Best Point-of-Sale (POS) Systems of 2021

If you’re running a restaurant or retail business, you already have a lot on your plate. What you don’t need is a cumbersome, expensive POS solution that's anything but a solution. We've gathered a list of the Best Point-of-Sale Systems of 2021. This list consists of companies that offer both restaurant and retail POS solutions.

A POS system includes both POS software and hardware. The system will read a credit card, record the transaction, and pass it off to the payment processor. The payment processor will then pass the transaction information to the appropriate banks. A POS system isn't a payment processor, but the two work closely together and are sometimes one and the same company. As a result, the lines between the two can get blurry.

The Best POS Systems of 2021

This is our rating of the Top POS Systems of 2021, meaning that they offer both a retail POS system and a restaurant-specific POS solution. Below are summaries of each of the top six companies on our list.

Square

Arguably the most widely known POS system out there, Square is our No. 1-rated POS System with a score of 4.3 out of 5. In addition to retail and restaurant POS systems, Square offers a POS solution for appointment-based businesses. Its basic point-of-sale plan is free and comes with a free magstripe reader. Learn more in our Square review.

Epos Now

Epos Now is a U.K.-based POS company. It's tied for second place with ShopKeep in our Best POS System rating with a score of 4 out of 5. One of the main selling points of Epos Now is its ability to work with a variety of operating systems. This means there's a greater chance of your current hardware working with its software, possibly saving your business money if you're switching POS providers. Learn more in our Epos Now review.

ShopKeep

ShopKeep is a tablet-based POS system that caters to small and independent businesses. It earned a score of 4 out of 5 to tie with Epos Now for the second slot on our list of the Best POS Systems of 2021. This company prefers customers speak to a representative for a custom quote rather than advertise a one-size-fits-all flat rate. Learn more in our ShopKeep review.

Lightspeed

Lightspeed is unique among the companies in our rating because in addition to offering POS systems tailored to retail stores and restaurants it also offers a golf-specific POS solution. With a score of 3.9 out of 5, it comes in at No. 4 on our list of the Best POS Systems for All Types. Another unique thing about Lightspeed is that while a payment processor is included with its retail POS, for its restaurant POS you can choose your own from the third-party options it supports. Learn more in our Lightspeed review.

Clover

Clover is rated No. 5 on our list of the Best POS Systems with a score of 3.6. Clover offers a wide variety of restaurant-focused POS features and sleek hardware. With Clover, the choice of hardware is especially important because not all plans are available on all systems. Learn more in our Clover review.

Revel Systems

Our No. 6-rated POS System is Revel Systems with a score of 3.4. A cloud- and iPad-based POS option, Revel Systems provides a variety of features for businesses operating in the retail and restaurant arenas. This POS solution is most advantageous for larger businesses since some of Revel's features incur additional fees. Learn more in our Revel Systems review.

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The Best POS Systems for Retail

While retail stores may not need as many customized features as restaurants do, that doesn’t mean a generic POS will be the best fit. Inventory plays a large role in a POS system’s usefulness; the ability to track inventory levels and sales, either for a single location or across multiple locations, can save you and your employees a lot of time and effort.

Syncing inventory between a brick-and-mortar store and an online storefront can give you the real-time information you need to make the best restocking decisions. The Shopify POS is bundled with its payment processor and online store and is included in even its least expensive plan.

Incorporating customer relationship management (CRM) features into a POS can also make growing your business easier with access to marketing software and the ability to create a customer database. For more information on CRMs, see CRM: A U.S. News Guide.

Other useful POS features, whether for retail stores or restaurants, include employee payrolls and management, loyalty programs, gift cards, and the ability to grant different levels of access to the system for different employees. This can allow you to grant a server access to some features while allowing access to a greater number of features to a manager or shift supervisor.

For more information on retail POS systems, visit our Best Retail Point-of-Sale (POS) Systems page.

The Best POS Systems for Restaurants

While most stores can get by with a generic retail POS, restaurants have more decisions to make. The features that might be best suited for a full-service restaurant won’t be nearly as beneficial to a quick-service establishment or food truck. Restaurants have to worry about things that retail establishments don’t. For example, restaurants must clearly communicate orders from the waitstaff to the kitchen staff and be able to use a different set of prices or menu items during happy hour. A POS that can keep up with your restaurant will make managing your business easier.

Features that apply specifically to restaurants include table and menu management, inventory tracking based on the dishes sold, and the ability to take orders tableside and send them directly to the kitchen to be shown on a kitchen display system (KDS).

For more information on retail POS systems you can visit our Best Restaurant Point-of-Sale (POS) Systems page.

Do I Need a POS System?

You probably need a POS system. At the very least, every business involved in either retail or restaurants needs a system to record a transaction and accept payment. A point-of-sale system will go far beyond that basic utility. For example, modern POS systems integrate with credit card processors for an all-in-one solution. Some POS companies even serve as their own payment processors.

POS systems also have feature-rich software. Inventory management will automatically record all transactions and update your inventory list in real time. Integrate inventory management with an online store front, and it will keep track of both the online and in-store transactions for you. If you have a multioutlet business, a POS system can keep track of inventory across all stores and warehouses. This also helps restaurants keep track of food and drink inventory. Some systems will even automatically reorder goods when you reach a predetermined stock level.

Another big advantage of POS systems for small businesses is the ability to manage employees and payroll. You can create employee schedules and your employees can log in and out to track their own hours, negating the need for a separate system.

POS systems can either be cloud-based or on-premise. They're usually subscription services and will bill you on a month-to-month basis, although some may offer discounts for signing long-term contracts. Because many POS systems incorporate payment processing, you will also likely be charged per transaction.

A good POS system is easy to learn and helpful on a day-to-day basis.

What Should I Look for in a POS System?

There are several different things to look for in a POS system. These include, among others, ease of use, price, hardware, features, customer support, and payment processing.

Also look for free trials. While most free trials are short – around 14 days – there occasionally are longer offerings.

How to Use a POS System

To use a POS system, you will need a phone, a tablet, or a computer for hardware. You will also need a merchant account, payment processor, internet connection, and subscription to a POS account. The hardware is needed for setting up your various accounts, building an online store, and selling goods. A merchant account allows you to accept payment from debit and credit cards, a payment processor is used to process a payment card-based transaction, an internet connection connects your business to the payment processor, and a subscription to a POS provider brings the whole thing together.

If your business has a physical location, you will need various other pieces of hardware depending on your specific business. You will likely need a cash register and cash drawer, receipt printer, and a computer or tablet to connect everything and use as an interface.

For more information, visit our page How to Use a Point-of-Sale (POS) System.

How Does a POS System Work?

At its most basic level, a POS system records a transaction, whether in-store or online, and then either accepts payment in cash or passes along the transaction and payment card information to a payment processor.

The information that the POS recorded during the transaction can be used in a number of ways. For example, a POS system's inventory management software can use transaction information to update stock lists in real time even across multiple locations, whether they're other restaurants, stores, or warehouses. This multilocation syncing can be used with brick-and-mortar and e-commerce platforms. The system can then trigger alerts when stock is low, and sometimes can be set up to self-order items when inventory levels reach a specified point.

Inventory management can also be used to produce end-of-day sales reports, which can be accessed anywhere if they're cloud-based, on your phone or computer. You can also gain insight into your employees’ performance and build a database of customer buying habits.

With restaurant-specific inventory management, you can input recipes and track inventory levels based on the dishes ordered and the ingredients used.

The customer database can be used with the built-in CRM features or into an integrated CRM solution for marketing purposes. This is useful for setting up mass emails or perks for your most loyal customers, such as sending a gift card on their birthday or having their favorite drink ready when they come into your restaurant or bar. This information can also be used for back-office functions by integrating with third-party accounting programs like QuickBooks.

Other popular features include functions like employee and payroll management, online stores, more sophisticated reports, loyalty programs, and gift cards.

A POS system’s functionality can be expanded further with the integration of third-party software and apps like QuickBooks, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, DoorDash, Grubhub, and Postmates.

A POS system should work in whatever way is best for your business, whether it's a simple online storefront or a multilocation, international, enterprise-level business.

Directory of U.S News Point-of-Sale (POS) System Guides

For more information on point-of-sale (POS) systems, please see our pages:

How U.S. News Evaluated POS systems

The following describes our 360 approach to researching and analyzing POS systems to guide prospective businesses.

1. We researched the companies and products people care most about.

U.S. News analyzed and compared a variety of publicly available data, including internet search data, to determine which POS systems businesses are most interested in. We found 17 companies that stood out for further evaluation using the volume of searches and consumer research. After conducting a thorough analysis, we were able to condense the initial list to the 10 overall Best POS systems.

We evaluated the various plans, along with their monthly costs. The plans highlighted on features such as integrations, additional fees, sales reporting & analytics, inventory management, loyalty programs, and tech support. With these factors in mind, we created a thorough set of guides that provides a 360 overview of what businesses should consider.

2. We created objective 360 Overall Ratings based on an analysis of third-party reviews.

Our scoring methodology is based on a composite analysis of the ratings and reviews published by credible third-party professional and consumer review sources. The ratings are not based on the personal opinions, tests, or experiences of U.S. News. To calculate the ratings:

(a) We compiled two types of third-party ratings and reviews:

***Please note that not all professional and consumer rating sources met our criteria for objectivity. Therefore, some sources were excluded from our model.

(b) We standardized the inputs to create a common scale.

The third-party review source data were collected in a variety of forms, including ratings, recommendations, and accolades. Before including each third-party data point into our scoring equation, we standardized it so that it could be compared accurately with data points from other review sources. We used the scoring methodology described below to convert these systems to a comparable scale.

The 360 scoring process first converted each third-party rating into a common 0 to 5 scale. To balance the distribution of scores within each source’s scale, we used a standard deviation (or Z-Score) calculation to determine how each company that a source rated was scored in comparison to the source’s mean score. We then used the Z-Score to create a standardized U.S. News score using the method outlined below:

(c) We calculated the 360 Overall Score based on a weighted average model.

We assigned “source weights” to each source used in the consensus scoring model based on our assessment of how much the source is trusted and recognized by consumers and how much its published review process indicates that it is both comprehensive and editorially independent. The source weights are assigned on a 1-5 scale. Any source with an assigned weight less than 2 was excluded from the consensus scoring model.

Finally, we combined the converted third-party data points using a weighted average formula based on source weight. This formula calculated the consensus score for each product, which we call the 360 Overall Rating.