As a savvy small business owner, you know the right retail POS software can make or break your business. Sure, it has to have all the right features to make managing inventory, pricing, and transactions easy.
But the best retail POS software offers more. It has to be easy and intuitive for new hires to learn. It must give you in-depth reporting to help guide your business strategy.
Finally, your retail POS software can’t limit you to in-person sales. If the coronavirus’ changes to the retail industry taught retail store owners anything, it’s that you need e-commerce capabilities to stay competitive.
With so many retail POS vendors, it's easy to get confused. That’s why we created our 2023 Retail POS Software Hotlist. It features the top POS vendors and what makes their POS software strong, and includes the thoughts of real users.
We hope our hotlist is valuable in helping you whittle down your options and create a shortlist of retail POS vendors. Without further ado, let's dive in!
Finding the Ideal Retail POS Software: Our Top 9 Providers for 2024
Before we dive into our top picks for retail POS software providers, let’s discuss the importance of selecting the right system for your business. Regardless of your industry or niche, all your store’s operations hinge on your retail POS system. If your software solution doesn’t have the features or functionality you need, your processes will be inefficient and ineffective.
Some features you may want to consider for your retail POS software solution include:
- Retail inventory method management to avoid out-of-stock products
- Hotkeys for faster error-free transactions
- Robust reporting to guide your business strategy
- Employee management features like time-clocking, productivity reports, and role-based permissions
- Customer loyalty and promotion capabilities
- Label and barcode printing
We looked for the above features and criteria to determine our 2024 retail POS software “hotlist.” In our opinion, the best retail POS software platforms are the following.
Top Providers for 2024
- Lightspeed Retail POS
- Clover POS
- Square for Retail
- POS Nation
- Shopify POS
- Vend by Lightspeed
- Revel Systems
- Epos Now
- Rain POS
Let’s look at these retail POS software offerings in more detail to give you a better idea of which may be right for your retail store.
PLEASE NOTE: These are not "rankings," but simply a numbered list of awesome retail POS solutions.
1. Lightspeed Retail POS
Lightspeed Retail is one of the giants of omnichannel retail POS software. Lightspeed offers retail solutions tailored to apparel, bike, electronics, and health stores. Additionally, Lightspeed offers POS solutions for restaurants, bars, and golf courses.
Key Features
Some key features Lightspeed Retail customers love include:
- E-Commerce: Using e-commerce options, you can sell both online and offline. Syncing your inventory across sales channels will keep your sales efforts streamlined.
- Gift Cards: Provide gift cards to customers without paying third-party fees. You can also customize your gift cards to match the design and messaging of your brand.
- Customer Loyalty: Create multiple tiers in your customer loyalty program, rewarding your most loyal customers with the best offers.
- Contactless Payments: Offering secure mobile transactions is convenient for customers and helps keep staff and customers safe from the spread of germs.
Pricing: Lean Plan is $69/month, Standard Plan is $199/month, Advanced Plan is $199/month.
What Lightspeed Retail Users Love
“Adding products is super easy. You can add single products or create matrices that allow you to have various options per SKU. The ability to have both the manufacture and custom UPCs is excellent. Another feature we use all the time is the various sales options on specific categories per certain days of the week. Lastly, the purchase order system is priceless.” - G2 Reviewer
“We're able to easily count inventory with Lightspeed. We're now using their integrated credit card processing, so there is no longer a need to spend time at the end of the day making sure the credit card machine matches lightspeed data. Our service items are neatly organized with custom labels.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 4.1
2. Clover POS
Clover POS is designed to be an easy-to-use POS solution. In addition to retail, Clover POS offers solutions for restaurants, quick-service dining, and professional services.
Key Features
Some key features Clover POS customers love include:
- Cloud Syncing: Access data on sales, refunds, and more from anywhere with a cloud-based POS solution.
- Integrated Reporting: Create customized reports to track the data and trends that matter to your business with reports that integrate with your POS system data.
- App Integration: Clover offers a connection to several third-party applications, including QuickBooks, Gusto Payroll, and more.
- Customer Feedback: Track customer interactions and obtain feedback on performance and customer satisfaction for valuable insights into your customers' impression of your business.
Pricing: Starting at $69/month (plus processing fees).
What Clover Users Love
“I like that it walks you through each step and will let you know if you filled out a part incorrectly. I also like that it will show you what card you are using (Visa, Amex, etc.). I like all the options for how you can send a receipt. I usually email it to myself and will forward it to the homeowner. It makes it easier to accept payments over the phone if you are not currently set up to take online payments.” - G2 Reviewer
“I like all the app options and how everything is right on the register and connects to each other. I love how quick the operating system is. For example, when using as a register, orders can be taken very quickly.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 3.8
3. Square for Retail
Square offers retail POS software solutions for any size business. Commonly known for its portable card readers (used by individuals and small startup stores), Square also offers solutions for larger-scale stores and chains.
Key Features
Some key features Square customers love include:
- Stock Forecasting: Automated reordering recommendations will ensure you don’t struggle with out-of-stocks on popular items.
- Quick Item Search: Search for items directly at checkout to prevent missing barcodes or other complications from slowing down the checkout process.
- Cross-Location Returns: Stores with multiple locations can enable a customer to easily return an item at one store, even if they purchased that item at another location.
- Instagram Integration: Integrate directly with Instagram, enabling customers to make purchases directly from your Instagram page. If your customer base is present on Instagram, this can be a bonus to increase convenience and sales.
Pricing: Free Plan (plus processing fees), Plus Plan is $60/month (plus processing fees), Premium Plan is custom priced.
What Square Users Love
“We have been using Square for a very long time. I have always found it to be very user-friendly. I really like the reports and the daily email of what we collected. If you use the entire system you will find that you can run a lot of your business with Square products.” - G2 Reviewer
“Square offers a mobile solution for offsite payment processing. Can be used with several devices for events and demos at locations outside the store.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 4.4
4. POS Nation for Retail
POS Nation offers a complete point of sale solution for your business. We pride ourselves on providing incredible customer support without hidden fees or long-term contracts.
POS Nation for Retail offers a simple-to-use, feature-packed retail POS software solution that is a great fit for any store, whether you have one location or multiple stores.
Key Features
Some key features POS Nation customers love include:
- Mobile Checkout: Mobile checkout functionality allows you to take tablets or wireless scanners out from behind the counter, driving sales and checking customers out from anywhere in the store.
- Case Break Inventory Tracking: Liquor, beer, and wine store owners benefit from this feature, automatically accounting for case breaks and allowing you to track inventory by case, bottle, or six-pack.
- Role-Based Permissions: Minimize shrink and keep data secure by restricting permissions based on employee roles.
- Customer Rewards and Loyalty Programs: Analyze purchase patterns of regular customers, provide loyalty rewards, and more.
- Mobile Reporting Dashboards: Access key data about your store’s performance from anywhere with mobile reporting dashboards.
Pricing: Starting at $99/month with access to POS software, touch PC, receipt printer, scanner, cash drawer, and chip reader. POS Nation comes backed with 24/7 support and a lifetime warranty.
What POS Nation Users Love
“Using the POS system is quicker and more efficient than let's say writing a customer's order on a piece of paper and handing it to the cooks. Also you are able to put orders on hold for 5 minutes which is great when you're trying to time a meal perfectly starting with appetizers and ending with dessert. As well as putting in to-go orders when they are ready to leave.” - G2 Reviewer
“I like the POS system because it is a touchscreen and fairly easy to navigate. Everything is sectioned off into categories and pages and you are able to scroll through and find what you need to find. It seems to be updated every now and then but not that often.” - G2 Reviewer
“"Our Customer Success Manager helped us with onboarding and training, and we were up and running in a matter of days. The software helps us track inventory and issue purchase orders to our vendors."” - POS Nation User
Overall G2 Rating: 4.7
5. Shopify POS
Shopify is commonly known as an e-commerce brand, but Shopify POS offers in-store retail POS solutions as well. Shopify also lists options for marketing solutions on its website.
Key Features
Some key features Shopify POS customers love include:
- Browse In-Store, Buy Online: Enable customers to purchase or repurchase easily online after finding an item in-store. Order different sizes or styles to mail to customers directly from the POS.
- Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store: Customers can shop online and pick up their item same-day in-store. This also allows you to upsell the customer when they arrive to pick up their purchase.
- Marketing Integration: Track customer details and use this data to create targeted marketing campaigns, sales, and other promotions.
- Custom Staff Permissions: Tailor staff permissions to prevent certain roles or staff members from accessing data irrelevant to their position.
Pricing: Starting at $1/month for the Basic Plan, $49/month for the Shopify Plan, and $299/month for the Advanced Plan.
What Shopify Users Love
“Shopify POS was the easiest setup I have done for my business. The integration from my e-commerce store to the easy conversion to the POS was done easily on the app and on the go! The ability to create a custom order and customer profiles, that you can add card info manually, and that you can text email, or print receipt.” - G2 Reviewer
“Shopify POS makes it SO easy to take sales at a brick-and-mortar location or even a pop-up shop. We use it for traveling locations when we go to fairs or artist events. It makes it super easy for us to take payments of all types and stay up to date on inventory.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 4.4
6. Vend by Lightspeed
Lightspeed recently acquired Vend HQ. Vend by Lightspeed offers simple-to-use software designed to help optimize retail operations. Vend offers solutions designed for multi-store operations.
Key Features
Some key features Vend customers love include:
- Offline Capabilities: Continue processing payments even if your internet connection goes offline. Sales will resync with your inventory system once you are back online.
- Search Engine Optimization: Tag products and image files with SEO-friendly keywords to better integrate with your webstore’s search optimization efforts.
- Split Payments: Let customers use multiple payment types for a single transaction by splitting bills into two or more payments.
- Duplicate Products: Easily create product variations by duplicating items and making slight changes to the duplicate record.
Pricing: Starting at $69/month.
What Vend Users Love
Vend by Lightspeed is new enough (under its new parent company) not to have a presence on G2, but we have pulled some reviews from Trustpilot.
“I love the price of Vend! I love the ease of working it. I still have some things to learn lol lol even after working with it since 2015 but time will teach me! I am so happy with all that Vend has to offer and I pray that it stays the same since it was purchased by a different company.” - Trustpilot Reviewer
“Easy to sell, add products, and manage inventory at a reasonable monthly price for a small business.” - Trustpilot Reviewer
Overall Trustpilot Rating: 2.7
7. Revel Systems
Revel Systems is designed for small businesses. An iPad POS solution, Revel Systems is cloud-based and accessible from anywhere. They offer solutions for coffee shops, restaurants, and pizza shops in addition to retail.
Key Features
Some key features Revel Systems customers love include:
- Payment Flexibility: Accept multiple payment types like credit cards, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and more.
- Detailed Analytics: Access daily sales reports, inventory updates, suggested employee scheduling reports, and more to streamline your business operations.
- Delivery Optimization: Use real-time tracking and delivery route optimization to enable efficient delivery services.
Pricing: Starting at $99/month.
What Revel Systems Users Love
“Revel POS is a turnkey system with a straightforward dashboard and intuitive back office.” - G2 Reviewer
“The system was very easy to integrate into our POS system. In the main dashboard we see all open invoices and the corresponding payments. The adaptation for tablets works perfectly and the connection to the payment service provider always works without problems.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 4.2
8. Epos Now
Epos Now is a UK-based POS software provider. They offer solutions for retail and hospitality, including solutions for restaurants, cafes, and bakeries. Epos Now’s retail solutions are listed on their website as an all-in-one POS solution for small businesses.
Key Features
Some key features Epos Now customers love include:
- Omnichannel Store Management: Manage multiple locations and your webstore from one dashboard to increase consistency across all your stores.
- Real-Time Stock Updates: Keep your finger on the pulse of your inventory processes by seeing stock updates in real time.
- Product Bundling: Bundle related products to sell more items and encourage higher-value sales.
Pricing: Starting at $39/month.
What Epos Now Users Love
“I like the interface of Epos which makes it easy to navigate. I also like how it gives me a report of the information I want to get from it. it is a very reliable retail tool.” - G2 Reviewer
“The system is simple enough for retail employees to use as a POS, and sophisticated enough to collect customer information and real data that can be used for customer attribution. We connect ours to our CRM and track who has actually come into purchase out of our leads.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 3.9
9. Rain POS
Rain POS targets businesses of all sizes, offering fully integrated retail POS software solutions that update in real time between your online store and your on-site locations.
Key Features
Some key features Rain POS customers love include:
- Inventory Management: Maintain control over your inventory by tracking current stock, trends, and more, enabling you to prevent your store from running out of stock.
- Customer Tracking: Keep track of your customers’ purchasing habits and patterns, allowing you to market promotions directly to the customers most likely interested in those sales.
- Text Marketing: Target customers directly on their mobile phones using text marketing solutions.
Pricing: Contact for pricing
What Rain POS Users Love
“Really quick support, Reverb.com integration and the fact it is very streamlined, our day is already a busy mess lol so the POS to be so well organized allows us to be as efficient as possible.” - G2 Reviewer
“I like the fact that our inventory is connected between our online store and brick-and-mortar store. I also like how easy the system is to use.” - G2 Reviewer
Overall G2 Rating: 4.3
Your Next Steps in Finding the Right Retail POS Software
This guide should give you the knowledge you need to compare your retail POS software options. Knowing each platform's strengths, features, and benefits is one thing, but understanding what solution you really need for your business can be a different challenge altogether. How can you ensure you're making the right decision for your business?
Step 1: Check out our free resource, the Retail POS System Buyers’ Guide.
This guide will cover all the bases and help you determine your specific needs and desired features.
Step 2: Schedule a demo.
During the demo, you’ll have the opportunity to see POS Nation’s retail solution in action. You can ask questions during the demo, and get all the information you need to determine if POS Nation is the right solution for your store.
Step 3: Use our Build and Price tool to find your perfect retail POS software and hardware combination.
You’ll gain a full understanding of the cost of your solution before you commit.
