Best Point of Sale (POS) Apps for Small Businesses

Point of sale software is used by many small businesses. The software is used to help manage inventory, employees and locations. There is a lot of software out there, and it can get complicated with all the options. In this article, we will look at some of small businesses' best Point of Sale apps (POS apps).

In this article, you will also learn:

  • What is POS?
  • Why is there a need for POS Apps?
  • What POS apps can your business use?

What is POS?

Why is there a need for POS Apps?

E-commerce continues to contribute and drive growth for economies around the globe. As consumers demand more options for satisfying a hunger for a more enjoyable life, businesses are set to profit as long as they can supply the demand continuously.

In addition, with the prevalence and greater ease of access to high-end mobile technologies, advanced distribution channels and startups pushing the limits of providing new and innovative product ideas daily, retailers have never had a better time in history.

The fact that total e-commerce sales are set to hit a new global record this year at $1.5 Trillion is a clear indication that businesses equipped to satisfy customers in this new age of commerce stand to profit big time.

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However, simply having an online store or traditional walk-in shop is no automatic guarantee of massive success as consumers are not only demanding more from a modern shopping experience but also expect to benefit from businesses that deliver their products via systems that guarantee safety, delivering results in real-time making the buying experience a breeze.

From the merchant's perspective, achieving this relies heavily on business processes and software and hardware that are proven to deliver and an understanding of what makes consumers spend. More businesses are attesting to the evolving retail landscape as more than half in an industry survey indicated that they're planning to implement mobile point-of-sale technology with iPads for in-store use.

Best POS Apps

Here are 6 powerful and possibly the best POS apps and services to boost your business to current times.

Shopify

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Shopify has been in the e-commerce business for a while with a solid foothold in offering a powerful suite of web-driven features and templates for businesses interested in operating online stores.

They recently entered the mobile commerce space with a strong offer of linking your online sales via your website with their POS system.

With a focus on the web, there are built-in tools for merchants to optimize their sites for search engines, integrate social media, fully construct & maintain a web store, maintain blogs, track visitors and customers and integrate with third-party fulfillment services such as Amazon, for example.

The average retailer will, however, find Shopify a bit pricier than other standard modern POS providers, but that is accounted for since the service is strictly geared towards merchants seeking to maximize online sales potential while running cohesively with an offline storefront.

Shopify's POS apps cover all platforms and it has one of the best mobile POS apps in the market as well.

Vend

Vend is one of the best POS apps and a hardware provider that focuses on getting businesses up and running in as little time as possible while handling the bulk of the technicalities.

They're a cloud-based provider that allows any retailer, regardless of whichever operating system or hardware they're running, to manage their entire business in the cloud better.

Through features such as centralized inventory management, integration of payment gateways, management and creation of interactive loyalty programs, a multichannel Point of Sale system and APIs that allow retailers to connect with popular services like Quickbooks and Xero, they provide a complete out-of-the-box solution along with their POS apps, for retailers in any industry.

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Vend sets their cloud POS apps apart by offering a service that doesn't only focus on accepting payments but also provides an integrated client relationship management tool for managing customer relationships as retailers acquire them through sales and rewarding loyalty programs.

Vend is perfect for both the small and nimble retailer and the multi-chain behemoth.

Square

Square is another nimble, Android and iOS ready, cloud-based POS app provider for businesses built for speed, accuracy and accountability for modern retailers. After downloading and creating a new account with Square, merchants can begin processing cards in as little as a few minutes and will provide their proprietary card reader for free; offering a true plug and play experience. There are no restrictions here, however, since their software is compatible with industry-standard cash drawers, bar code scanners and printers.

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Square provides an esthetically pleasing experience for merchants with simplified and clean in-app options and features to manage the basic transactions typically found within small retail based operations.

Square's selling point is their easy, free setup and simplified usage for small retailers who simply want to get the job done by collecting and accounting for payments. Coupled with facilitating direct deposit transfers of earnings to PayPal and Chase, they're a sure win for the small retail shop.

Pack4it

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Pack4it is cloud POS software for running your retail and wholesale business. Sell online and in-person, manage your multi-warehouse inventory flexibly, and simplify your multi-vendor operations.

All your sales orders from all sales channels in one place:

  • POS for physical outlets (mobile, tablet)
  • Marketplace sales (eBay, Amazon)
  • Online stores (Magento, Shopify, WooCommerce, and more)

Lightspeed Cloud

Lightspeed has been in the POS business for a while and is one of the more seasoned players. The system is built for iPads but also allows access via any web browser.

And though it's a bit pricier than the average cloud POS provider, they do offer a full suite of features not typically found in a basic product with client support with a history of going above and beyond the call of duty.

Their decentralized configuration approach allows merchants to access sales and inventory data & settings from anywhere they have access to the internet ensuring that mobile merchants are not tied to a single location.

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The developers have gone the extra mile to provide a full feature set for high-end retailers with extensive inventory tracking with the ability to build complex matrices to account for multiple permutations of product styles, the ability to track and charge for labor costs, API integration with other services and customer relationships and profile tracking with sales history and monitoring lines of credit.

Lightspeed is suitable for the high-end retailer looking for a complete business solution and might be a bit overwhelming for small shop owners.

ShopKeep

ShopKeep, is an iPad focused POS apps system built for quick service restaurants, coffee shops, food trucks, cafes and the like; small to medium sized business owner with a need for more control over data while still being nimble and efficient. It's a cost-effective alternative to the bare-bones approach offered by Square, for example.

The service has no initial startup costs except for hardware and anyone with an iPad can download the POS app and begin a 30-day trial immediately. While the service integrates with common hardware, they offer merchants a hardware package which includes an iPad, stand, printer, APG drawer, and an iDynamo card reader.

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ShopKeep is a cloud based solution best suited for smaller businesses that don't require a high number of product SKUs in their inventory system and is great facilitating frequent small changes to orders on the fly as is typical in the food service industry.

Upserve

Upserve POS, formerly Breadcrumb, is a point-of-sale built for the modern restaurant. It’s easy to implement, with personalized onboarding, a dedicated success manager, and professional on-site installation, with a 24/7/365 U.S.-based in-house support team.  It’s easy for your staff, with a training mode, check split, item hold, and more.

The product includes features for online ordering, table management, restaurant management, inventory, and customer management. Upserve POS also integrates with dozens of companies like GrubHub, Rezi, and Tock.

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Upserve keeps hardware & setup extremely simple, integrates seamlessly with iPads and takes about 5 minutes to get setup. Upon signup merchants are sent a free proprietary reader and the system integrates with standard readers, printers and cash drawers.

The iPad camera also functions as a built-in barcode scanner, a useful and surprisingly uncommon feature in mobile POS. The app offers table, menu and tabs management, gratuity, basic reporting, transaction history, receipt customization and tips and an offline capability in case of network outages.

In addition to the fact that it's easy to use, merchants especially may find their lives made a bit more interesting with the inclusion of Groupon deals integration. Special promotions can be scanned & tracked along with any other bits of customer and transaction data, allowing merchants to easily track Groupon's impact on their business.

To conclude, the vast selection of modern cloud POS service providers & POS apps shows that commerce is set to continue to grow. Your best chance for survival, growth and achieving maximum efficiency is by adopting systems capable of crunching the numbers in real-time, those that guarantee availability to your customers while giving you the flexibility and personalization you require for your particular business.