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These POS companies provide affordable, feature-rich software for Canadian businesses in various industries.
Erica has been writing about small business finance and technology since 2008. She joined Merchant Maverick in 2018 and specializes in researching and reviewing business software, financial products, and other topics to help small businesses manage and grow their operations. Her expertise has been cited in MSN, Reader's Digest, Vox, U.S. News & World Report, and Real Simple. She is a Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll, a graduate of Limestone University, and currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina.
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Erica SeppalaErica has been writing about small business finance and technology since 2008. She joined Merchant Maverick in 2018 and specializes in researching and reviewing business software, financial products, and other topics to help small businesses manage and grow their operations. Her expertise has been cited in MSN, Reader's Digest, Vox, U.S. News & World Report, and Real Simple. She is a Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll, a graduate of Limestone University, and currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina.
Editor & Senior Staff Writer
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Matt has been helping small businesses make decisions since 2017. He has written reviews and articles across many different channels but specializes in the point of sale, payroll, and small business insurance categories and has been quoted in articles for Fox Business, Forbes, and other publications. Prior to joining Merchant Maverick, Matt was a journalist and editor for 14 years for a pair of weekly newspapers. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and currently resides in Gladstone, Oregon.
REVIEWED BY
Matt ShermanMatt has been helping small businesses make decisions since 2017. He has written reviews and articles across many different channels but specializes in the point of sale, payroll, and small business insurance categories and has been quoted in articles for Fox Business, Forbes, and other publications. Prior to joining Merchant Maverick, Matt was a journalist and editor for 14 years for a pair of weekly newspapers. He is a graduate of the University of Oregon and currently resides in Gladstone, Oregon.
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Our content reflects the editorial opinions of our experts. While our site makes money through referral partnerships, we only partner with companies that meet our standards for quality, as outlined in our independent rating and scoring system.
The best POS systems in Canada help you accept digital payments, manage inventory, track sales, and organize customer data. We evaluated top Canadian POS options by pricing, features, pros, and cons to help you choose the right system for your business.
From restaurants to retail, these POS systems offer strong features, reliable performance, and budget-friendly options. Here are our top picks for Canadian businesses.
Helcim is ideal for service-based businesses, especially B2B and B2G, thanks to its strong invoicing tools, virtual terminal, and discounted rates on qualified transactions. The POS, invoicing, online store, and payment page builder are all free, and the hardware is very affordable.
Every business gets custom interchange-plus pricing, making Helcim one of the most cost-effective options for most service businesses.
ACH/eCheck Payments: 0.25% + $0.05 (fee capped at $6 per transaction)
Fee Saver: 0% (all fees passed onto customers)
Level 2/3 Interchange Optimization: Save up to 1%+ on interchange fees on qualifying Level 2/3 payments from B2B and B2G customers
Expert Tip: The company offers a transparent payment processing rate calculator on its website to give you an idea of your expected payment processing rate.
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Pros
Free and low-cost POS software
Free online store
Affordable POS hardware
Cons
Must use Square as your payment processor
Not for high-risk businesses
Occasional fund holds
Why We Picked Square
Square is one of the best free POS systems because it includes free in-person POS software, a free website builder, and industry-specific plans for retail, restaurant, and service-based businesses.
Paid plans are affordable and offer advanced features. Plus, Square POS works on most devices and offers some of the most affordable card readers and registers.
Square Pricing
Monthly Software Plans:
Square For Retail: $0 – $79+/month/location
Square For Restaurants: $0 – $60+/month
Square Appointments: $0 – $85/month/location
In-person payment processing rates are 2.5% for major credit card transactions and 0.75% + $0.07 for Interac debit transactions. Online and invoice payment processing costs 2.8% + $0.30 per transaction.
Square hardware ranges from $69 (the Square card reader) to $899 (the Square Register).
Square Features
All Square users get these free features:
Accept any payment type at the register, on a mobile device, and online
Paid plans include features such as advanced inventory management for retailers, order course management for restaurants, and cancellation fee charging for service-based businesses.
Who Should Use Square
Businesses that want free POS software
Businesses looking for low-cost industry-specific features
Clover offers several POS software plans and hardware options, and you can choose your merchant account provider to get the best contract terms and payment processing rates possible.
Since Clover is such a popular system, there is a wide variety of software add-ons for everything from accounting to event ticket management.
Learn More: Read our Clover POS pricing guide for more on how Clover software, hardware, and payment processing are related.
Clover Pricing
Clover offers five Canadian POS plans: Payments Plus, Register Lite, Register, Counter Service, and Table Service Restaurant. Pricing isn’t listed on Clover’s Canadian site, and costs vary widely depending on the provider.
Some resellers lease hardware while others let you buy it outright, and many include extra fees in the contract fine print, so it’s important to review terms carefully.
Lightspeed Retail is a top choice for inventory-heavy businesses.
Its customizable inventory system supports department stores, wholesalers, and rental shops, while tools like shrinkage tracking, purchase orders, and multi-vendor auto-ordering help midsize and large retailers save time.
Transaction fees with third-party payment processor
No built-in support or discounts for Canada Post
Why We Picked Shopify
Shopify is an excellent retail POS for businesses selling both in-store and online.
It offers affordable POS hardware, a polished online store builder with pickup and delivery options, automated multichannel inventory and shipping, social and marketplace sales tools, and strong support for international selling. If you want to grow your eCommerce presence, Shopify is a top choice.
Shopify Pricing
Monthly Software Plans:
Basic: $51/month ($38/month with annual billing)
Grow: $132/month ($99/month with annual billing)
Advanced: $517/month ($389/month with annual billing)
Plus: US$2,300/month
POS Pro: $119/month/location (optional add-on)
Payment processing rates range from 2.4% – 2.7% for in-person and 2.4% – 2.9% for online transactions. Interac debits cost $0.10.
Note: The above payment processing rates are only for businesses that sign up for Shopify Payments. If you do not qualify for Shopify Payments or find a better rate with a third-party payment processor, there’s a 0.2%-2% transaction fee.
Shopify POS hardware costs range from $69 (the WisePad 3 card reader) to the POS countertop kit ($599) to the full countertop bundle ($1,299).
Shopify Features
Shopify is primarily a retail POS system and offers:
Accept major debit and credit cards, digital wallets, PayPal, and Venmo
Mobile POS app for iOS and Android
Professional online store builder
Social media and online marketplace sales
Buy online for in-store pickup, local delivery, and shipping
Start exchanges and returns online
Automated inventory sync for all sales channels
Shipping tracking for businesses and customers
Discounts for DHL Express, USPS, and UPS shipping
Automated local currency and language conversion
8,000+ add-on apps on Shopify App Market
Who Should Use Shopify
Retailers looking to sell in-store and online
Businesses that want to sell in several regions
Businesses looking for advanced eCommerce features
TouchBistro is an affordable, all-in-one restaurant POS with built-in seating, menu management, tipping, and reporting. It’s great for food trucks thanks to its offline mode.
Quick-service and full-service restaurants can add optional modules, and you can choose from several payment processors to get the best rate.
TouchBistro Pricing
TouchBistro monthly pricing plans start at US$69/month. Software plans are billed annually.
Add-ons are also available. All pricing is in USD.
TouchBistro Extra Costs
Price
Gift cards
$25/month
Loyalty
$99/month
Marketing
$99/month
Reservations
$229/month
Online ordering
$50/month
TouchBistro works with Chase Merchant Services, Moneris, and Square for payment processing. Get a custom quote from one or more Canadian merchant service providers.
You may purchase your own iPads and card readers to use with TouchBistro.
TouchBistro Features
TouchBistro’s best restaurant features include:
Accept all payment types with a mobile card reader
Offline mode to accept payments on-location
Seat, table, and tip management
Server upsell prompts
Build catering menus, time-based menus, etc.
Kitchen display screen add-on
Web-based online ordering app add-on
Accept orders for curbside pickup and delivery
Deliver through your own fleet or DoorDash drive
Create added fees for farther delivery locations
Schedule and require deposits for catering and events
Waitlist and reservation management add-on
Advanced inventory and profit management add-on
Who Should Use TouchBistro
Single-location restaurants and food trucks
Restaurants looking for great reservation and waitlist software
Restaurants looking for good online ordering features
Businesses that provide catering and event services
Revel Systems is a strong choice for chain and franchise restaurants thanks to its customizable iPad-based POS, enterprise-level reporting, and extensive integrations, including drive-thru software and hardware.
It also supports royalty payments and franchise-specific management tools.
Revel Systems Pricing
Revel requires restaurant owners to get a custom software pricing quote. Revel is for midsize and larger businesses that should expect to pay more than the other POS options on this list.
Payment processing and POS hardware also require a custom quote.
Note: Revel’s standard three-year contract has a substantial termination fee, so be sure Revel is the right option for you before committing.
Revel Systems Features
Revel’s best features include:
Drive-thru headset, order confirmation display, and digital signage integration
Kitchen display and expo screens to manage all order types, including drive-thru orders
Order status display screens to update the status of takeout and delivery orders
Third-party delivery service integrations
Customizable self-ordering kiosk screens
Royalty payment management
Centralized and franchise location-specific reporting
Merchant Maverick has been researching and reviewing POS providers since 2012. Our writers have tested over 100 different point of sale systems, evaluating pricing, features, ease of use, customer service, and user reviewers. Read more about how we rate POS providers.
Weighted Rating Breakdown
Pricing 35%
Features 30%
Ease Of Use 20%
Customer Service 10%
User Reviews 5%
When comparing different POS software systems, we consider many data points, including relative pricing, the depth of niche features offered, the price of hardware, and any associated payment processing fees. Our lists of the best providers include only apps we’ve deemed worthwhile from multiple vantage points. The POS vendors we pick share qualities such as widespread availability, accessibility, user-friendliness, and reasonable pricing. We also look carefully at niche features, such as check-splitting, inventory management, eCommerce, loyalty programs, gift cards, and more.
We spend an average of 10-15 hours researching and updating each one of our lists, making sure the providers included meet our internal standards for quality and reputation.
80+
Vendors evaluated
65+
Attributes assessed per vendor
20+
Features weighed
30+
Combined years of experience
What Is A POS System?
A POS system is software and hardware that, when combined, allows businesses to take orders on a screen, accept digital payment types with a card reader, manage inventory, and view sales reports.
Erica has been writing about small business finance and technology since 2008. She joined Merchant Maverick in 2018 and specializes in researching and reviewing business software, financial products, and other topics to help small businesses manage and grow their operations. Her expertise has been cited in MSN, Reader's Digest, Vox, U.S. News & World Report, and Real Simple. She is a Certified ProAdvisor for QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Payroll, a graduate of Limestone University, and currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina.
View Erica Seppala's professional experience on LinkedIn.
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We Recommend Square POS For Your Business 🏆User-friendly & feature-rich point of sale system with affordable pricing.Square POS is an intuitive and simple point of sale platform. It offers customizable tools and a variety of add-ons to fit your business needs and reach your goals.Get StartedNo credit card required
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.
We Recommend Square POS For Your Business 🏆User-friendly & feature-rich point of sale system with affordable pricing.Square POS is an intuitive and simple point of sale platform. It offers customizable tools and a variety of add-ons to fit your business needs and reach your goals.Get StartedNo credit card required
