Top 5 Point of Sale Systems for Grocery Stores in 2023

Own a grocery store? You’re likely no stranger to the multiple daily needs that your small business requires, from employee management to product inventory to store security. 

A good point of sale system will consolidate your needs and make running your business infinitely easier. But, in a saturated market, which point of sale system is the best bet for your grocery store?

Below, we’ll discuss the features, pricing, and pros and cons of five industry front-runners. We will also highlight which types of grocery stores are best suited to which system – and why. 

Best for POS Beginners: Clover

Best for a Free Start: Square

Best Overall: IT Retail 

Best for Diverse Features: POS Nation

Best for Small Grocers: Polar POS

1. Best for POS Beginners: Clover

  • Capterra Review: 3.9/5 on Capterra (385 reviews)
  • Pricing: From $60/month to $175/month

An established veteran in the POS industry, Clover offers an attractive user interface. The POS is intuitive, and its cloud reporting is simple and easy. Clover’s inventory management offers multi-location stock transfer software, as well as analytic expense reports. It also offers e-commerce options; users can quickly launch online stores using prebuilt integration. Keep in mind that many of Clover’s features, including the online store and employee payroll integration, are not included in its full packages and do come at an additional cost. 

The bottom line? Clover’s software is easy to use and very adaptable – but most advanced features come at a considerable cost. And when it comes to Clover’s performance in grocery stores, it lacks in checkout speed. Essentials such as scanner scales and barcode scanners are offered as accessories, and not givens of the complete system. As a result, Clover is a good choice for low-volume grocery stores. 

2. Best for a Free Start: Square

  • Capterra Review: 4.7/5 on Capterra (2104 reviews) 
  • Pricing: From free to $29/month for a plus plan to a custom quote for a premium plan 

A POS giant, Square is a free system that can run on iPads users already own. Though paid versions of Square add more benefits – advanced inventory tools, retail reports – your business can still access an integrated online store and comprehensive employee management tools through the free version. Square also ensures easy integration with multiple third-party technologies, including Wix, GoDaddy and NetSuite. 

However, though Square is a great POS, it is not necessarily grocery specific. There is a lack of age verification built into Square’s hardware, as well as a lack of perishable and ingredient-level inventory tracking in the software. 

3. Best Overall: IT Retail  

  • Capterra Review: 4.9/5 on Capterra (8 reviews)
  • Pricing: Starting at $99/month to a custom quote for supermarket and enterprises

IT Retail is a grocery-specific POS system, and as such includes features that would elevate any grocery store — from software features to manage multiple checkout aisles and keep track of a larger inventory, to hardware that spans every step of the sales process. As a POS System by grocers, for grocers, IT Retail also boasts e-commerce store and order data reporting options, in addition to its own customizable loyalty program that comes with an integration to Appcard, allowing you to analyze your customer’s buying habits. 

IT Retail is slightly pricier than its competitors, but its reviews indicate that it’s worth the cost. Potential buyers should also note that adjusting to IT Retail’s system presents a learning curve, so be prepared to commit a certain amount of time and effort to this POS system if you want to make it worth your while. 

4. Best for Diverse Features: POS Nation for Grocery

  • Capterra Review: 4.6/5 on Capterra (121 reviews)
  • Pricing: Starting at $99/month to a $1,568 one-time fee to a custom quote 

This POS system provides a great mix of specificity and applicability. Its broad offerings include anti-shrinkage measures, customer loyalty programs, and employee management, and also includes grocery-specific hardware and software features, such as scale integration, an unlimited inventory database, and mix-and-match pricing options. POS Nation is also known for its exemplary customer service, boasting 24/7 technical support.

POS Nation comes with a learning curve — its wide range of advanced features and reporting options can take time to get comfortable using and isolate some customers.. However, the promise of 24/7 support may make this a non-issue for users willing to make a time commitment. 

5. Best for Small Grocers: Polar POS 

  • Capterra Review: N/A
  • Pricing: Starting at $24.99/month to $99.99/month 

A more niche POS system than other options on this list, Polar is a grocery-specific POS system based out of Mundelein, Illinois. As a targeted POS system, it offers great features for grocers, including a shelf label design and printer, support for integrated scales, and built-in communication with multiple food scale options.

Polar POS’s solutions range from one register for two users and 50 products to three registers with eight users and an unlimited number of products. Though its solutions are limited in number, they represent a terrific bang for your buck, especially for groceries that are smaller to mid-sized. 

Choosing the Best Point of Sale System for Your Grocery Store

As you may have noticed, there is considerable overlap between the offerings of most grocery-focused POS systems. It’s important to remember that your store is unique, with unique needs, and the best POS system for you will be flexible and incorporate your special and specific requirements. 

IT Retail provides a wealth of grocery specific features, and also offers customized packages to ensure that our solution meets your needs. To access a POS system built with you in mind, schedule a customized demo with our team today.