Retailers that specialize in liquor sales are by nature inventory-heavy and may come with specific and unique needs. Some point-of-sale, or POS, systems are tailor-made for liquor sales and include industry-specific features like ID scanning, beverage-specific attributes such as region of origin and individual item sales. However, many general POS systems come equipped with more than enough to run an efficient liquor store. When evaluating broader retail and grocery POS systems, look for robust inventory management, customer loyalty features and multichannel integration.
Here are some POS systems best suited for liquor stores.
Our Nerdy picks for
Well-established liquor stores
mPower BeverageOverall pick
POS NationBest Liquor Store 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 Retail POS Learn more on Square Retail POS's secure website | Get an estimated monthly cost for your business. | 5.0/5 Best for Free POS option | In-person: 2.6% + $0.10 Online: 2.9% + $0.30 | $0.00 Additional pricing tiers (per month): $89, custom. | Get an estimated monthly cost for your business. | Learn more on Square Retail POS's secure website |
Lightspeed Retail POS Learn more on Lightspeed Retail POS's secure website | 3.5/5 Best for Multiple stores | 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 | ||
mPower Beverage | Best for Well-established liquor stores | N/A | $120.00 for one register + one-time upfront fee of $1,000. Additional fees for each new register. | |||
POS Nation | Best for Overall liquor store POS system | N/A | $149.00 and up. | |||
IT Retail | 3.0/5 Best for Small liquor stores | N/A Quote-based. | $199.00 and up. |
Our pick for
Free POS option
Square Retail POS
Learn more
on Square Retail POS's secure website
Monthly fee
$0.00
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $89, custom.
Square offers a free and paid version of its POS software for retailers. Pricing is transparent, and no contract is required.
Pros
- Free software plan available.
- Built-in payment processing.
- Easy to set up and navigate.
- Clear and transparent pricing.
- Extensive list of features and add-ons.
Cons
- Not a great fit for larger retailers, especially those with high sales volumes.
- Doesn’t accept cross-border card payments.
Our pick for
Multiple stores
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 liquor stores
mPower Beverage
Payment processing fees
N/A
Monthly fee
$120.00
for one register + one-time upfront fee of $1,000. Additional fees for each new register.
MPower Beverage is a POS system that was built by liquor store owners with liquor store owners in mind. It’s on the pricier side, but you are paying for industry-specific inventory features like beverage attributes and ID scanning, plus hands-on customer service.
Pros
- Hands-on customer service.
- Industry-specific details.
- Can be integrated with current hardware.
Cons
- Expensive.
Our pick for
Overall liquor store POS system
POS Nation
Payment processing fees
N/A
Monthly fee
$149.00
and up.
POS Nation’s software comes with a variety of useful retail features, including coupon creation and acceptance, customer loyalty and built-in cash discount capability. Its hardware comes with 24/7 support and a two-year or lifetime warranty, depending on your plan. POS Nation offers prebuilt and custom plans and even includes a pricing tool on its site.
Pros
- Long list of POS features.
- 24/7 tech support and training.
- Supports sales of regulated items like alcohol and tobacco.
Cons
- Lack of pricing transparency.
- Prices that are disclosed run higher than some competitors.
Our pick for
Small liquor stores
IT Retail
3.0
NerdWallet rating Payment processing fees
N/A
Quote-based.
Monthly fee
$199.00
and up.
IT Retail has been in the business of building and selling grocery store POS systems for more than two decades. While its prices are higher and less transparent than some of its competitors, the company has built a POS system that includes all the features you’ll need to run your store, including a product lookup menu, wholesale sales functionality, customer loyalty programs and capabilities to accept all forms of payment, including EBT. The pricing structure is largely quote-based, but there is a pay-monthly option and two hardware bundle options with listed prices.
Pros
- System and features specifically designed for grocery stores.
- Accepts all payment types, including EBT, checks and gift cards.
- 24/7 tech support and training.
- Supports sales of regulated items like alcohol and tobacco.
Cons
- Lack of pricing transparency.
- Prices that are disclosed run higher than some competitors.
POS Nation
Our pick for: Overall liquor store POS system.
Monthly POS software fee: $149 and up.
Hardware cost: Customer displays for liquor stores start at $269. All other items quote-based.
Payment processing cost: Quote-based.
Why we like it: POS Nation is built specifically for grocery and convenience stores but checks many of the boxes that are ideal for liquor stores as well. You can track individual sales from cases or packs, scan IDs for age-restricted items and manage, report and order inventory across locations. The system has robust employee-monitoring features designed specifically to help with loss prevention. These allow you to flag returns that have been damaged, for example, and to set employee permission at an individual level so new employees don’t have the same access to returns or refunds as experienced managers. POS Nation also offers 24/7 technical support.
Much of POS Nation’s pricing is quote-based, but what it makes readily available is comparable to competitors. You can also add upgrades to your plan like liquor licensing and tobacco POS software. All plans are contract free.
>> MORE: Best convenience store POS systems
mPower Beverage
Our pick for: Well-established liquor stores.
Monthly POS software fee: $120 for one register plus a one-time upfront fee of $1,000. Additional registers are $250 upfront plus $120 more monthly. To qualify for monthly pricing, you are required to use integrated processing with one of mPower’s direct partners.
Hardware cost: Quote-based.
Payment processing cost: Varies by provider.
Why we like it: MPower Beverage is a POS system built specifically for liquor store operations and draws from the input of liquor store owners and operators, which shows through the level of detail in many of its features. Its inventory management features allow you to track items across locations, set low stock alerts and sell and track by the case, pack or individual bottle or can without creating a separate stock-keeping unit, or SKU. You can create custom beverage-specific attributes, such as region, flavor profile and age. You can also add details like food pairings and reviews to each product that will show up as your customers browse online or in the store.
MPower Beverage is fairly transparent in its pricing, and though its prices are on the higher end — especially for multiple locations — you get a unique level of detail and hands-on customer service. For instance, when you sign up, there is an in-person installation process to help you get set up and integrate existing data into the system. One register is included in the upfront price, and there is a fee and additional monthly cost for any additional register. POS hardware includes an ID-scanning feature for age-restricted items.
IT Retail
Our pick for: Small liquor stores.
Monthly POS software fee:
$199 a month for the IT Retail Flex plan. In addition to using the POS software, the Flex package allows you to essentially rent instead of buy your equipment.
Hardware cost:
- $1,499 for the IT Retail Freedom Standard hardware bundle, which comes with a touch-screen terminal, a cash drawer, a barcode scanner, an LCD customer display and a receipt printer.
- $1,999 for the IT Retail Freedom Premium hardware bundle, which includes all of the Standard bundle hardware plus a dual-arm mount for the customer display.
Payment processing cost:
Fees are undisclosed; you need to sign a processing agreement.
Why we like it: IT Retail specializes in grocery store POS systems and offers custom plans for several types of grocers, like butcher shops and fish markets. Its corner store option includes features that are also well suited for a liquor store, such as ID scanning, customer loyalty programs and inventory management that works for beverage sales.
Additional features include cash discount capabilities, offline mode and a customizable touch screen. Although not all of IT Retail’s pricing is transparent, you can build customized plans that include different types of hardware specific to your needs. All plans require you to enter a processing agreement but don’t include long-term contracts.
» MORE: Best grocery store POS systems
Square for Retail
Our pick for: Free POS 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 (Free plan) or 2.5% plus 10 cents (Plus plan) for in-person transactions.
- 2.9% plus 30 cents for online transactions.
- 3.5% plus 15 cents for manually keyed transactions or card-on-file invoices.
Why we like it: Square for Retail POS is an all-around great option for inventory-heavy businesses, especially for those seeking a cost-effective option. Its retail POS software has an option that is marketed specifically to wine shops, breweries and liquor stores and focuses on inventory management, customer rewards and multichannel sales. Square is transparent on its pricing, and it’s easy to upgrade your plan to a paid version, making it a good option for businesses that may want to scale up. Read our full Square for Retail POS review.
» MORE: Best free POS software
Lightspeed Retail
Our pick for: Multiple stores.
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 Retail stands out as an option for many retailers for its robust inventory management features, particularly across multiple locations. The system can be integrated with a host of external partners, and the plans include e-commerce if you plan to expand online. It also offers features to support customer loyalty online or in store, loyalty tracking from the POS and customer tracking. Customer support is available through various channels 24/7, which could come in handy if you operate outside standard business hours. Read our full Lightspeed Retail POS review.
Last updated on May 26, 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.
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