Retail store owners can choose a simple cash register or innovative POS cash register to handle payments and track sales. Fundamental electronic cash registers are suitable for some businesses, but most are moving toward feature-filled POS cash registers that more effectively run operations. We explore both options and help pinpoint the optimal solution for your store.
Cash Registers vs POS Systems: That Checkout is Best for You
| Checkout | Finest for | Priced from |
|---|---|---|
| Cash Register | Small businesses that just have to ring up sales, run receipts, and receive cash, check & credit card payments | $90 & up |
| POS Cash Register | Retailers that want to handle all types of sales, payments, and business functions in a single compact computerized system. | $99/month & up |
Cash Registers vs POS Systems: Assessing Your Needs
Assessing your business needs is the first step in determining if a basic cash register or POS system is best for you. Here’s a quick checklist that walks you through the most frequent retail payment requirements and handling jobs. Your answers will inform you if a simple cash register is going to do the trick, or when a POS cash register will profit you more.
Money Register vs POS Cash Register: Your Business Needs Checklist
| What is your company need? | Fundamental Cash Register | POS Cash Register |
|---|---|---|
| Saves money & check earnings | ✔ | ✔ |
| Procedure credit cards | ✔ | ✔ |
| Add tax to sales | ✔ | ✔ |
| Daily tallies | ✔ | ✔ |
| Track departmental sales | ✔ | ✔ |
| Printing receipts | ✔ | ✔ |
| Customer cost screens | ✔ | ✔ |
| Staff/clerk sign-in | ✔ | ✔ |
| Rental management & stock counts | ✔ | |
| Produce & track purchase orders | ✔ | |
| Connect into a webstore | ✔ | |
| Process & boat online orders | ✔ | |
| Accept phone orders & obligations | ✔ | |
| Process & track yields in detail | ✔ | |
| Handle employee time | ✔ | |
| Track commissions & tips | ✔ | |
| Create & monitor invoices | ✔ | |
| Get bill payments | ✔ | |
| Manage customer information | ✔ | |
| Discounts, marketing & loyalty programs | ✔ | |
| Track sales details & pull innovative reports | ✔ |
| Try out it | Money Register | POS Cash Register |
|---|---|---|
| Where to try before purchasing | In store (Staples, Office Depot, etc.) | Free online trial: (Lightspeed POS) |
Clearly, a POS system is the better option than a basic cash register if you would like to manage your whole business with a single system. While it’s difficult try out a cash register in a store, you may register for a free trial of Lightspeed POS and determine how a number of Lightspeed’s features we summarize in this article work for yourself.
What a POS Cash Register is & What it Does
POS stands for Point-of-Sale, which in retail terms is your customer checkout process. A POS cash register is a computerized cash register that rings up sales in a retail setting, procedures payments, and tracks all your earnings, inventory, and customer data inside one system.
POS cash registers like those provided by Lightspeed unite a computer screen, cash drawer, credit card reader, receipt printer, and on occasion a speaker. Lightspeed’s POS applications may also be utilized on a combination of computers, tablets, and tablets with no extra gear.
A Lightspeed POS cash register systems with POS software on mobile devices
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A fundamental cash register computes sales totals, prints receipts, and has a cash drawer. A POS system handles basic cash register functions, plus a Number of Other key business management tasks, including:
- Inventory monitoring — this tracks your stock counts in real-time and mechanically reduces stock amounts as you sell products
- Customer data tracking — this makes checkout quicker for repeat shoppers and tracks items sold for returns and targeted marketing
- Tax tracking — you can set-and-forget your sales tax rates in many POS systems, which automatically apply taxes to earnings, then provides comprehensive reports come tax period
- Employee management — track commissions and tips, programs, work hours, duties, and much more
- Marketing — tracking customer information helps you handle your email and direct email advertising and create successful promotions based on customer buying habits
Having all of your data saved and accessible within one system makes your operation more effective and, in many cases, more profitable. With POS cash register, you get more than a digital money till with a glorified calculator. You receive an entire retail store management solution.
Successful retailing is all about having the right data about what’s selling, at what cost, and ultimately who is buying. With no POS, you are guessing. With that POS data, it’s possible to ultimately determine that you need to be targeting with advertising based on client data you are capturing at the point-of-sale.
— Ray Riley, Chief Executive Officer, People in Progress Global
But Are Not POS Cash Registers Expensive, High-tech & Bulky?
If you’ve avoided switching to (or starting out with) a POS cash register for all these reasons, worry not! Modern POS cash register systems will surprise you in every conceivable way; most notably within their low operating costs and ease-of-use.
Modern POS systems are far less expensive and simpler to work with than old cash registers. They comprise intuitive interfaces on smart, clear touch displays and even work on iPads and tablets.
— Josh Phillips, Nobly POS
Older POS cash register systems conducted off of internal computer networks and demanded an expensive in-store computer server and clunky software. But that’s changed in recent years, as a result of cloud-based engineering that runs on tablets tablets, and smartphones like Lightspeed POS laptop and mobile-friendly displays.
Utilize Lightspeed POS onto a notebook, tablet, or smartphone for a low-cost retail POS solution
A modern cloud-based POS platform like Lightspeed makes complete POS functionality far less costly. You can join your information through the internet and run your whole operation from a tablet or smartphone, or using a customized POS register channel.
But, if you do not have to monitor your sales, customer, and inventory data, inexpensive digital cash registers can fulfill your shop’s basic payment requirements.
Cash Registers vs POS Systems: When to Choose a Cash Register
Casio’s basic digital cash register runs about 95 on Amazon and provides sales tax, tracks sales by section, supports sales clerk sign-ins and much more
Having a one-time buy price starting around $95, a basic cash register could be significantly less expensive than a POS system, if that’s all you want. But POS systems have low monthly charges, particularly considering the numerous time-saving advantages you get. So cost isn’t necessarily a big factor in this choice. Nor is there an ease-of-use concern because contemporary POS systems are quite intuitive to set up and use.
Selecting an intuitive system in the start sets the entire team up for success. Even easy registers have a learning curve for new teams: train your staff once within an intuitive system to place them up for success and avoid future confusion.
— Weaver Ellard, Field Marketing Associate, NCR Corporation / NCR Counterpoint
So, if price and ease-of-use aren’t picking factors, are there any situations in which a cash register is your best choice? Yes. Here are 4 situations where a fundamental digital cash register makes more sense than a POS system. These are:
1. You have quite basic payment needs
If you merely must get payments, then an inexpensive cash register will manage it all for you. Even the $90 models will track cash and checks sales along with credit cards should you add a credit card terminal. With even the most basic models, you are able to print receipts for clients, add and monitor sales taxation, and tally the day’s earnings.
2. You have a very limited internet connection
Many POS cash registers and software systems require internet access to process earnings, credit card payment, and access and update data. If you don’t have internet access on a regular basis, a cash register with a telephone line connection for credit card processing (if desired ) is your very best bet.
3. Computers, smartphones, and tablet computers Aren’t your buddies
We get it done, not everyone likes to rely on computers or mobile devices to acquire significant tasks done. And if you don’t like working in a computerized, online environment, then you are unlikely to set up and maintain the numerous business management features you get with a POS. In this situation, a good digital cash register with tax calculations and daily revenue reports must serve you well.
4. You really like handling your business with spreadsheets
This is just another I-get-it reason. I know a surprising number of small business owners that are completely at home in Excel spreadsheets. Moving their system to a POS will up-end their entire world, it just doesn’t match their workflow. For these business owners, an electronic cash register with tax and sales reporting characteristics and integrated credit card terminals is all they really need.
If you fit into one of those four earnings situations, you’ll feel assured that a cash register is the right option. However, here are a few things to understand about using a cash register daily.
- Credit card processing is not built-in — In case you would like to accept credit card payments, then you will also have to set up a merchant account and connect a credit card terminal. These begin at about $150. And you will want to check that your cash register and credit card terminal are harmonious. Your retailer services provider ought to be able to assist in that.
- You need a power supply — Many cash registers are electronic and this is something to remember if you plan to utilize your enroll for markets or fairs. Many temporary sales booths charge extra to lease electricity for a day or weekend.
- You’ve got to manually monitor key company data — Basic cash registers don’t provide very robust sales or tax totals, nor do they have a means to automatically deduct stock since it sells. You’ll need to manually track inventory and business financials using spreadsheets or notebooks.
Sothere are situations in which a cash register is the most suitable choice, as long as you are aware that you’ll want to manually handle a few important tasks. However, if you don’t fit in the aforementioned 4 reasons to choose a cash register, a POS system is likely the ideal choice for your business.
Cash Registers vs POS Systems: When to Select a POS System
To manage your own retail business as efficiently as possible, you need a POS system. The right solution for you could be an in-store POS cash register with cash drawer and receipt printer. Or, a sleek, mobile iPad checkout with a mobile credit card reader might be your very best fit.
A POS system is among the best investments that a retailer can make because it doesn’t allow store functionality problems to be swept under the carpet. POS techniques allow retailers create more profitable operations by managing inventory flow and speed of things, starting on day one. We haven’t met a retailer who could give us answers about functionality and endurance better compared to a POS system can. You have to check at a POS system less an expense, but as an investment which will produce the store money.
— Rich Kizer & Georganne Bender, Retail Store Design Consultants at Kizer & Bender
Even cellular sellers can gain from a POS system. Simply use Lightspeed POS on a tablet with a credit card reader and set it with an inexpensive cash lockbox. This low-cost, portable solution let’s you choose your business on the road and still track your inventory and sales.
The point is, there are several ways to craft a POS cash register alternative and benefit from the efficiency a POS system supplies, no matter where or how you sell.
A mobile cash register: Lightspeed POS with a cash lockbox
Here’s an comprehensive look at the many ways a POS such as Lightspeed can help you monitor manage all sorts of sales and monitor key business data. To learn how Lightspeed POS contrasts with other best POS systems, take a look at our Best Small Business POS System Guide.
Lightspeed POS: What it can do for your retail company
| Startup & Gamble Prices | $0 Startup From $99/month, with 14-day free trial |
| POS Register Options |
Use Lightspeed onto your mobile tablet or build a Complete POS register system |
| Credit Card Processing | Insert your merchant account supplier |
| POS System Features | |
|---|---|
| Cash & Check sales | Accept, record, and track all Kinds of money and check payments |
| Charge Card & eWallet earnings | Insert credit card scanners and contactless card subscribers to securely accept all Kinds of credit obligations |
| Mobile selling | Insert mobile card readers into mobile tablets to market anyplace |
| Customer Tracking | Track customer contact, purchase history, and promotion response |
| Coupons & Promotions | Produce all types of promotions and track their effectiveness |
| Track & Record Invoice Revenue | Create invoices and track payments and outstanding accounts |
| paychecks monitoring | Track inventory amounts and variants |
| Produce Purchase Orders | Forecast your purchasing needs correctly |
| Connect Vendor Catalogs | Easily purchase stock from hundreds of pre-loaded vendor catalogs |
| Online Store Revenue | Join your inventory to an Internet store and manage sales and transport |
| Employee direction | Track employee schedules, training, commissions, and accessibility |
| Multi-register | Run one or even many enroll stations |
| Multi-location | Manage inventory, revenue, and staff across multiple places |
| Email advertising * | Manage email promotions via third party integrations |
| Customer Loyalty Program* | Run traffic-driving programs to attract repeat business |
| Payroll* | Join Numerous payroll services |
* Advanced characteristics or 3rd party add-ons, Find out More in Lightspeed POS
As you can see, the real beauty of a feature POS system is the efficiency it brings for your own operation. Whatever you’ll need is at your fingertips. Inventory counts, sales totals, payment details, employee commissions, marketing data, and more can be quickly accessed from countertop registers or via any computer or mobile device.
Access your Lightspeed Sales Summary on any smartphone, tablet, or computer
— Rich Kizer & Georganne Bender, Retail Store Design Consultants at Kizer & Bender
Once you begin to rely on the detailed info your POS system supplies, you are going to refer to it fairly often. In fact, being able to access your business data on-the-go is a real plus for small business owners. Cloud-based systems such as Lightspeed and many others actually deliver this advantage via computers, tablets, as well as mobile devices. Want to check your earnings while on a buying trip, or examine employee activity while on vacation? A POS makes it all possible.
The Bottom Line
A budget-friendly digital cash register runs about $90 and can manage basic retail checkout and payment requirements. For many, it is a just-right alternative. But if you would like to efficiently run your retail performance and have growth-driving tools and data at your fingertips, a POS system is the solution.
If you’re searching for a POS system, you ought to strive Lightspeed. In addition to offering customizable POS cash register systems, Lightspeed’s POS software also provides you the flexibility of promoting in the smartphone, tablet, or pc with all the earnings and inventory management features of a complete POS. Click here for a free trial.
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