Square for Retail is the default pick for a single US store starting out, because its Free plan costs $0 a month and covers the counter, stock tracking, and an online store, with card fees of 2.6% plus 15 cents per in-person sale. Entry software costs run from $0 to $99 a month here, while card fees add 1.5% to 2.6% plus 10 to 15 cents on most in-person sales, so processing often costs more than the software. Shopify POS fits stores where online sales matter as much as counter sales, while Lightspeed Retail fits specialty shops with complex variants, and Rain POS fits shops with rentals or consignment.
The tools below cover one-store counters, multi-store chains, and shops that sell online and in person. Every starting price comes from the vendor pricing page in Sources, and every fee below is the US list figure before tax, hardware, and add-ons. Read the plan limits first, because a low entry price can hide a cap that forces an upgrade.
On this page
Top retail management software in us: comparison table
Swipe the table sideways on a phone to see every column.
| # | Name | Best for | Starting price | Free plan / trial | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Square for Retail | Single stores starting with no monthly fee | $0 per user/month | Yes | Visit |
| 2 | Lightspeed Retail | Specialty shops with complex variants and vendor catalogs | $89 per user/month | Free trial (14 days) | Visit |
| 3 | Shopify POS | Stores that sell online and in person from one catalog | $29 per user/month | Free trial (3 days) | Visit |
| 4 | Clover | Counters that want hardware, software, and processing in one bundle | $0 per user/month | Yes | Visit |
| 5 | Heartland Retail | Multi-store apparel and footwear retailers | quote only | No | Visit |
| 6 | Epos Now | Shops that want hardware and software in one purchase | $39 per user/month | Free trial (30 days) | Visit |
| 7 | Rain POS | Specialty shops with rentals or consignment | $99 per user/month | No | Visit |
| 8 | Erply | Growing chains that need warehouse stock control | $59 per user/month | Yes | Visit |
The 8 best top retail management software in us, in detail
Square for Retail
Best for: Single stores starting with no monthly fee
Square for Retail starts on the Free plan at $0 a month per location, with in-person card sales at 2.6% plus 15 cents and online card sales at 3.3% plus 30 cents. Plus costs $49 a month per location with in-person sales at 2.5% plus 15 cents, while Premium costs $149 a month per location with in-person sales at 2.4% plus 15 cents. Plus and Premium each include a 30-day trial, and Square charges per location rather than per register, so three registers at one address carry one software fee.
- Plus adds purchase orders, vendor records, cost of goods reports, and low-stock alerts, while Premium adds cross-location returns and 24/7 phone suppo
- Choose Square if you run one or two stores and want no monthly fee to start.
- Skip it if your card volume is high enough that a flat 2.6% rate costs more than an interchange-plus quote.
Pros
- Free plan with $0 monthly fee and no contract
- Per-location pricing with no per-register software fee
Cons
- Purchase orders and cost reports need Plus at $49 a month per location
- Flat card rates cost more than interchange-plus quotes at high volume
Lightspeed Retail
Best for: Specialty shops with complex variants and vendor catalogs
Lightspeed Retail Basic costs $89 a month with annual billing, or $109 a month with monthly billing, and each plan includes one register. Core costs $149 a month with annual billing, or $179 a month with monthly billing, and Plus costs $289 a month with annual billing, or $339 a month with monthly billing. The pricing page opened 2026-11-12 lists a card-present rate of 1.5% on every plan.
- Each plan includes only one register, and extra registers and locations cost more, with no amount listed.
- Basic covers inventory control, purchase orders, the NuORDER catalog, and a basic online store.
- Core adds loyalty, advanced reports, and accounting and marketing links, while Plus adds forecasting, custom reporting, API access, and workflows.
- Choose Lightspeed if you sell apparel or footwear with many variants and run more than one location.
Pros
- Deep inventory tools with variants, serial numbers, and vendor catalogs
- Built-in online store on every plan
Cons
- Only one register included, with extra registers priced separately
- Basic at $89 a month is a high entry price for a single simple counter
Shopify POS
Best for: Stores that sell online and in person from one catalog
Shopify Basic costs $29 a month with annual billing, or $39 a month with monthly billing. Grow costs $89 a month with annual billing, or $105 a month with monthly billing, and Advanced costs $359 a month with annual billing, or $399 a month with monthly billing. Every plan includes casual in-person selling, and POS Pro adds $89 a month per location, or $67 on a 12-month term.
- In-person card rates run from 2.6% plus 10 cents on Basic to 2.4% plus 10 cents on Advanced.
- POS Pro adds unlimited staff accounts, inventory counts, purchase orders, low-stock alerts, exchanges at any location, and retail reports.
- Basic, Grow, and Advanced each cap at 10 locations, while Plus starts at $2,300 a month and includes 20 POS Pro locations.
- Choose Shopify POS if your website and counter share one catalog and one stock count.
Pros
- One catalog and stock count for online and in-person sales
- POS Pro adds staff roles, inventory counts, and exchanges at any location
Cons
- POS Pro adds $89 a month per location on top of the plan fee
- Basic, Grow, and Advanced each cap at 10 locations
Clover
Best for: Counters that want hardware, software, and processing in one bundle
Clover Starter costs $0 a month, Essentials costs $29.95 a month, and Retail Growth costs $84.95 a month. In-person card sales cost 2.6% plus 10 cents on Starter, 2.5% on Essentials, and 2.3% on Retail Growth, while keyed-in cards cost 3.5% plus 10 cents on every plan. Hardware is separate: the Compact terminal costs $349 outright, or $16 a month over 36 months, and the Station Duo costs $1,899 plus $84.95 a month.
- Retail Growth adds returns and exchanges, item cost reporting, loyalty, gift cards, and an online store link, while Essentials adds an item catalog, s
- Clover software runs only on Clover hardware, and its prices are online-only, so a bank or reseller can quote a different price and contract for the s
- Choose Clover if you want hardware, software, and processing from one vendor.
- Skip it if you want to use your own tablet or change processors without changing hardware.
Pros
- Hardware, software, and processing from one vendor
- In-person card rate falls to 2.3% plus 10 cents on Retail Growth
Cons
- Software runs only on Clover hardware
- Bundled hardware carries a 36-month term, and reseller prices and contracts can differ
Heartland Retail
Best for: Multi-store apparel and footwear retailers
Heartland Retail is quote only because its vendor site lists no software price, and its card processing rate is also quoted per store. The system is built for apparel, footwear, and other multi-store retailers, with matrix inventory by size and color, purchase orders, vendor records, customer accounts, and stock control across locations. It links with Shopify, WooCommerce, and BigCommerce.
- Heartland Retail was formerly Springboard Retail, and it prices per selling station, so the number of registers sets the software total.
- Choose Heartland Retail if you run several stores and live in your inventory and purchasing data, and if you accept a sales call and a written quote b
- Skip it if you want a listed price or a trial you can start alone, because neither is offered on the vendor site.
- Ask for the per-station price, the processing markup, the contract length, and any early exit fee in one written quote.
Pros
- Matrix inventory by size and color for apparel and footwear
- Multi-location stock control with purchase orders and vendor records
Cons
- No listed software price or card rate on the vendor site
- No trial offered, with pricing and terms set by a sales quote
Epos Now
Best for: Shops that want hardware and software in one purchase
Epos Now software-only pricing starts at $39 a month for Standard on the first register, with extra registers at $24 a month each. Premium costs $69 a month for the first register, with extra registers at $45 a month each. The Complete System bundle adds a terminal, receipt printer, and card reader, and the current US offer lists $399 one-time plus $84 a month, so confirm the live offer first.
- Card sales through Epos Now Payments run at 2.6% plus 10 cents in person, with a 30-day trial listed for the software.
- Standard covers the counter, stock control, and reporting, while Premium adds advanced reporting and more add-ons, and Enterprise is quoted per store.
- Epos Now commonly sells one- to five-year terms on discounted bundles, so the headline monthly figure is only part of the commitment.
- Choose Epos Now if you want the terminal, printer, card reader, and software in one box.
Pros
- Software-only plan at $39 a month with a 30-day trial
- Complete System bundles terminal, printer, and card reader in one purchase
Cons
- Discounted bundles commonly carry terms of one to five years
- Headline bundle offer changes often, so the live price needs a check
Rain POS
Best for: Specialty shops with rentals or consignment
Rain POS Startup costs $99 a month with annual billing, and the vendor pricing thank-you page lists Core at $149 a month and Plus at $199, though other pages show Core and Plus only after a form. Startup covers the counter, inventory tracking, a built-in website, customer records, purchasing, and basic reporting. Core adds multi-location control, consignment, rentals, trade-ins, kit assembly, and a QuickBooks link, while Plus adds serialized inventory, work orders, subscriptions, and custom reporting.
- Rain lists no card processing rate and no setup or onboarding fees, so both need a written quote.
- Extra user licenses are reported at about $20 a month each.
- Rain is built for specialty shops such as music stores, with instrument rental and consignment tracking that general tools do not include.
- Choose Rain POS if you rent or consign goods and want those tools inside the same system.
Pros
- Consignment, rentals, and serialized inventory for specialty shops
- Built-in website included with the Startup plan
Cons
- No listed card processing rate or setup fee
- Core and Plus prices appear only after a form on some pages
Erply
Best for: Growing chains that need warehouse stock control
Erply Giftshop and Grocery Chain costs $59 a month per store, with 1 user account and 1 terminal, and net sales turnover capped at $25,000 a month. Multichannel Chains costs $199 a month per store, with 2 user accounts and 1 warehouse license. POS for NetSuite costs $1,800 a month, and Franchise and Chain costs $3,500 a month for chains of 50 or more.
- A free account is offered to explore the platform, and annual contracts cost less than monthly contracts.
- Erply covers cloud point of sale with offline mode, inventory and warehouse control, purchase orders, eCommerce order sync, and CRM with loyalty.
- The $25,000 monthly turnover cap on the entry plan is the detail most roundups skip: a store above that figure must move up even if it needs nothing e
- Choose Erply if you run a growing chain and want warehouse tools at a low entry price.
Pros
- Warehouse control, purchase orders, and multi-store reporting from $59 a month per store
- Free account offered to explore the platform
Cons
- Entry plan allows only 1 user account and 1 terminal
- Entry plan caps net sales turnover at $25,000 a month
How we chose
We compared US list prices, plan limits, card rates, contract terms, and hardware costs. We did not test any tool hands-on. Prices in this article come from official vendor pricing pages opened 2026-11-12, and the figures are US list prices before tax, hardware, and add-ons. Where a vendor site listed no price, we wrote quote only instead of repeating a directory figure. Where two sources disagreed, such as the Lightspeed card-present rate and the Rain POS Core and Plus prices, we used the figure on the vendor page we opened.
What to check before you buy
Work out the card fees on your own volume. On $20,000 of in-person card sales, Square Free takes $520 plus 15 cents per sale, while Lightspeed at 1.5% takes $300, so the software fee is often the smaller number. Count registers and locations before you compare monthly fees: Lightspeed includes 1 register per plan, Shopify POS Pro costs $89 per location, Epos Now charges $24 a month for each extra register on Standard, and the Erply entry plan includes only 1.
Check the caps that force an upgrade. The Erply entry plan caps net sales turnover at $25,000 a month, Shopify Basic, Grow, and Advanced cap at 10 locations, and Square needs Premium at $149 a month per location for cross-location returns. Get the contract and hardware total in writing: Clover bundled hardware runs 36 months, Epos Now discounted bundles commonly run one to five years, and Rain POS does not list setup fees or a card rate.
| Store shape | Pick | Monthly software cost | | 1 store, just starting | Square for Retail | $0 | | 1 store, online plus counter | Shopify Basic annual plus POS Pro | $118 | | Specialty shop, complex variants, 1 register | Lightspeed Retail Basic annual | $89 | | Specialty shop, rentals or consignment | Rain POS Startup annual | $99 | | Chain, 3 or more stores, warehouse stock | Erply Giftshop plan per store | $59 per store |
Frequently asked questions
How much does retail management software cost in the US?
Entry software costs in this list run from $0 a month on Square Free and Clover Starter to $99 a month on Rain POS Startup, with Lightspeed Retail at $89 and Erply at $59 in between. Card processing sits on top, at 1.5% to 2.6% plus 10 to 15 cents per in-person sale on most plans. Hardware, extra registers, and extra locations are separate, so ask for the full first-year total.
Which retail management software is best for a small clothing store?
Lightspeed Retail is the strongest fit for a clothing store with many sizes and colors, because it handles variant matrices, serial numbers, and vendor catalogs in depth. Square for Retail fits one small clothing store with simple stock that wants to start at $0 a month. Pick Lightspeed when variant control drives your day, and Square when low cost matters more.
Which is best for a store that sells online and in person?
Shopify POS fits a store that sells online and in person, because one catalog and one stock count serve the website and the counter together. POS Pro adds inventory counts, purchase orders, staff roles, and exchanges at any location for $89 a month per location. Lightspeed Retail is the alternative when variant depth matters more than the online store.
What is the cheapest retail management software for one store?
Square for Retail Free and Clover Starter both cost $0 a month in software, so either is the cheapest way to open one store. Square Free charges 2.6% plus 15 cents per in-person card sale, while Clover Starter charges 2.6% plus 10 cents. Both need hardware, and Clover needs its own, while Square works with its own readers and registers.
Does the monthly fee include card processing?
No, the monthly fee never includes card processing, which is charged on every card sale at the rate for your plan. In-person rates run from 1.5% on Lightspeed Retail to 2.6% plus 15 cents on Square Free, with keyed-in cards at 3.5% plus 10 cents on Clover and Epos Now. Hardware, extra registers, extra locations, and some add-ons are also separate.
Sources
- https://squareup.com/
- https://squareup.com/pricing
- https://www.lightspeedhq.com/
- https://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/retail/pricing/
- https://www.shopify.com/
- https://www.shopify.com/pos/pricing
- https://www.clover.com/
- https://www.clover.com/pricing
- https://www.heartlandretail.us/
- https://www.eposnow.com/
- https://www.rainpos.com/
- https://www.rainpos.com/rainpos-pos-pricing-thank-you
- https://erply.com/
Prices and features were read on each company’s own website in November 2026. They change often, so confirm the current offer on the official site before you sign up or buy.