EPOSSquare for Retail Plus
£69
per month
1.75%
per transaction
Hardware: From £169
Contract: None
Free Square Point of Sale app tier
Free, quick comparison
EPOS systems comparison
Compare UK EPOS (electronic point of sale) systems for retail and hospitality — stock control, sales reporting and staff tools alongside card payments, not just a till.
Compare now No obligation · Takes minutes
Trusted choice
Rated 4.9 out of 5
EPOS
EPOSLightspeed Retail
EPOSEpos Now Essentials
EPOSSumUp POS Pro
Deal tables sorted by headline rate (low to high)
Rates shown are indicative and depend on your turnover, average transaction value and business type. Final pricing is confirmed by the provider after your quote.
What is an EPOS system?
An EPOS (electronic point of sale) system replaces a standalone till and card machine with one connected setup that records every sale against stock levels, staff logins and product-level reporting.
Card payments still run through an acquirer behind the scenes, so most EPOS providers either bundle their own processing or plug into a card machine you already use — check which model a provider offers before comparing monthly cost alone.
Why compare EPOS systems providers?
Real-time stock control
Every sale deducts stock automatically, so reorder points and low-stock alerts stay accurate without a manual count.
Product-level reporting
See exactly which lines, tables or staff are driving revenue instead of a single daily takings total.
Faster staff onboarding
Individual staff logins, permissions and till-side voids cut training time versus a generic card machine and a separate spreadsheet.
What to look for in a EPOS systems deal
Stock and inventory
Check real-time stock deduction, low-stock alerts and multi-site stock visibility are included, not a paid add-on module.
Headline pricing
The percentage or flat fee taken from each payment. Compare on your real volumes, not the marketing rate.
Monthly and hidden fees
Check minimum monthly charges, PCI fees, gateway fees, refund charges and chargeback costs.
Settlement speed
How quickly funds reach your business account — next day makes a real difference to cashflow.
Security and compliance
PCI DSS scope, 3D Secure, tokenisation and fraud screening should be included, not bolted on.
Reporting and integrations
Links to your accounting software, EPOS or online store so takings reconcile automatically.
How does comparing EPOS systems work?
Tell us whether you're retail or hospitality, how many tills or sites you need, and roughly how many SKUs or menu items you stock.
We show UK EPOS providers that fit your sector, with indicative monthly software cost and hardware options.
Most providers offer a demo before you commit — worth testing the actual till workflow, not just the feature list.
Once hardware arrives, initial stock or menu upload is the main setup task; most sites are trading on the new system within a week.
Do I need EPOS systems?
If you're currently reconciling stock manually against a card machine's takings report, an EPOS system removes that entire manual step.
Single-till businesses with very few product lines sometimes don't need the full stock and reporting layer — a card machine or basic POS may be enough.
Multi-site retailers and hospitality venues with staff rotas see the fastest payback, since stock and staff visibility compound across locations.
How do I choose the best EPOS systems deal?
Separate the software cost from the payments cost — some EPOS providers require you to use their own card processing, others let you keep an existing acquirer. Then check hardware cost upfront versus a monthly hardware-included plan, and confirm the system exports cleanly to your accounting software.
How much could I save on EPOS systems?
Businesses moving from manual stock counts to automated EPOS tracking typically cut stock-discrepancy write-offs by a noticeable margin within the first few months, on top of the staff hours saved on manual reconciliation each week.
Payment guides
These guides might help.
How payment processing fees work
Interchange, scheme and acquirer fees explained — and which ones you can negotiate away…
Choosing a payment provider
What UK providers check, how long onboarding takes and when a specialist beats your bank…
PCI DSS made simple for small firms
The compliance basics every business handling payments has to meet…
FAQs
No. A card machine only takes payment. EPOS adds stock, staff and sales reporting on top, and some EPOS systems include card processing while others connect to a separate card machine.
Most providers licence per till or per site, with centralised reporting across all of them — check whether multi-site reporting is included or a paid add-on.
Most modern EPOS systems cache transactions locally and sync once connectivity returns, but confirm offline behaviour before choosing if your site has unreliable internet.
No, but a good EPOS exports sales data to Xero, QuickBooks or similar, so your bookkeeping doesn't need manual re-entry.
Our services are provided at no cost to you. We may receive a commission from the companies we refer you to, but this does not affect what you will pay for the product you choose.
Written by the Grow Your Business payments team · Updated 25 July 2026