Ever wondered about the real cost of building a POS system? In this article, four industry leaders, including a founder and a Marketing Manager, share their invaluable insights. Discover why POS costs range from $2,000 to $20,000 and what makes the investment worthwhile with a total of four expert opinions. Stay tuned for the final insight that highlights how POS systems improve customer relationships and experiences.
- POS Costs Range from $2,000 to $20,000
- Building POS Systems Costs $50,000 to $300,000
- POS Systems Cost Between $30,000 to $150,000
- POS Systems Improve Customer Relationships and Experiences
POS Costs Range from $2,000 to $20,000
I’ve seen POS costs range from $2,000 to $20,000+ while helping Shopify store owners integrate systems over the years. For a basic setup, you’re looking at around $1,500 for hardware (terminal, receipt printer, cash drawer, barcode scanner) plus monthly software fees starting at $69, but what really catches people off guard is the ongoing costs like payment processing fees (usually 2-3% per transaction) and maintenance. Based on my experience with Digital Darts clients, I recommend budgeting an extra 15-20% annually for updates, technical support, and potential hardware replacements—it’s better to be prepared than caught off guard.
Joshua Uebergang, Founder, Digital Darts
Building POS Systems Costs $50,000 to $300,000
Building a Point-of-Sale (POS) system can cost anywhere from $50,000 to $300,000 or more, depending on the complexity, features, and technology stack. The total cost hinges on several key factors.
- Development Team: The biggest cost driver is the team itself. Hiring in-house developers or outsourcing to an agency can impact costs significantly. For example, working with a local team in North America will cost more than outsourcing to developers in Eastern Europe or Asia.
- Core Features: Basic POS systems include sales processing, inventory management, and reporting. More advanced systems with integrations (e.g., loyalty programs, payment gateways, multi-location management) or hardware compatibility (like card readers or barcode scanners) increase development time and cost.
- Infrastructure and Hosting: SaaS-based POS systems require reliable cloud infrastructure to manage data securely and ensure real-time functionality. Hosting costs with providers like AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud vary based on storage and scalability needs.
- UI/UX Design: A user-friendly interface is critical for adoption. Investing in intuitive design will raise upfront costs but significantly enhance user satisfaction.
- Compliance and Security: Meeting PCI DSS standards for payment processing and ensuring data encryption adds both development time and potential certification costs.
- Hardware Integration: Developing software that works seamlessly with external hardware like receipt printers, touchscreens, and payment terminals often requires custom APIs, which add to the cost.
For instance, building a basic MVP for a small business POS with limited features might cost around $50,000-$75,000, while a full-featured, scalable POS for a chain of stores with advanced analytics could exceed $200,000. Balancing feature prioritisation with scalability is key to managing these costs effectively.
Alex Cornici, Marketing Manager, Feed Pic
POS Systems Cost Between $30,000 to $150,000
As a full-stack engineer who’s built multiple SaaS solutions, I’ve found that building a POS system typically costs between $30,000-$150,000, with hardware integration and security features being the biggest expenses. From my experience leading development teams, I recommend allocating about 40% for core development, 25% for security and compliance, 20% for testing/QA, and 15% for UI/UX design and customisation.
Joshua Odmark, CIO and Founder, Local Data Exchange
POS Systems Improve Customer Relationships and Experiences
POS systems provide improvement in customer relationships and experiences. They help in storing histories of customer purchases and creating personalised experiences based on previous purchases. POS helps companies understand the target customer for their products and services.
Smaller businesses can set up a POS system for the cost of $500, while for large businesses it will cost up to $10,000 as a full set-up cost. Other POS installation costs include setup, training, transaction fees, software subscription fees, hardware costs, maintenance fees, and compliance fees. The major costs of the POS system include hardware, software, and payment processing. Hardware costs include the purchase of a POS terminal, cash drawers, receipt printers, barcode scanners, and contactless payment equipment. POS software provides the core feature of the system. Payment processing fees are also charged each time a customer uses cards, which comprise a considerable part of the POS system costs.
Dhari Alabdulhadi, CTO and Founder, Ubuy Netherlands
