What Is a POS (Point of Sale) System?

If you’ve ever had your point of sale (POS) system freeze mid-sale or if you’ve spent half the day fixing stock errors, you know a bad system makes running a business harder. The right POS system will let your business handle transactions, manage inventory, and keep your revenue smoothly rolling in.

What is a POS and what does it do? If you’ve ever ordered a coffee and paid with your phone, or been emailed a receipt after shopping in-store, that’s a POS system. By the end of 2025, it's projected that 70% of retail businesses and 60% of hospitality businesses will be using a cloud POS system.

In this guide, we’ll examine how POS systems work, what types are available, and what features to look for. Whether you’re starting your first business or looking to upgrade, here’s what you need to know about POS in retail.

There isn’t one single POS system to choose from. The best setup for your business depends on how you sell, where you work, and what kind of experience you want to create for your customers. Here are five options to consider.

These are your classic in-store setups and the ones you probably picture when you think of a checkout counter. Most include a touchscreen or computer, a cash drawer, a barcode scanner, and a receipt printer. You’ll find them in supermarkets, restaurants, and busy retail stores with a steady stream of customers.

Best for: Medium to large businesses in high-traffic areas like malls, main streets, or shopping centres.

These systems run on smartphones or tablets, with a small card reader and a POS app. They’re great for on-the-go businesses like food trucks, market stalls, or mobile hairdressers who want to take payments without being tied to a counter.

Best for: Small businesses, sole traders, and service providers who operate in person and move around.

Cloud POS systems keep all your sales, stock levels, and reports online. From a cloud-based POS, you can log in from anywhere, which makes it easy to manage your store remotely or keep an eye on multiple locations in real-time.

Best for: Data-informed retailers, franchises, or anyone who wants a more flexible way to run their business.

These are touchscreen kiosks that let customers place orders or make payments without talking to staff. You’ll see them in fast-food chains, cinemas, and larger stores where reducing queues and giving people control speeds things up.

Best for: High-volume businesses in metro areas, especially where customer wait times are a pain point.

Tablet POS systems are fixed to a counter but don’t take up much space. They’re similar to mobile POS but are more permanent. You’ll often see them in cafés, salons, or small stores where a bigger register setup isn’t needed. They’re sleek, modern, and easy to use.

Best for: Small to mid-sized spaces that want something simple, compact, and easy to manage.

If you’re not sure which POS system to choose, start by looking at how you sell. Are you behind a counter all day, moving between clients, or managing multiple stores from your laptop? The right POS system makes everyday tasks easier, whether that’s tracking inventory, reducing customer wait time, or logging in from anywhere to check your numbers.

Every POS system is made up of the tools you use at the counter, such as scanners, card readers, and printers, plus the software that tracks your sales and inventory.

Hardware is the physical piece of the puzzle and it’s what your team and customers interact with. This includes cash registers, barcode scanners, card readers, or a simple receipt printer. Some businesses require an advanced hardware setup, while others can get by with just a tablet and a card reader.

Software is where the behind-the-scenes work happens. It gathers customer purchase data and lets you understand your revenue, manage stock levels, and process refunds.

These days, most POS software is cloud-based, which means you’re not tied to one device. You can log in from home, the back office, or another store and see all your numbers in real-time. This is important for businesses with multiple locations.

The right POS system can take a lot of stress out of your day. You can serve customers faster, without the usual hold-ups at the checkout, and there’s no more double-handling payments or digging through spreadsheets to figure out what’s in stock. Everything updates in real-time, so you always know what’s sold and what needs restocking.

It also helps you give better service. You can save customer info, offer loyalty rewards, and make it easy for someone to shop with you again, whether that’s online or in-store. That kind of consistency builds trust and keeps people coming back.

After Z Energy implemented Salesforce’s cloud-based POS system, they were able to act on their customer insights more effectively. One standout result was their lapsed re-engagement campaign. By using targeted offers and data-driven engagement tools in Sales Cloud, they reconnected with 70% of customers who had previously stopped interacting.

When your POS works the way you need it to, you spend less time chasing new customers and more time running your business.

A POS system takes care of everything that happens when someone’s ready to buy, whether they’re in your store, at a market, or shopping online. Here are the four simple steps.

In-store, that might mean someone brings an item to the counter or taps a self-checkout screen. Online, it’s when they head to the checkout page. From this point, the POS system starts doing the work in the background, pulling up the product, checking the price, and making sure it’s still in stock.

Once the item is scanned or selected, the POS adds it to the order and does three things automatically:

1. It calculates the total, including GST and any discounts.
2. It updates your inventory so you’re not selling something you don’t have.
3. It prepares the payment process.

This all happens instantly, which saves time and reduces mistakes.

With a modern system, customers can tap their card, pay with a phone, use a gift card, or even split the payment. The POS then sends the payment through and confirms when it’s approved, usually in a few seconds.

A receipt is printed or emailed, and the product is either handed over or packed for delivery. Meanwhile, your inventory is updated, your sales data is recorded, and any connected tools (like accounting software or a CRM) are synced automatically.

However, what your POS system can do depends on the features it comes with. If you’re choosing a new setup or upgrading what you’re currently using, let’s look at the key features you should use.

If you’ve ever used clunky, outdated POS software, you’ll know that not all systems are built equally. Here’s what to look for if you want a setup that helps you do your best work.

• Fast, flexible payment processing: You want your customers to be able to tap, swipe, split the bill, and issue a refund effortlessly.
• Inventory that updates itself: No more guessing what’s in stock. Look for live tracking, low-stock alerts, and easy bulk updates.
• Real reporting: You don’t need a 30-page dashboard. Quick access to what’s selling, when, and who’s selling it can help you make decisions without digging for data.
• Staff controls: You can add logins, set permissions, and track shifts in your POS system. No more awkward “who refunded this?” conversations.
• Built-in CRM: Save customer info and buying habits in one place. If you’re using Salesforce, this is where the magic happens. All this data connects, so you can offer more personalised support and marketing.
• Receipts: This is an essential element of a POS. You’ll need to either print receipts or email them straight to the customer.
• Room to grow: Whether you’re scaling from one store to five, or adding an online store, your POS should grow with you and not impede your progress.

The right POS features should make your life easier, saving you time, reducing mistakes, and helping you deliver a better experience for every customer.

A great POS system isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s what keeps your business moving day-to-day. The right setup helps you serve customers faster, keep your stock levels accurate, and stay on top of what’s going on behind the counter.

If your current system feels clunky or scattered, it’s time for an upgrade. Salesforce Retail Cloud pulls everything together, sales, service, and customer data, so you’re not juggling five different tools to do one job.