A small business point of sale system is software licensed monthly per till plus the hardware it runs on. Published UK tiers run from free to about 200 pounds a month. What decides the supplier is rarely the till itself: it is whatever else the trade needs, bookings in a salon or spa, rooms in a hotel, mobility at a market.
A POS machine for small business: the kit and the licence
A small business buys two things: the hardware, once, and the software, monthly. EPOS Direct prints an indicative band for a sole trader or market stall, a tablet and a card reader, of about 150 to 400 pounds one-off and free to 30 pounds a month. On the software side storekit prints a free tier and 99 pounds a month for growing brands, and Loyverse gives the core away and prices add-ons separately. The card rate is a third cost, charged on every sale by whoever takes the payments.
Trade needs decide the supplier: salons, spas and a POS system for hotels
A salon or spa runs on a diary: stylists or therapists, room and chair time, deposits and no shows. A hotel runs on rooms and folios. A market trader runs on a battery. In each case a general till that cannot hold the trade's core object means running a second system and entering everything twice, which costs more than any licence saved.
Mobile point of sale systems, and when one is enough
A tablet with the supplier's app, a reader and a printer is a complete system for a great many small businesses, and it is what most current UK suppliers sell. It is cheaper than a dedicated terminal, portable, and easy to add a second of. Keep a spare device, because a consumer tablet is a consumer tablet.
A cheap POS system and the cheapest EPOS system, assessed honestly
Free and entry tiers genuinely cover a single till with one operator and a short product list. They stop covering the job at staff permissions, stock control and multiple registers. Loyverse gives the core away and prices sales history, employee management and advanced inventory separately, so total the add-ons you need before calling a free tier the cheapest option.
Questions people ask about point of sale systems for small business
What is the cheapest POS system for small business UK operators can run?
A free or entry tier, which covers a single till with one operator: storekit prints a free tier and Loyverse gives its core away. Once staff permissions, stock or a second register are needed the real cost is the tier or add-ons that hold them, so total those before comparing, and add the hardware, which EPOS Direct puts at about 150 to 400 pounds one-off for a tablet and card reader.
Does a salon point of sale or a spa POS need to be trade specific?
Usually, because the diary is the core of the business. A till that cannot hold appointments means running a separate booking system and entering everything twice.
What point of sale hardware does a small business need?
A screen or tablet, a receipt printer, a card terminal, and a cash drawer and scanner where cash and barcodes are involved. Published component bands are a fair check on any bundled quote.