What Is the Best Supermarket Software? 5 Top Solutions
It’s a tough time to be a small supermarket or grocery store. Between a rollercoaster of inflation and pricing changes, evolving industry trends, and pickier customers, supermarket owners have a lot on their plate.
Without a comprehensive way to manage their pricing, inventory, finances, and employees, it’s hard to stay competitive with bigger chains.
But there’s some light at the end of the tunnel. These days, supermarket software is making it easier for small businesses to do more with less — and establish themselves as local favorites.
In this article, we’ll cover:
- Why supermarket software is essential for long-term success
- Five top solutions (based on unique business needs)
- Tips for assessing supermarket software providers
Why You Need Supermarket Software: 4 Industry Challenges
You might be asking yourself if the cost and effort of implementing new supermarket software is worth it. The short answer is “yes.”
As budgets (both the customers’ and your own) get tighter and customer expectations change, having the right technology in place is becoming increasingly important.
Here are some of the top challenges that software is helping supermarkets solve:
- Perishable inventory management: Improve the way you manage your perishable inventory with added visibility, real-time stock updates, and streamlined ordering and replenishment.
- Online sales and local pickup: Online sales remain important, even for local businesses. Ensure that your website is easy to use and your online stock is synced with your in-store inventory.
- Competitive pricing: Supermarkets need more ways to assess and improve their pricing strategy in the wake of inflation and supply chain disruptions.
- Customer retention: To stay competitive, you’ll need tools to keep customers coming back like loyalty programs, marketing support, and flexible discounts.
By implementing the right supermarket software, you’ll be better equipped to tackle the challenges facing markets and grocers.
Better yet, far from making things more complex, the features of a modern system can actually help you significantly streamline your work and save you money.
Related Read: 4 Online Grocery Shopping Trends To Watch
5 Top Supermarket Software Systems
Many business owners know that modern software is important for their business, but struggle to narrow down which provider to choose.
We don’t blame you. There are a ton of different systems out there, and even our top-rated solution isn’t a good fit for every business.
To make things easier, we’ve put together a list of our top picks based on different business sizes and needs.
1. IT Retail - Great All-Around Option for Small to Mid-Sized Grocery Stores
IT Retail is created on the back of over 25 years of experience helping independent grocers and supermarkets. Our top-rated system is packed with everything a supermarket needs to succeed, including powerful inventory management tools, customer loyalty, prebuilt reports, e-commerce integrations, and more.
Standout Features
- Robust inventory management: Get a comprehensive and real-time view of your inventory with ways to track perishable inventory, items by weight, and more.
- Flexible e-commerce tools: Bring your store online with integrations for e-commerce and support for popular grocery pickup platforms like Mercato and Instacart.
- Customizable customer loyalty: Create the perfect loyalty program for your customers with flexible options for earning points, setting discounts, and staying in touch.
- Easy-to-use reports: Leverage our reports to gain insights into store performance, so you can make better decisions about what to stock, price points, suppliers, and more.
Pricing
We work closely with businesses to assess their unique needs and find a pricing option that works for them. Try our pricing configurator tool and get in touch to learn more.
2. Square - Ideal for Small Business Beginners or Businesses That Mainly Sell Online
Square is a generic retail system that’s very well-suited for small business beginners thanks to its affordable pricing options, modular design, and seamless online sales options.
Standout Features
- Powerful online sales tools: Square Online makes it easy to provide online sales, including grocery pickup and delivery.
- Free plans: Square has several free and affordable plans for new and low-volume businesses.
- Modular design: Square lets you add devices and features as needed, meaning you can pay for more features as you need them.
- Inventory management: Starting at the Plus level, Square includes many inventory management features to help you keep track of stock.
Pricing
Square has several free plans with limited functionality, but their most popular retail plans start at $89/month.
3. Markt POS - Best for Single-Lane Food Markets and Small Supermarkets
Markt POS (spelled without the “E”) is another option that delivers a lot of power in an affordable package. Created specifically for small supermarkets, specialty markets, and grocerants, Markt POS includes many industry-specific features like inventory management, custom barcodes, deli scale integration, and more.
Standout Features
- Deli scale and self-checkout support: Offer efficient and secure self-checkout and easily track weight-based inventory with deli scale integrations.
- Combined grocerant and grocery: Markt also includes quick-service restaurant features, allowing supermarkets that serve ready-to-eat meals to manage the grocery and restaurant sides of the business on one system.
- Spanish language support: Markt is one of the few smaller companies that also includes full Spanish language support, which is great for Hispanic markets and grocery stores in areas with a high number of Spanish speakers.
- Advanced inventory management: Simplify how you track and manage inventory with real-time inventory tracking, low stock alerts, and streamlined purchase orders.
Pricing
Market offers several pricing tiers based on your business size, hardware needs, and more.
4. Lightspeed - Great for Chain Supermarkets
Based in Canada, Lightspeed supports various retail businesses worldwide with their powerful solutions. Lightspeed includes several franchise-level management features, making it ideal for supermarkets with multiple locations or that operate across state lines.
Standout Features
- Built-in supplier catalog: Lightspeed includes a built-in supplier catalog and vendor management, simplifying purchase orders.
- Built-in app store: Lightspeed includes an integrated app store to add additional features as needed.
- Franchise-level support: Get visibility over inventory, pricing, and store performance at any store location from one system and seamlessly set up item transfers between locations.
- Omnichannel marketing support: Lightspeed has many features to engage with customers on different channels like email and SMS.
Pricing
Lightspeed’s basic plan starts at $89/month but doesn’t include reports or customer loyalty. Their more fully-featured plan starts at $149/month.
5. National Retail Solutions (NRS) - Good for Businesses on a Small Budget
NRS offers easy-to-use, no-frills systems for retailers at an affordable price point. With a la carte features and reduced pricing for using their in-house payment processing, NRS is a good option for people who need a supermarket software system on a budget.
Standout Features
- EBT and eWIC support: NRS offers unlimited EBT and eWIC transactions if you sign up for NRS Pay (their in-house payment processing).
- E-commerce support: NRS makes it easy to set up an online store that integrates seamlessly with your inventory.
- Modular system: Like Square, NRS also offers many features a la carte as paid add-ons, letting you pick and choose the features you need.
Pricing
NRS’ Pro plan starts at $54.95/month but is reduced to $34.95/month if you use NRS Pay.
Tips for Assessing Supermarket Software Providers
With so many supermarket software providers out there, how do you choose the right one for you?
While we hope this list has been helpful, you shouldn’t just take our word for it. Take your time and schedule demos with all the providers you’re interested in. Sometimes seeing is believing, and you may love a system on paper but feel less enthusiastic when you see it in action.
Before you schedule a demo, create a list of questions based on your needs.
- Budget: How much does your current system cost? What’s the maximum you can spend a month? How much money will you save by switching to a new system?
- Daily tasks: What kind of tasks do you need to do daily? How will the system handle things like receiving orders or vendor management?
- Pain points and goals: Why did you want to get a new system in the first place? What about your current software isn’t working, and what are your short and long-term goals (e.g., start a loyalty program, get a more accurate inventory report, etc.)?
Go into any demo prepared. That way you’ll see the features and information that you care about the most.
See How IT Retail Can Help Your Supermarket Crush the Competition
Arguably, the most important aspect of a supermarket POS system is its ability to simplify your day-to-day. All the bells and whistles in the world won’t mean anything if they aren’t actively helping you boost profits and retain customers.
That’s why we recommend using industry-specific solutions over ones that are built for general retail. That way, you can rest easy knowing that every feature included in the system is tailor-made for supermarkets.
IT Retail was built by grocers for grocers — and we’ve spent years refining our features to be as helpful as possible for supermarkets, food markets, and grocery stores.
Schedule a custom demo today to see how IT Retail gives you the tools and resources you need to stay competitive and deliver an exceptional customer experience.