Point of Sale

Overpriced, slow, and not designed for real retail use

We have been using Shopify for over 8 years, and switched to Shopify POS Pro 6 months ago for our gallery in Sitges after more than 2.5 years using Square, which worked flawlessly: fast, intuitive, and perfectly adapted to retail operations.

The decision to move to Shopify POS was driven by the need to centralize inventory and connect in-store and online sales. On paper, it made sense. In reality, the experience has been consistently frustrating.

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1. Pricing is completely disconnected from value

Shopify offers its core e-commerce platform starting at around €29/month, yet charges €79/month per location for POS Pro just to unlock basic retail features.

The standard POS version is simply not usable in a professional context:
no proper sales reporting
no breakdown by payment method (cash vs card)
no staff attribution

These are not advanced features. They are the minimum expected in any POS system.

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2. Slow and inefficient user experience

The app feels sluggish in daily use:
slow navigation between screens
delays when switching between products, cart, and checkout
lack of fluidity during busy store moments

In retail, speed is critical. This directly impacts customer experience.

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3. Sales data is not usable in real time

sales statistics take a long time to update
no reliable real-time view of performance
difficult to reconcile daily revenue

With Square, everything was instant and clear. Here, it feels delayed and unreliable.

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4. Reporting limitations (especially without POS Pro)

impossible to properly track total revenue in the free version
no clear breakdown by payment method
confusing tax-inclusive vs tax-exclusive reporting

For a physical store, this is a major issue.

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5. Inventory management from POS is unnecessarily complex

Adjusting stock directly from the POS is:
not intuitive
too many steps
not designed for quick retail operations

This should be simple and fast. It is neither.

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6. Missing basic usability features

Despite being available on mobile devices:
no biometric login (fingerprint / Face ID) for staff
no fast user switching for sellers

This makes daily use slower and less secure than it should be.

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7. Not a true retail product

Shopify POS feels like an add-on to an e-commerce platform, not a tool built for real-world retail.

After years with Square, the difference is clear:
Square is fast, retail-first, and reliable
Shopify POS is slower, restricted, and overpriced

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When opening our second gallery, we naturally considered rolling out POS Pro there as well. At €79 per month per location for this level of functionality, the answer was a clear no.

After 8 years using Shopify, this is particularly disappointing. We adopted Shopify POS to simplify operations, but it is adding friction instead.

If this does not improve significantly, it will push us to reconsider our entire reliance on Shopify, including for e-commerce. We value well-designed, fairly priced tools and do not appreciate feeling locked into an ecosystem where essential functionality is either missing or unreasonably priced.

The POS app is very unstable. It keeps disconnecting from Shopify card reader and Shopify tested printer. It also requires admin sign in every couple of days. Card reader sometimes cannot b connected at all. Android Tap to Pay in this app is not working on one of our devices, even though the device supports it and meets every requirement needed (and used to work previously). Talking with Shopify support is endless.

Since the latest update, the POS app no longer shows the number of items in the cart on tablets. This small detail is actually a critical part of preventing checkout errors for staff, especially during busy periods.

This change feels like it shipped without real-world UX testing in a retail environment. If it was intentional, it’s a serious design mistake. If it was accidental, it highlights a lack of QA before release.

I strongly recommend restoring this functionality as soon as possible and improving UX testing before future updates.

This regression directly impacts checkout accuracy and day-to-day store operations.