6 Best Touch Screen POS Systems 2019

A touch screen POS system is a point-of-sale program that operates on tablets and smartphones. Retail and restaurant businesses use POS systems to process sales, manage products, and view reports. The best touch screen POS systems also have customer management features, marketing tools, and loyalty programs for under $100 per month.

Top 6 Touch Screen POS Systems 2019

How We Evaluated Touch Screen POS

Touch screen POS systems should be able to process sales and customer transactions efficiently, store product details, automatically track inventory levels based on sales, offer business insights through reports, and have a user-friendly interface that is compatible with multiple hardware systems. The best POS system has customer relationship management (CRM) tools and integrates with other popular small business software solutions.

We determined the best touch screen POS by examining the following criteria:

• Price: Touch screen POS systems should be affordable for small businesses.
• Ease of use: Touch screen POS systems should have a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate on tablets or smartphones.
• Hardware compatibility: We considered what systems each POS is compatible with.
• Credit card processing: Businesses need a POS system with integrated payment processing and competitive rates.
• Inventory management: We looked at how many products each system can accommodate and extra features like low stock alerts.
• Customer relationship management: At minimum, a POS program should have features to make customer profiles, ideally it will also have a loyalty program, email marketing, and gift card features.
• Employee management: We looked at what employee management features each POS includes such as the ability to create different logins and permission levels and calculate payroll.
• Reporting and analytics: POS systems should have reports on sales, customers, and product data; the best systems also have tools to create custom reports.
• Integrations: The best touch screen POS systems integrate with other popular software programs for accounting, marketing, scheduling, and more such as QuickBooks and Mailchimp.
• Customer support: Most POS systems have free phone and email support; the best POS systems have live support available 24/7 and extensive articles available online.

Based on the above criteria, Lightspeed Retail is the best touch screen POS system. It is a powerful POS system that can be used on a variety of touch screen hardware. Lightspeed Retail has detailed inventory management with lots of customization options, built-in purchase ordering, and one of the most sophisticated report builders available to small businesses for a price point starting at under $100 per month.

Lightspeed: Best Touch Screen POS for Small Businesses

Lightspeed Retail is a touch screen POS system designed for brick and mortar retail businesses that has tools to manage massive inventories—including multiple variants—and a powerful custom reporting tool. Lightspeed Retail offers a robust POS system that is affordably priced and compatible with many touch screen tablets.

Lightspeed Retail Pricing

Lightspeed Retail starts at $99 per month for one register system and up to five users. Additional registers or locations come with an extra monthly fee. Two registers and 10 users is $169 per month, and four registers and 20 users is $289 per month. Lightspeed Retail works on Apple and Android tablets, which are purchased separately.

However, other hardware can be purchased directly through Lightspeed Retail, including:

• Register bundle: $699 includes iPad stand, card reader, cash drawer, and receipt printer
• Verifone MX915 payment terminal: Quote-based pricing
• Other receipt printers, barcode scanners, cash registers, and more available on a quoted basis

Lightspeed Retail POS App Payment Processing

Lightspeed Retail has built-in payment processing with Lightspeed Retail Payments. Lightspeed Retail offers payment processing at a flat-rate fee of 2.6% plus 10 cents per transaction for in-store payments, which is a fairly standard rate. Lightspeed Retail also has an offline mode for processing payments without an internet connection.

Lightspeed Retail POS now offers Lightspeed Retail Payments with the following fees:

• In-person payments are 2.6% plus 10 cents per transaction
• Online payments are 2.6% plus 30 cents per transaction

Lightspeed Retail can work on any Chrome or Firefox browser or iPad through Lightspeed Retail POS app

Lightspeed Retail Features

Lightspeed Retail is a standard touch screen POS that has two extraordinarily robust features: inventory and reporting, making it one of the best iPad POS systems. With Lightspeed Retail, businesses can manage product variants, purchase orders, and vendor information right within the touch screen POS. There are also more than 40 reports, so businesses can get granular analysis of data points, such as best-selling products and top-selling employees.

Lightspeed Retail Inventory Management

Lightspeed Retail offers the most advanced inventory management out of all the touch screen POS systems on this list. Businesses can add items to the inventory and then tag them with searchable terms, which makes it easy to find in the system. Plus, Lightspeed Retail uploads vendor catalogues to its system, making it easy for businesses to reorder stock whenever you run low. Most other POS systems don’t have built-in product catalogues or features to directly manage purchase orders.

Lightspeed Retail Customer Relationship Management

Lightspeed Retail also has a customer directory feature that tracks transactions and gathers data, similar to Square and most of the other touch screen POS systems on our list. Lightspeed Retail also lets users assign VIP status to certain customers, which is an uncommon feature. Businesses can set up promo codes for specific items or customers for targeted sales. Lightspeed Retail also has a built-in gift card function. However, unlike Vend, Lightspeed Retail’s loyalty program comes with an extra monthly fee.

Lightspeed Retail Employee Management

Lightspeed Retail lets businesses create multiple users and logins. Activities like sales are tracked by each login, so businesses can monitor employee performance including average basket size, email capture rates, and how many customers each employee is helping.

Lightspeed offers detailed insights into employee performance

Lightspeed Retail Reporting

Lightspeed Retail includes more than 40 built-in reports that cover inventory, sales, employee performance, and more, in an all-in-one analytics dashboard. Lightspeed Retail also lets businesses create and save custom reports. What sets Lightspeed Retail apart from other touch screen POS systems is the ability to translate report data into actionable insights. For example, Lightspeed Retail can take sales and traffic data and translate that into staffing and inventory reports to help you prepare for peak hours.

Lightspeed delivers powerful reports in a user-friendly format

Lightspeed Retail Integrations

Lightspeed Retail has two main add-ons: Lightspeed Retail Ecommerce and Lightspeed Retail Loyalty. Lightspeed Retail Ecommerce lets businesses set up an online store with inventory and customer data synced in one dashboard. Lightspeed Retail Loyalty lets businesses create custom loyalty programs for customers. Lightspeed Retail also integrates with popular third-party software including Homebase, QuickBooks, and Xero.

What Lightspeed Retail is Missing

Some of Lightspeed Retail’s features such as Loyalty and Ecommerce are only available with an additional monthly fee. Square and Shopify include free online stores, and Vend includes a loyalty program in the base price. Also, Lightspeed Retail requires businesses to sign an annual contract, whereas many other POS systems are month-to-month deals.

Lightspeed Retail Reviews

In most Lightspeed Retail user reviews, users say that the POS is easy to use and includes helpful tools for managing inventory and reporting. Reviewers also say Lightspeed Retail has excellent customer support. However, some users were not happy with the extra fees for add-ons like Loyalty and Ecommerce.

Get Started With Lightspeed Retail

Lightspeed Retail is a powerful touch screen POS for brick and mortar retail businesses with detailed inventory management and reporting for an affordable price. Visit Lightspeed Retail to start a free 14-day trial.

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ShopKeep: Best Touch Screen POS for Specialty Shops

ShopKeep is a user-friendly touch screen POS with intuitive features for inventory and reporting, plus a customizable dashboard. ShopKeep also has tools to manage your business’ listings in online directory and local marketing, making it a great fit for specialty shops.

ShopKeep Pricing

ShopKeep has quote-based pricing, so contact the company directly for specific pricing. However, ShopKeep generally has three POS monthly plans: Basic, Essential, and Advanced plans with slightly different features. Contact a ShopKeep representative for specific pricing and quotes.

ShopKeep Pricing and Features

ShopKeep Payment Processing

ShopKeep has a built-in payment processor called ShopKeep payments. Like Square, Lightspeed, and Shopify, ShopKeep payments has competitive flat-rate payment processing rates. However, unlike the other solutions, ShopKeep offers custom rates for each business with guaranteed lowest rates. Businesses can also choose to integrate with any other third-party payment processor.

ShopKeep Hardware

ShopKeep is a POS system that operates on iPads and Clover touch screen systems. iPads are purchased separately, but Clover Mini and Clover Station systems can be purchased through ShopKeep. ShopKeep also has designated retail, restaurant, and quick-service hardware kits with components such as iPad enclosures, iPad stands, barcode scanners, receipt printers, and cash drawers. All hardware is priced per customer.

ShopKeep is a touch screen POS designed for iPads

ShopKeep Features

ShpoKeep touch screen POS is packed with user-friendly features like a customizable dashboard, back-office reports, and features for sales staff. Staff management, inventory control, customer management, and reporting are all included in ShopKeep with no added costs, unless you want to integrate third-party apps.

ShopKeep Inventory Management

ShopKeep has detailed inventory management that rivals that of Lightspeed and Vend. Although ShopKeep is designed for smaller stores, it has powerful features. Businesses can add up to three variants for any product such as different sizes and colors. Like most touch screen POS systems, ShopKeep lets businesses manage inventory from the backend, including importing inventory in bulk with CSV files, and setting up low stock alerts.

ShopKeep Customer Relationship Management

ShopKeep makes it easy for you to collect customer emails through emailed receipts. Those emails, names, and other contact information are added to a directory automatically that you can use in conjunction with marketing app integrations like Mailchimp to create a marketing plan. ShopKeep also has a dedicated Marketing Dashboard that identifies high-value customers and shows how your customers interact with your email receipts.

ShopKeep Employee Management

ShopKeep touch screen POS lets businesses create unlimited employee logins with different permission levels, unlike Lightspeed, which only allows for a limited number. Employees can clock in and out on the touch screen POS and managers can track employee activity. ShopKeep also provides a Time Clock report showing hours each employee worked.

ShopKeep Pocket reporting app shows employee clock-in and clock-out information

ShopKeep Reporting

ShopKeep offers reports on sales, inventory, staff, and customer data. Businesses can go deep into the data to see what your bestselling products are, who’s selling the most among employees, what your inventory value is, who your top customers are, percentage of clicks in marketing emails, and much more. However, while ShopKeep does have many reports built-in, there is no option to create custom reports. Businesses can also view reports on-the-go with ShopKeep’s Pocket reporting app for iOS and Android.

ShopKeep Spotlight Marketing Integrations

ShopKeep has a tool called ShopKeep Spotlight that helps businesses automatically manage their listings on sites like Google, Instagram, Facebook, and more from one central location. The program automatically scans listings and online information about your business such as location, hours, and contact information to spot inconsistencies. ShopKeep Spotlight is included in the Advanced plan.

ShopKeep Spotlight lets businesses manage all of their online listings and information in one place

What ShopKeep is Missing

ShopKeep doesn’t have custom report capabilities like Lightspeed does, so there is not much flexibility to manipulate your inventory, sales, or customer data. CRM and marketing features like loyalty programs, gift cards, and ShopKeep Spotlight are included with the ShopKeep Advanced plan, which at approximately $199 per month, is one of the pricier systems on our list.

ShopKeep Reviews

ShopKeep user reviews are generally very positive. Users like that the touch screen POS is easy to use and that there is a customizable dashboard. Users also say the customer service is friendly and helpful. Some reviewers report glitches or issues with system updates.

Get Started With ShopKeep

ShopKeep is a popular iPad POS system that’s easy to use. It has an affordable plan, plus options to add on advanced marketing and customer management features, making it a great touch screen POS for specialty retailers. Visit ShopKeep to get started.

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Shopify: Best Touch Screen POS for Multichannel Sellers

Shopify is an ecommerce platform with a connected POS app. Shopify’s touch screen POS is easy to use and sync with inventory, customers, orders, and sales data from Shopify ecommerce. Starting at under $10 per month, Shopify is very competitively priced and is the best touch screen POS for multichannel sellers.

Shopify Pricing

Shopify’s touch screen POS app comes free with every Shopify account. There are four main Shopify plans: Lite, Basic, Shopify, and Advanced. Every plan includes unlimited product management and multichannel sales with a Buy Button and social media sales.

Shopify Pricing and Features

Shopify Payment Processing

Like ShopKeep and Lightspeed, Shopify has optional built-in payment processing. You can choose to use Shopify payments or another processing company. But Shopify charges an additional fee for using third-party payment processing (0.5% to 2%). If you opt for Shopify’s built-in payment processing, the flat-rate transaction fees are slightly lower than what you would pay with Square or Lightspeed.

Shopify Touch Screen POS Hardware

Shopify functions on Apple and Android devices which are sold separately. The Shopify touch screen POS app can be downloaded for free through the app store. Hardware accessories such as iPad stands, card readers, cash drawers, and more can be purchased through Shopify. All hardware comes with free shipping and free 30-day returns.

Shopify hardware options include:

• Swipe and chip reader: First free, additional $29
• Tap, chip, and swipe reader: $89
• Tap, chip, and swipe stand: $39
• Receipt printers: $299 and up
• Cash drawers: $119 and up
• Complete kits: $656 and up, includes iPad stand, cash drawer, receipt printer, and card reader

Shopify touch screen POS has apps for tablets and smartphones

Shopify Features

The biggest reason to use Shopify POS is to take advantage of Shopify’s industry-leading ecommerce and multichannel sales tools. With Shopify you can make in-person sales, accept payments, collect customer information, and send digital receipts. Online, you can sell on a blog, website, social channels, and via email campaigns using Shopify. All data is stored centrally, so you can track products and customers from every sales channel in one location.

Shopify’s dashboard lets businesses manage their online and offline sales in one place

Shopify Inventory Management

All of Shopify’s POS system plans come with inventory management so you can add products—including variants such as size, color, and material—SKUs, and prices. Shopify also includes barcode management to enter existing barcodes for products or create new ones. Shopify tracks inventory levels across all sales channels and stops selling products online or in-store automatically when an item runs out. Shopify also has third-party integrations for drop shipping and product sourcing.

Shopify Online Store

Shopify is an ecommerce-based platform. If you already have a Shopify online store, you can start selling in-person or in-store without any additional fees. If you’re setting up a Shopify account for the first time, your online store is included. When setting up your store, there are tons of templates to choose from. Plus, Shopify includes tools to track orders and manage shipping and fulfillment operations. Shopify has the most robust online store out of all the touch screen POS systems on our list.

Shopify offers many free and paid themes for building an online store

Shopify Multichannel Sales

In addition to creating an online store, Shopify users can also use Shopify to add a “Buy Button” to any existing website or blog. Shopify also has tools to sell on Facebook. Pinterest, Amazon, Buzzfeed and more. Shopify is one of two ecommerce platforms that has a direct integration with Facebook and Instagram to sync product catalogs.

Shopify Reporting

Like Vend, Shopify has two different levels of reporting. To access advanced reports, you’ll need to subscribe to one of the two highest plans, either Shopify or Advanced Shopify. Basic reports in Shopify include standard sales reports and reports on customer data such as new vs repeat customers. If you want more advanced and custom reports like you’d find in ShopKeep, you’ll have to choose Advanced Shopify.

Shopify includes detailed reports and analytics

Shopify App Store

Shopify has an extensive app marketplace with over 1,500 integrations. Many of the integrations are for managing online sales like shipping, live chat, and online store design. However, there are also email integrations and accounting tools like QuickBooks available.

What Shopify is Missing

Shopify is ideal for multichannel sellers and online businesses. If you are looking for a touch screen POS only for in-store or mobile sales, Shopify is not the best fit, as you won’t be taking advantage of its best features. Also, Shopify’s reporting tools are very basic if you do not choose one of the more expensive plans.

Shopify Reviews

Shopify user reviews are generally extremely positive. Users love that the program is easy to use and makes the process of running a multichannel store easy. Some reviewers say they wish Shopify had more customization and template options for online stores.

Get Started With Shopify

Shopify is known as a powerful ecommerce platform, however it also has a user-friendly POS system that is ideal for selling in-store, at events, or on-the-go. Shopify has many pricing plans to fit a variety of budgets. Visit Shopify for a free 14-day trial.

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Square: Best Free Touch Screen POS

Square is a free touch screen POS app for Apple or Android tablets and smartphones. Square can manage products, track customers, generate reports, and process sales. Square has other business management and marketing features that can be added on as needed, making Square the best free touch screen POS for new businesses.

Square POS Pricing

Square POS is completely free to use. It is the only touch screen POS on our list that does not come with a monthly fee. Like Shopify, Square provides new users with a complimentary magstripe card reader for processing payments.

Square Hardware

Square POS works on an Apple or Android tablet or smartphone. However, Square also offers some proprietary touch screen POS hardware. Users can also purchase additional card readers and other accessories.

Square optional hardware includes:

• Square Reader (magstripe): Free
• Square Reader (chip): $35
• Square Reader (chip and contactless): $49
• Square Terminal (all payments, receipt printer): $399 or $37 per month for 12 months
• Square Register (all payments, two screens): $999 or $49 per month for 24 months

*discounted payment processing available with Square Terminal and Square Register

Square Payment Processing

Like many other touch screen POS systems, Square comes with built-in payment processing. However, unlike ShopKeep, Square does not offer the option of integrating other payment providers. Businesses using the free Square POS app will pay a 2.6% + 10 cents per transaction transaction fee on magstripe, chip, and contactless payments. Keyed-in payments are 3.5% + 30 cents per transaction.

Square touch screen POS has an app for iOS and Android tablets and smartphones

Square POS Features

Even though Square is a free POS system, it still comes packed with features. Businesses can manage inventory, create customer profiles, manage staff, and view reports. Square’s inventory management and reporting features are nowhere near as advanced as Lightspeed’s. However, it has the basic features needed to manage a new small business.

Square Inventory Management

Businesses using Square POS can upload products individually or in bulk using a CSV spreadsheet. Products can be added or adjusted through the touch screen POS app or through Square Dashboard on a desktop. Square’s cloud-based software lets businesses access inventory from any device with an internet connection. Businesses can also set up daily stock alerts to be sent via email.

Square Customer Relationship Management

Square’s customer directory and feedback features are part of what makes Square stand out from other POS systems. Like with inventory, businesses can add customer profiles individually or in bulk with a spreadsheet. Alternatively, you can let the system add the personal information of your customers automatically after purchases. You can collect contact information, and there’s a section for notes.

Square has a customer feedback feature built into digital receipts

Square Customer Feedback

Square POS sends customers digital receipts via email or text based on the customer’s preference. The digital receipts also ask customers to provide feedback on their experience, first by saying whether it was positive or negative, and then by specifying why. Businesses can view this feedback in real time and respond to customers with messages, coupons, and refunds.

Square Reporting

Square has a feature called Square Analytics, which businesses can access through the website or by downloading Square’s Dashboard app. Like all the touch screen POS system in our list, Square’s analytics run in real time, so there’s no need to wait for end-of-day reports. Square includes insights such as top product categories, percent of new vs repeat customers, the average customer spend, and sales by time of day or employee.

Square Dashboard provides at-a-glance reporting

Square Add-ons

Square POS offers a free online store, which is a great value for new businesses. The store can be used to sell products or as a regular informational website. Square also partners with major ecommerce platforms like BigCommerce and WooCommerce.

Square POS also has optional features for managing employees, processing payroll and offering benefits, loyalty programs, and email marketing. Square POS even has an appointment booking feature to turn Square into a salon POS system. It is unusual for one software system to provide all of these tools in-house. Square POS also integrates with outside accounting platforms like QuickBooks and Xero, marketing tools Mailchimp and ActiveCampaign.

What Square POS is Missing

Square POS is not as robust as other POS systems on our list, especially when it comes to reporting and inventory management. So, businesses like established brick and mortar stores that have lots of inventory would be better suited with another system like Lightspeed, Vend, or ShopKeep.

Square POS Reviews

Overall, Square POS user reviews are positive. Users like that the system is free and easy to use. Most complaints typically refer to Square’s payment processing rates or trouble getting in contact with Square’s customer service.

Get Started With Square POS

Square is a user-friendly and intuitive touch screen POS that is free to use. It includes all the basics you need for running a new small business. Visit Square to create your free account.

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TouchBistro: Best Touch Screen POS for Restaurants

TouchBistro is an iPad touch screen POS and restaurant management software. TouchBistro comes with over 200 features built-in including payment processing, tableside ordering, reservation management, and menu costing. TouchBistro starts at under $70 per month, which is competitive for restaurant POS systems.

TouchBistro Pricing

Like most systems on our list, TouchBistro has a monthly software fee. However, TouchBistro bills annually. There are four plans to choose from. Similar to Lightspeed, TouchBistro includes all features in each plan, the only difference is the number of licenses or registers.

TouchBistro Pricing Tiers

TouchBistro Hardware

TouchBistro offers complete register systems including iPads, cash drawers, receipt printers, and more. Specific pricing is available through a custom quote. Businesses can have hardware payment plans starting from $44 per month.

Additional hardware available through TouchBistro for a custom price includes:

• Kitchen impact printers for printing kitchen tickets
• Receipt printers
• Cash drawers
• Ethernet switch and cables (required for multi-iPad setups)
• iPad stands

TouchBistro Payment Processing

Vend and TouchBistro are the only two touch screen POS systems on our list that don’t offer built-in payment processing, although TouchBistro integrates with a number of third-party payment processors, so businesses can shop around for the best rate.

TouchBistro integrates with the following payment processors:

• Chase
• Moneris
• WorldPay
• Square

TouchBistro is a touch screen POS specifically designed for iPads

TouchBistro Features

TouchBistro is a tablet-based software that uses a hybrid cloud and local installation solution, so you can access some features without Wi-Fi, which is not typical of most systems. TouchBistro is also specifically designed for use on iPads, making it one of the only solutions on our list that is not compatible with Android tablets.

TouchBistro Inventory and Ingredient Management

TouchBistro offers granular inventory management. Restaurants can enter individual ingredients and attach them to different recipes and menu items to track specific stock levels. TouchBistro also has customizable low-stock alerts.

TouchBistro has ingredient-level tracking, so stock levels are automatically adjusted every time an item is sold

TouchBistro Customer Relationship Management

TouchBistro lets businesses create and manage customer profiles, including contact information and personal notes such as “hates onions.” Restaurants can also save payment information for regular customers and accept advance payment for VIP customers or groups. TouchBistro has a loyalty program starting at $49 per month that restaurants can add on to their POS to offer customer rewards and gift cards.

TouchBistro Employee Management

Most POS systems include staff logins and the ability to track employee sales and activity. Many POS systems also offer reports on employee hours and time clocks. TouchBistro goes a step further and has built-in employee scheduling. Employees can clock in and out right from the POS and businesses can set different permission and wage levels.

TouchBistro Reporting

TouchBistro offers over 50 different reports with customizable templates. Businesses can view a variety of reports, including menu items sales, average customer spend, shift summaries, tip information, voids and discounts, taxes, and ingredient-level inventory tracking. Businesses can build report templates, export data, and set up automatic emails with specific reports.

TouchBistro reports can be viewed on any browser or the Reports To Go app on iOS and Android mobile devices

TouchBistro Integrations

TouchBistro has many additional features that restaurants can add on to their POS systems including a loyalty program, online ordering, self-order kiosks, kitchen display systems, digital menu boards, and customer facing displays. TouchBistro also integrates with many third-party software solutions including QuickBooks, Xero, 7Shifts, and more.

What TouchBistro is Missing

TouchBistro is lacking in CRM features, as gift cards and a basic points loyalty program is only available with a pricey add-on. TouchBistro is only designed for iPads, so if you prefer an Android or other touch screen system, TouchBistro may not be a good fit for you.

TouchBistro Reviews

When reading TouchBistro user reviews, it’s easy to see there’s a big fan base for this restaurant touch screen POS system. Users like the detailed inventory and staff management features as well as the 24/7 customer service. The biggest issue users have with TouchBistro is that it has a bit of a learning curve.

Get Started With TouchBistro

TouchBistro is an excellent touch screen POS for restaurants. It is packed with features to manage front-of-house and back-of-house operations and offers many add-on features to suit the needs of all kinds of restaurants. Visit TouchBistro for a free trial.

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Vend: Best Touch Screen POS for Retailers

Vend is a cloud-based touch screen POS system specifically designed for retailers. Vend has standard retail inventory management and reporting features, but what makes Vend stand out is its sophisticated loyalty programs and CRM features that are built into the base monthly fee which starts around $100.

Vend Pricing

Vend’s base price is similar to Lightspeed and is one of the pricier touch screen POS systems on our list. Vend has two plans: Lite and Pro. To get the most out of Vend’s features, including a built-in loyalty program, retailers should choose Vend Pro which is $129 per month. Many retailers use Vend on a Mac or PC, but you can also use Vend’s iOS app for an iPad touch screen POS.

Vend Pricing and Features

Vend Payment Processing

Like TouchBistro, Vend does not have built-in payment processing. However, Vend does integrate with many popular payment processors including PayPal, WorldPay, and Square. Like several of the solutions on our list, Vend has offline payment processing for when you lose internet connection.

Vend can be used as a touch screen POS through the Vend Register app for iPad and iPad mini

Vend Features

Vend has standard features like sales tracking and reporting, inventory management, and customer management. Vend’s unique feature is that the Pro plan has a built-in loyalty program and gift card features. Most other POS systems, including Lightspeed and Square, charge extra for these features.

Vend Inventory Management

Vend has detailed inventory management features similar to Lightspeed and ShopKeep. Businesses can add products by bulk with CSV files or add products individually. Retailers can also apply variants to each product such as different sizes or colors, split groups into singles or pours, or create bundles like gift baskets.

Vend also has a unique barcode scanner app for smartphones so that retailers can take paperless inventory counts. This feature is not available with most other POS systems, and is great for retailers with a large sales floor or warehouse that frequently take manual inventory counts.

Vend has a bar code scanning app for easily counting inventory

Vend Customer Relationship Management and Loyalty

Vend includes standard CRM features like the ability to create customer profiles and store them in a directory. Vend lets retailers create customer groups similar to Lightspeed and TouchBistro’s VIP customer designation. Retailers can also give different groups special pricing such as employee discounts or friends and family discounts.

Vend Pro includes gift card functionality. The physical cards can be ordered directly through Vend or your own provider. The loyalty program is also automatically included in Vend’s dashboard. Retailers can set a ratio of points earned per dollars spent. Retailers can set customer point balances to show up at checkout, on receipts, or to be sent by email.

Businesses can enable loyalty for specific customers, track loyalty earned, and customize rewards for individual product purchases

Vend Employee Management

Like most other touch screen POS systems, Vend lets businesses create individual employee logins with custom permission settings. Businesses can also track employee performance through reports. One unique feature Vend has is the ability to set specific daily, weekly, and monthly sales goals for individual employees and track their progress.

Vend Reporting

Vend has two different levels of reporting, a basic one for the Lite plan, and a more advanced reporting tool for the Pro plan. Both plans come with custom reports, so retailers can filter data however they want, similar to Lightspeed. The advanced reporting comes with reports on employee performance, discounts, the time it takes for an employee to sell a product, and more.

Vend Integrations

Many touch screen POS systems on our list have their own proprietary integrations and add-on features. Vend is a little bit different in that it doesn’t have its own add-on features, instead it only works with third-party software for payment processing and ecommerce. For ecommerce, Vend integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, and Magento. Vend also integrates with QuickBooks and Xero for accounting.

What Vend is Missing

The biggest feature missing from Vend is its own ecommerce platform. Many of Vend’s features that retailers need, like the loyalty program, advanced reporting, and ecommerce integrations are only available through Vend Pro.

Vend Reviews

Overall, Vend user reviews are positive. Users like that it is easy to use, that Vend offers lots of training and onboarding material, and that the 24/7 customer service is helpful. Some reviews cite stability issues with the POS and that the reporting features are basic.

Get Started With Vend

Vend is a POS system specifically designed for brick and mortar retail businesses, and is the only touch screen POS on our list with built in loyalty program and gift card features. Visit Vend for a free 14-day trial.

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Bottom Line

The best touch screen POS systems are user friendly and easy to navigate on a tablet. However, touch screen POS also need to be rich with helpful features to help businesses process sales and manage their day-to-day operations. The best systems include advanced reporting, inventory management, and CRM features.

Lightspeed Retail is a powerful touch screen POS that offers incredibly detailed inventory and reporting tools at a price that’s accessible to small businesses. Lightspeed Retail is the best touch screen POS for any retail business. Visit Lightspeed for a free trial.

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