.
• Inventory tracking.
• Online orders, delivery, and rider management.
• Loyalty program.
• Reporting.
• Integration.
• Waiter app.

Price

Sapaad charges $60 per month for essential functions. Prices for add-ons are mentioned on the website.

Conclusion

Point of Sales software is crucial for both retail and service-based businesses. Whether you run a multi-location restaurant or a small bookstore, you need a POS system to ensure every transaction is recorded and can be tracked. 

All the above 15 POS software products offer good features and support. I recommend comparing their core functions and prices to get a better idea of their usability.