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The best point-of-sale (POS) systems do more than process transactions. These systems can also streamline your daily workflow by combining tools such as employee scheduling, customer loyalty programs and inventory tracking into one sleek platform. Granted, choosing the right system can be a challenge. That’s why we analyzed leading providers across 40 metrics to bring you this list of the best POS systems for small business in 2024. Android All-In-One Pc
Versatile POS, invoicing, employee management
Inventory management, custom reporting, advanced cashier functionality, accounting integrations
The Forbes Advisor Small Business team is committed to bringing you unbiased rankings and information with full editorial independence. We use product data, strategic methodologies and expert insights from hands-on testing to inform all of our content to guide you in making the best decisions for your business journey.
Read More: How We Test POS Systems
$29 per month (plus processing fees)
Easy to use, free reader, create customer loyalty programs
Free $29 per month (plus processing fees)
$29 per month (plus processing fees)
Easy to use, free reader, create customer loyalty programs
Easy to use, free reader, create customer loyalty programs
Square POS is a great option for businesses that are on a budget because it has no monthly fee and it comes with a free card reader. Users simply pay the reasonable processing fee of 2.6% plus 10 cents per transaction. Affordability and value aside, what I like about it is that it is one of the most user-friendly POS systems. It’s simple to operate and requires very little training to get started.
“Square’s POS is a breeze to use and goes wherever you go. It’s the go-to for anyone from market vendors to small shop owners,” shared Jeff Luna, our advisory board member.
Take payments in person, over the internet, by phone or at the farmer’s market. Collecting leads, marketing via email or text, and creating customer loyalty are also possible with this point-of-sale system. This software is perfect for businesses that want to expand their selling beyond a physical location because it easily integrates with Instagram and Facebook, all while managing your entire business from one place.
What I really like about Square—and why I find that it’s one of the most versatile POS systems on the market—is that it is very customizable thanks to its long list of helpful add-ons and extras. These enable businesses to reduce the number of different software systems they need to use (and buy), which helps streamline operations.
Here are the most popular Square POS add-ons:
Square makes it very easy and affordable to get started, with zero set-up fees and no monthly fee to use its core POS system. Users simply pay processing fees on a per-transaction basis, and while its fees are not the most competitive, I find it unique in that it doesn’t have a monthly fee. This makes it a particularly good choice for those who are just starting out and may not have a high or consistent monthly sales volume.
Square is a well-recognized and well-rated POS system that is notorious for its ease of use, versatility and affordability. It has a four out of five-star rating on Trustpilot from over 4,400 users—of which 84% gave it a 5-star rating. Users frequently note that they like the initial affordability without a subscription fee and a free card reader, but that as they grow, it gets expensive, given that its transaction fees are not as competitive as others, such as Zettle by PayPal.
Businesses on a budget that need an easy-to-use and highly versatile POS system with no monthly fees.
Learn More: Read our Square POS Review.
$14.95 per month for a virtual terminal
Versatile POS, invoicing, employee management
$14.95 per month for a virtual terminal
$14.95 per month for a virtual terminal
Versatile POS, invoicing, employee management
Versatile POS, invoicing, employee management
Clover offers a wide range of plans and pricing options to meet a large range of business needs—particularly those in retail, food service and the service industries. This is thanks to its inclusion of industry-specific features such as order and table management, menu management, kitchen printers, online ordering, invoicing (including recurring payments), automated client notifications, customer engagement, payroll and employee management. Granted, while its subscriptions are competitively priced, its hardware is on the expensive side—though I find that its products are high quality, offering a good value for price.
Jeff Luna, our advisory board member, adds: “Clover has many features that make it great for both restaurants and retail shops. It’s packed with features and adapts easily to whatever you need.”
As a feature-rich POS, Clover offers all of the key features you would expect, such as the ability to seamlessly accept payments in a variety of ways, invoicing, sales tracking, sales reporting, order and inventory management, employee management and cash flow services (e.g., rapid deposits and cash advances on future credit card sales).
However, I think one of the biggest benefits of Clover—beyond its industry-specific features—is its integrations. There are hundreds of software apps available in the Clover App Market that can manage various aspects of a business. These apps integrate seamlessly with Clover devices, making it easy for businesses to get started while making it a very comprehensive and versatile POS.
In addition to all of its core features, Clover also has a couple of add-ons to further expand the capabilities of its POS system.
Here’s what Clover offers as add-ons:
Additionally, Clover offers one of the largest varieties of hardware, including weight scales (e.g., for grocery stores), barcode scanners for retail businesses and kitchen printers for restaurants. So while these are not necessarily extras, they are extra options compared to many POS systems.
As a leading POS, Clover is a popular choice for businesses seeking a robust retail or service POS system with nearly 10 million users worldwide. With such a large user base, it, not surprisingly, has mixed user reviews on third-party sites such as Trustpilot and G2. While more than half of users gave it a perfect 5-star rating on Trustpilot, it has an oddly high number of 1-star reviews, illustrating the vast differences in opinion.
Clover is a good point-of-sale system for businesses of all sizes. Its wide range of features and integrations make it a versatile solution that can be tailored to fit the needs of any business.
Learn More: Read our Clover POS Review.
$5 per month to sell in-person, or $39 per month for in-person and online
Omnichannel selling, inventory management, customer profiles
$5 per month to sell in-person, or $39 per month for in-person and online
$5 per month to sell in-person, or $39 per month for in-person and online
Omnichannel selling, inventory management, customer profiles
Omnichannel selling, inventory management, customer profiles
Shopify POS is a popular omni-channel point-of-sale software used by businesses of a variety of sizes. It is fully integrated with Shopify’s other tools and services, making it a go-to POS system for e-commerce businesses using Shopify to host their online store. While it’s not the most competitively priced POS with higher-than-average transaction fees at 2.9% plus 30 cents for online transactions and a staggering 5% plus 30 cents for in-person transactions, I do find that it is the easiest way for a Shopify user to integrate a POS and sell both in-person and online.
“Their POS ties in with any online store so you can manage everything from one spot. Perfect if you’re juggling online and in-person sales,” shares Jeff Luna, our advisory board member.
The Shopify POS offers a wide range of features, including payment processing software and hardware such as mobile card readers and handheld POS terminals. Its hardware is sleek and easy to use, and it has a wide variety of options. For example, it has countertop registers like Square and Lightspeed POS and restaurant and retail hardware such as barcode scanners, scales or kitchen printers like Clover.
Additionally, all Shopify POS plans include:
While Shopify POS does not sell add-ons, it does offer a few additional features with its higher-tier plans, which largely center around businesses with multiple retail locations—each with their own inventory and staff. For example, if users upgrade from the Starter plan ($5 per month) to the Retail plan ($60 per month), it provides unlimited POS logins and discounted transaction fees.
While Shopify may be best known as a leading e-commerce platform that helps businesses easily build online stores and sell products online, its POS system is lesser-known. However, those who know it and have used it have found that it offers the same high-quality software solutions users have come to know and love from the company. Users appreciate its seamless integration with Shopify stores and its vast capabilities, meeting the needs of a variety of industries, from small boutiques to franchises.
Shopify POS is a solid choice for retailers looking for a comprehensive point-of-sale solution.
Learn More: Read our Shopify POS Review.
2.6% plus 10-cent processing fee, dedicated account manager, integrated payments
2.6% plus 10-cent processing fee, dedicated account manager, integrated payments
2.6% plus 10-cent processing fee, dedicated account manager, integrated payments
Lightspeed POS offers a point-of-sale system that is both easy to use and scalable, making it a great choice for businesses of all sizes. The system is EMV-compatible and PCI-compliant, ensuring that your customers’ data is protected. Lightspeed also offers inventory management and reporting features, allowing you to keep track of your sales and profits in real time. However, where I find it stands out the most is in its inclusion of a dedicated account manager and a free register with all plans, making it a good value for price—despite its higher-than-average price tag.
Built to meet the needs of brick-and-mortar retailers, Lightspeed POS is a comprehensive POS system with various features to help businesses easily process payments and manage transactions. All plans uniquely include a free register, a dedicated account manager, free onboarding and 24/7 support.
It also has built-in membership and subscription tools, making it easy for businesses to keep their customers engaged and coming back for more. You can offer exclusive deals and discounts to members, as well as monthly boxes filled with their favorite products. The system has secure automated recurring payments that make it a breeze to manage all your memberships and subscriptions.
Jeff Luna, our advisory board member, adds: “Lightspeed has lots of inventory tools. If you’ve got lots of products and need to track them all, this may be the best bet.”
Lightspeed offers two main extras. First, extra locations, and second, extra registers. Businesses are able to easily build out the system that suits their needs from the Lightspeed website, and I have to say that I appreciate its straightforward and transparent pricing.
Pricing for One Location (Billed Annually)
Pricing for Two Location (Billed Annually)
Pricing for Three Location (Billed Annually)
Though Lightspeed may not be the biggest name in the industry, it does have a solid reputation amongst its users. It has a high 4.5 out of 5-star rating on Trustpilot from nearly 2,000 users, of which nearly 80% gave it a perfect rating. Users frequently note that they like how easy it is to use, that its support is helpful and that it is quick to set up.
Businesses that want a quick setup and a customer loyalty program should consider Lightspeed POS.
Unlimited transactions, pre-authorization, cash discount, tip management
Free; $10 per month (billed annually)
Unlimited transactions, pre-authorization, cash discount, tip management
Unlimited transactions, pre-authorization, cash discount, tip management
The eHopper POS system is perfect for small businesses with multiple sales channels. I found its free plan is surprisingly feature-rich, including unlimited transactions and products, inventory management, customer management and a host of unique features designed for the food service industry, such as table management, ingredients management, menu builder and more. In my opinion, it’s one of the most robust free POS systems on the market, making it a good choice for businesses on a budget and those in the food service industry seeking a low-cost, high-value POS.
When it comes to features, eHopper POS boasts a number of key and unique offerings, such as zero processing fees, unlimited products, customer loyalty programs, inventory management, customer management and a slew of restaurant-specific features.
Here are the general features of eHopper POS:
While eHopper POS offers a long list of features, it’s worth noting that it does not offer gift cards like Square or Shopify POS, a wide variety of terminals like Clover or invoicing like Strip or Square.
For additional features, users are limited to upgrading their plan as eHopper does not offer add-on features á la carte as some other POS systems do, such as Square, which offers a long list of add-ons including payroll, email marketing and invoicing.
Daniel Meursing, the CEO of Premier Staff, has used eHopper at his company and shared his thoughts with us:
“One of the standout features of eHopper POS is its intuitive interface. Even our most technologically challenged staff members were able to pick it up quickly, which was a huge relief during high-pressure events. The system’s ease of use meant that we could train new hires rapidly, without sacrificing the quality of our service. … The system’s real-time inventory tracking and sales reporting features have been invaluable in helping us make data-driven decisions and optimize our operations. We’ve been able to identify top-selling products, monitor staff performance and even predict future demand based on historical sales data.”
Users widely revere eHopper as a solid POS system—particularly for its ease of use, value for money and long list of features. Over on Capterra, it has a 4.2 out of 5-star rating. However, it has a very small number of reviewers—less than 100. Granted, the majority of users rave about how user-friendly it is, even for those who are not very tech-savvy, and many comment that its inventory management system is high quality compared to other solutions.
Businesses that sell in store, online and through marketplaces such as Facebook and Instagram will find the best value in eHopper’s OmniChannel plan.
Learn More: Read our eHopper POS Review.
Quote-based, starts around $99 per month
Next-business-day payments, email marketing, loyalty
Quote-based, starts around $99 per month
Quote-based, starts around $99 per month
Next-business-day payments, email marketing, loyalty
Next-business-day payments, email marketing, loyalty
Formerly known as NCR Silver, Aloha is a cloud-based POS system for restaurants. It helps manage the front and back of house, retain and grow your customer base and gives you actionable insights into your business. In terms of pricing, it unfortunately recently changed from offering transparency with plans—including a free plan. It is now custom-quoted, which I don’t like. Budget-strapped restaurants looking for a free restaurant POS should consider eHopper instead. However, Aloha is one of the most popular POS systems in the restaurant industry thanks to its advanced, industry-specific features, such as routing based on cook times.
“Aloha is common among bars and restaurants. Lots of cool features for everything from taking orders to scheduling shifts,” adds Jeff Luna, our advisory board member.
Aloha POS stands out for its cloud-based, feature-rich restaurant POS system. It’s designed to meet the needs of restaurants and bars with industry-specific features, such as its POS system, customer loyalty, email marketing, table management, reservations management, online ordering, routing based on cook times, order status updates, food delivery tools and more.
However, while it offers a range of unique features, it has stiff competition among eHopper and Clover—both of which also offer industry-specific features for those in the food service industry. Personally, I find Clover to be the most modern and user-friendly, eHopper to be the best value for budget-strapped businesses and Aloha best for restaurants that value quick turnaround time for funds, built-in marketing tools and managing multiple sales channels (e.g., restaurant, bar, takeout, delivery).
Aloha offers a variety of software and tools, each with their own sets of features and inclusions. However, since it no longer offers pre-packaged plans and instead has custom-quoted plans based on a business’s need, it is no longer structured to have á la carte add-ons.
While Aloha once had transparent pricing with pre-packaged plans, pricing is now on a custom quote basis. For insight, plans start around $99 per month, but it can quickly increase depending on your needs and the number of tools you are looking for.
Aloha POS has a high user rating with a 4.7 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot from 500-plus reviewers. However, reviews center around support quality as opposed to the quality of the software. While it is a leading restaurant POS, it’s worth noting that its interface is dated, which I find detracts from the overall user experience.
Restaurants that want next-business-day access to their funds and a POS and advanced industry-specific tools, such as table management, routing based on cook times and order updates.
Learn more: Read our full Aloha Cloud review.
Inventory management, plans include one terminal, built-in CRM
Free; $39 per month (billed annually)
Inventory management, plans include one terminal, built-in CRM
Inventory management, plans include one terminal, built-in CRM
Erply stands out for its robust functionality, broad applicability, and of course, its free forever plan and low transaction fees starting at 2.2% plus 10 cents per transaction. With its tiered pricing, the platform is structured to cater to different retailers’ needs—from basic POS requirements for small shops to complex inventory systems for larger retailers. Aside from its helpful retail POS features, what I really like about it is its modern interface and the ease of integration with a variety of payment providers and the adaptability of its mobile app are key strengths, allowing businesses to operate seamlessly.
All Erply plans include one user account and POS terminal, limited access to its POS system, a built-in customer relationship management (CRM) system, reporting, email receipts and the ability to integrate payments with Shift4, Cayan, Adyen, Pax. Its free plan, as well as entry-level and mid-tier plans, have a net sales turnover limit of $25,000 per month.
For additional features, Erply’s premium packages come with advanced CRM and API access, supporting improved customer interaction and enabling better business automation. Additionally, the platform offers an impressive range of customization features and scalability, particularly advantageous for growing businesses. The capability to provide industry-specific solutions, demonstrated through its detailed POS and inventory management system, makes Erply a preferred choice for diverse business types.
Corin Dolan, Owner at AccuTech Communications, appreciates the inventory management function of Erply: “Erply stands out with its robust back-office and inventory management features, making it a suitable choice for businesses requiring stringent inventory tracking and data analytics. It serves well in environments where multiple product lines exist, and detailed reporting is crucial for decision-making.”
In addition to its retail POS, Erply offers a variety of other software solutions, such as warehouse management, accounting (Erply Books), analytics and forecasting and a service app (Repairkeep).
Erply has a 4.4 out of 5-star rating on Capterra from about 30 users. While this is a small pool of reviewers, they concur that it is easy to use and a good value for the money—especially its free and entry-level plans.
Erply is ideal for retail businesses seeking an affordable and user-friendly POS that offers the key features retailers need.
Learn More: Read our complete Erply POS Review.
In-house payment processing, kiosk and mobile orders, delivery orders, multi-location management
Custom quoted (per terminal, two-terminal minimum)
In-house payment processing, kiosk and mobile orders, delivery orders, multi-location management
In-house payment processing, kiosk and mobile orders, delivery orders, multi-location management
Revel Systems stands out for its versatility and robust features that are geared towards the hospitality sector. Its POS software is comprehensive, encompassing everything from intuitive point-of-sale functionality to employee management and customer relationship management. Revel is also highly adaptable to different order methods—traditional, kiosk, mobile and online—ensuring a seamless ordering experience for customers.
On the other hand, where it fails to shine is in its lack of accessibility for new users. Not only does it fail to provide transparent pricing, it doesn’t provide a full list of its features. Instead, users are forced into requesting a demo in order to obtain this basic information, which I personally find to be disrespectful of potential users’ time. What’s worse, I have found that support needs improvement, as its live chat is unresponsive and hundreds of online reviews note the same experience.
Revel Systems is a leader in multi-location management—all from within a single dashboard. In-house payment processing, coupled with support for diverse payment types, enhances the ease of transactions. Revel’s flat processing fee structure helps businesses manage their expenses more effectively. And when you pair it with its POS hardware rather than sourcing your own outside Revel, you know the software is compatible, which is crucial for high-traffic hospitality businesses.
Sarib Rehman, CEO of Flipcost, enjoys using Revel Systems for his company: “Its user-friendly, scalable interface supports our dynamic inventory needs particularly well. For instance, during a high-traffic sales event, Revel’s robust system allowed our team to manage inventory in real-time, avoiding potential stockouts and lost sales, which would have severely affected our revenue.”
In addition to its POS systems for small and large businesses, Revel Systems also offers a variety of software and tools. For example, it has a variety of ordering solutions—far beyond POS terminals, but with online ordering, delivery, drive-thru, and mobile orders. It also has back-office tools, such as kitchen and inventory management, as well as customer engagement tools, such as self-service kiosks and loyalty programs.
A downside of Revel Systems is that it does not publish its pricing. In fact, it doesn’t even give users a way of signing up for a plan without first signing up for a demo. However, from our previous experience with it, plans started around $99 per terminal per month—with a two terminal minimum.
Revels Systems has a very low average rating on Trustpilot of 1.8 out of 5 stars. Granted, about 50% of users gave it a five-star rating and another almost 20% gave it four out of five stars. Those who rated it poorly shared stories of poor service, surprise fees and charges, poor user experience and the need to frequently reboot the system.
Revel Systems is best suited for hospitality businesses, particularly those operating across multiple locations.
Learn more: Read our full Revel Systems review.
No transaction fees, API access, easy to use
No transaction fees, API access, easy to use
No transaction fees, API access, easy to use
KORONA POS stands out for its comprehensive offering that caters well to high-risk merchants. It provides an impressive feature set that includes e-commerce integration, employee time tracking, loyalty program integration, EMV and mobile payment options, retail inventory management tools and CRM capabilities. The system does not bind businesses with contracts or hidden fees and uniquely offers an unlimited free trial. Plans start at $59 per month, which is on the higher side, but I find that it’s one of the easiest POS systems on the market (alongside Square). Despite the price tag, it’s a good value for the price, given that it does not charge additional fees beyond its fixed monthly price.
All KORONA POS plans come standard with unlimited users and sales, an e-commerce store, a customizable dashboard, a product database that serves as a form of inventory management, sales promotions, gift cards, reporting and API access to further expand capabilities. And perhaps best of all, it does not charge any additional fees beyond its fixed monthly fee. Its mid-tier plan adds inventory counts, stock management, barcode automations, customer management, order automation and real-time tracking.
A distinct advantage of KORONA POS is its compatibility with high-risk merchant industries such as CBD, liquor, wine, dispensary and vape, which many other POS systems do not support due to the inherent risk. KORONA POS further supports scalability, making it an excellent choice for businesses looking to grow or manage multiple stores. Its 24/7 professional support ensures businesses receive help when needed.
Jeff Luna, our advisory board member, adds: “KORONA is a cloud-based platform, which is great for businesses that take payments via multiple locations and devices.”
For users that need additional features beyond its core POS offering, KORONA POS has a handful of add-ons users can purchase a la carte to expand functionality.
Additionally, KORONA POS also has an add-on for users that employ custom development with integrations for $45 per month per token. While I like that it is fully customizable with its open API, businesses that require a number of tokens will find that it will quickly become an expensive POS solution.
KORONA POS has a good reputation for being a user-friendly system that helps make running a business easier. It has a solid 4.3 out of 5-star rating on Trustpilot. What’s interesting is that unlike most companies that have a spread of ratings from one to five stars, KORONA is one of the only platforms of its kind that I have seen to have only four and five-star ratings.
KORONA POS is best suited for high-risk merchants who prefer a fixed monthly fee instead of transaction-based fees.
Learn more: Read our full KORONA POS review.
($29 for your first card reader)
No monthly fee, inventory management, daily performance reports
Free ($29 for your first card reader)
($29 for your first card reader)
No monthly fee, inventory management, daily performance reports
No monthly fee, inventory management, daily performance reports
PayPal POS, known as PayPal Zettle, charges no monthly fee. Instead, you’ll pay a per-transaction fee. These rates depend on how the transaction occurs, such as if it’s swiped or invoiced. Transaction fees start at 2.29% plus nine cents per transaction and go up to 3.49% plus 49 cents per transaction. With PayPal Zettle, your first card reader is $29, and any subsequent card readers are $79 each. Personally, I find that it’s one of the most well-designed POS systems in the market, with a very intuitive interface and well-thought-out details.
PayPal POS is a surprisingly feature-rich POS. I say that because, on first blush, it appears very simplistic. However, under the surface, it offers a solid range of features and tools, such as inventory management, staff management with scheduling, product tracking, sorting sales by date or employee and more. In terms of general POS features, it enables users to accept payments in a variety of ways, including using the mobile app, which instantly turns a phone into a payment device, card readers, terminals and full hardware kits designed for stores of various sizes.
Sarib Rehman, CEO of Flipcost, shared with us how PayPal has been useful for his business: “Regarding PayPal POS, its strength lies in its simplicity and brand recognition, which directly elevates customer trust and transaction ease. In our operations, we implemented PayPal POS during pop-up shop events, enabling swift and secure transactions. Its mobile compatibility was a game-changer, allowing us to conduct transactions smoothly from various locations without the need for bulky hardware setups. This flexibility enhanced our customer service, contributing to a better shopping experience and repeat customers.”
Though PayPal POS does not have paid add-ons, it does offer accessories to help businesses further expand and support their hardware. For example, the following accessories are available for purchase:
What’s nice about PayPal POS is that it does not charge a monthly membership fee to use it. Instead, users simply buy the hardware they need and pay transaction fees for any transactions processed.
PayPal is best known as a pioneer in digital payment processing and less so for its POS software. However, it is widely revered as top-notch software that is not only well-designed with intuitive features but reliable and secure.
Businesses that want to pay a per-transaction fee rather than a monthly fee
22 Inch Open Frame Touch Monitor Read More: Read our complete PayPal POS Review.