5 best POS inventory systems for 2024 from $0 per month

POS inventory system is a helpful assistant that retailers can use to process customer sales and monitor the stock levels of products or ingredients. These systems update your inventory in real-time as items are sold and send you alerts when it’s time to reorder, among other inventory tasks. 

Or, if you want a companion in managing your business operations, these POS can help you with order processing, payment checkout, stock inventory, and data synchronization across sales channels. This way, you can avoid out-of-stock or overstock situations and provide a consistent online and in-store customer experience.

1. Magestore POS: Best POS inventory system for small businesses that also sell online

For small merchants selling both online and offline, Magestore POS offers an affordable and comprehensive inventory management solution.

With Magestore POS, you can access an inventory feature that integrates with popular social media platforms and online marketplaces, including Amazon, Walmart, eBay, Etsy, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

This powerful feature allows you to effortlessly sync your product catalog across multiple channels, reducing the effort of manual product listing and maintaining a unified inventory across all your sales channels.

Additionally, Magestore POS offers competitive subscription pricing and is compatible with a broad range of hardware options. This flexibility allows you to customize your in-store hardware to fit your budget.

Magestore POS offers a comprehensive set of solutions to help merchants manage orders and inventory efficiently across all sales channels:

• Quick and simple checkout process
• Refund, exchange, cancel, hold orders, and reorder
• Support for a wide range of payment methods and payment gateways
• Support for multi-location selling
• Inventory management with integrations to all popular social media platforms and marketplaces
• Support for reward points
• Gift cards
• Sales reporting
• Receipt customization
• Multiple carts
• Integration with online shipping
• Custom sales

Pros and cons

Pricing

• $50/month/location for POS subscription
• From $19 to $49 per month for online selling and inventory capabilities.
• Free connector with social media platforms and marketplace

2. Square POS: Best free POS for small businesses and restaurants

Square POS is a user-friendly inventory and POS system for startups and small businesses. It’s an approachable, easy-to-get-along kind of service, especially with its free plan, which is a godsend for newbies. 

Plus, when you’re ready to level up, there’s a $60-a-month Plus plan waiting for you. Square’s really got your back, tracking your inventory in real time and even predicting your future needs.

However, keep in mind the free version of Square is quite basic. We agree that this POS system with inventory management is suitable for dipping your fingers in the water, but more is needed for a swim in the long term. 

Suppose you’re looking for advanced features only available in the highest paid version, such as:

• Automatic purchase orders
• Stock forecasts
• Cross-location bulk transfer
• Inventory by category
• COGS tracking
• Creating and printing barcode labels
• Adjusting stock transfers
• Purchase order management
• etc.

In that case, Square will nudge you toward a more expensive option for each additional feature you require. And other processing fees have climbed a bit, ranging from 2.6% to 3.5% plus 15 cents.

In our opinion, Square is a stellar choice for small businesses eyeing a cost-effective point of sale system with inventory. But for the big players seeking multiple features, users, locations, and advanced inventory, it might be wise to scout for alternatives to Square.

Pros and cons

Pricing

• Software: Free
• Hardware: $799 or $39/month for over 24 months
• Retail plus: $89/month/location
• Retail premium: Custom pricing
• Restaurant plus: $60/month
• Restaurant essentials bundle: $153/month

3. Toast POS: Best POS for restaurant online ordering and inventory

As we step into 2024, Toast POS is still a big name in the world of restaurant POS with inventory system. It’s really cool how it gives restaurant owners a helping hand with its powerful inventory reports. What’s even better? You can customize these reports, getting the exact info you need to make smart, quick decisions and closely monitor how your restaurant is cooking.

Unfortunately, there’s a snag with Toast’s offline mode. The catch is it doesn’t handle offline payments. Hence, if your internet goes down, you’re stuck because you can’t process card payments until it’s backed up. 

Besides, when you choose Toast, the company also handles your payment processing. This situation, where there are no other options and the contracts are long (lasting 2 to 3 years), often frustrates customers. 

Many customers feel trapped in agreements they don’t like or find that the contract terms are not what the Toast sales team initially told them. For instance, several customers have mentioned they were not aware that the processing fees could go up during the term of the contract. 

For us, Toast is still a good option for any restaurant, but you need to read the contract thoroughly and understand all the details before signing. Doing this can avoid any unexpected fees that might surprise your wallet later.

Pros and cons

Pricing

• Quick Start Bundle: $0/month, $0 upfront
• Core Plan: $69/month/device
• Growth Plan: $165/month/device
• Build Your Plan: Custom pricing

4. eHopper POS: Best POS for small retail and grocery stores 

eHopper POS has made its way onto the list of best POS and inventory management systems, and it’s worth looking into why. The first thing to catch your eye might be its free plan. It’s a big deal for small businesses watching their budgets. 

The free plan sounds great, but you’re limited to 50 products and 300 transactions a month. But if you’re looking for extras like table management, eCommerce, loyalty programs, pre-authorization, or customer support, you’ll need to open your wallet for a paid plan.

In general, this product could be a suitable choice for small grocery and convenience store owners who want to accept EBT payments, pass on payment processing fees to customers, and sell regulated items.

Yet, if you’re thinking about opting for a paid eHopper plan, you must be aware of possible extra charges. These could include fees for POS hardware, additional features, and the number of terminals you use. There is no refund if you change your mind mid-way. Thus, giving it a whirl on a month-to-month basis first is a smart move.

Pros and cons

=>> You might like: How to Create SKU Numbers? SKU vs UPC

Pricing

• Essential: $0/month/50 products/300 transactions (Card processing with eHopper only)
• Freedom: $34.99/month
• Restaurant: $39.99/month
• Omni channel: $59.99/month

5. Heartland Retail POS: Best POS for medium-sized data-driven businesses

Heartland Retail POS inventory management software can make life easier for store owners who want to increase their sales and profit. It’s really into the nitty-gritty of analytics, offering real-time inventory updates and daily recaps that are a cut above most POS out there.

For newbies, it’s not the most flexible when it comes to adding extra features or integrations, which might be a bummer if you’re looking for an inventory POS software you can tweak to your heart’s content. Furthermore, how it calculates payment processing fees can be a wildcard, especially if you’ve got a bigger team, which could mean a heavier hit on the wallet.

Pros and cons

Pricing

• Start from $89/month/station | Contact for a custom quote.

=> Read more: 4 inventory management software for apparel retail in 2024

When you’re in the process of selecting a POS system integrated with inventory for your business, there are 8 essential features that you should absolutely consider:

1. Sales transaction processing: The point of sale inventory software is a high-tech cash register that does it all – scans your products, calculates prices with all those taxes and discounts, and takes payments in every form imaginable.

2. Inventory management: Every time you sell something, the system updates how much stock you have left. This way, you’re always in the know about your inventory, avoiding the headache of running out of stock or having too much.

3. Real-time data analytics and reporting: Think of your retail POS and inventory management software as a mini genius that crunches numbers for you. It keeps tabs on what’s flying off the shelves and not, giving you the lowdown on your customers’ favorites. This insight can really steer your business decisions in the right direction.

4. Integration with other systems: Do you have other tools you use for your business? Then, you need a point of sale and inventory software to shake hands with them. Whether it’s your accounting software, CRM, eCommerce platform, or online store, it must all be connected.

5. Multi-location management: If you’re running more than one shop, no sweat. POS inventory software lets you keep tabs on stock across all your locations from one spot.

6. User accessibility and mobility: With the latest POS technology, you’re no longer stuck at the counter. The best retail inventory software understands we’re always on the go. Merchants can now manage sales and monitor inventory from phones or tablets, no matter where they stand. 

7. Customer management: Some POS systems are like your personal assistant. They help you keep track of who’s buying what, which is excellent for setting up loyalty programs or just giving that personal touch that keeps customers coming back.

8. Supplier and purchase order management: And for the cherry on top, point of sale and inventory system lets you manage supplier details and whip up purchase orders right there and then.

The integration between your Inventory Management and POS system leaves plenty of good points.

1. Save time and reduce costs

• Quickly finalize an order and have faster checkout processing. No need to wait for a long time. Your customers will enjoy a quick and accurate checkout at an effective retail POS system. Every item with a barcode can be easily scanned and tagged. Sometimes, just carrying an iPad or iPhone-enabled POS system with a credit card reader is enough.
• Track goods with high accuracy and speed up Inventory management. With inventory and a barcode scanning system, you do not have to worry about how much inventory you have on hand. The POS system keeps track of that and you have information at a glance.

• Minimize the chance of human errors. POS Inventory management system allows the business owners to have multiple sales locations and track inventory at each location without being present. The boss can be away and no longer worry about employee theft. The efficiency of the staff can be maintained.
• Prompter payroll processing. The system will automatically calculate the payroll and can even print out payment slips to your employees. No longer manually logged.
• Find data without receipts. You can search for any transaction you want by using the search engine, no matter how long the transaction is.

=>> Also read: What is a good inventory turnover ratio for retail?

2. Get updated and close management

• Updating sales reports. Do not guess the sales trend, a good retail POS system provides you with up-to-the-minute sales reports for the day, week, month, or year. It will show you the background of your business.
• Real-time inventory tracking management. The system will warn when you’re too low, complete the PO, and track your providers. A complete tracking system helps you know what is going on in your business.
• Market analysis to keep up with the trend. Know what are the best sellers and who’s selling the most? The reporting capabilities of the POS system can take care of that and help you make informed sales decisions.
• Staff management. The program helps you check who’s coming in early and who’s slacking off.

3. Improve CRM

• Upgrade customer data. Updating customer information has never been easier. You can send emails about campaigns and special occasions or sale-off programs to your customers.
• Reward point. Know your customers better by tracking what they buy and giving them points for each sale. That point will keep customers coming back for more shopping.
• Customer loyalty programs. Loyalty programs are to encourage repetitive transactions and increase your average customer base. Discounts, coupons, and gifts can be easily managed for loyal customers.

4. Be smart, cool and modern

• IPad-based POS System. Smaller than your typical POS system, iPad-based systems quickly replace large and cumbersome systems.
• Handheld POS system on iPhone. Use your POS system with you wherever you go by turning on the iPhone.
• A farewell to login. No need to manually write orders and count inventory anymore. You will also help the environment.

Unlocking the potential of POS and inventory system integration is just the beginning. Imagine the broader impact when seamlessly integrating with accounting, shipping, and ERP systems.

At Magestore, we prioritize integration, ensuring our POS and RMS work harmoniously with diverse software and hardware, optimizing your entire business operation. Curious about the possibilities? Explore the seamless integration Magestore offers.