Retail POS Shopify POS isn't priced like a traditional register. You subscribe to a Shopify ecommerce plan, and POS access comes with it — POS Lite on every plan, POS Pro as a per-location add-on. That structure is great news for simple stores and confusing for everyone else, so here is every number we could verify (all checked against Shopify's official pricing, POS and hardware pages on 2026-08-08), plus first-year totals for a real store.
Shopify POS Pricing at a Glance
| Plan | Monthly billing | Annual billing | POS included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $27/mo | $20/mo | POS Lite |
| Grow | $65/mo | $49/mo | POS Lite |
| Advanced | $399/mo | $299/mo | POS Lite |
| Plus | from $2,300/mo | — | POS Pro for 20 locations |
POS Lite — in-person selling, online sync, basic stock levels — is included with every plan above, so there's no separate POS subscription to start. New merchants get a 3-day free trial, then $1/month for 3 months (no credit card required for the trial). The number of retail locations allowed per plan below Plus isn't published; Plus explicitly includes POS Pro for 20 locations.
POS Pro: $89/mo per Location
POS Pro costs $89/month per location on Basic, Grow and Advanced. A “free for 3 months, then $89/mo” promotion appeared on Shopify's official POS page when we checked (availability may vary). This is what it unlocks, per Shopify's official POS feature comparison:
| Capability | POS Lite (included) | POS Pro ($89/mo/location) |
|---|---|---|
| Staff | Limited staff accounts | Unlimited staff |
| Roles & permissions | No | Yes |
| Returns & exchanges | Original purchase location only | At any location |
| Inventory tools | Basic stock levels | Counts, purchase orders, low-stock alerts |
| Customer profiles | Simple | Rich profiles + loyalty insights |
| Reports | Basic | Professional retail reports |
| BOPIS / endless aisle | Limited | Yes |
Rule of thumb: stay on Lite while one or two owners run the register; upgrade to Pro when you hire staff with permissions, need purchase orders, take returns across locations, or want professional reports. At five locations Pro becomes a $445/month line item, which is when alternatives like Lightspeed deserve a look.
Payment Processing Fees
With Shopify Payments (US card rates, checked 2026-08-08):
| Plan | Online | In-person | Third-party gateway fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | 2.9% + 30¢ | ~2.6–2.7% | 2.0% |
| Grow | 2.7% + 30¢ | ~2.5% | 1.0% |
| Advanced | 2.5% + 30¢ | ~2.4% | 0.6% |
| Plus | 2.15% + 30¢ (negotiated) | custom | 0.2% |
In-person percentages are corroborated by two independent 2026 sources (Shopify doesn't publish them on the pricing page); the fixed per-transaction component for in-person sales couldn't be verified. Online rates and gateway fees are from the official pricing page.
Two things matter here. First, Shopify Payments is optional — but using any other gateway costs an extra 2.0% (Basic), 1.0% (Grow) or 0.6% (Advanced) of every sale, which at retail volumes is almost always more than any processor savings. Second, card payments don't work offline: if your connection drops, cash and custom payment methods keep selling and sync later, but card transactions have to wait.
Hardware Costs
| Item | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tap & Chip Card Reader | $49 | Entry reader; pairs with your own tablet/smartphone |
| WisePad 3 Card Reader | $49 | Wireless reader option |
| POS Go (handheld) | $399 | All-in-one with built-in scanner + payments |
| POS Terminal | $349 | Countertop unit |
| POS Terminal full kit | $459 | Countertop register setup |
| Retail Stand Kit | $219 | iPad stand with integrated reader |
| Other tablet stands | ~$149–199 | By model |
| Receipt printer (Epson/Star class) | ~$299–399 | Optional |
| Barcode scanner | ~$119–299 | POS Go has built-in scanning |
| Cash drawer | ~$119–159 | Only needed if you take cash |
Minimum viable setup: a $49 reader plus a tablet or smartphone you already own — Tap to Pay on iPhone needs no hardware at all. Your own tablet, and mainstream Epson/Star-class printers, Socket Mobile/Honeywell scanners and APG/Star drawers on Shopify's compatibility list, all work. Card readers are the exception: they must be Shopify-approved, so readers from other POS systems generally won't pair.
First-Year Total Cost: Two Worked Examples
Scenario: one boutique doing $30,000/month in card sales, all in person, no paid apps.
Example 1 — Basic plan, POS Lite only
| Cost line | Monthly | Year one | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software (Basic, monthly billing) | $27 | $324 | Annual billing: $20/mo ($240/yr) |
| Processing (~2.6% on $30k) | ~$780 | ~$9,360 | Shopify Payments; Basic in-person rate |
| Hardware (Tap & Chip reader) | — | $49 one-time | Add Retail Stand Kit $219 if needed |
| Total | ~$807 | ~$9,733 | Processing is ~96% of the total |
Example 2 — Same store with POS Pro at 1 location
| Cost line | Monthly | Year one | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software (Basic) | $27 | $324 | |
| POS Pro (1 location) | $89 | $1,068 | 3-months-free promo saves $267 where offered |
| Processing (~2.6% on $30k) | ~$780 | ~$9,360 | |
| Hardware (Tap & Chip reader) | — | $49 one-time | |
| Total | ~$896 | ~$10,801 | ~$10,534 if the Pro promo applies |
Assumptions: all sales card-present at the Basic in-person rate (using ~2.6%, the lower end of the verified ~2.6–2.7% range), monthly billing, no paid apps, no staff payroll. Your rates may differ — get them in writing.
Hidden and Extra Costs
- Apps. Gaps like advanced reporting, barcode labels at scale or advanced inventory are filled by Shopify App Store apps (commonly cited at 8,000–13,000+ apps), and paid apps stack onto your monthly bill.
- Gateway fees. Skip Shopify Payments and you pay an extra 0.6–2% of every sale depending on plan — usually more than any processor discount is worth.
- Offline limits. No card payments while offline (cash and custom methods only), no new products/customers, and no live multi-location inventory until you reconnect.
- Pro scales with locations. $89/mo × N locations adds up fast for multi-store retailers — budget it before you sign a lease, not after.
- Hardware lock-in. Card readers must be Shopify-approved; readers from another POS won't work if you switch.
How to Pay Less
- Bill annually. Basic drops $27 → $20/mo, Grow $65 → $49/mo, Advanced $399 → $299/mo — up to ~26% off.
- Take the trial offer. 3 days free, then $1/month for your first 3 months — roughly $78 of breathing room to test the system with real products.
- Claim the POS Pro promo. “Free for 3 months, then $89/mo” was shown on Shopify's official POS page when we checked (availability varies) — worth $267 in year one.
- Start on Lite. Don't pay for Pro until a specific gate — staff permissions, purchase orders, cross-location returns — actually blocks you.
Shopify POS vs Square Fees
Square's Free plan charges no software fee and 2.6% + 15¢ in person, which beats Shopify on sticker price — but at our $30k/month example store (assuming ~600 transactions ≈ $50 average ticket), Square's per-transaction 15¢ pushes processing to ~$870/month versus ~$807/month for Shopify Basic including its $27 subscription. Square also mandates its own processing, while Shopify lets you bring a different gateway for a 0.6–2% fee. Full side-by-side numbers are in our Shopify POS vs Square comparison.
FAQ
Is Shopify POS free?
There's no $0 plan, but POS Lite is included with every Shopify plan at no extra charge — the cheapest entry is Basic at $20/mo with annual billing. POS Pro, which unlocks staff permissions, purchase orders and cross-location returns, costs $89/mo per location.
What does Shopify charge per sale?
With Shopify Payments: online 2.9% + 30¢ (Basic) to 2.5% + 30¢ (Advanced); in-person roughly 2.4–2.7% depending on plan. Using another payment gateway adds 2% (Basic), 1% (Grow) or 0.6% (Advanced) on top.
How much does a real first year cost?
For our $30k/month single-store example: about $9,733 on Basic with POS Lite, or about $10,801 with POS Pro at one location — processing fees make up roughly 96% of it. Hardware starts at $49 for a Tap & Chip reader if you use your own tablet.
What's the cheapest way to start?
Basic on annual billing ($20/mo), a $49 Tap & Chip reader, your own tablet, and Shopify Payments for in-person sales. Use the 3-day trial + $1/month × 3 months offer to validate the setup before committing.
Prices and rates last checked 2026-08-08. Vendors may change terms at any time; confirm current pricing with Shopify before subscribing.