HomePOS compared
POS options compared for a single store
Every cell comes from the vendor's own documentation, linked in the last column. Select a column heading to sort. Prices are list prices in the currency the vendor shows (usually USD), before tax.
| Source | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shopify POS (included with your plan) | Counts, purchase orders and low-stock alerts sit in POS Pro, not in this included tier. | Built-in omnichannel features on every plan, per Shopify's pricing page. | Cash and manual payments work offline. Card payments work offline once you turn on offline payments in admin, and capture when the device reconnects. | Included with a paid Shopify plan (USD list prices; check your admin for CAD). | A small shop with one or two people at the till and light stock tracking. | Returns, exchanges, gift cards and pickup orders do not work offline. Signing out or powering off with unsynced offline sales can lose them. | Vendor page for Shopify POS (included with your plan) (opens in a new tab) Also 1 for Shopify POS (included with your plan) (opens in a new tab) | |
| Shopify POS Pro | Inventory counts, purchase orders and low-stock alerts are included. | Omnichannel selling is a Pro feature, described as selling online and in store seamlessly. | Same offline limits as the included tier: cash, manual and (if enabled) card payments only. | Add-on: $89 USD per month for each POS Pro location, billed yearly. | One store with several staff who need roles and permissions, counts and purchase orders. | The add-on is priced per location. Offline gaps (returns, gift cards, pickup) remain. | Vendor page for Shopify POS Pro (opens in a new tab) Also 1 for Shopify POS Pro (opens in a new tab) | |
| Lightspeed Retail (X-Series) | Stock is described as synced in real time across locations and online. | Official Shopify app. Products, pricing and inventory are managed in the POS and push to the online store. | Offline sales are saved and sync after reconnecting, usually within a minute or two. Do not clear the browser cache while sales are unsynced. | Via the Shopify app, per location, billed in USD every 30 days: Lean $89, Standard $149, Advanced $269. 14-day trial. | A single store that wants to run catalog and stock from the POS and feed Shopify. | The listing does not spell out order sync direction. Run a test order and a test return before moving your catalog. | Vendor page for Lightspeed Retail (X-Series) (opens in a new tab) Also 1 for Lightspeed Retail (X-Series) (opens in a new tab) | |
| Square for Retail | Camera-based stocktake on iPhone or iPad, purchase orders, receiving, barcode labels and COGS tracking. | In-store sales, online orders and inventory connect automatically with Square's own web store. Square also says the POS can sync with ecommerce platforms. | Square describes offline card payments for Square Terminal: reconnect within 24 hours or the payment lapses, and you carry the risk of declined cards. | Free, Plus and custom Premium plans, no locked-in contracts. Plan prices are on Square's pricing page. | A store that wants POS, payments and a simple web store from one vendor. | Downgrading from Plus removes multi-location stock management and barcode label printing. | Vendor page for Square for Retail (opens in a new tab) Also 1 for Square for Retail (opens in a new tab) | |
| Clover | Clover's developer documentation does not cover stock counting. Check your Clover app and plan for inventory tools. | The Clover Payments plugin for Shopify takes online card payments in the US and Canada (USD and CAD). It does not sync inventory or orders. | Clover Mini and Flex take offline payments for up to 7 days by default. You can set per-transaction and total limits. | The Shopify plugin is free; transactions are charged under your Clover merchant account agreement. | A store that already uses Clover hardware and only needs Shopify to take card payments online. | Offline payments carry the risk of a later decline. The plugin is not two-way: void orders in Shopify, not only in Clover. | Vendor page for Clover (opens in a new tab) Also 1 for Clover (opens in a new tab) | |
| Rain POS | Cloud-based inventory for specialty retail, including items sold by yard, ounce or piece, and sizes, colors and styles. | Lists a Shopify integration and an ecommerce POS product. Ask Rain which fields sync, and in which direction. | Rain's site does not describe offline selling. Ask for the outage procedure in writing before you buy. | Not published on the main page. Rain links to a pricing page and a build-and-price tool. | Craft, boutique and outdoor shops with unusual units or variants. | Integration detail and outage behaviour are not on the public page, so get both confirmed first. | Vendor page for Rain POS (opens in a new tab) |
A blank or general cell means the vendor's page does not say. Ask the vendor in writing before you buy. This table is not a ranking, and there are no affiliate links. See Stack Choices for how to choose.