In a Nutshell
pros
- Easy to get started and intuitive to use
- Integrates with your online Shopify store
- Comprehensive inventory management tools
cons
- High per-month costs if operating from multiple locations
- Can only take cash payments without an internet connection
Ideal For
- Small and medium-sized retailers looking for an easy-to-use POS system
- Existing Shopify customers looking to sell in-person as well as online
- Businesses looking to adopt an omnichannel approach to customer service
Why Go With Shopify POS
Shopify's POS system is designed for various business types, ensuring a tailored experience whether you're running a multi-store operation, a single store, or selling at events. Shopify POS is built around the Shopify E-commerce platform, meaning that you get access to the user-friendly dashboard and all the tools that are used by millions of online stores. Shopify POS offers a customizable mobile app suitable for various devices, including iPad, iPhone, and Android.
With different pricing tiers available, you can choose a plan that meets your immediate business needs while retaining the flexibility to upgrade or downgrade as necessary. While one main reason to choose Shopify is its integration with its online platform, a Lite package is available for those only looking for a POS solution. Whichever plan you choose, you’ll need to purchase the point-of-sale hardware. This can be purchased directly from Shopify, which means it should work seamlessly with your tablet and the Shopify POS app.
Shopify’s customer support is excellent. Their tutorials, knowledge base, and community forums simplify building familiarity with their platform. So, even if you run into issues, you can be sure that a solution is at hand.
What’s On Offer
- Omnichannel selling provides a consistent experience for your customers offline and online
- The platform provides built-in tools for digital marketing, shipping solutions, and more, ensuring a comprehensive solution for businesses
- Product and inventory management to stay organized and reduce errors
- Includes support for providing discounts, refunds, returns, and exchanges
- Reporting and analytics so you can make informed business decisions
- Customer profiling to keep track of purchase history and lifetime spend
- Monthly pricing plans with no hidden costs
- Integrated flat-rate payment processing
- 24/7 support through chat, phone, and email
Ease of Use
Shopify POS offers a streamlined experience for multi-store operations, ensuring businesses can efficiently manage sales across multiple locations.
One of the strongest features of Shopify POS is its ease of use. There isn't a convoluted application process, meaning you only need an email address to sign up. Once you log in, you are presented with a clean user interface. If you are familiar with Shopify POS or want to explore its options, you can immediately start setting everything up independently. Otherwise, plenty of prompts guide you along a series of setup steps.
As you move through the setup process—or if you contact customer support—you must provide your name and phone number. Each task in the setup process follows a logical order, allowing you to get up and running easily.
If you get stuck at any point, Shopify has plenty of options for support. Their knowledge base and community forum can guide you through most issues, while email and live chat support are available if you run into a more complicated problem.
So, if you are getting started with Shopify, you will find a:
- Simple sign-up procedure
- Setup guide that makes it easy to get started
- Comprehensive knowledge base, active community forum, and YouTube channel that answer most questions and help you learn how to get the most out of the platform
- Clean, intuitive user interface
What’s Unique About Shopify POS?
Naturally, Shopify POS stands out with its seamless integration with its online retail platform. Millions of businesses use Shopify to power their E-commerce sites—it's an established and reputable option. Shopify has applied the expertise they've gained online to their POS systems. If you are looking for a single solution to manage your inventory and sell products online and in person, Shopify is worth serious consideration.
Even if you are only looking to use the point-of-sale system, you will benefit from the features they have built for online retailers. For example:
- Inventory and product management tools that are simple to use
- Analytics and reports that provide a wealth of data which you can use to inform future business decisions
- Checkout options that allow custom discounts to be set up and automatically calculate taxes based on your store’s location
- Customizable mobile app that works on iPad, iPhone, and Android devices
For those investing in the higher tiers, more advanced features include:
- Omnichannel retailing to provide a better customer experience. This allows options such as paying in-store and shipping to the customer, buying online and picking up in-store, and allowing online returns and exchanges for items bought in person
- Smart inventory tools to predict demand, alert when stock is low, and make sale item suggestions
- Staff management features with the ability to attribute sales to staff members for commissions
You can purchase point-of-sale hardware, such as card readers and barcode scanners, directly through Shopify with free shipping and a 30-day return policy. Buying directly ensures that the plug-and-play equipment is compatible with the Shopify POS app. The app has a customizable smart grid interface that allows you to configure tiles to display the needed features.
Shopify has an excellent support ecosystem with guides and tutorials on using their platform easily. You can also find free business tools and additional learning materials through YouTube and Shopify Learn. Shopify Experts allows you to receive proposals from recommended freelancers and agencies, allowing you to hire extra support to get the most out of the platform.
Customer Support![Shopify Help Center]()
Shopify’s customer support tends to be very good, although usually, you’ll be able to find the answers you need without having to wait on support calls. The help center is a knowledge base with guides providing solutions to common problems. The community support area is a comprehensive forum that answers almost every question. These answers come from other users who will have experienced the same issues as you.
If you can’t find a helpful answer in the help center, you’ll receive an email form to contact the support team. The Shopify support team is available 24/7 via email, live chat, and phone.
Pricing (Software and Hardware)
Shopify POS allows you to sign up for a free 3-day trial, no credit card required. Then, you can get three months of Shopify for $1 a month, no matter what package you choose. It's worth noting that you can get the best deal by paying yearly, as it guarantees a 25% discount.
Shopify's POS hardware is ready to use immediately, with no need for contracts or credit checks.
If you want to use Shopify for your online sales and the Shopify POS system, plans are available at $39, $105, and $399 monthly. Each of these plans includes Shopify POS Lite to accept in-person payments.
You can also choose more industry-specific plans, like the Starter plan for $5/month if you're selling strictly on social media or the Retail plan for $89/month if you're an in-store seller who needs a simple online presence.
Contract Terms
Shopify’s 3-day trial allows you to try the POS system before providing all your details and committing to pay. Shopify plans are month-to-month unless you sign up for a long-term offer. When signing up, you’ll be offered discounted one-year, two-year, and three-year plans with lower monthly prices.
Terms of Service are annotated with plain English explanations of each section, making the document easy to understand and allowing you to sign up without getting bogged down in legal jargon.
If you use Shopify’s online services, you’ll need to use the same payment processor when using their POS service. If you decide the Shopify POS service isn’t the right solution for your bricks-and-mortar business, you can cancel anytime while still keeping your Online Services active.
As Shopify’s POS equipment is purchased rather than leased, Shopify provides a 30-day return policy and a standard one-year warranty with an extended two-year warranty for POS Pro plan customers. For hardware other manufacturers produce, the guarantee transfers to a manufacturer’s warranty after the 30-day return period.
Bottom Line
Shopify's POS system seamlessly integrates with its renowned e-commerce platform, offering businesses a unified online and in-person sales solution. It caters to small and medium-sized retailers with features like omnichannel selling, comprehensive inventory management, and robust customer support. While the pricing might be a consideration for some, the value delivered, especially for those already using Shopify for online sales, makes it a compelling choice. Shopify is undoubtedly a worthwhile POS system for businesses aiming for growth and streamlined operations.
About Shopify
Founded in 2006, Shopify is one of the leading online sales platforms. The Canadian company offers a range of e-commerce services, such as payment, shipping, and customer engagement tools. Since 2013, Shopify has provided POS systems, allowing online retailers to use the same platform for in-person sales.
The all-in-one Ecommerce platform is used in over 175 countries. Over 3.7 million websites use Shopify, including major brands such as Gymshark, Heinz, Tupperware, and Netflix.
