7 Best Grocery Store POS Systems of May 2025

• IT Retail: Best overall grocery store POS system. 
• Square: Best for smaller grocery stores with simple POS needs.
• Clover: Best for dependable, well-designed hardware.

Full details: Best grocery store POS systems

How to choose a grocery store POS system

• Pricing: Think about monthly software fees and upfront hardware costs. Grocery store POS plans can be anywhere from $0 per month to more than $100 per month, and full countertop hardware setups typically cost at least $300. Monthly financing may be available and can help spread that cost out. 
• Payment processing: Consider whether you want a POS system provider that doubles as a credit card processing company or prefer to integrate your grocery store POS system with a third-party processor. Regardless, payment processing fees are inevitable. You can use NerdWallet’s payment processing calculator to estimate your processing costs. 
• Ease of use: Your grocery store POS system should let employees quickly clock in and out, ring up customers and accept returns. This is especially important during peak hours when your grocery store is busiest. 
• Contract length: Some POS systems require you to sign a one-year or longer contract to receive the best pricing. Don’t hesitate to ask for a trial or demo before doing so. 
• Integrations: At the very least, your grocery store POS system should integrate with your accounting software so that it’s able to collect sales data and run reports. You may also want the ability to integrate a customer loyalty program or coupon system. 
• Extra costs: Don’t forget to ask about extra costs for things like PCI compliance, hardware setup and chargebacks. 

• Comprehensive inventory tracking: Grocery stores deal with huge amounts of inventory — and rapid turnover of that inventory. A good grocery store POS system helps track how much of each unit you sell and how much you have shelved. You might also want this to sync across several locations if you have more than one store.
• Thorough sales reporting: The best grocery store POS systems offer zoomed-out sales analytics. Be sure the sales reporting features for the POS system meet your specific needs.
• Employee permissions: You’ll likely want a POS system with customizable employee permissions. That way, different people have different levels of access to POS capabilities. Consider whether you also want employee theft notifications.
• Receipt options: Good grocery store POS systems give customers a choice between digital and physical receipts, meaning they can print, text or email receipts.
• Special sales capabilities: Your store may accept EBT cards and/or participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, or WIC. Or perhaps you plan to sell lottery tickets or regulated items such as liquor and tobacco products. A POS system that includes features related to these sales types will expand your store options.

• Scale: If you sell anything that's priced by weight, then a POS scale is a must for your business — bonus points if you’re able to find a POS scale that has a barcode scanner for produce labels.
• Barcode scanner: Being able to easily and efficiently ring up customers will make everyone happier. Plus, printing barcode labels that you can scan will make managing your inventory that much more automated.
• Card reader: Card readers can make or break your checkout process. Be sure that your card reader offers all of the payment options your customers want (e.g., magstripe, chip, contactless) and that it works efficiently.

• PIN keypad: Whether on a physical keypad or on the screen of a smart device, a PIN verification should be an option that your grocery store POS system offers customers.
• Cash drawer: Even though cash-paying customers are getting rarer, you’ll definitely need a cash drawer to store whatever cash you and your employees handle when operating your grocery store POS system.
• Receipt printer: Finally, you also want your grocery store POS system to provide your customers with receipt options. If you think your customers will prefer physical receipts over digital receipts, then you’ll need a receipt printer.