How to choose the best POS system for your business: questions to ask vendors

In this guide, a vendor is a company that sells a POS system, and card fees are the charges taken from each card payment.

Why a sales demo is not enough

A POS demo shows a quick sale on a tablet. The problems show up later, for example:

• the card fees, plus monthly fees, cost far more than expected at your sales level,
• the system stops taking payments when the internet connection drops,
• the hardware only works with that vendor, and the contract has a long minimum term.

So ask about these in writing, and ask every vendor exactly the same questions. Then you can compare their answers directly.

Before you contact any vendor

Write down your answers to these four points. They decide which questions in the checklist matter most to you.

• Your business. Shop, cafe, restaurant with tables, salon, or market stall, and your country.
• Your sales. Roughly how many sales a month, the average sale, and the share paid by card.
• Your counter. How many tills, and whether you need a receipt printer, cash drawer, barcode scanner or kitchen printer.
• What else it should do. Stock, staff hours, online orders, or connecting to your accounting software.

The checklist

The questions are in three groups. Must have means a problem here can stop you taking payments, break tax rules, or lock you into costs. Nice to have means it makes a real difference for many people. Optional means it only matters to some people. When you open the checklist in NeutralPick, you can move any question to a different group to match your answers above.

• Must have
• Card fees and monthly costs you can affordAt my monthly card sales, what are the total fees: the rate for each card type, any fixed fee per payment, monthly fees, and setup or hardware costs?Ask for a written total for your own sales. Rates can differ for some cards, such as business or foreign cards, and small differences add up over a year.
• Keeps taking payments when the internet dropsCan it keep taking card and cash sales when the internet connection drops, and what are the limits of offline card payments?Offline card payments usually have a limit per sale. If a card is declined when the till goes back online, you usually lose that money. Ask how it works.
• Follows your country's tax and receipt rulesOften required by lawDoes it meet my country's rules for sales tax, receipts and till records, including any rule that the till must be certified or send sales to the tax office?Some countries require certified tills or sending sales to the tax office. Ask your accountant what applies.
• A contract you can leaveIs there a minimum contract term, an early cancellation fee, and can I keep using the hardware if I leave?Some hardware only works with one vendor. A long contract can cost more than the hardware.
• Paid out quicklyHow many days after a sale does the money reach my bank account, and are there fees for faster payouts?If money takes several days to reach your bank, it can be harder to pay suppliers and staff on time.
• Nice to have
• Hardware that fits your counterDoes it work with the card reader, printer, cash drawer and scanner I need, and can I use standard hardware?Standard hardware is cheaper to replace and can move with you.
• Stock tracking, if you need itDoes it track stock as I sell, warn when items run low, and handle sizes or variants?Only matters if you sell stock.
• Connects to your accounting softwareCan daily sales and fees go to my accounting software automatically?Saves typing every day's sales.
• Staff logins and permissionsCan each staff member have their own login, with limits on refunds and discounts?Helps with mistakes and with knowing who did what.
• Help during your opening hoursIs phone or chat support available during my opening hours, including weekends?If the till stops on a busy Saturday, you need help then.
• Optional
• Tables and kitchen orders, for restaurantsCan it handle tables, split bills, tips and orders sent to the kitchen?Only matters for cafes and restaurants.
• Online ordersCan it take online or takeaway orders and show them at the till?Only matters if you sell online or for collection.

Answers to look at carefully

Vendors often answer the points below in vague terms. When you get a vague answer, ask the follow-up question shown here. A vague answer often means the honest answer is "no" or "only partly".

• A low card rate. Ask for the written yearly total at your sales level, with every monthly, hardware and add-on fee.
• "Works offline". Ask: do card payments work offline, up to what amount, and who loses the money if one is declined later?
• "Free hardware". Ask: is it tied to a minimum contract, and can I keep it if I leave?
• "Compliant". Ask: with which country's receipt and till rules, and is any certification extra?

What to do with the answers

1. Put all the vendors' answers side by side.
2. Look at the Must have questions first. If a vendor answers No to something you marked as a must-have, remove that vendor.
3. If a vendor answered "Partial" to a must-have, ask them exactly what is missing.
4. Ask each one left for a written cost at your sales level, and try a demo with your own products and a test card payment.

Why use NeutralPick to compare POS system vendors

• Every vendor answers the same questions. Each vendor gets its own private link to your checklist and answers in writing, so you can compare their answers question by question.
• All the answers in one table. You see every vendor's answer to every question side by side, instead of searching through emails and call notes.
• No vendor can pay to influence it. There are no adverts, no paid placements and no "featured" vendors. No vendor can pay to be shown to you or placed higher.
• Free, with no account. You don't need to sign up or pay anything.

Start with this checklist See an example comparison