Innovative store experiences have greatly contributed to the shift in expectations for how shopping should feel: connected, frictionless, and almost like magic. Mobile point-of-sale (POS) systems help retailers achieve exactly that.
With a POS device in the palm of your hand, retail associates don’t have to be tethered to the cash wrap and can assist customers in new ways.
Mobile POS (mPOS) systems virtually eliminate queues, create a faster checkout experience, and help with line busting during your busiest times. For example, you can instantly access important product details, like care instructions or restock dates. Or, you can look up inventory availability without abandoning customers.
This guide rounds up seven of the best options for small businesses, with guidance on what to look for when shortlisting vendors.
How much does a mobile POS system cost for a small business?
Each vendor has its own subscription model, as well as the features included in their cheapest plans.
Here’s what contributes to the overall cost of a mobile POS:
- POS hardware costs. Some POS vendors have their own mobile devices to ring up orders, while others have mobile apps that require additional hardware (such as card readers and receipt printers). Shopify Tap to Pay bypasses these fees by turning your smartphone into a credit card reader.
- Subscription fees. Costs for the software used to power your mobile POS system range between $39 and $89. Some vendors will forgo these monthly subscriptions in exchange for a percentage of each sale.
- Payment processing fees. Some mobile POS vendors, including Shopify, offer built-in payment processing to reduce additional costs. Others require you to use a third-party payment processor that takes a percentage of each sale. Expect to pay between 2.4% and 2.7% per transaction.
7 best mobile POS in 2025
A Google search of “best mobile POS” will retrieve thousands of results. But not all systems are created equal. Many retailers invest in what looks like a good choice at first glance, only to find that their system becomes a disjointed setup of tools that don’t work with each other. So, what separates the best from the rest?
The best mobile POS solutions unify your front and back end operations and data. This lets you:
- Sell wherever your customers are.
- Improve the customer experience with personalization.
- Reduce total cost of ownership (of which Shopify already supersedes competitors).
- Speed up the implementation process.
- Make smarter data-driven decisions about the future of your business.
While we're confident Shopify is the best choice for most retailers, we know you'll want to compare options before making your decision — and we encourage it! To help you evaluate your choices, we've analyzed seven popular mobile POS solutions, including our own. We'll break down their features, pricing, and best-fit scenarios so you can see for yourself why we believe Shopify stands out from the competition.
Best mobile POS vendors in 2025
1. Shopify Tap to Pay
Shopify POS is a comprehensive point-of-sale system that lets you sell from anywhere—your retail stores, pop-up events, online, and on social media. And even when you’re in-store, the same concept applies. With Tap to Pay on Shopify POS, you can turn your smartphone into a credit card reader to take payment wherever your customer is—even if that’s away from your fixed checkout desk.
The Shopify POS app, which is compatible with iOS and Android, turns your smartphone into a mobile POS system. This allows you to use your device to ring up orders, retrieve product or customer data, and process contactless payments without the need for additional POS hardware.
What’s especially great about Shopify’s mobile POS solution is that it unifies your data. Whether you sell online, at permanent stores, through marketplaces, or at pop-ups, you’ll get a 360-degree view of your business. This makes it easy to view inventory levels, track orders, and see previous interactions with each customer from the mobile POS—no matter where they took place.
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Key features
Shopify is a popular choice among retailers because it offers POS features such as:
- Omnichannel commerce: Blend physical and online stores within your mobile POS system. Let customers pay for items online and collect them in-store (also referred to as BOPIS, buy online pickup in store), arrange local delivery, or ship items paid for in-store directly to their homes.
- Advanced inventory management: Get detailed reports on how much inventory you’re holding, and make smarter restocking decisions, with a unified view of your stock. Shopify Tap to Pay also integrates with barcode scanners for more efficient inventory tracking.
- Speedy mobile checkout: Quickly ring up new products and process mobile payments from your smartphone. POS integrations also let retail staff apply loyalty points and redeem automatic discounts to speed up checkout.
- Unified customer profiles: Personalize the retail experience by referencing your mobile POS to discover a shopper’s previous interactions, purchase history, and preferences—all from the palm of your hand.
- Shopify Payments: Accept contactless payments from your smartphone with Shopify Payments. You can also lean on other checkout features you already know and love from the Shopify POS app—like allowing customers to redeem gift cards and issuing refunds from the Shopify POS app thanks to the unification of your data.
- Marketing: Capturecustomer emails at checkout from the mobile POS. This allows you to personalize any future experiences, send digital receipts, and let customers track their orders through the Shop app.
- Retail analytics: Make data-driven decisions about every aspect of your store with prebuilt reporting dashboards.
Top industries served
- Apparel and clothing
- Sporting goods
- Home furnishings
- Grocery
- Health and beauty
- Hobby and toy retailers
Third-party integrations
Shopify’s mobile POS system connects with the Shopify App Store—home to over 8,000 integrations. And because your data is unified in one centralized commerce operating system, you can add, switch out, or update third-party integrations without leaving Shopify POS.
Notable integration mentions include:
- Sales channels like Meta, Google, Etsy, and Amazon
- Subscription services such as Recharge
- Loyalty and reward apps like Smile
- Marketing automation software like Klaviyo and Yotpo
- Staff scheduling tools like EasyTeam
- Shipping services like Shopify Shipping
- HR, payroll, and finance tools like Quickbooks and Gusto
Payments
Shopify Payments comes included with every Shopify POS plan, so you don’t need to shop around for a third-party payment processor and fork out additional fees.
You can accept major payment methods like credit/debit cards, mobile wallets, and cash from your POS app. Customers can also integrate Shop Pay to pay for in-store purchases with interest-free payments using Shop Pay Installments.
Plus, because Shopify Payments works across all aspects of your business (both online and in-person), your payment data is unified as standard. Run detailed financial reports and sync an in-store customer's credit card details with Shop Pay to access their customer profile for greater personalization.
Pricing
Shopify’s Basic plan starts at $29 per month. This gives you access to Shopify POS software as well as the world’s most powerful ecommerce website builder. You’ll get unlimited POS logins and an online store to sell wherever your customers are.
When processing in-store payments with Shopify’s mobile POS system, fees start at 2.6% + 10¢ USD per transaction.
2. eHopper
eHopper is an all-in-one POS system that offers its own payment processing service. It’s compatible with Android tablets and Windows PCs. It also offers a Poynt terminal to process credit or debit card transactions from the mobile device.
Key features
- Table management for restaurants
- Online ordering with a connected online store
- Order tracking
- Customer profiles
- Native payment processing
- Inventory management
Top industries served
- Grocery
- Restaurants and bars
- Vape shops
- Salons
- Liquor stores
Third-party integrations
- QuickBooks
- Multi-Register
Payments
eHopper Payments is the platform’s native payment processor. It lets you process split and partial payments, but you’ll need its mobile payment terminal to process sales transactions.
Pricing
Fees for card present transactions start at 2.5% + 10¢. There’s also an additional software cost of $14.99 per month per license.
3. Square POS
Designed for small to medium-sized retail stores, Square offers a mobile POS system that lets you schedule appointments and process payments. It doesn’t charge a monthly subscription fee—instead, it takes a percentage of each transaction.
Key features
- Appointment scheduling system
- iOS and Android mobile app
- Tap to Pay
- Email receipts
- Integrates with Square POS hardware
- Inventory reports
Despite these features, Offbeat Bikes moved away from Square POS. It previously used the mobile POS software to take in-person payments alongside its Squarespace ecommerce store.
Owner Mandalyn Renicker said, “We had a clunky online experience and inventory management was a nightmare. I was manually checking and updating inventory numbers all the time, which was really tedious and time-consuming. We needed to move everything to one integrated platform, and Shopify felt like the logical solution.”
Since migrating from Square POS to Shopify, Offbeat Bikes has saved over four hours each month on inventory management. It has also increased year-over-year sales in its bike accessory category by 400% thanks to online buying and pickup in-store functionality.
Top industries served
- Tattoo parlours
- Beauty salons
- Beer, wine, and spirits
- Clothing and accessories
- Homeware and furniture
Third-party integrations
- Trustpilot
- Quickbooks and Xero
- Shippo
- Acuity Scheduling
- Wix, Squarespace, and WooCommerce
Payments
The Square app turns your smartphone into a credit card reader to process contactless transactions. It also offers a portable card reader that integrates with the app to process other types of retail payments.
Pricing
Square doesn’t charge a monthly subscription for its basic mobile POS software. However, custom add-ons to extend the functionality comes at an extra cost. Its loyalty program, for example, costs $45 per month.
Square also charges processing fees that start at 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction.
4. Clover Go
Clover Go’s mobile app turns your smartphone into a POS system. It also offers a portable card reader to take payments from anywhere in your retail store, provided you have a WiFi or cellular internet connection.
Key features
- Order management
- Compatible with iOS and Android
- Support for returns and exchanges
- One-touch tipping
- Automatic service or delivery charges
Top industries served
- Restaurants
- Food service businesses
- Boutiques
- Jewelry stores
- Bookstores
- Health and wellness
Third-party integrations
- Shopify
- DocuSign
- MailChimp
- Zero
- Phone Orders
Payments
Clover Go’s portable card reader can process all major credit and debit cards. It also allows you to create invoices, set up recurring payments, and accept payments from your smartphone using the mobile POS app.
Pricing
Clover charges $199 for its Payments package. This includes its basic POS functionality and the portable card reader. Payment processing fees start at 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction.
5. PayPal Zettle
Zettle is a POS vendor owned by PayPal. After processing a payment using its mobile card reader, funds should arrive in your PayPal business account within a few minutes. It offers a range of mobile devices, including a portable card reader (to use alongside your smartphone) and a mobile terminal.
Key features
- Handheld device with the POS app built-in
- Accepts major payment methods
- Tap to Pay through the POS app
- Sales reporting dashboards
- Inventory alerts
Top industries served
- Food and drink
- Beauty stores
- Restaurants, cafes, and bars
- Electronics
- Health and beauty salons
Third-party integrations
- Shopify
- Xero and Quickbooks
Payments
Zettle’s mobile app can turn your smartphone into a contactless payment processor. Its portable card reader can process most payment methods, including chip and pin, contactless, and mobile wallets. It doesn’t support card swiping.
Pricing
PayPal Zettle doesn’t charge a hardware rental fee if you use the POS app on your smartphone. It takes a 1.75% transaction fee on every order.
6. Toast Go
Toast’s mobile POS is primarily designed for restaurants. Its restaurant-grade handheld POS device, Toast Go, allows you to take orders, process payments, and view inventory levels from anywhere in-store.
Key features
- Mobile order and pay for customers
- Real-time inventory management
- Table management
- Customizable reports
- Durable restaurant-grade hardware
Top industries served
- Restaurants
- Food trucks
- Cafe and bakery
- Bars and lounges
- Hotels
- Breweries
Third-party integrations
- Uber Eats, Grubhub, and Doordash
- Yelp for Restaurants
- OpenTable
- Recipe Costing
- Klaviyo
Payments
Toast’s mobile POS system accepts mobile wallets and contactless payments. Customers can also chip, dip, or swipe their cards onto the device to pay for their order at their table.
Pricing
The Toast Starter plan starts at $0 per month; its POS plan starts at $69 per month. Payment processing fees start at 2.49% + 15¢ per transaction if you pay for the hardware upfront.
7. Lightspeed POS
Lightspeed, formerly known as Vend POS, is a retail management system designed for retailers, golf courses, and restaurants. It supports appointment scheduling, ecommerce functionality, and real-time reporting.
Key features
- Multi-store management
- Automatic discounts and taxes
- Online store builder
- Recurring payments and subscriptions
- Customizable checkout
Aviator Nation previously used Lightspeed but was let down by its inability to unify inventory and transactions from its retail and online stores. It migrated its 18 stores to Shopify POS and rebuilt its ecommerce site to quickly customize the website without the need for developers.
“If you look at our trajectory over the years, things really started to pick up after we migrated from disparate systems— Adobe Commerce and Lightspeed POS—to Shopify,” said director of ecommerce Curtis Ulrich. “With Shopify Plus, we have all the tools we need to provide a seamless omnichannel experience and serve more customers no matter where they shop with us.”
Top industries served
- Golf
- Restaurants
- Apparel and jewelry
- Pet stores
- Toy and gift shops
- Sporting goods
Third-party integrations
- Shopify
- MailChimp
- Quickbooks and Xero
- Brightpearl
Payments
Lightspeed has a native payment processor. LightSpeed Payments lets you process in-store payment options, including credit and debit card, mobile wallet, and buy now pay later from the mobile POS terminal.
Pricing
Monthly subscriptions start at $89 per month. In-person payment processing fees start at 2.6% + 10¢ per transaction.
How to choose a mobile POS system
Compatibility and integration
Your new mobile POS system must be compatible with your existing retail tool stack. That includes:
- POS hardware, such as barcode scanners and card readers
- Retail software, such as loyalty or subscription apps
- Sales channels, including your online store, social media, or marketplace profiles
Pet retailer Tomlinson’s is just one retailer that migrated to Shopify POS to unify its data. Compatibility with loyalty and discounting apps means data now syncs to the mobile POS system. It’s allowed the brand to almost halve the average number of taps required at checkout and reduce in-store checkout times by 56%.
“It used to require multiple steps to apply a percentage off products that were part of a promotion,” says owner and operator Kate Knecht. “But with Shopify, the right discounts populate automatically when you add items to the cart. It’s a thing of beauty.”
Ease of use
Before investing in a new mobile POS vendor, ask for a free demo of their POS software and hardware. How easy is it to navigate through the interface and complete tasks? Does it offer automation capabilities to eliminate manual tasks associated with mobile checkout (i.e., receipt printing)?
Shopify POS with Tap to Pay excels in this area because the interface is completely customizable. Retail associates can quickly tap a Smart Grid tile to complete their most frequently used functions in a few taps, ultimately speeding up the checkout process and allowing you to serve more customers. It’s helped brands like Monos reduce POS training time to just a half-day.
"We train our retail staff not only on POS but the full online experience as well, which helps them understand how everything like order processing, refunds, and promotions work,” says Mike Wu, Monos’ director of ecommerce and customer experience. "Having it all on the same platform makes it much easier to connect the dots and gain a full understanding of the business, which results in better customer service.”
Transaction processing
Mobile POS systems have the luxury of ringing up customer orders from anywhere in-store. Consider how easy it is to do this when weighing up your options. The quicker you can ring up an order, the more customers you can serve.
Can you add discounts and promotions from the mobile POS interface? Manage refunds in-store for items bought online? Exchange an item and update your inventory quantities accordingly? A commerce platform like Shopify combines your backend operations into one platform, so you can process all types of transactions away from the checkout desk.
Payment options
Cash is no longer king in the retail world. A recent McKinsey report found that just 5% of all consumer payments in the US are made with cash.
Check that your mobile POS can process alternative payment options such as:
- Credit or debit card (chip and pin or swipes)
- Contactless payments using NFC technology
- Mobile wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay
- Shopping apps like Shop Pay
- Buy now, pay later with Shop Pay Installments
Also, think about gift cards, store credit, and loyalty points. Your mobile POS vendor should unify this data so customers can seamlessly shop omnichannel—like earning loyalty points on online purchases and redeeming them on in-store purchases. Shopify does this as standard.
Employee management
It’s helpful to give each retail associate their own POS login. These PIN-protected profiles let you calculate commission, attribute sales to a particular teammate, and adjust their user permissions—all while keeping your POS data secure. Remember that some mobile POS vendors (excluding Shopify) charge additional fees for every user you add.
Similarly, check whether your mobile POS vendor integrates with staff scheduling tools. Labor costs quickly become unmanageable if you’re not optimizing your retail staff schedule to match demand. Shopify, for example, integrates with apps like EasyTeam and Gusto to easily schedule staff and run payroll.
Find the right mobile POS for your business
Comparing the best mobile POS systems is no small feat. With so many vendors to choose from, each with its own capabilities and pricing options, it’s difficult to know which is best suited to your retail business.
Shopify is unique in the sense that it unifies your front and back end retail operations. Blend online and offline channels seamlessly, accept a wide variety of retail payment options, and manage the daily operations of your store—all from one platform.
Mobile POS FAQ
Can I do POS with my phone?
Shopify POS with Tap to Pay lets you turn your smartphone into a comprehensive mobile POS system. You can retrieve product and customer information, ring up orders, and take contactless payments from your device.
What POS system does not charge fees?
Both Helcim and Square don’t charge monthly fees for their POS systems. Instead of a subscription, these free POS software vendors take payment processing fees—a percentage of each transaction.
What is the difference between POS and mobile POS?
Point-of-sale (POS) describes the setup that retailers use to process transactions. Mobile POS systems aren’t fixed to a specific countertop—they’re portable, so staff can take them around the store to ring up orders away from the checkout desk.