Square for Retail vs Square Point of Sale

by Gralio Feb 07, 2025

Square for Retail and Square Point of Sale are both POS systems by Square, but they cater to different needs. Square for Retail focuses on robust retail management features, while Square Point of Sale offers a more general, user-friendly experience suitable for various businesses.

At Gralio.ai we help to simplify your decision-making process by offering detailed, side-by-side software comparisons like this one, to help you confidently choose the tool that aligns with your business goals.

This comparison was created by analysing 3782 reviews and 60 websites, saving 21 hours, 30 minutes of reading.

Square for Retail

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Square Point of Sale

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About

Square for Retail is a point-of-sale (POS) system designed for retail businesses of all sizes. It offers a suite of tools for managing sales, inventory, customer data, employee timekeeping, and more. This POS system helps streamline retail operations, provides detailed sales and inventory reports, and integrates with popular e-commerce platforms. Square for Retail aims to simplify retail management, offering plans from basic to advanced features, accommodating various business needs.

Square Point of Sale is a POS system designed to simplify business operations. It allows retailers to accept payments in person and online, manage inventory, track sales data, and gain insights into customer behavior. Square Point of Sale offers different plans to accommodate businesses of all sizes, each with varying features and processing rates. Its user-friendly interface and integrations with popular business tools make it a versatile solution for managing a modern retail business.

Summary

Main difference

Square for Retail is tailored for retail businesses needing robust inventory management, employee management, and retail-specific features. Square Point of Sale is a more general POS system suitable for various businesses, prioritizing ease of use and mobile accessibility.

Relative strengths of Square for Retail (compared to Square Point of Sale)

Stronger inventory management capabilities for retailers.
Employee management features like timekeeping and permissions.
Integrations with e-commerce platforms for a unified retail experience.

Relative weaknesses of Square for Retail (compared to Square Point of Sale)

Less user-friendly interface compared to Square POS.
Limited mobile accessibility for certain features.
Fewer integrations with general business tools.

Who should use Square for Retail VS. Square Point of Sale

Square for Retail is a user-friendly POS system ideal for retailers of all sizes. It simplifies sales, inventory, and customer management, offering real-time tracking and reporting. Users praise its ease of use and portability, while some note occasional syncing issues and high transaction fees.

Square POS is a user-friendly system ideal for small to medium retail businesses, particularly those needing mobile solutions. Users praise its intuitive interface, mobile accessibility, and fast payment processing. However, some find the card processing fees high and experience occasional software glitches. Perfect for market vendors, food trucks, and artists seeking a simple yet effective POS.

Best for small to medium-sized businesses.
Ideal for retail, consumer goods, and other related sectors.

Best for small to medium-sized businesses needing mobile POS solutions.
Ideal for retail, hospitality, and professional services.

Square for Retail and Square Point of Sale features

Supported

Partially supported

Not supported

Type in the name of the feature or in your own words tell us what you need

POS integration

Not supported

Square for Retail does not list Revel POS as a supported integration.

Not supported

Square POS does not list Revel POS as a supported integration.
Mobile app support

Not supported

The app supports retailers managing operations on mobile, not direct customer use.

Supported

Square POS has a mobile app for Android and iOS.
Accounting integration

Supported

Square for Retail integrates with Xero through the Square POS system.

Supported

Square POS integrates with Xero for automated accounting.
Invoicing

Partially supported

Square for Retail supports invoicing via a separate product, Square Invoices.

Supported

Square Point of Sale supports invoicing through integration with Square Invoices.
QuickBooks integration

Partially supported

Square for Retail integrates with QuickBooks Online via Connect to Square.

Partially supported

Square POS integrates with QuickBooks Online directly and Desktop via third-party apps.
QuickBooks Online integration

Partially supported

Square for Retail integrates with QuickBooks Online via Amaka or the Connect to Square app.

Supported

Square POS integrates with QuickBooks Online for automated sales syncing and reconciliation.

Qualities

Value and Pricing Transparency

+1

Strongly positive sentiment

-0.18

Neutral sentiment
Customer Service

No data

+0.19

Neutral sentiment
Ease of Use

+1

Strongly positive sentiment

+0.88

Strongly positive sentiment
Reliability and Performance

-0.2

Neutral sentiment

+0.35

Rather positive sentiment
Ease of Implementation

No data

+0.71

Strongly positive sentiment
Scalability

No data

+0

Neutral sentiment

Square for Retail and Square Point of Sale Pricing

Square for Retail offers a free plan and two paid plans - Plus and Premium. The Plus plan has a 30-day free trial. The Premium plan has custom pricing and requires eligibility. The processing rates for in-person, online, manually entered, and AfterPay transactions are consistent across all plans. Discounted processing rates are available for in-person transactions with the Plus plan.

Plans

User sentiment

Strongly positive

See full Pricing page

Square Point of Sale offers three pricing plans: Free, Plus, and Premium. The Free plan has no monthly fee and includes basic inventory tools. The Plus plan costs $89 per month per location and offers advanced inventory tools, barcode label printing, and COGS reports. The Premium plan has custom pricing and is designed for established businesses. Square Point of Sale also offers various add-ons, such as customer accounts, professional website tools, email marketing, text message marketing, loyalty programs, and custom permission sets.

Plans

User sentiment

Neutral

-0.18

See full Pricing page

Square for Retail and Square Point of Sale review insights

3782 reviews analysed from and

Users love

Easy to use and train employees on
Portable for mobile sales and events
Real-time sales tracking and reporting
Inventory management features

User-friendly interface, easy to set up and navigate.
Mobile accessibility for payments on the go.
Quick payment processing and fast deposits.
Comprehensive reporting features for sales tracking.
Variety of payment options, including tap to pay and online invoices.

Users dislike

Difficult to organize products with mobile phone
High transaction fees
Occasional syncing issues with external accounting software
System crashes occasionally

High card processing fees, especially for manually entered transactions.
Occasional glitches and software crashes, requiring system restarts.
Difficulty connecting card reader via Bluetooth; requires frequent re-pairing.
Inventory management can be cumbersome and lacks some desired features.
Limited customization options for invoices and receipts.

Square for Retail and Square Point of Sale Ratings

G2

4.4/5

(65)
Capterra

4.7/5

(451)
Glassdoor

3.9/5

(83)

G2

4.7/5

(810)
Capterra

4.7/5

(2475)
Glassdoor

3.9/5

(83)

Company health

Employee growth

2% increase in the last year

Web traffic

8% decrease in the last quarter

Financing

July 2022 - $0

How do Square for Retail's retail-specific features compare to Square POS?

Square for Retail offers more retail-specific features compared to the standard Square POS. While Square POS provides basic inventory management, Square for Retail includes more advanced inventory tools like matrix inventory, item variations, and low-stock alerts. Square for Retail also offers features tailored to retail businesses such as employee management with time tracking and sales reporting specific to retail metrics. Essentially, Square for Retail builds upon the basic payment processing functionality of Square POS by adding dedicated features to streamline retail operations.

Which product best supports a business with both online and in-person sales?

Square for Retail is better suited for businesses with both online and in-person sales. While Square POS also offers online payment processing, Square for Retail is specifically designed for retail businesses and offers features like inventory management and e-commerce platform integrations, making it a more comprehensive solution for managing both sales channels.

What are the advantages of Square for Retail?

Square for Retail offers more specialized features for retail businesses, such as advanced inventory management, employee management, and customer relationship management (CRM) tools. It also integrates with popular e-commerce platforms, making it a more comprehensive solution for retailers with both online and offline stores. While both share the same payment processing platform, Square for Retail focuses on the broader retail experience.

What are the disadvantages of Square for Retail?

Square for Retail users dislike the difficulty in organizing products with the mobile phone app, high transaction fees, occasional syncing issues with external accounting software, and occasional system crashes.

Is Square for Retail cheaper than Square Point of Sale?

No, Square for Retail is not cheaper than Square Point of Sale. They have the same listed pricing: Free, $89/month for Plus, and custom pricing for Premium. Therefore, they cost the same.

Alternatives to Square for Retail and Square Point of Sale

Onfleet

Onfleet is a delivery management software that helps businesses streamline their local delivery operations. It offers tools for route optimization, driver dispatching, real-time tracking, and customer notifications. Onfleet caters to various industries, including grocery, food, and e-commerce, and is suitable for businesses of all sizes wanting improved delivery efficiency and customer satisfaction.

MarginEdge

MarginEdge is restaurant management software that provides real-time insight into food and labor costs. Its features simplify tasks like invoice processing, inventory management, and menu analysis. By integrating with POS and accounting systems, MarginEdge gives a comprehensive overview of your restaurant's financial health, helping you make informed decisions to improve profitability. It's designed by restaurant professionals for the specific needs of the industry.

PACT Retail Management

PACT Retail Management is a point-of-sale (POS) system designed for various retail businesses, from small outlets to larger stores. It offers tools to manage inventory, sales, employees, and customer data in one platform. The software aims to speed up checkouts, track employee performance, and offer insights into sales trends and customer behavior. PACT Retail Management is available as both on-premise and cloud-based software and boasts features like loyalty program management, discount creation, and multi-payment options.

Cin7 Omni

Cin7 Omni is a cloud-based software designed for mid-sized to enterprise-level businesses that need to manage complex inventory and sales across multiple channels. It combines inventory management, order management, and warehouse management into a single platform. Cin7 Omni stands out with its built-in EDI integration, simplifying transactions with large retailers. It offers real-time inventory visibility, automated order fulfillment, and seamless connections with popular e-commerce platforms and marketplaces like Amazon and Shopify. Cin7 Omni promises to streamline operations and reduce manual tasks, helping businesses scale efficiently.

Supy

Supy is a software platform designed for restaurants with multiple locations to help them manage their inventory and save money. It uses real-time data to track food costs, reduce waste, and improve profits. Supy offers tools for managing inventory, procurement, invoices, menus, and recipes, along with comprehensive reporting and analytics. They also provide professional services like data entry and implementation support. Supy integrates with existing restaurant software like POS and accounting systems.

POS & POS

POS & POS by Loyverse helps small businesses like cafes, bars, and shops manage their daily operations. This point-of-sale system provides tools to track inventory, run loyalty programs, send digital receipts, and communicate with customers – all within a single platform.

Page co-authored by

Michal Kaczor

CEO at Gralio

Michal has worked at startups for many years and writes about topics relating to software selection and IT management. As a former consultant for Bain, a business advisory company, he also knows how to understand needs of any business and find solutions to its problems.

Tymon Terlikiewicz

CTO at Gralio

Tymon is a seasoned CTO who loves finding the perfect tools for any task. He recently headed up the tech department at Batmaid, a well-known Swiss company, where he managed about 60 software purchases, including CX, HR, Payroll, Marketing automation and various developer tools.

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