What are the best rated point of sale (POS) systems for 2021?
Whether you're replacing a legacy system or investing in a retail POS system for the first time, finding the right POS system can deliver significant value to your growing small business.
This year, many small business owners and managers will focus on expanding capabilities within the POS system. According to recent reports, the top point of sale systems include integrations with existing sales software, building a unified e-commerce platform, mobile POS, and hardware upgrades. By 2025, the global POS system market is expected to reach $29.09 billion.
As an industry-leading provider of targeted POS systems, we've helped thousands of retailers find the best POS system for their growing businesses. Our retail POS features give your growing business the tools and resources needed to scale in 2021.
The 5 Best Rated POS Systems for 2021
In your search for the best POS system for your business, you must understand that not all POS systems are created equal. Just like you wouldn’t use a pocket knife to chop down a tree, a POS system built for a restaurant shouldn’t be used in a convenience store. It’s the wrong tool for the job. For this reason, it’s important to find a system that addresses your specific needs.
Accuracy, efficiency, and speed are all key to your success. An industry-specific POS system will have the tools you need to attain these and other benefits. To aid in your search for the best POS system for your business, we have compiled a list of the top-rated POS systems based on ratings and reviews from real users.
1. Epos Now
Epos Now develops POS systems for retail businesses like apparel, convenience, and vape stores, as well as hospitality businesses like restaurants, cafes, and fast food.
Their POS system offers powerful inventory management tools, can help you build out an e-commerce store, and integrates with over 100 accounting, marketing, and other apps.
There are several features of Epos Now’s retail POS that their users love:
- Data and dashboards - “I love the statistics on it, the graphs and all the financial information that you can gain and the simplicity of it all. The amount of information you can extract about your business is colossal.”
- Integrations - “They have out of box integrations that rival any other POS system and have the flexibility to allow us to create our own integrations for other software we actively work with.”
- Customer service - “Professional, courteous, and respectful to their customers. Representatives go out of their way to assure the problem you are experiencing is resolved 100%.”
See more Epos Now reviews on Capterra.
2. Toast POS
Toast’s POS system is designed specifically for restaurants of all types:
- Fine dining
- Casual dining
- Fast-casual dining
- Bars and nightclubs
- Cafes & bakeries
- Multi-location restaurants
Toast’s POS system offers no-contact customer solutions, back-office software, and the tools to keep a kitchen running at full speed and peak efficiency.
Toast also offers an impressive suite of digital products called Toast Now™. It allows restaurants to cater to consumer demands by helping them set up on-demand, commission-free digital solutions like online ordering, contactless delivery, email marketing, and e-gift cards.
Specific features and benefits that Toast POS users enjoy include:
- Cloud-based software - “As a GM, I'm grateful that Toast is not only cloud-based, but allows me to access the back end from my laptop or smartphone so I don't have to be onsite to make system changes.”
- User access - “I also enjoy how user access changes with position ranking, and verification can be implemented for certain features which helps to deter possible theft or misuse.”
- User-friendly - “Adding, editing, and removing menu items can be done quickly and remotely. Printer routing and other back of house setup is a breeze.”
See more Toast POS reviews on Capterra.
3. ShopKeep
ShopKeep offers POS software, POS hardware, e-commerce, payment processing, and invoicing. It is best for small to medium-sized retail, quick-service, full-service restaurants, and bars.
ShopKeep’s value is connecting your register to your online store, payments, marketing, inventory, employees, and back-office from a single dashboard. Their mobile app, ShopKeep Pocket, allows users to:
- Track sales and transaction data in real-time.
- See when employees clock in and out.
- Analyze sales in detail.
- Get push notifications for key actions at their business, like low stock items, payouts, voided sales, and more.
ShopKeep users have noted several strengths to their POS system on Capterra:
- Inventory management - “I also like the fact that you can enter your inventory purchases which automatically adds it to your inventory counts.”
- Customer service - “Excellent customer service, easy to access them for help, always available 24/7.”
- Easy to use - “It is easy to update when we add new products or change pricing. It is easy to check the time clock and adjust for missed punches.”
See more ShopKeep POS reviews on Capterra.
4. POS Nation
POS Nation’s all-in-one retail POS system is built to deliver efficiency, accuracy, and speed to any different types of retail businesses, such as:
- Convenience stores
- Liquor stores
- Tobacco shops
- Groceries and markets
- Lawn and garden centers
- Hardware stores
- Clothing and apparel stores
POS Nation’s system is an all-in-one solution. Instead of having your POS system and then other software for inventory management, employee management, and other functions, everything you need is in one platform. It also offers cloud-based features. This allows you to manage all aspects of your business without having to be in the office.
Here are the benefits of POS Nation’s all-in-one retail POS system that real business owners love:
- Oversee the entire business - “I can check times, check products, and look at all the orders that came through that day. Also, with this system, you are able to do schedules and make sure that the inventory is put in. With this system, you can do just about anything, even knowing the total sales for that day and month. This system helps keep everything together.”
- System set up and onboarding - “I enjoyed the set up process. The instructor was great to work with and very informative. The features within the system fit just about any scenario we run into. The ease of learning the system was also a relief.”
- Flexibility and customer support - “I recently purchased a grocery/liquor store which has an RV park and small hotel that I have been able to manage through the software. Their support has made managing my business far easier than it would be without it.
See more POS Nation reviews on Capterra.
5. Clover
Clover’s POS offerings are best suited for small to mid-sized restaurants, such as quick-service restaurants and full-service restaurants. Its built-in capabilities help business owners and staff simplify daily tasks, speed up transactions, engage customers, and accept all types of payments.
Here are a few of Clover’s features and benefits their users love:
- Flexibility - “I love how easy it is to use Clover for grab-and-go, sit-down service, or retail services.”
- Apps and product improvement - “It has so many apps, and the developers are always willing to add features that you may need.”
- Reporting - “My favorite part is the reporting; the item sales report is easy to generate and organize by label (which is very useful). It tracks cost as well, and at the top of the report, it gives an overview of net profit, COGS, and gross profit. Very nice.”
See more Clover reviews on Capterra.
POS Nation Powers Businesses of All Kinds
Finding the best POS system for your business is easier said than done. Fortunately, as an experienced POS system provider, we can help you identify the best solution for your business.
We work with a variety of retailers ranging from independent owner-operators to multi-chain locations. Regardless of your needs, POS Nation offers a scalable POS system capable of growing your business. To get started on the right foot this year, we recommend downloading our free retail POS system buyers’ guide.
Whether you decide to do business with POS Nation or another service provider, this guide will help you uncover the key questions you need to ask to find the very best solution for your growing business. In just a few clicks, you’ll have everything you need to make an informed POS system purchase.
