Inventory management is a crucial part of successful business operations. It can impact everything from customer satisfaction to profit and losses. For inventory-heavy businesses like retailers or restaurants, a point-of-sale system with strong inventory management capabilities can help maximize your profits, and eventually help your business grow. Here are our top picks.
Best Inventory POS Systems
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Input your business’s monthly transaction details and we’ll help you sort from the best valueProduct | Cost Estimate | Payment processing fees | Cost Estimate | Learn more | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Square POS Learn more on Square POS's secure website | Get an estimated monthly cost for your business. | 5.0/5 Best for Overall option | In-person: 2.6% + $0.10 Online: 2.9% + $0.30 | $0.00 and up. | Get an estimated monthly cost for your business. | Learn more on Square POS's secure website |
Shopify Retail POS Learn more on Shopify POS's secure website | 4.5/5 Best for Shopify e-commerce users | In-person: 2.6% + $0.10 Online: 2.9% + $0.30 | $39.00 and up for e-commerce plans with POS Lite; Can upgrade to POS Pro for an extra $89. | Learn more on Shopify POS's secure website | ||
Lightspeed Retail POS Learn more on Lightspeed Retail POS's secure website | 3.5/5 Best for Retailers | In-person: 2.6% + $0.10 Online: 2.9% + $0.30 | $89.00 for Lean plan, $149 for Standard plan, $269 for Advanced plan. | Learn more on Lightspeed Retail POS's secure website | ||
Revel Systems | Best for Well-established restaurants | N/A | $198.00 and up. | |||
Hike POS | Best for Customizable POS system | N/A | $69.00 $69 Essential plan; $119 Plus. Custom plan available. |
Our pick for
Overall option
Square POS
Learn more
on Square POS's secure website
Monthly fee
$0.00
and up.
Square is one of a few in the space that offers a free version of its POS system. Even the free version comes with a long list of features and functionality, including sales tracking and reporting, offline mode for accepting payments without a Wi-Fi connection and a customizable interface. It’s a strong choice for businesses that don’t require specialized or advanced POS features.Read full review
Pros
- Free plan option available.
- Offers helpful related services, like payroll, that integrate closely with its POS system.
- No long-term contracts or termination fees.
- All plans include a free online store.
Cons
- Can’t run on Windows devices.
- Complex industries might prefer a more specialized system.
Our pick for
Shopify e-commerce users
Shopify Retail POS
Learn more
on Shopify POS's secure website
Monthly fee
$39.00
and up for e-commerce plans with POS Lite; Can upgrade to POS Pro for an extra $89.
Shopify POS syncs directly with the Shopify e-commerce platform. However, Shopify does not offer free POS software, and the platform is retail-focused.Read full review
Pros
- No long-term contracts or termination fees.
- All plans include an online store.
- Built specifically for online sellers.
- 24/7 chat support.
Cons
- No free plan options.
- Cannot process cards in offline mode.
Our pick for
Retailers
Lightspeed Retail POS
Learn more
on Lightspeed Retail POS's secure website
Monthly fee
$89.00
for Lean plan, $149 for Standard plan, $269 for Advanced plan.
Lightspeed Retail is a cloud-based POS system for retailers. It has strong inventory management capabilities and is a good match for more established small businesses with multiple locations. Newer small businesses with less complicated operations could be better served with a simpler, less expensive product.Read full review
Pros
- Includes detailed inventory management tools for creating product variants.
- Free one-on-one onboarding session for all new merchants.
- 24/7 phone and live chat support.
- Generate unlimited barcode labels.
Cons
- No free plan options.
- Lowest-tier plan doesn’t include e-commerce features.
- Charges termination fee and may require annual contract.
- Does not include a virtual terminal or offline mode.
Our pick for
Well-established restaurants
Revel Systems
Payment processing fees
N/A
Monthly fee
$198.00
and up.
Revel offers iPad-based POS systems along with a wide variety of hardware, including stands and self-service kiosks. Revel’s extensive list of POS features may best serve larger establishments with multiple locations, especially given the higher price point of the company’s software. Revel also offers setup and installation help as well as training and onboarding services, at an additional cost.Read full review
Pros
- Cloud-based platform makes it easier to manage across multiple store locations.
- Extensive list of tools and features.
- Can configure to suit many business types and sizes.
- 24/7 customer support.
Cons
- Lack of pricing transparency.
- Requires a three-year contract.
Our pick for
Customizable POS system
Hike POS
Payment processing fees
N/A
Monthly fee
$69.00
$69 Essential plan; $119 Plus. Custom plan available.
Hike offers a highly customizable and cost-effective POS system with strong inventory management capabilities. With the flexibility in monthly plans and external hardware and payment processors, it’s a good middle-ground option for newer or scaling businesses.
Pros
- Customizable with third-party hardware and payment processors.
- 24/7 live customer support.
- No contract, cancel any time with no penalty.
Cons
- Most key features are only available on the second tier plus plan.
- Quote-based pricing for the highest tier makes it hard to compare pricing.
Best Inventory POS Systems
Square
Our pick for: Best overall option
Monthly POS software fee:
- $0 for Square POS, Restaurant, Retail and Appointments Free plans.
- $29 for Square Appointments Plus plan.
- $60 for Square Restaurant Plus plan.
- $69 for Square Appointments Premium plan.
- $89 for Square Retail Plus plan.
- $192 and up for Square Restaurant Essentials Bundle.
- Custom pricing for Square Retail Premium plan.
Hardware cost:
- $0 for Square magstripe-only card reader ($10 for each additional reader) or if using Tap to Pay for iPhone (iPhone not included).
- $49 and up for Square Reader contactless and chip card reader.
- $149 for Square Stand iPad POS or Square Stand Mount (iPad not included; monthly financing available).
- $299 for Square Terminal mobile card reader with built-in printer (monthly financing available).
- $799 for Square Register two-screen system (monthly financing available).
Payment processing cost:
- 2.6% plus 10 cents for in-person transactions.
- 2.9% plus 30 cents for online transactions.
- 3.5% plus 15 cents for manually keyed transactions.
- 3.3% plus 30 cents for invoices.
Why we like it: Square is one of the most recognizable and well-established POS systems for small businesses. It offers a variety of plans — including select inventory management features with the free monthly plan — making it a good all-around option for newer and established businesses as well as businesses looking to scale. If you want to reap the benefits of all the inventory management capabilities, you’ll need to upgrade to the Plus plan, which allows you to manage and transfer stock across locations, create and print custom labels, reorder items from your POS and more. One standout feature is the automation. Not only does Square alert you when items are low, it can generate purchase orders and send them to you for approval based on stock numbers and sales forecasting. Read our full Square POS review.
>>MORE: Best free inventory software
Lightspeed for Retail
Our pick for: Retailers
Monthly POS software fee:
- $89 for Lean plan ($69 if billed annually).
- $149 for Standard plan ($119 if billed annually).
- $269 for Advanced plan ($199 if billed annually).
Hardware cost:
Pricing for Lightspeed's iPad and desktop hardware kits is quote-based. Individual hardware products are listed in Lightspeed's online store:
- $99 for Chipper 2X BT card reader.
- $199 for iPad stand or swivel stand.
- $299 for WisePOS E countertop reader.
- $429 for Lightspeed Lite Server for data backup and offline mode functionality.
Payment processing cost:
- 2.6% plus 10 cents per in-person transaction.
- 2.9% plus 30 cents for online transactions.
Why we like it: Lightspeed’s highly regarded feature is its inventory management, which is particularly clean and attuned to retailers because of its detail in tracking specific products. The system differentiates between standard product entries, product variants like candles that come in a variety of scents or shirts that come in multiple colors. There is also a category for composite products, which are purchasing options that package several different items together, like a gift basket. The system also allows you to manage inventory across locations and generate your own custom barcodes. Like Square, you can set low-stock alerts and order more products directly from your POS. Read our full Lightspeed POS review.
Hike POS
Our pick for: Customizable POS system
Monthly POS software fee: The following prices are based on a single location. You can visit the Hike website to see pricing for your custom number of locations.
- $69/month for Essential plan ($59 if billed annually).
- $119/month for Plus plan ($99 if billed annually).
- Custom pricing for Enterprise plan.
Hardware cost: Hike does not offer its own hardware, but its software is compatible with various products including iPads and PCs (via the app), all listed on the website.
Payment processing cost: Similar to the hardware, Hike lets you integrate with external payment processors, so the cost will depend on which payment processor you use. There are no built-in fees through Hike.
Why we like it: Hike offers a highly customizable POS system with strong inventory management capabilities that are comparable to Square and Lightspeed, such as bulk inventory importing and exporting and product variant availability. You can enter an unlimited number of products, as well. Its pricing is transparent, and you can integrate with hardware and payment processing that’s affordable or hardware that you already own. The downside is that you have to pay attention to how much those external hardware and payment processing expenses are — you might end up spending more than a system with an all-in-one price. With Hike, you can change or downgrade your plan at any time with no penalty, and you have access to 24/7 live customer support.
Toast
Our pick for: Small restaurants and cafes
Monthly POS software fee:
- $0 for Quick Start Bundle.
- $69 for Core plan.
- $110 plus $4 per employee for Restaurant Basics plan.
- $165 for Growth plan.
- Custom plans available.
Hardware cost:
- $799.20 for Handheld Starter Kit (but $0 if you agree to a higher processing fee).
- $1,024.20 for Countertop Starter Kit (but $0 if you agree to a higher processing fee).
- $1,339.20 for Guest Self-Service Starter Kit (but $0 if you agree to a higher processing fee).
Payment processing cost:
- 3.09% plus 15 cents per transaction, if you choose pay-as-you-go option on hardware.
- 2.49% plus 15 cents for card-present transactions, if you pay for hardware upfront.
- 3.50% plus 15 cents for card-not-present transactions, if you pay for hardware upfront.
Why we like it: Toast offers a POS system that was built specifically with restaurants in mind. Toast is accessible across multiple locations, and updates inventory according to live sales data, which is helpful for restaurants keeping ingredients stocked. Toast also stands out because of its pickup and delivery options and its integrated custom hardware options, like the self-serve kiosks and kitchen display systems, all of which help a restaurant run more efficiently. Read our full Toast POS review.
>>MORE: Best restaurant POS systems
Revel
Our pick for: Well-established restaurants
Monthly POS software fee: $198 a month and up. Revel advertises a software price of $99 per month per terminal, but fine print specifies a two-terminal minimum and three-year contract to receive this rate.
Hardware cost: Quote-based
Payment processing cost: Quote-based
Why we like it: Revel is a good option for well-established restaurant owners who are hands-on and managing multiple locations. It offers robust inventory management features that can be monitored through the mobile app. Revel’s multi-channel capability is also ideal for restaurants that are managing mobile orders, drive-thru and deliveries. The fact that they require a three-year contract may be a drawback for some. Read our full Revel POS review.
Shopify
Our pick for: Shopify e-commerce users
Monthly POS software fee:
Shopify e-commerce plans:
- $29 for Shopify Basic when billed annually (or $39 when paid monthly).
- $79 for regular Shopify when billed annually (or $105 when paid monthly).
- $299 for Shopify Advanced when billed annually (or $399 when paid monthly).
- Custom pricing for Shopify Plus.
- All e-commerce plans come with POS Lite for selling in-person. Upgrading to POS Pro for brick-and-mortar businesses costs an extra $89 per location.
Shopify’s alternative solutions for mainly selling in-person:
- $5 for Starter plan, which includes one POS Lite location.
- $79 (when billed annually) for Retail plan, or $89 when paid monthly; includes one POS Pro location.
Hardware cost:
- $49 for Tap & Chip card reader.
- $219 for Tap & Chip countertop kit (iPad not included).
- $299 for Shopify POS Go mobile device.
- $349 for Shopify POS terminal.
- $459 and up for POS terminal countertop kits.
Payment processing cost:
- 2.5%, 2.7% or 2.9% plus 30 cents for online payments for Advanced, Shopify or Basic plan, respectively.
- 2.4%, 2.5% or 2.6% plus 10 cents for in-person payments for Advanced, Shopify or Basic plan, respectively.
Why we like it: Comparable to Square and Toast, Shopify’s inventory management features allow you to order more inventory from your POS, set low stock alerts and access live sales data. With its more advanced plans, Shopify also offers robust reporting and analytics features that allow you to pull inventory data from any time frame and also compare data to previous time frames. In addition to typical month-end or end-of-quarter snapshots, you can pull analysis by specific product, day and more. These may be ideal features for more established businesses that are looking to dive deeper into their data, especially across multiple locations. Read our full Shopify POS review.
Last updated on August 21, 2023
Methodology
NerdWallet’s point-of-sale systems provider ratings reward companies whose products and services are priced well and work in a variety of payment scenarios, among other criteria. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including cost, system capabilities, contract requirements, customer service and integrations and add-ons. Learn more about how we rate point-of-sale (POS) systems providers.
These ratings are a guide, but services, hardware and pricing can vary widely from business to business and provider to provider. We encourage you to shop around and compare several providers.
NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.
