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Our research team compared 12 different POS systems across various research areas. These included hardware, price, usability, and customer score.
Shopify rates well in many of the research areas giving it a 4.1/5 overall score. We recommend Shopify for businesses that are currently using Shopify’s ecommerce platform as the integration with the EPOS system provides an easy way to manage both an online and physical store.
Shopify scores highly in the stock management, usability, and customer score areas. It provides tools to manage both your online and physical stock at the same time. Just like its ecommerce counterpart, Shopify POS is easy to use and user-friendly, making it an efficient and straightforward process. Its customer service team can be contacted by email, live chat or 24/7 by phone.
If you want to compare more EPOS systems, you can use our free comparison tool. Just give us a few details about your business and we’ll match you up with POS providers. Trusted suppliers will then contact you with obligation-free quotes.
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| Shopify |
| Score 4.1 |
| Best For Best for omnichannel retail businesses |
| Pricing £5-£69/month (+ £25-£344/month if using online store) |
How much does Shopify POS cost?
Shopify online store plans
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| Basic | Shopify | Advanced |
| Pricing £19/month
| Pricing £49/month
| Pricing £259/month
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| Key Features
| Key Features
| Key Features
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To access the POS software, you’ll need to purchase one of Shopify’s ecommerce plans. Even if you don’t have or want an online store, the POS software is only accessible through purchasing an online store plan.
Shopify offers free EPOS software with all of its plans so, if you already have an ecommerce platform with Shopify, then this can work out quite well for you. The free POS software is pretty basic and will allow you to serve customers, take payments, and manage your inventory – which is great if your store is fairly small.
However, beyond these functions, the free version is fairly limited when compared with some of its competitors, such as Square, which offers a feature-rich POS app that is free. If you want a comprehensive EPOS system, it could cost you $89 per month, per location and, if you have multiple locations, the price tag can become quite hefty.
Bear in mind, that in addition to these costs, you also have the transaction fees. However, these are a little lower than its competitors.
If you use Shopify’s ecommerce platform, or want to use it, then it makes sense to use Shopify EPOS over another POS system. This is because integrating between different providers can cause a lot of issues as they may not integrate seamlessly and, should something go wrong, you’ll need to contact each provider separately to rectify it.
You can use our free quote tool to compare pricing with other POS providers.
Shopify POS subscriptions
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| Shopify POS Lite | Shopify POS Pro |
| Pricing £0 | Pricing $89* USD/month per location |
| Key Features
| Key Features
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*Pricing in USD for monthly subscription. Annual payments work out cheaper by month.
Shopify POS Lite comes in-built when you purchase any of Shopify’s ecommerce plans. For a more comprehensive EPOS system, you’ll need to purchase the Pro version, costing $89 per month per location.
The Pros and Cons of Shopify POS
Pros
- Integrates with Shopify ecommerce platform
- No contract
- 24/7 customer support
Cons
- Heavy focus on ecommerce
- Card payments can't be taken offline
Pro – Integrates with Shopify ecommerce platform
If you currently use Shopify’s ecommerce platform, or want to merge your online and physical store, then this is the main benefit of using Shopify POS. Shopify is a leading provider in the ecommerce world and, while it doesn’t perform as well on the POS side, the combination of the two provides a multichannel selling system.
You can check out customers on the go, provide bespoke discounts, and send digital receipts with Shopify POS. You can also track your inventory, categorise an unlimited amount of items, and sync orders across multiple online and physical stores.
You can also use the POS system to develop marketing campaigns via email or social media, providing multiple forms to develop relationships with your customers.
Pro – No contract
With Shopify you don’t need to sign a contract, instead you pay on a month-by-month basis. The upside of this is that you won’t find yourself stuck in a contract you want to get out of. The flexibility makes it a good choice for small businesses, or businesses with tight budgets.
Some POS providers offer cheaper pricing when you pay annually, which can also be limiting, especially for start-ups or small businesses.
Pro – 24/7 customer support
Shopify scores a 4/5 in the help and support area, namely because it offers 24/7 customer support. This provides customers with the confidence and ease to fix any problems that may crop up, at whatever time. When running both an online and physical store, you may face an extra set of issues, so having great customer support is important to prevent the issues from escalating.
Con – Heavy focus on ecommerce
Shopify has a heavy focus on ecommerce, which is no surprise because its ecommerce platform is incredibly popular and highly rated. However, this does mean that its POS software lacks a lot of features found in other systems. It’s not as suitable for the hospitality industry because it lacks specialised features but it may work for hospitality businesses, such as cafes, bars, or food trucks. For full-service restaurants that need comprehensive and restaurant-specific features, there are better options, such as Lightspeed or TouchBistro. (For the best hospitality epos systems, take a look at our comprisons)
You can only use Shopify POS with one of its ecommerce plans, which means you’ll have access to this even if you don’t want to sell online. This is why it only really makes sense to use Shopify POS if you also want to make use of the ecommerce platform.
Cons – Card payments can’t be taken offline
Shopify POS can only process cash payments online, which means if something happens to your connection, you won’t be able to process card payments. If you’re a mobile business, this is especially painful as it can be hard to find a stable connection. Other POS systems, such as Square and TouchBistro, offer the ability to take card payments offline.
Shopify’s key features explained
Inventory management tools
It’s worth noting that inventory management tools can only be found in the Pro plan, so you’ll need to pay to access them. These tools are fairly comprehensive and provide a ton of solutions, so it’s no surprise our research scores it a 5/5 for stock management.
On the Pro plan, you can create purchase orders to streamline your ordering process. Based on performance and seasonality, your order history can develop forecasting for your business. Low stock warnings can be set up so you don’t fall behind or run into issues, and sales suggestions are available so that you can keep an eye on which products aren’t selling.
You can access inventory analysis, and this will help you decide which items should be reordered and which are not doing as well and are taking up valuable inventory space.
Manage customers
Every time a customer shops online or in store, a customer profile is created. You can easily keep track of customer data, buying history, notes, shipping addresses, and marketing preferences. This will help you customise and plan your marketing campaigns, ensuring they are tailored for your customers.
Whenever your customer shops online or in store, their order data is synced so you can track both types of purchases. This is one of the main benefits of having your ecommerce platform and POS system linked.
You can develop a tailored loyalty programme for customers that they can use for both online and in-store purchases.
Integrated reports and analytics
The integration of ecommerce and a POS system means you can get reports and analytics from both your online and physical stores. You can generate reports and insights into products, sales, and staff performance. Your dashboard gives you an overview of your stores and sales.
Other reports you can access include discounts, finances, products, and cash flow. The extensive reporting functions are one of the reasons Shopify POS scores a 4/5 for business development in our research.
What kind of business is Shopify POS best for?
Retailers with online stores
As is clear throughout this review, we recommend Shopify POS to retail stores with an online presence. Whether you already have an ecommerce store with Shopify, or want to switch to Shopify but also want to integrate your physical store, Shopify is a good option.
The best EPOS systems for your business will depend on your unique needs and pain points. Syncing an ecommerce site to your physical store will provide you with a seamless way to manage stock, customers, and sales data.
It scores well in several of our research areas, including hardware (4.5/5) and usability (5/5). It’s a solid POS system, but it does lack the specialised features for other industries, such as hospitality. Retailers without an online store can make use of this POS system, however, there are better options out there with more features and a better price point, such as Square.
How does Shopify compare to its competitors?
Price
Shopify scores a poor 2.7/5 in the pricing department. Now, while its paid ecommerce plans do come with free POS software, this POS software is fairly basic and won’t be of much help to retailers. Compared to competitors, such as Square, which offers a robust and free POS app, Shopify is found lacking.
The paid POS version is $89 per month, per location. which can get pricey, especially when you also have to pay for the ecommerce side. This starts at a reasonable $29 per month, but this only accommodates two staff accounts, basic reporting, and four inventory locations. If your business is a start-up or a small business, this might be fine, however, you’ll likely outgrow this plan and need to pay more every month.
Pricing can get expensive with Shopify. However, for retailers who want the integration between online and physical stores, it’s worth it. If you’re one of those, it’s worth noting that while Shopify doesn’t offer free EPOS software, it does offer a 14-day free trial.
Features
Shopify offers great features for retailers with in-depth inventory management, staff management, and comprehensive reporting. However, most of these features are hidden by a fairly pricey paywall, making them less accessible to small businesses. Other POS providers, such as Lightspeed, offer tailored EPOS systems for retailers. Lightspeed also offers features such as a built-in CRM system.
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| Shopify | Clover | TouchBistro | Lightspeed | Epos Now | |
| Score 4.1 | Score 4.8 | Score 4.0 | Score 4.0 | Score 4.3 | Score 3.8 |
| Best For Best for omnichannel retail businesses | Best For Best for scaling and growing your business | Best For Best for professional hardware | Best For Easiest hospitality EPOS system to operate | Best For Bars | Best For Best for managing complex inventories |
| Pricing £5-£69/month (+ £25-£344/month if using online store) | Pricing | Pricing Custom | Pricing From $69 USD/month (approx. £55) | Pricing From £109/month | Pricing From £199 (flat fee) with a £54/month payments, care, and support subscription. |
| Pros
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| Cons
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Does Shopify POS have good customer reviews?
Most positive customer reviews centred around the ease of the integrated ecommerce and POS systems. Some did find that the POS system is lacking in some respects. Lots of users say how easy it is to use, which isn’t surprising considering our research rates its usability at 5/5.
Overall, yes, there are good customer reviews, but some customers did find that it lacks extensive customisation. The lack of customisation does mean that it creates a user-friendly environment.
How We Reviewed Shopify POS
The Expert Market team has tested and assessed 10 different EPOS systems to bring you this list, along with the other POS reviews you can find on our site. We've spent over 160 hours researching these EPOS platforms, and over 20 hours testing them.
During that time, we used our learnings to evaluate how each EPOS system fared in six core areas that are important to businesses. These areas (explained in greater detail just below) were broken down into around 12 subcategories each. Scores in each of these subcategories were then subsequently amalgamated to arrive at an impartial, overall ranking for each provider.
Here’s what we looked at:
- EPOS software: the breadth of features included in the EPOS software, and how valuable they are to the average business, including inventory management, marketing and customer engagement tools, and refund management.
- Hardware/equipment: the variety of equipment available to purchase or rent, with special importance given to key items, such as physical terminals, customer displays, and accessories.
- Ease-of-use: how easy each system is to use, based on feedback from several average users who were assigned basic tasks to complete on each system, such as item creation, accessing reports, or applying a discount.
- Help and support: how effective and reachable the customer support teams are, with bonus points given to EPOS systems with help centers and training modes.
- Costs: the price of the system, how it compares to competitors, and whether it's good value for money.
- User experience: whether everyday users know and like the system, whether they’d recommend it, and what they say about it in online reviews.
The score of each of these areas was combined to create an overall score for each of the different types of EPOS systems.
Our research team extensively compared 12 different POS systems to find the best in the market. This research focused on several areas, including price, hardware, and usability. These areas are important for businesses as they determines what you can afford, how easy it is to use, and how well the hardware performs.
Shopify performs well in the hardware category, scoring a 4.5/5. Even though the hardware is a tad pricier when compared with other providers, such as Zettle and Square, it does perform well and is not as expensive as other systems, such as Lightspeed or Epos Now.
The system is easy to use and scores a 5/5 for usability. Both the ecommerce and POS platforms are user-friendly, although there is a lack of customization because of this. It scores a 2.7/5 for pricing, as its ‘free’ POS software is hidden by a paid Shopify ecommerce plan. Unlike other providers such as Square, you can’t access Shopify POS software free of cost. The ‘free’ POS software is fairly basic and only suitable for mobile businesses or start-ups. The paid version is priced at $89 per month, per location.
Shopify POS provides tons of great features, such as inventory management, staff management, and extensive reporting. It doesn’t perform very well in the pricing department despite it’s free plan as the free version is fairly basic and doesn’t compare to free EPOS software from other providers.
Shopify POS is easy to use however there is a lack of customisation available. It’s best suited to retailers who want an online store or online stores that want to have pop-up shops.
To compare EPOS systems from other providers, you can use our free quote tool to get a clearer idea of other EPOS systems. We just need a few details about your business and we’ll match you up with the right EPOS providers. Trusted suppliers will then contact you with obligation-free quotes.
