A recent study indicates that only 19 percent of all payments are cash payments these days.
This shift means that if you want to survive as a business, you need to have the capability of offering paperless payments like Apple Pay and credit card transactions in addition to cash.
Selling goods at a local farmers market isn’t just a way to connect with your community in a meaningful way; it’s a business. As a result, you may need to invest in the right technology to help keep that business profitable and growing.
In the current climate of paperless payments and credit-based transactions, that means investing in the right retail POS solution.
This post will outline some of the best POS system options for farmers market vendors. We will cover each system’s features, benefits, and reviews.
Farmers Market-Friendly POS Systems
Farmers markets have been a staple in American communities since the first official farmers market appeared in Lancaster, PA in 1730.
Today, farmers markets provide people with access to sustainable, locally-produced products and crops and provide underserved communities with access to essential, healthy foods.
As a farmers market vendor, you will have several unique requirements for your POS solution.
You will need your solution to have cloud features and rugged hardware for starters. The interface and checkout workflow must be quick and easy for busy days when lines can get long.
The ideal farmers market POS system would include or integrate with a scale to sell produce by weight or per unit. Your POS system should also help you identify your top-selling products or produce and where losses occur.
Related Read: Produce Stand Point of Sale Solutions
For more information about which POS features you may need to succeed, check out our Retail POS System Buyers’ Guide. Now, let’s dive into our top five POS solution recommendations for farmers market vendors.
Top 5 Farmers Market POS Systems
Square
In recent years, Square has made a name for itself in the market of portable and casual sales. Square also offers powerful POS solutions for businesses in the retail, food service, and professional services industries.
Square offers several features that may appeal to farmers market vendors, such as:
- Intuitive, searchable inventory
- Barcode label options
- Mobile check-out and inventory management
- Integrated payments via credit card, Apple Pay, or gift cards
Many of Square’s reviews praise its pricing model, which does not require a monthly fee. Negative reviews seem to center around customer support issues.
Pricing: They have a free plan, a Plus plan that’s $60 per month per location, and a Premium plan with custom pricing.
“Square credit card processing is, without a doubt, the most feature-rich and advanced solution you can find without a monthly fee.” -Merchant Maverick Reviewer
Shopkeep (Now Lightspeed Retail)
Shopkeep is a POS software that was recently acquired by Lightspeed Retail. It is rated highly as an iPad POS system and is positioned as a POS solution for the retail, quick service, and restaurant industries.
Some Shopkeep features fit for farmers market vendors are:
- Contactless payment options
- Customer profiles and purchase history
- Cloud-based monitoring of special orders
- Portable POS system
- Manage stock with image-based catalogs
Shopkeep by Lightspeed Retail has several customer reviews online, many of them positive. Negative reviews seem to center around software bugs.
Pricing:
- Lean Plan: $69 per month
- Standard: $119 per month
- Advanced: $199 per month
“A POS system needs to offer the whole package — including intuitive design, lots of helpful features and top-notch customer service…” -NerdWallet Review
POS Nation
POS Nation is a small business dedicated to the success of other small businesses like yours.
The solution is hybrid, coupling. One key benefit of our cloud-based system is our powerful yet simple-to-use software, CAP Retail by POS Nation.
A few POS Nation features that may appeal to farmers market vendors are:
- Label and barcode printing
- Hotkeys with photos for easy item reference
- Mix and match pricing and promotions
- Scale integration for pricing by weight
- Cash discounting options
- Weather-resistant barcodes
Customers love POS Nation for our excellent service, easy-to-use software, and high-quality products.
With hundreds of reviews, we’re still close to a perfect five-star average, and we’ll keep providing excellent support to ensure things stay that way. Our incredible end-to-end customer support has been called “genius” by some reviewers.
Pricing for Specialty Markets:
- Flex Monthly: $149 per month
- Freedom: $1,568 upfront
“POS Nation offers straightforward pricing plans, comprehensive customer support, and a great range of features packed within a secure and intuitive interface.” -TechRadar Reviewer
Revel Systems
Revel Systems’ target industries are quick service, restaurant, retail, pizzerias, and coffee shops. Built for small businesses, Revel prides itself on being quick to deploy.
Some Revel Systems features of interest to farmers market vendors are:
- Flexible payments compatible with Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and more
- Quick set up and easy training for temporary staff
- Customer relationship management features
- Mobile POS terminals
Revel Systems has somewhat mixed reviews, but they lean positive overall. Most negative reviews indicate struggles using Revel Systems for food service purposes.
Pricing:
- $99 monthly fee per terminal
- Flat fee for processing
- Onboarding starts at $674
“Revel POS is easy to set up, is user-friendly, and has an intuitive interface… Revel POS pricing is far from ideal and is actually pretty expensive.” -NerdWallet Review
IT Retail
IT Retail is a cloud-based POS built with grocery stores and markets in mind. They’ve been helping grocers for 25+ years.
Some IT Retail features of interest to farmers market vendors are:
- Cloud-based with offline capabilities
- Rugged hardware
- Intuitive and user-friendly touchscreens
- Custom labels
- EBT payments
- Automatic reward detection
IT Retail has good reviews on Capterra with a 100% ‘likely to recommend’ score. The only real negative is the cost factor for the complete system is a little high for some customers.
Pricing:
- Use the Build and Price tool for a custom quote.
“It's easy to use and edit, and the staff goes above and beyond to keep me happy.” IT Retail User
What POS System is Best for Your Farmers Market Needs?
The days of accepting cash payments and sending patrons on their way are dwindling fast.
To keep your farmers market business up and running, you will want to stay at the forefront of technology for farmers market vendors.
The five POS systems outlined above are all excellent solutions for farmers market vendors, and we hope one of these options fits your specific needs.
To check out the options POS Nation offers and see what might be the best fit for your needs as a farmers market seller, use our build and price tool.
If you want to delve deeper and find out the top questions to ask before buying your POS system and software, check out our free resource, The Buyers’ Guide.
