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Shopify POS Pro: Selling In-Person Effectively with Shopify

September 01, 2024
Written and researched by experts at AvadaLearn more about our methodology

By Sam Nguyen

CEO Avada Commerce

This article provides an in-depth review of Shopify POS Pro and its key features, highlighting how it can benefit businesses looking to sell effectively in-person and online.

Key Takeaways

  • Shopify POS Pro is a comprehensive point-of-sale solution for Shopify merchants who are engaged in-person selling, handling a high volume of products, have multiple staff members, and requiring advanced features beyond basic sales functionality.
  • The Shopify POS Pro distinguishes itself from Shopify POS Lite by offering exclusive features for efficient inventory, staff, and customers management and provides valuable insights to drive growth.

What Is Shopify POS Pro?

Shopify POS Pro is an upgraded version of Shopify POS Lite that unlocks additional features for Shopify businesses to sell in person.

It is exclusive to Shopify Plus subscribers and is not included in the monthly subscription fee for Shopify Basic, Shopify Standard, and Shopify Advanced plans. Shopify merchants are required to pay additional monthly fees to use Shopify POS Pro.

How Much Does Shopify POS Pro Cost?

Shopify POS Pro costs $89 per month per location with a free 14-day trial to test out its features. After the free trial, you can pay the monthly fee to continue using the POS Pro for your Shopify retail stores. If not, the app will automatically revert to the free version of Shopify POS - Shopify POS Lite.

Additionally, if you opt for an annual subscription, you can save 10%, bringing the cost down to 79 USD per month per location.

Merchants who are subscribed to Shopify Plus will automatically have access to the advanced Shopify POS Pro.

Shopify Subscription Plan

To get started with Shopify POS Pro, you will need a Shopify account and subscribe to a Shopify plan (Basic, Standard, or Advanced) with the pricing ranges from 39 USD to 399 USD a month.

You can try out Shopify with a 3-day free trial. After that, you can still take advantage of an exclusive offer to use Shopify for three months at only 1 USD a month.During the trial period, you will have full access to Shopify POS Lite, which includes basic features such as accepting payments and tracking orders for selling in-person.

If you decide to continue using Shopify after the trial period, consider upgrading to Shopify POS Pro to access more advanced features and functionalities to sell effectively in-person.

Get started with Shopify POS Pro

Revolutionize the way you do business and elevate your in-person sales game with Shopify POS Pro. Discover how this powerful point-of-sale solution can streamline your sales process and supercharge your business!

Shopify Hardware

If you’re using Shopify POS Pro, you need hardware accessories like barcode scanners, receipt printers, and cash drawers to get your retail store up and running.

The Shopify Hardware Store offers a wide range of hardware accessories to assist Shopify merchants in setting up and running in-person stores with prices ranging from 39 USD to 399 USD.

Check out the standard Shopify POS items here:

  • Shopify POS retail kit (only available in Canada and the United States)
  • Dock for tap & chip reader
  • 2D barcode scanner
  • Bluetooth receipt printer
  • Cash drawer
  • Shopify POS Go

You also have an option to rent a payment device, an iPad, or an entire POS hardware bundle for as low as 9 USD per day (available for US merchants only).

Transaction Fees

In addition to the basic fees, you may need to pay in-person transaction and credit card fees, which will be determined by the specific Shopify plan you have:

Shopify plan Credit card fees Transaction fees
Not use Shopify Payments Use Shopify Payments
Basic 2.7% 2% Free
Standard 2.5% 1%
Advanced 2.4% 0.5%

If a Shopify merchant chooses to use a third-party payment provider, such as PayPal or Stripe, additional transaction fees charged by the provider may apply.

Overall, the cost of Shopify POS Pro may be considered reasonable for merchants who prioritize efficient and reliable in-person sales. Shopify POS Pro charges a fixed rate per store location with unlimited registers, which is especially beneficial if you want more than one POS terminal at your store.

Why Should You Subscribe To Shopify POS Pro?

Shopify POS Pro offers an advanced suite of features designed to help businesses optimize their in-person sales. Here are some of the reasons why subscribing to Shopify POS Pro can be a worthwhile investment for Shopify businesses, especially those with multiple levels of staff, a large product inventory, or high sales volume.

Synchronize Your Online And In-person Store

Once installed and subscribed to Shopify POS Pro, the app will unlock all features, seamlessly syncing your online store data with all your brick-and-mortar locations. With this integration, you’ll have a complete view of your business performance, making it easier to manage inventory, orders, and customers from one centralized platform.

Scale Up To 1.000 Locations

Shopify POS Pro offers scalability up to 1,000 locations, allowing brands of all sizes to expand their business and sell in-person at more locations than ever before, all from one unified platform.

Sell Omni-channel

Compared to the Shopify POS Lite version, Shopify POS Pro enables seamless selling across online and offline channels. All your sales channels are listed on the Shopify POS system, so you can access their individual details and performance as needed. Additionally, Shopify POS syncs all your sales, inventory levels, and expenses across your different sales platforms for easy management.

If you’re running low on inventory, the “Buy in-store, ship to customer” feature allows Shopify merchants to make sales in-store, fulfill the order from their warehouse and ship directly to customers from where they have the available inventory. Shopify POS Pro also provides the options for customers to buy online and pick up in-store; or buy online, exchange, and return in-store with instantly updated stock, which helps merchants be more economical with their order fulfillment for bigger, higher-priced items.

With the Shopify POS Pro, Shopify merchants can offer their customers a complete and seamless omnichannel shopping experience, no matter where they shop.

Optimize Inventory Management With Stocky App

Shopify POS Pro includes an advanced inventory management app - Stocky, which acts like your business partner or consultant to help you manage multi-location inventory. It tracks your orders, purchases, and stock levels and lets you decide which supplier needs the most urgent attention. The app will make order suggestions based on seasonal sales data or recent performances.

You can rely on Stocky to optimize your inventory decisions and spend less time worrying about what products you need to purchase. The app will let you know about estimated depletion dates and dead stock so that you know which products should go on sale.

Overall, Stocky is considered one of the top Shopify apps for inventory management. By investing in this tool, you can avoid managing multiple systems or using spreadsheets, which can save time and minimize errors in the process.

Monitor Unlimited Staff And Register

With Shopify POS Pro, there is no limitation to the number of staff and registers you have. Therefore, the Shopify POS Pro suits businesses with multiple POS terminals and many staff members. All locations and staff activities can be conveniently monitored in one Shopify POS system.

With the Staff roles and permission feature, the Pro Shopify POS users can assign permission to sensitive information only to specific staff. Each staff member gets a unique log-in to access your Shopify POS system. This way, you can control which person can access certain information and which staff can take actions like applying discounts or editing taxes. It will ensure better security and prevent data leakage.

Nuture Customer Relationship

By syncing customer data for online and in-store activities, the Shopify POS system enables merchants to create an information-rich database that helps them manage customer relationships effectively.

With access to a customer’s online profile, store staff and managers can tailor the in-store experience to fit that customer’s needs, providing a personalized touch to their shopping experience. Merchants can also gain better insights into their customers’ buying habits and preferences, allowing them to provide a more targeted post-purchase experience.

By unifying the customer experience across all storefronts and touchpoints, Shopify POS Pro can help merchants increase customer acquisition and retention, ultimately driving sales and revenue growth.

Increase Business Insights With Daily Sales Reports and In-Store Analytics

With the Shopify POS Pro, you can easily access daily sales reports and in-store analytics, providing detailed insights into your sales, products, and staff performance. The daily report is generated from your Shopify POS system, allowing you to make informed decisions based on real-time data.

With these insights, you can identify trends, optimize your inventory, and even fine-tune your marketing efforts to target your customers better.

Shopify POS Pro Compared To Other POS Systems

Shopify POS Pro vs. WooPOS

Shopify is a step forward for Woo regarding the POS system. WooPOS’s cheapest plan starts at 99 USD per computer, while Shopify POS Pro offers an unlimited number of registers at a fixed monthly rate of 89 USD for each location.

While Woo POS has some advanced with more customizable features, Shopify POS Pro appears to have the edge in customer support, integration, and ease of use.

See the in-depth comparison article comparing Shopify POS and WooPOS here.

Shopify POS Pro vs. Square For Retail

When comparing Shopify POS Pro and Square for Retail, Shopify emerges as the better option for scaling retail businesses that require advanced features and efficient management of multiple locations and channels.

Shopify offers more payment gateways and a unified platform for online and physical stores. However, Square offers more affordable pricing options, with packages ranging from 0 to 72 USD per month when billed annually.

Shopify POS Pro vs. Lightspeed

Shopify’s advantage over Lightspeed lies in its ability to centralize all aspects of your business into one single platform while Lightspeed splits the workflow into separate admins for Retail and eCom.

Moreover, Lightspeed charges extra for additional registers, whereas Shopify POS Pro offers unlimited registers at no additional cost, making it a more cost-effective option.

Who Should Use Shopify POS Pro?

Shopify POS Pro is for:

  • Shopify retailers who are dedicated to sell in-person
  • Shopify stores that regularly sell a large number of products at permanent or temporary retail locations
  • Shopify businesses with many staff members, multiple terminal at a retail location, and requirements beyond basic sales

With its advanced features and ability to manage online and offline sales channels from a centralized platform, Shopify POS Pro helps Shopify merchants simplify day-to-day tasks and keep inventory, payments, and customers in sync, increasing sales and customer loyalty.

How Shopify POS Pro OutShines Shopify POS Lite

Although Shopify POS Lite and Shopify POS Pro share the same purpose, Shopify POS Pro is a much more powerful tool for businesses looking to optimize their in-person sales and transactions as it offer features that are not available with Shopify POS Lite.

Shopify POS Pro provides a range of benefits for store owners, including the ability to offer customers more options for accessing their products, strengthen customer relationships with marketing tools, manage an unlimited number of staff and inventory across multiple locations, and make informed decisions based on advanced daily sales reports.

To compare the features offered between Shopify POS Lite and Shopify POS Pro, refer to the following table:

Feature Shopify POS Lite Shopify POS Pro
Customizable smart grid Yes Yes
Multi-location inventory, orders, and customer management Yes Yes
Integrated payment hardware with Shopify Payments and non-payment hardware Yes Yes
Number of Staff and Registers Up to 15
(Depend on the Shopify plan)
Unlimited
Daily Sales Reports and In-app analytics No Yes
Inventory Management Basic Advanced
Local delivery or pick-up No Yes
Cost Free 89 USD/
month/location

Shopify POS Pro FAQs

What Languages Does Shopify POS Pro Support?

The Shopify POS system supports the following languages:

  • Chinese (Simplified)
  • Chinese (Traditional)
  • Czech
  • Danish
  • Dutch
  • English
  • Finnish
  • French
  • German
  • Hindi
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Korean
  • Malay
  • Norwegian Bokmal
  • Portuguese (Brazil)
  • Portuguese (Portugal)
  • Spanish
  • Swedish
  • Thai
  • Turkish

To change the language of the Shopify POS app, you will need to change the language of the device using it.

Are The Products I Sell In My Physical Store The Same As Those On My Online Store?

It depends. It’s up to you to decide which products you want to sell in your physical store and online store. The Shopify POS system allows you to manage both channels easily. You can set it up in the Shopify admin.

Does Shopify POS Pro Work Offline?

Yes. Shopify POS Pro can work offline. You can still take orders, process payments, and access your customer and product information when your device is offline. The data will automatically sync with your online store once your device is back online. However, some features, such as live shipping rates, gift card processing, and specific payment gateways, may not be available when you’re offline.

Bottom Line

That’s everything you need to know about Shopify POS Pro. For scaling retail businesses that see a lot of foot traffic, have multiple tiers of staff, or have a large inventory catalog, we recommend using the Shopify POS Pro subscription to unlock additional POS features for your business.

Read more: Shopify POS (Point-of-sale): A comprehensive guide


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Sam Nguyen is the CEO and founder of Avada Commerce, an e-commerce solution provider headquartered in Singapore. He is an expert on the Shopify e-commerce platform for online stores and retail point-of-sale systems. Sam loves talking about e-commerce and he aims to help over a million online businesses grow and thrive.