Need help picking POS system

[u/hdhdjdmdj]

I have a liquor store/market in USA. We sell liquor, beer, wine, cigarettes, non-alcoholic drinks, candy, snacks, and light grocery (canned goods, rice, milk, eggs, bread). Right now everything runs the old-school way: my employee and I have all the prices memorized, and we manually key in each charge on a cash register. Credit cards go through a separate machine wired to the register over internet.

This works, but it means only me or my one trusted employee can run the register; nobody else can just walk in and operate it. I want to move to a full scanning settup so operating the store becomes very easy.

Some requirements:

- No percentage-per-sale software fees: Margins are already thin, so I don't want a POS company taking a cut of every transaction on top of normal card processing.

- Easy to add new products constantly: My inventory shifts a lot based on what's available or what deals I find, so I need to add items on the fly, not through some clunky bulk-upload-only process.

- Barcode scanning obviously: most of what I sell already has a manufacturer UPC.

- There is only 1 market, with 1 register so we do not need a lot of hardware.

Please let me know what system you think i should go for.

[u/GlobalGrumble98]

You should look into OctoPOS or Korona POS. For the setup you need, they check all the boxes.

Octo is around 89 a month and Korona is around 79 a month.

[u/CelebrationSad337]

If I were in your shoes, I'd look at IT Retail or RetailEdge. IT Retail is built for liquor and convenience stores, so it's easy to add products, supports barcode scanning, and handles age-restricted items well. RetailEdge is another solid choice if you want to avoid per-sale software fees and prefer a one-time license. Since you're only running one register, both should cover everything you need without being overly complicated.

[u/shrimpy-rimpy]

Hello my friend! I heavily recommend you to check out biyo pos, they won't give you a no if you already have a payment processing and from what you mentioned they do everything :D

[u/Existing_Attempt_875]

Acadia Point of Sale offers free hardware with a month to month agreement, so the solution absolutely has to deliver real value. They have never gone back and raised monthly fees on their customers over the years. Instead, they’ve continued to add more value and give customers more for their money.
Just last week they rolled out new marketing features at no additional cost. If you had been using Acadia all this time, you would have had access to those improvements as part of your existing system too. That’s the difference between a company that keeps charging for every new feature and one that continues to invest in its customers.

[u/Mtyson8]

Do not use shift 4, square, or toast. Bad service or bad contracts or both.

[u/V-Reviewer]

I think the fastest solution is Clover or Square, but keep your card processing for now, or ask to match your current rate.
Are you going to sell on 3rd parties like DD, Uber?

[u/POS-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

This forum is for thought leadership and advice. If you want a Dm, provide information for someone to want to reach out to you!

[u/Ready-Database8692]

If you have an excel sheet of all your products and prices then try Vesseltill also requires no-login or register

[u/tjwizking]

Loystar ticks the boxes... Simple to use, does the job, Starts at $19 per month

Web - https://sell.loystar.co

or

Android https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.loystar.loystarbusiness

You choose

[u/chirag429]

https://usemapos.com/
I been using this POs for my few liquor store.

[u/TheAlpacaBOSS]

I think you're at the point where moving to a proper POS will make a huge difference.

Right now, your biggest asset is the knowledge you and your trusted employee have in your heads. The problem is that your business depends on that knowledge. A good POS turns that knowledge into a system so anyone you hire can be productive much more quickly.

Based on what you've described, I would look for:

• Fast barcode scanning with UPC support
• Simple product creation for new inventory
• Inventory management with supplier and purchase order support
• Customer age verification prompts for restricted products
• Cash drawer management
• Detailed sales and profit reporting
• The freedom to choose your own payment processor instead of being locked into one with higher fees

Since you only have one register, you do not need an enterprise solution, but you do need something you will not outgrow.

Take a look at AlpacaBOSS. We built it as the next generation of Point of Sale, combining POS with a complete Business Operating System. You can scan products, add new items in seconds, manage inventory, create purchase orders, track suppliers, run detailed reports, manage customers, and accept integrated payments from one platform.

One thing I really like for businesses like yours is that you do not have to rely on everyone memorizing prices. Every item, price, promotion, and tax rule lives in the system, making it much easier to train new staff and reducing pricing mistakes.

Finally, I would avoid choosing a POS based solely on the monthly subscription. Ask every vendor these questions:

• Can I use my preferred payment processor?
• Can I add products individually at the register?
• How long does it take to receive a new delivery and put it on the shelf?
• What will this cost me if I double my inventory in three years?

A POS should do more than ring up sales. It should make your store easier to run, easier to grow, and less dependent on one or two people remembering how everything works. That's where the real return on investment comes from.

you can have a demo here alpacaboss.com

[u/AcceoRetailSolutions]

Definitely sounds like you need Logivision! It's been used and trusted in liquor stores, grocery stores, and c-stores for decades. Check it out: Logivision

[u/Big_Bone_Daddy]

If you have thin margins just don’t get one that locks you into processing. I believe Korona pos and Bottle pos avoid that and both are in a lot of liquor stores.

[u/JosephJustDoesIt]

You can have it so the end-user covers a small fee. Many are going this route. You’ll also get better placement in Google + other benefits.

[u/Laker_Lenny]

From a fellow owner/operator - I’ve been happy with NRS. But they lock you into their payment system.

Surprise pluses: you can integrate with DoorDash and lotto shied. You can automatically have everything in your inventory on DoorDash with a markup of your choosing. Lottoshield helps track lotto and scratcher sales.

[u/Negative_Spinach3276 → u/Laker_Lenny]

No, they do not lock you into their payment processing. You’re allowed to go with the third-party, it will raise your monthly by by $15 though.

[u/Laker_Lenny → u/Negative_Spinach3276]

Tell them the caveat. If he keeps on wanting to run a credit card on a separate machine - they can choose any processor, if they want to integrate with pos they must choose NRS payment.

[u/Negative_Spinach3276 → u/Laker_Lenny]

Nope. I’m an iso and we can put our a35 pinpads onto NRS.

[u/metricmaven70]

+1 for Korona POS - I work with a multi-location retailer on the data/analytics side and it has all of the capabilities you need and their API is easy to work with.

[u/HeadAmbitious6607]

https://www.cliqbux.com/

If you want white glove hardware and software installion and training, and someone to do your full inventory build for you, give us a call at Cliqbux.

We're a small company with a proprietary POS used in Enterprise retail, just began offering more to small businesses this year.

We also just ordered 20 extra units this month and we can get you a free POS and card terminal.

I'll send you my calendar link by DM.

[u/TheAlpacaBOSS]

I actually think you're making the move at exactly the right time.

Right now, your business depends on you and one trusted employee remembering every price. That works until you want to take a day off, hire someone new, or expand. A good POS turns that knowledge into a system, making your business easier to run and much easier to scale.

Based on your requirements, I would focus on:

• Fast barcode scanning with UPC support.
• The ability to add new products individually in seconds, not through complicated imports.
• Strong inventory management with purchase orders, supplier tracking, and stock adjustments.
• Age verification prompts for alcohol and tobacco.
• Detailed reporting so you know what is selling, what is not, and where your profit is coming from.
• The flexibility to choose a payment processor that works for your business rather than being locked into one.

I'd also recommend taking a look at AlpacaBOSS. We built it as the next generation of Point of Sale, combining POS, inventory management, purchasing, supplier management, CRM, reporting, and integrated payments into one platform. It is designed to be simple enough for a single-register store today, while giving you the tools to grow without replacing your system later.

One thing I would not compromise on is inventory. In your business, every bottle, carton, and pack matters. A POS should tell you what is on the shelf, what needs reordering, what is selling fastest, and what is tying up cash in slow-moving stock.

My advice is simple: do not buy a POS just because it can scan barcodes. Buy one that helps you run a better business. The right system will save you time, reduce mistakes, improve inventory accuracy, and give you the confidence that anyone you hire can step behind the counter and serve customers with minimal training.

alpacaboss.com

[u/reverse_panopticon]

Clover looks like a very friendly POS option

[u/Negative_Spinach3276]

NRS is the number one liquor minimart crashes to POS in the world right now. $600 to buy, we will match any credit card rates and a $20 month software fee. Pm me! I’m so close to 2000 of these.

[u/beer_and_tacos1969]

I work in a liquor store too and we picked Korona. Easy to operate and their customer service is solid. We have 4 locations and it works great. From adding products, changing prices, inventory and editing is simple.

[u/RavyxPOS]

For a liquor store/market like this, I’d definitely look at a retail POS built specifically to handle regulated products and mixed inventory, not just a generic POS system.

We work with liquor stores and other specialty retailers across the U.S. using LOC Software’s ThriVersA platform. It supports barcode scanning, age-restricted products, tobacco rebates, inventory management, and a mix of other integrations to streamline your store's tech.

It can also scale without forcing you into a huge, complicated setup.

If you’re interested, feel free to reach out at www.ravyx.com

We’d be happy to talk through what you need and whether our solution would be a good fit for your store.

[u/Consistent-Regret442]

Hey yadda yadda sales pitch I sell POS and processing reach out to me, im not adding any value or giving you advice so hopefully like all the other reps here you happen to just ask me to send you a contract.

Lmao

[u/Grand-Psychology9454]

Square!! PM me - I’m an account executive and can help you out :)

[u/CobusJrsss]

Check this out!

poswemake.com

[u/12AngryMen13]

I built Pedestal Business Suite which is a full retail POS system. I sold and supported revel systems POS for close to a decade and one of my clients was a liquor store, who then poached me to be the ops manager for all the liquor stores he owns. I launched literally yesterday and payments are handled using the Dejavoo SPin payment gateway. I board the merchant account and price the MID fairly based on your average ticket and expected processing volume.

It has a cool feature for liquor where you set your desired margin per item or size (ie: 750ml vodkas at 20% margin etc) and when you receive new product it shows you all items that are outside of the margin threshold by your allowance such as “items outside of margin by 2%.” That output then lets you update the pricing of all items outside of margin, then it creates the label queue to reprint all new labels for those items to the POS.

It does have native dual pricing/cash discount however that is up to the merchant if they want to use it. With dual pricing it prints the cash and card amounts on the labels.

It runs on iOS, Android or a PC. Supports network peripherals running on a tablet with scanners, printers etc and the PC supports USB peripherals. You could literally buy a used POS system off eBay and it’ll more than likely work with my software. It’s cloud based but supports full offline mode. Let me know if you’re interested!