Starting my day early as a store owner with several places involves guaranteeing all preparations remain in place for a successful operation. It is vital to streamline processes and collect information that help in making well-informed choices as part of our daily regimen.
and help you exercise which version of’s point of sale system is best for you. Let’s dive in. OK, so there are 2 main reasons to use Lite. One– it lets you offer at point of sale rapidly, and inexpensively. The essential thing to comprehend about Lite is that it is bundled with every Shopify strategy– there are no additional charges for utilizing it. This implies that you can offer with Lite for as low as $5 monthly. It’s likewise really fast to establish. By contrast, is an add-on that expenses $89 per
month, per area– indicating that if you want to sell in more than one locationthan area simultaneously, things can get pricey pretty quickly. 2– it’s truly simple to utilize. If all you wish to do is accept basic payments in one location, Shopify POS Lite lets you do that actually quickly– all you’ll need truly is your phone and a card reader. By contrast, which is tailored more towards retail outlets and multi-location selling,
might be overkill for merchants with fundamental POS needsneed. It will typically include more configuration and more hardware. But eventually, you may discover yourself growing out of Lite quite rapidly– especially if you plan to offer in more than one area at when. Which’s where the “strategy comes in. I’ll go over the contexts in which can be the right suitable for merchants in just a moment, however before I do,
What is the difference between Shopify and Square POS?
In the morning, I log into to inspect stock levels across all areas. With its centralized control panel, I can quickly see which items are running low and require restocking. This conserves me important time that I can allocate to other elements of handling business.
may need no introduction since it is the most popular e-commerce software vendor worldwide. The company was founded in 2006 by an entrepreneur called Tobias Lütke who struggled to develop an online store for snowboarding equipment and set out to build the finest ecommerce platform to make it easier. Observing that the software was good, he changed his focus from building an online shop to providing tools for sellers that required to construct one.
‘s e-commerce software has enjoyed paralleled development and garnered countless customers throughout the world. By 2016, the company had nearly $400 million in yearly earnings, which figure took off to $4.6 billion by 2021 after the Covid pandemic spurred an online retail boom.
forayed into point-of-sale systems in 2017 by releasing a Bluetooth-enabled debit and charge card reader for brick-and-mortar shops. Because then, it has actually constructed more items and turned them into a major source of earnings. The business is based in Ottawa, Canada.
Throughout the day, assists me handle transactions effectively. Its intuitive user interface allows my staff to procedure orders quickly, whether it’s at the checkout counter or on the store floor using mobile gadgets. The built-in payment processing guarantees smooth transactions, keeping our customers delighted.
One of the standout features of is its robust analytics tools. I routinely examine sales reports and client insights to determine trends and customize our marketing efforts accordingly. The capability to produce customized reports gives me a deeper understanding of our service efficiency, enabling me to make data-driven choices.
Comparing to Square POS, the switch was driven by several factors. While Square used basic performance, provided a more detailed solution tailored to the requirements of multi-location businesses like ours. The capability to manage stock centrally, along with advanced analytics and reporting abilities, were crucial selling points.
Additionally,’s environment used seamless combination with our online shop, enabling us to handle stock and sales across all channels from one platform. This omnichannel method has assisted us provide an unified shopping experience to our consumers, whether they’re shopping in-store or online.
In general, the shift to has played an essential role in enhancing our activities, improving productivity, and promoting growth at our numerous sites.
Pros:
Advanced stock management: Centralized stock tracking across multiple locations, making it simple to manage stock levels and restocking.
Robust analytics: Supplies thorough sales reports and consumer insights to help make informed company choices.
Seamless integration: Integrates smoothly with’s ecommerce platform, enabling a merged online and offline retail experience.
Personalized: Offers flexibility to create custom reports and tailor the system to specific company needs.
Cons: Not ideal for small companies or single-location operations, lacks functions that deal with restricted scale or scope.
Expense: features a monthly subscription fee, which may be higher compared to some other POS systems.
Knowing curve: While easy to use, mastering all the functions of might take some time for brand-new users.
Hardware compatibility: Some third-party hardware may not be fully compatible with POS Pro, needing specific devices purchases.
e-commerce plans:
$ 29 for Fundamental when billed yearly (or $39 when paid monthly).
$ 79 for regular when billed every year (or $105 when paid monthly).
$ 299 for Advanced when billed each year (or $399 when paid monthly).
Custom-made pricing for Shopify Plus.
All e-commerce plans come with POS Lite for selling in-person. Upgrading to Pro for brick-and-mortar companies costs an additional $89 per place.
‘s alternative options for primarily selling in-person:
$ 5 for Beginner strategy, which includes one Lite location.
$ 79 (when billed yearly) for Retail plan, or $89 when paid monthly; consists of one Pro place.
How Much Does a POS System Cost?
Hardware expense
$ 49 for Tap & Chip card reader.
$ 219 for Tap & Chip counter top set (iPad not included).
$ 299 for Go mobile phone.
$ 349 for terminal.
$ 459 and up for terminal counter top kits.
Contract length
No agreement needed. Strategies are paid month to month unless you sign up for a yearly, two-year or three-year plan.
Pros:
Free fundamental variation: Square offers a free variation of its system, making it accessible for small companies with restricted budgets.
Easy setup: Square is known for its easy setup process, enabling businesses to start processing deals quickly.
All-in-one solution: Square uses additional services like payment processing, appointment scheduling, and payroll, all incorporated into one platform.
Compatibility: Works with a wide variety of third-party hardware, supplying more versatility in selecting equipment.
Consumer support: Square provides responsive consumer assistance via phone, email, and chat, assisting businesses troubleshoot issues effectively.
Cons:
Limited stock management: While appropriate for basic needs, Square’s stock management functions might not be enough for companies with intricate requirements.
Standard analytics: Square’s reporting abilities are not as thorough as’s, doing not have some innovative analytics features.
Less scalable: Square may not be as appropriate for services with numerous locations or those planning substantial expansion, as it lacks some functions required for complex operations.
The Pro version offers greater versatility in terms of selling areas, as there is no limit to the variety of locations you can add, unlike the Lite version. However, each additional location included to a membership will sustain an additional regular monthly cost of $89. While this may appear like a drawback, it is crucial to note that this charge represents only a small fraction of the total expenditures of an effective retail operation. The “per place, monthly” rates approach enables higher customization and adaptability, making the Pro plan a scalable alternative for businesses of all sizes. Additionally, the Pro strategy uses boosted control over staff usage, permitting you to reward employee for their performance and efficiency.
provide them various gain access to rights to your system, or designate different roles to them, then is a far better choice than the ‘Lite’ version. It gives you a really wide variety of tools for managing your team’s relationship with your system. 3– it provides you a lot more customer-focused features. Lite lets you accept payments from your consumers cheaply and merely, but that’s about it. By contrast, lets you do far more for your consumers. Unlike the ‘Lite’ version, it.
The Go is an all-in-one terminal that consists of a card reader and barcode scanner. You can utilize the scanner to instantly identify the price of a product and the card reader to get the money from the client. This gadget accepts tap, chip, and swipe payments. It has a 5.5-inch high-definition screen and a long battery life to ensure you can utilize it for an entire organization day after a complete charge.
The smaller sized card reader lets you accept tap and chip payments from customers but not swipe. It connects wirelessly to a tablet or via Bluetooth to a smart phone. It is compact and simple to handle, implying it is suitable for services that operate on the go, e.g., farmer’s markets.
Shopify Payments
provides a payments processing solution that lets you charge cash to all major debit and credit cards. Your customers can place their cards, tap them, or swipe them depending upon the kind of hardware you chose. There’s also Tap to Pay, which lets you accept payments on your iPhone without any additional hardware. The rates is transparent– in between 2.4% and 2.7% on each successful transaction– without any surprise charges or setup fees.
Stock Management
Among the significant discomfort points that sellers face is managing their inventory; understanding which products are readily available at an offered time and the prices for each of them. The good thing is that supplies functions to assist.
You can analyze each item and assign products to different locations and channels utilizing’s software application. You can also carry out accurate inventory counts with your barcode scanner after receiving products. You can set the system to notify you if an item is running out of stock or to offer sale item recommendations. Likewise, you can get comprehensive reports to track your sales; what products are selling quicker, what items aren’t selling, which products ought to be restocked, etc synchronizes among the market’s best point-of-sale systems with the e-commerce platform. With the app, you can sell your product and services face to face and online. Take orders from customers,
Once you have a plan, you can download the app– available for iOS and Android devices. Using the app, you’ll have the ability to visit and start personalizing your system. If you’re selling personally, you can either use Tap to Pay on iPhone or purchase hardware, and you’ll be prepared to start taking customer orders.
is best for companies that:
Wish to take advantage of’s e-commerce functions. While does use two basic prepare for business’s that mostly offer personally or on social media, the bulk of its offerings are for omnichannel sellers who want to develop a customized online store using.
Offer online and face to face. is enhanced for selling across online shops, social networks channels and brick-and-mortar shops. The remarkable lineup of features is perfect for omnichannel merchants.
Prefer to utilize a single service provider for and payment processing. Payments is included with all monthly plans to process online transactions in addition to in-person payments. You can utilize a third-party company, such as Amazon Pay, Authorize.net or Braintree, to process payments. Your rates will likely differ from what Shopify Payments charges if you deal with a third-party processor, nevertheless, and Shopify will charge you an additional transaction cost for not utilizing its in-house product.
Deciding elements
Clover offers solutions for e-commerce services and in-person shops to let organizations select the mix they need. features differ by month-to-month plan. More expensive regular monthly plans consist of advanced stock and reporting abilities.