Quickbooks POS Review

About QuickBooks

QuickBooks is a trusted name in accounting software, relied on by countless small business owners worldwide. To support in-store transactions, QuickBooks introduced QuickBooks POS, designed to help small businesses streamline their sales processes while seamlessly integrating with QuickBooks for accounting. It’s an excellent point-of-sale solution for retailers.

Core Features

QuickBooks POS offers a range of features to help you establish a successful POS solution for your business. It allows you to track inventory, set up coupons and discounts, and manage customer relationships directly from the interface. Standard reporting features are included, and if you’ve used a POS system before, you’ll find it familiar and easy to navigate.

Sync with QuickBooks

This is expected, given QuickBooks POS’s strong integration with your QuickBooks account. It syncs thoroughly to provide a comprehensive view of your business’s overall health, transferring sales data and itemizing transactions. The reporting features offer a clear picture of your profit and loss.

Track Inventory

Gain valuable insights into customer purchasing patterns and inventory usage. You’ll be able to analyze how discounts impact your profitability, determine optimal sale prices, and identify the best product mix for your business.

Time Tracker

QuickBooks offers a product called TSheets that integrates with your POS system to track employee time. With TSheets, you can manage employee schedules, set overtime rates and limits, and generate insightful performance reports.

Loyalty Programs

When a customer makes their first purchase, you can capture and store their information in the built-in CRM. From there, you can create a loyalty program that provides real-time discounts, print promotions on their receipt, and monitor the effectiveness of your marketing strategies.

Gift Cards

While gift cards are included in the Pro plan and higher, they come with special pricing based on transaction volume. You can create and issue custom physical gift cards in various denominations, complete with your logo.

Connect Shopify Store

By using third-party apps, you can connect your Shopify store with your QuickBooks POS system. This integration allows you to share customer data, inventory, and sales information between the two applications, reducing the need for manual data entry.

Pricing

The QuickBooks POS system offers multiple pricing tiers based on the equipment and features you need, as well as your preferred payment processing method. The equipment can be purchased with a one-time payment, while payment processing options include either a monthly fee (plus transaction charges) or a pay-as-you-go model.

Software

The POS software itself is available in three plans, all with one-time fees, and includes a 30-day free trial.

• Basic Plan: The Basic plan starts at $1,200 and provides essential features to get your POS system operational. It includes capabilities to process sales, handle payments, utilize CRM functions, track inventory, and integrate with QuickBooks Desktop.
• Pro Plan: Starting at $1,700, The Pro plan and includes all the features of the Basic plan, plus additional functionalities. It allows you to manage employees and payroll (via a separate Intuit product), offer layaway and gift cards, set up a loyalty program, and access advanced reporting features.
• Multi-Store Plan: The Multi-Store plan starts at $1,900 and encompasses all the features of the previous plans. It also includes the ability to manage multiple locations, transfer inventory between them, and generate reports that provide insights into the performance across all your stores.

Hardware

The hardware for the POS system is sold separately from the software package, allowing you to select only the equipment you need. Prices for the hardware range from $110 to $410, and include standard items such as barcode scanners, cash drawers, receipt printers, and more.

While QuickBooks hardware isn’t mandatory for using QuickBooks POS, you’ll need a Windows computer that meets the minimum specifications. You can manually search for items and input card information using your keyboard. However, investing in a few pieces of hardware is advisable, as they can save you time and money in the long run.

Payment Processing

The payment processing fees for QuickBooks POS come in two tiers, which may include a monthly fee.

• Monthly Plan: This plan includes a monthly subscription fee of $19.95, but offers lower transaction processing fees.
• Pay As You Go Plan: This plan has no monthly fees; you pay every time you process a transaction.

At first glance, QuickBooks POS pricing can seem daunting. Unlike other POS providers that offer monthly subscriptions, QuickBooks POS requires a higher initial investment. However, this upfront cost often leads to savings after the first 12-18 months compared to other services.

Ease of Use

QuickBooks POS is user-friendly software. After installation on your desktop, spending some time exploring it will help you familiarize yourself with its layout and functionality. This hands-on approach will give you a solid understanding of how to navigate the system.

However, be aware that some of the advanced features may require a significant learning curve before you can use them effectively.

Customer Support

QuickBooks POS support includes various resources to help you with installation, troubleshooting, and optimizing the system. Tutorials and webinars that provide in-depth training on using QuickBooks POS effectively are also available.

Phone support for QuickBooks POS is available from 4 AM to 8 PM PST Monday through Friday, and from 7 AM to 4 PM PST on Saturdays and Sundays.

Conclusion

QuickBooks POS is a retail POS system designed to handle large inventories, track sales, and manage customer data. It supports inventory tracking, payment processing, and customer management, all within a desktop application, so it’s important to consider its compatibility with your business setup. The system offers robust reporting features and seamlessly syncs with other Intuit products for smooth data integration.

However, there are a few drawbacks to consider. Since it’s a desktop application, you won’t receive automatic upgrades, and support ends after three years. Additionally, the upfront cost is higher compared to cloud-based solutions. Despite these limitations, it’s a solid POS system for retail businesses looking to manage inventory, foster customer relationships, and process card payments efficiently.