Written by Martin Nikolaev: Point of Sale Expert 
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A point of sale system with no monthly fee is a must-have for businesses on a tight budget that need to streamline their sales process and increase efficiency. However, most of the POS platforms out there have high monthly fees that many smaller businesses may not be able to afford. I’ve been speaking to a lot of business owners lately who would love to take advantage of a POS with no monthly fee. One thing leads to another, and the result is the buyer’s guide you’re reading now. I’ve taken my time to find out all about the POS vendors that offer their products for no monthly fees. As it turned out, there are enough good options to choose from.
From what I saw during my research, there are several platforms out there that offer all the important core functionalities you might need, sans the monthly fee. Sure enough, most POS systems with no monthly fee will provide the basics, including checkout management, customer service & CRM tools, inventory management, analytics, and reporting, but that’s what the majority of small and medium-sized businesses need, anyway.
Although extra features can be nice to have, if you’re strapped for cash, having a basic, no-fee POS system can be the perfect solution. Let’s look at the benefits of making such a choice.
| Our Experts’ Choice | Square POS |
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The best point of sale system with no monthly fee is Square POS.
Square POS offers:
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Don’t have time to read this whole review? Skip ahead to:
- Why Should You Consider a Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee?
- How to Pick the Right POS with No Monthly Fee for Your Business? | Buyer’s Guide
- Square POS: Best Overall POS with No Monthly Fee
- Loyverse: Best No-Fee POS for Restaurants
- Vend POS: Best No-Fee POS for Retail
- Imonggo POS: Best No-Fee POS for New Businesses
- eHopper: Best No-Fee POS for Compatibility
- FAQ
Why Should You Consider a Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee?
I already mentioned that not all businesses would find most POS systems with no monthly fee to be sufficient in terms of features and functionalities. Still, you may find the best among these solutions to be a good fit for your particular operation. Here’s what such a POS system can usually cover:
- A single POS register (typical for most free POS systems)
- Small to medium-sized inventories
- Moderate monthly sales volumes
- Basic inventory management and sales reports
If the criteria above are the perfect reflection of your operation’s needs, then you’re in luck: a point of sale solution with no monthly fee could be the right choice for you. I think that small businesses and startups should always do their best to reduce costs. If you own or run such a business, a POS system could be too expensive for you if you don’t do your initial research.
Which “POS System for iPad No Monthly Fee” Solution Is the Best Option?
Epos Now is one of the most versatile POS systems for iPad with no monthly fee. Except for the free plan (there’s a free trial available as well), this POS solution is running the EPOS software known for its flexibility and management capabilities. Some of the other perks include staff management, CRM solutions, inventory management, easy onboarding, real-time reporting, and control of all processes remotely and on the go.
You can combine this POS software with your iPad using the special stand and a compatible plethora of gadgets, such as a receipt printer and a cash drawer. What I like about Epos Now is the ease of access and the fact that no training is required to run the system. Everyone can learn how to use it in a couple of minutes. Plus, it has extended data security features.
Which “Restaurant POS System No Monthly Fee” Solution to Choose?
Restaurant POS systems are among the most sought-after point of sale solutions. This is one of the reasons why I’ll review a few of the best restaurant POS systems with no monthly fee in the main section of this article – Square and Loyverse. Still, I feel that I should also mention Toast POS as a bonus entry. It’s often dubbed the best restaurant POS system with no monthly fee.
Toast POS boasts a free Starter plan (which is why I decided to include it in the first place). This POS system comes with in-house payment processing and exceptional customer support. I consider the easy-to-use interface to be one of Toast’s primary advantages. Another perk is the plethora of proprietary gadgets you could buy for a complete POS setup.
Toast POS has dozens of advantages: mobile ordering devices, third-party software integrations, online ordering, and so forth. If the free plan is missing something your business needs, you can add it as a separate paid module: takeout, loyalty programs, payroll management, you name it.
Read: Discover the Best Restaurant POS System | 25 Systems Reviewed
How to Pick the Right Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee for Your Business? | Buyer’s Guide
Choosing just one of the point of sale systems with no monthly fee without comparing them based on certain factors would be a mistake. Taking it easy on your budget is one thing, but why not make the most of it by putting in some effort? I believe that you could get an amazing deal by not paying monthly fees and still taking advantage of all the bells and whistles you need.
To help you make the right choice, I’ll pinpoint some of the important things to consider when comparing different options:
- Hardware costs
- One-time fees
- Inventory management tools
- Availability of loyalty programs
- Easy onboarding
- Seamless updates and simple setup
- Reporting and analysis
- Third-party software and hardware compatibility
- User reviews and expert ratings
The Top 5 Point of Sale Systems With No Monthly Fee | Reviews
According to my research, Square POS is the best point of sale system with no monthly fee. It includes all the essential functionalities you need to take your business to the next level. Plus, if you choose to invest more money in POS technology in the future, Square can offer some powerful add-ons to consider. I’ll highlight this software provider’s advantages in the relevant below, but the one I like the most is that Square always has a great user rating and is a highly flexible solution that’s a good fit for a lot of different industries.
Keep in mind that a POS system with no monthly fee is not the same as a completely free POS. There are other costs that factor into the total cost of ownership (TCO). These include payment processing fees, hardware costs, onboarding fees, and more.
Let’s dive into the top no-fee POS systems to give you an idea of what’s out there.
| POS Vendor | Best Feature |
|---|---|
| Square POS | Scalable; capable of multiple integrations |
| Loyverse | Detailed inventory; CRM suite |
| Vend POS | Easy-to-use, customizable interface |
| Imonggo POS | Integrated eCommerce; free trial |
| eHopper | EBT transactions; eCommerce integrations |
1. Square POS: Best Overall Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee
Square is one of the most popular POS systems out there, due to the fact that there’s no monthly fee for the basic package. Here are some of the core features you can expect with Square POS.
Payments
Accept all payment types your customers want at the same rate. Square Reader allows you to accept chip cards, Apple Pay, and Google Pay from any terminal.
Store payment details and send custom invoices directly from the system. Maintain security with dispute management, fraud protection and monitoring, encrypted payments, PCI compliance, and account protection tools.
Checkout
Square’s checkout screen is efficient and intuitive, allowing for full customization, item modifiers, bulk import, and the ability to provide itemized refunds. You can create both print and digital receipts, automatic discounts, and more.
Customer Service
Store customer information, purchases, and interaction history. Add notes to specific orders or input custom amounts at the time of sale.
eCommerce
Sync both your online and in-store ordering, with sales and inventory integrated among all your channels. Set up eGift Card purchasing on your website, and enable customers to send them via email.
Inventory Management
Receive a daily email detailing items that are low or out of stock and export your stock levels at any time via a printable spreadsheet. Plus, you can integrate your POS with inventory management partners like Shopventory, SKU IQ, Stitch Labs, and more.
Reporting and Insights
View business insights via Square Analytics, and set up advanced reports on specific metrics you want to track. Pre-built reports include gross sales, sales count, and refunds by time period. Easily export data for your own records.
Pros
- Multiple third-party software integrations
- Easy to set up and use
- Scalable platform
- Affordable processing fees
Cons
- The basic plan comes with only a handful of features
Don’t waste time. Get started today!
2. Loyverse: Best Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee for Restaurants
Loyverse POS is a basic point of sale system, but all the core functionalities you need are offered as part of the free plan. Here are some of the top features.
Payments
Sell your goods directly from an iPhone, iPad, Android smartphone, or tablet. Provide both electronic and printed receipts, and accept multiple payment methods. Apply discounts, refunds, variants, and modifiers to each item or order. Reduce mistakes by tracking cash movement, allowing for easy barcode scanning, and integrated multi-store management.
Sales Analytics & Dashboards
Track growth or decline to see how your sales are trending, and view receipt history to monitor each transaction. Determine your best-selling items to guide future stock or sales decisions.
CRM & Loyalty Program
Identify your most loyal customers based on the number of visits and purchase amounts, and build a points reward program to motivate recurring purchases. Instantly identify customers with scannable loyalty cards, and print addresses on receipts to streamline delivery orders.
Restaurant & Bar Features
As a restaurant owner, there are a number of specific features that you’ll need to keep the place running smoothly. Streamline the ordering process by quickly assigning names (Table 1, Table 2, etc.) to open tickets and indicate whether customers are dining in, taking out, or requesting delivery.
Kitchen Display Units
Get orders straight to the kitchen faster and with fewer errors. Your staff will be able to view items, quantities, modifiers, and item and ticket comments on one screen. Alert your kitchen staff on wait times with intuitive, easy-to-read color and sound notifications. Mark and recall orders with a single touch. Best of all, you can set up these units in minutes.
Customer Display Units
Maintain order transparency with customer display units, allowing customers to see and confirm order information before the final payment. Allow them to see their loyalty points accumulate in real-time, and they can enter their email to get an e-receipt. And just like the Kitchen Display Units, you can set these up in minutes.
Pros
- Detailed inventory management and monitoring
- CRM functionalities
- Open-source platform
Cons
- Third-party payment processing only
Get a free quote from Loyverse here and start today!
3. Vend POS: Best Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee for Retail
Vend offers one of the best retail-specific point of sale systems. Their free plan has all the core functionality you need to get started with your in-person or online storefront.
Read more: 8 Best POS System Options for Retail Business Owners
Point of Sale
Vend POS is easy-to-use and customizable. You can create custom buttons and layouts, and save your preferences as templates for additional units or stores. Quickly look up items either by keyword or barcode scanner, and find returning customers by name or phone number.
Create custom receipts, either print or email, with your logo and website information on them. Add notes to customer receipts for care instructions, special discounts, and other target offers. Apply discounts either to all the items in a customer’s basket or just to specific items.
Payment Processing
Vend POS can either integrate with your preferred payment processor, or you can integrate with one of their partners, many of whom offer exclusive rates for Vend users.
Vend syncs directly with your payment terminal, saving you time on every transaction, admin hours, and cutting back on human errors. Plus, payments appear in your bank account within two days.
Vend accepts all major cards (swipe, tap, or dip) and contactless payments like Apple Pay.
Inventory Management
Keep track of all your stock across all of your locations (in-person, eCommerce, and social media marketplaces), check levels and easily transfer products from one location to another. Vend can serve as a central, cloud-based catalog of all your incoming items.
With Vend, you can track, record, and reconcile inventory quickly and accurately. Plus, with the mobile app, you can look up stock availability, pricing, and descriptions straight from your phone, allowing you to handle on-the-floor customer questions with ease.
Reporting & Analytics
Track all the information you need to make key business decisions. See which stores are performing well, identify trends, and find areas of improvement with Vend’s dashboards.
Reports include customer shopping trends, employee performance, time on the shelf, and the performance of specific brands, categories, collections, and promotions. Vend’s reporting can drill down to individual registers and sales channels.
Pros
- Easy-to-use interface
- Cost-effective proprietary equipment
- Flexible structure
Cons
- Paid customer support by phone
Start your free trial today!
4. Imonggo POS: Best Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee for New Businesses
Imonggo is a simple, easy-to-use POS system that’s perfect for new businesses that only need basic features and functionality. With a slick, intuitive interface, Imonggo POS’s free plan gives you everything you need to sell faster and keep your customers engaged.
Point of Sale
Imonggo POS offers both a web-based browser app and an iPad app that enable you to sell using barcodes, or a name and category search within the database. You can apply discounts, add customers to loyalty programs, accept different currencies, split payments, and print receipts all from one central terminal.
Offer both print and email receipts, and customize different designs for different locations or departments. The platform also allows you to work offline, so there’s never any downtime.
Payment Processing
Imonggo integrates with Vantiv, allowing you to accept credit card payments within the United States. The platform also allows for custom pricing for each of your different branches.
You can also choose between inclusive or exclusive, single, or multiple, branch-specific or item-specific taxes. Finally, you can accept a combination of tenders for a customer’s total payment.
Inventory Management
Imonggo allows you to easily input product names, prices, costs, descriptions, and more into its automatically maintained inventory management system. From there, you can view your total cost, on-hand quantity, and out-of-stock count.
Maintain control of your supply chain with integrated purchase orders, branch transfers, and detailed reporting. Upload inventory lists via a CSV file, and download your inventory for backup purposes. The platform also allows for adjustments, receipts, and physical counts.
Use Imonggo’s mobile app to pull up inventory counts directly from the floor. You can search for products by product name, stock number, barcode, and even product description.
Reporting & Analytics
You can access Imonggo’s reports anywhere through easy-to-interpret dashboards on both your web account and the mobile app. Pull up daily, monthly, and yearly sales summaries to regularly review your business performance. Other key reports include profits, customer baskets, top products, sales by rep, and more. You can also pull up a complete list of your invoices in a single click, and download that data for offline computation.
Pros
- Integrated eCommerce functionalities
- Free trial available
- iPad and Android-compatible mobile app
Cons
- Employee management is not available
Start your free trial with Imonggo POS here.
5. eHopper: Best Point of Sale System with No Monthly Fee for Compatibility
For some business owners, the functionality of the platform isn’t as important as compatibility with their currently owned devices and other software. This is where eHopper sets itself apart from the rest of the pack, as it’s compatible with all Windows, Apple, and Android operating systems. Here are some of its core features.
Point of Sale
eHopper is truly device agnostic, allowing you to manage your POS across multiple devices, save money by keeping your old equipment, and work both online and off. Offline functionality includes transactions, refunds, discounts, updating and saving orders, order history, taxes and tips, and any operations that don’t involve a credit card.
You can also optimize and customize receipts for better customer service, quickly void and refund customer orders, and have complete control over your cash management by sending money immediately to the bank, tracking the quantity and denomination of your bills, and integrating directly with accounting software like QuickBooks.
Inventory Management
Keep your inventory up to date with eHopper’s inventory management. The platform automatically adjusts stock totals as new inventory comes in and modifies purchase order costs. You can also easily transfer stock between stores with a single click.
eHopper offers a centralized place to record and adjust the stock for damaged, lost, or stolen items in specified stores.
Customer Management
Focus on your customers’ specific needs with detailed records of their spend totals, visit totals, loyalty point balances, rewards redeemed, purchase history, and more. You can easily input customers into eHopper’s CRM at the time of purchase. The more you know about your customers, the more effectively you can sell to them.
Reporting & Analytics
Pull a number of reports to give you a window into your business operations, including inventory and product mix reports, purchase order reports, store transfer reports, transactions, total sales, cash flow breakdown, revenue numbers, tender type, sales by employee, serial items, tax reports, inventory aging, time clocks, and more.
Pros
- Free terminal available
- eCommerce integrations available
- Supports EBT transactions
Cons
- Not enough reporting features
Start your free trial here!
The Conclusion
There are several point of sale systems with no monthly fee, and they all have the core features that can be exactly the solid set of tools you need to better serve your customers.
I need to remind you once more that “no monthly fee” doesn’t equal “free.” There are other costs to keep in mind, like payment processing fees, maintenance costs, hardware costs, and more. For larger businesses especially, this could end up impacting profitability. I believe this is the main reason why you should conduct thorough research.
But if you’re just starting out and you don’t want to break the bank, all five of these platforms can give you what you need. It’s just a matter of understanding which one best aligns with your business’ specific use case and needs. Get started today with our top pick Square POS.
FAQ
Who has the cheapest POS system?
The cheapest POS system today depends on the preferences you have. Overall, Square POS is one of the most affordable solutions.
Can you use Square POS for free?
Square POS software has no setup fees or monthly fees. Only pay when you take a payment.
What is the best POS app for small businesses?
The best POS system for small businesses in 2022 depends on your industry. For example, the best POS system overall is Square, but the best one for retail is Vend.
What is the simplest POS system?
Square and Clover are among the easiest POS systems to use, regardless of the industry or niche.
How do I get a free business POS?
eHopper is one of the easiest ways to enjoy a quality POS system with no monthly fee. You need to register and choose any additional options if you need to, and you will be all set fast.