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The best hotel POS system is Square, thanks to its top tier hardware options, competitive pricing (including a free plan), and its stellar reputation in the industry. On top of that, Square was the easiest POS system to use across our in-depth research, making it ideal for smaller hotels with staff that are unfamiliar with the technology.
Square isn’t the only option when it comes to the best POS systems on the market, though. In fact, there are plenty of top-tier solutions that will mesh well with your hotel needs, providing the tools you need to manage guests, take reservations, and engage customers.
In this guide, you’ll learn about the best POS systems for hotels, including how much they cost, what they can do, and what kind of hotels are the best fit for particular solutions.
Key Takeaways
- Square is the best POS system for hotels looking to grow, thanks to its scalable pricing and helpful customer engagement tools, as well as its notable ease of use.
- We ranked Toast right behind Square, because of its ability to handle complex operations, and its built-in reservation and customer loyalty features
- Clover is recommended for businesses looking for high-quality hardware options, thanks to advanced features like tactile feedback.
- SumUp was another excellent solution, offering sleek, portable hardware solutions and built in gift card functionality.
- SpotOn was one of the more affordable options in our research, offering a free plan, low monthly costs, and limited upfront costs.
- Hotels should consider factors such as their size, budget, marketing requirements, and internet infrastructure when choosing a POS system
| Starting price The typical lowest starting price. The lowest price available for your business will depend on your needs. | Free plan | Free trial | Pros | Cons | |||
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| BEST OVERALL  |  |  |  |  | |||
| Free (but transaction fees apply) | Free (but transaction fees apply) | Free (but transaction fees apply) | |||||
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| 30 days | 14 days | 90 days | Demo only | 30 days | |||
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| Visit Square | Try Toast | Compare Quotes | Try SumUp | Compare Quotes |
What Are the Best Hotel POS Systems?
Hotels are multifaceted businesses with lots of moving parts. Luckily, POS systems can streamline operations by helping staffers carry out several tasks, including managing room reservations, taking payments from guests, tracking stock levels, and more.
Based on the results of our rigorous data analysis and user testing, these are the best hotel POS systems the market has to offer.
Why Should You Trust Us?
The Tech.co team pours hundreds of hours into researching the best POS systems because it’s the only way to ensure we’re providing our readers with the most accurate, up-to-date information possible.
We’ve spoken to daily POS users working in restaurants, hotels, bars, and retail shops, and we have tested out more than 20 point-of-sale platforms ourselves, paying close attention to everything from the quality and feel of the hardware to how easy the software is to use, to help you make a clear decision for your business needs.
Head over to our methodology section to learn more about our product review process, which is one of the reasons more than one million users consult our articles every month.
1. Square — Best POS for Growing Your Hotel
- Starting price: $60 per month
- Free plan: Yes
Square is one of the biggest names in the POS industry, and for good reason. The point of sale is feature-rich and extremely cost-effective, with a free forever plan that makes it very accessible to small businesses. On top of that, it offers users an extensive ecosystem for growing your business, including email marketing tools, website building features, and loyalty programs built in to the system.
Our research suggests Square POS is the strongest system for retail businesses, restaurants, and the best POS for bars too, which is a pretty impressive feat.
Pros
- Completely free plan available
- Stylish and popular hardware options
- Excellent mobile ordering features for customers
- 24/7 phone support available for most users
Cons
- Limited cost management and inventory tracking features
- 3.5% + 15¢ charge for keyed-in transactions
- Support options vary by plan
- Free to install
- No monthly fees, charges transaction fees instead
- 2.6% + 10c fees for card transactions
But this reasonable price tag doesn’t mean Square won’t meet the needs of hotels. For instance, the POS offers lots of hotel-friendly features like “Square Appointments”, which lets users manage bookings and take payments for services.
Square’s hardware is also, in our opinion, some of the sleekest in the industry. First impressions matter – an ancient-looking POS terminal can make even the most stylish reception desks look dated, and Square is the only provider that can keep up with Clover when it comes to aesthetics.
Check out our Square POS review to learn more
The Square calendar makes it easy to schedule staff and find times that work. Image: Tech.co testing
When we tested Square out, we found it took quite a long time to search for specific features, like advanced payment splitting tools. This wasn’t helped by the fact that there wasn’t a search bar to access features quickly. Despite this, some functions like adding items to a tab and customizing floor plans were very simple, suggesting that the POS will be useful for hotels with accompanying cafes or bars.
What’s more, we didn’t think Square’s till features were very versatile, making it less suitable for hotels that require specific payment and ordering functions. However, with the system producing one of the best app stores we’ve reviewed, and Square’s support team available 24/7, we reckon this setback can be overlooked pretty easily.
Square’s 2nd generation iPad stand is more reliable than previous models, and is even able to operate offline. Source: SquareUp
Most suitable for:
- Smaller lodgings like B&Bs and motels
- Businesses that want to get started for free
- Hotels that manage appointments
Less suitable for:
- Full-service hotels that require very specific POS features
- Hotels with large accompanying restaurants
- Hotels after ultra-low card processing fees
Square POS pricing
A major reason Square deserves these accolades is because of its affordability. Square offers a generous free plan with all the features smaller hotels need to get started, like basic stock tracking and sales reporting.
Square’s paid POS pricing plans start at $60 per month, and its transaction fees, which we list below, aren’t as low as other systems.
- 2.6% + 10 cents of each card-based sale
- 3.5% + 15 cents for each keyed-in transaction
- 2.9% + 30 cents for online sales
To learn more about Square’s pricing model you can check out our Square POS pricing review, or compare its plans in the table below:
| Plan | Price Monthly cost of the software. | Best for | Transaction fees | Benefits | |
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| Small, mobile food and beverage vendors | Established food and beverage businesses | Business with more than five locations | Growing retail businesses | Established brick-and-motor retail stores | |
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| Custom transaction fees when you contact sales | |
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If you like Square, you may also like…
- Clover, if you’re able to invest slightly more in dedicated hardware and software hotel POS packages
- SpotOn, if you want to get started with a free hardware plan
Learn more about the free Square alternative in our SpotOn POS review.
2. Toast — Best for Hotels with Complex Operations
- Starting price: $69 per month
- Free plan: Yes
Toast is close on Square’s tail for the best POS for hotels, largely because it can handle a wide range of complex operations. Advanced reservation tools like that allow owners to control flow, block reservations, and view cost/profit management reports are built directly into the platform. We also found that features like automatic tip sharing and mobile ordering really enabled us to manage the kinds of complicated requests that come with hotel restaurant ownership.
Check out our Toast review to learn more
Pros
- Built-in customer engagement and loyalty program features
- Excellent inventory management tools like stock alerts
- Support for tableside ordering and payment
Cons
- No iOS compatibility
- No social media or email support
- No ecommerce app market integration
- Point of sale plan with prices starting from $69/month
- Customizable starter kits available
- Free pay-as-you-go plan available
- Transaction fee: 2.49% + 15¢
Another bright spot for Toast is that it offers excellent customer engagement functionality, allowing for an additional layer of marketing. We were able to create loyalty programs with set spends and point systems with ease. Repeat customers generally stay at hotels for longer and spend more than first-timers, so strong customer loyalty tools like Toast’s should be a top priority for hoteliers.
Additionally, Toast is one of the best POS systems in our research when it comes to integrations with hotel property management software. While options like Square offer very few, Toast is compatible with tools like Room Raccoon, SkyTouch, Infor HMS, Cloudbeds, and WebRezPro, allowing you to create an all-in-one hub for your hotel operations.
The engagement features suggested campaigns to help us attract more customers. Source: Tech.co testing
Toast was also notably quite easy to use, mostly thanks to the in-depth tutorial that walked us through the setup process, step by step. In fact, we found the entire back-end experience to be particularly intuitive, so beginners should feel comfortable adapting to Toast at your hotel.
“You can’t fault a platform which pretty much has everything and actually it’s very very simple and simplistic” – A member of Tech.co’s user testing team
The system has a useful search functionality as well, which helped our testers locate features quickly without having to spend lots of time figuring things out. This gives Toast’s user experience a leg up over Square, as the POS does not currently offer this capability.
The dual screen for Toast makes customer interaction easier for your business. Source: Tech.co testing
Most suitable for:
- Full-service hotels that handle complex operations
- Hotels with accompanying bars and restaurants
- Hotels with large product inventories
Less suitable for:
- Hotels that require retail-specific features
- Users who rely heavily on customer support
- Hotels that want to integrate their POS with iOS hardware
Toast pricing
Toast does have a free plan – although it might be a bit too limited for hotels, notably not having access to the team management features that allow for scheduling and tip sharing. Luckily, the $69 per month plan isn’t terribly expensive, with transaction fees at 3.5% + $0.15. Check out how the pricing plans match up below:
| Plan | Price Monthly cost of the software. | Best for | Transaction fees | Benefits | |
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| Small, single location food vendors and mobile sellers | Established food and beverage businesses | Large or complex food and beverage establishments | |||
| 3.09% | 2.49% + 15¢ for in-person transactions | 2.49% + 15¢ for in-person transactions | |||
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If you like Toast, you may also like…
- TouchBistro, if you’re after a feature-rich iPad-based hotel POS system
- Square, if you run a smaller hotel or lodging and don’t require tons of advanced features
3. Clover — Best for High Quality Hardware
- Starting price: $14.95 per month
- Free plan: No
Making a good impression can go a long way when it comes to hotels. With Clover, you’re getting some of the highest quality, professional hardware that will ensure that your team isn’t fumbling over a display in front of your guests.
Check out our Clover POS review to learn more
Pros
- Top-of-the-line hardware options for users
- Many features for staff and order efficiency
- In-depth and customizable analytics system
Cons
- High up-front cost for hardware
- Additional features cost extra and can become expensive
- No automated tip sharing tools
- Cheapest plan is $14.95/month
- Cheapest Restaurant plan is $179/month for 36 months
- Offers 'Quick-Service' & 'Full Service' dining plans
For one, Clover offers POS terminals that operate with LTE connectivity. That means that even if your Wi-Fi goes out for some reason, you’ll still be able to get your guests checked in and out of their rooms.
On top of that, Clover offers fingerprint scanning technology for quick and easy staff logins and haptic feedback on devices to cut back on errors. All that to say, Clover is top-of-the-line when it comes to hardware.
The Clover Customers page offers options to customize data for your patrons. Image: Tech.co testing
The software isn’t too shabby either, with an intuitive, straightforward interface in the backend that can provide robust analytics like stock alerts and profit tracking. With most hotels managing multiple forms of revenue, these tools are essential for helping business owners track their lodging’s performance over time, and identify areas to boost profitability.
Plus, the front end is particularly equipped for fast-paced environments thanks to the responsive displays. One user tester in particular commended Clover for its “simple” and “modern” interface, and how easy it was to gain insights from performance reports.
Clover was found to offer the best hardware options in our research. Source: Tech.co testing
Most suitable for:
- Full-service hotels after professional hardware
- Hotels that want to retain loyal customers
- Hotels building a hardware setup from scratch
Less suitable for:
- Hotels with pre-existing hardware
- Businesses wanting low or free start-up costs
- Hotels that all sell services online
Clover pricing
Unlike many options on this list, Clover doesn’t offer a free plan, but the $14.95 per month starting price for its Professional Services Starter plan – which lets you manage business processes and take payments through a web browser – isn’t too steep.
However, that price doesn’t give you access to the hardware, though, nor the advanced analytics features. For that, you’ll need to opt for an industry-specific hardware and software bundle.
The price you’ll pay will depend on your needs and which hotel function you’ll be using it to manage. For example, prices for its retail package start at $16 per month for 36 months, while prices for its full-service restaurant package start at $179 per month for 36 months.
Check out our table below for more clarity on the provider’s pricing, or check out our Clover POS pricing guide.
| Plan | Price Monthly cost of the software. | Best for | Transaction fees | Software plan | Hardware | 24/7 live support | |||||||||||
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| Kiosks and market stalls | Small stores | Mid-side to large stores | Food trucks and pop-ups | Small counter service food businesses | Counter service restaurants | Small full-service restaurants | Tableside service restaurants | Mid-size to large full service restaurants | Sole traders and mobile personal service businesses | Small personal services businesses | Mid-side to large service businesses | Selling services online | Small B2B services businesses, e.g. an IT consultant | Medium-to-large medical clinics | Gardeners, plumbers, etc. | Contractors that need to accept payments on the go | Businesses that operate remotely, e.g. a team of builders |
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| Payments | Retail Growth | Retail Growth | Restaurant Growth | Restaurant Growth | Restaurant Growth | Restaurant Growth | Restaurant Growth | Restaurant Growth | Payments | Services Growth | Services Growth | Essentials | Services Growth | Services Growth | Essentials | Essentials | Services Growth |
| Compact terminal system with 3.6″ screen with built-in receipt printer |
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| Compact terminal system with 3.6″ screen and built-in receipt printer |
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If you like Clover, you may also like…
- Square, if you run a simple lodging like a model or B&B, and want to avoid hefty start-up fees
- Toast, if you need advanced employee management capabilities like automated tip-sharing tools
4. SumUp — Best for Speed and Efficiency
- Starting price: $99 per month
- Free plan: Yes
Speed is vital in the hotel business, and SumUp provides tools that are aimed at providing that efficiency for managers and employees alike. The service offers sleek, professional hardware options, including stylish terminals to operate on the spot. It’s worth noting, however, that SumUp offers no handheld POS systems, so if you need to be on the move, you should probably look elsewhere.
Check out our SumUp POS review to learn more
Pros
- Great range of hardware accessories for in-person selling
- Low monthly costs for small businesses on a budget
- Excellent stock management to track your inventory
Cons
- No customer display option
- No restaurant reservation system
- No handheld POS option
- Free to install
- Hardware and software packages from $99 per month
- 2.6% + 15¢ for transaction fees
The biggest boon for those prioritizing speed and efficiency from SumUp, however, is the quick-service features, which puts purchasable items at the fore-front of the backend, so users can easily select and send them quickly without a lot of extra steps. This can save minutes or even hours, depending on how often you’re inputting items.
However, it’s worth noting that SumUp was found to have limited customizability, with no dark mode option and no ability to change text size. Beyond that, though, it was a fairly easy-to-use system that features an intuitive interface, even for beginners.
SumUp’s quick-service feature let us make orders faster. Source: Tech.co testing
Most suitable for:
- Small to medium-sized hotels
- Owners who want to avoid monthly costs
- Users who want to integrate an online store
Less suitable for:
- Hotels that need offline functionality
- Owners who want physical gift card creation
- Businesses that need handheld POS devices
SumUp pricing
SumUp offers three different pricing plans, starting at $99 per month. However, it also offers a free forever plan via a mobile app that you can download on a smartphone or tablet. With a card reader, you’ll be able to accept payments at no cost to your business, outside of the transaction fees, which cost 2.6% and $0.10.
Here’s how the three SumUp pricing plans match up against each other:
| Plan | Price Monthly cost of the software. | Transaction fees | Loyalty program | Marketing | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| 2.6% + 10¢ (in-person card) | 2.6% + 10¢ (in-person card) | 2.6% + 10¢ (in-person card) | |||
| No | Yes | Yes | |||
| No | 2 monthly promotions | Daily promotions |
If you like SumUp, you may also like…
- Square, if you want to create physical gift cards on your terminal.
- Shopify, if you need a handheld POS system for your hotel.
5. SpotOn — Best for Staff Scheduling and Comms
- Starting price: $50 per month
- Free plan: Yes
Hotel staffing can be a seriously complicated beast, which is why SpotOn prioritizes a solution that can help managers stay on top of it. With the SpotOn Teamwork app, staff members can coordinate schedules, communicate about shift changes, and generally stay on top of the staffing situation.
On top of that, the Teamwork app provides advanced features to help manage your staff, including automatic tip sharing and cost vs profit analytics for product profitability assessment.
Check out our SpotOn review to learn more
Pros:
- Top tier free plan for small businesses
- Affordable hardware add-ons for in-person selling
- Automatic offline functionality without internet connection
Cons
- Few hardware options
- Expensive paid plans for restaurants
- Limited retail functionality only suited for small shops
- Free plan includes hardware
- Small Business plan: From $25 per month
- Restaurant plan: From $50 per month
- Transaction fees from: 1.99% + 25¢
SpotOn definitely has some downsides, though, including no kitchen display options and no hardware accessories to add to your range. The app market is also quite limited, with no integrations for CRM, floor management, booking and reservations, or ecommerce tools.
SpotOn is still a clear choice for businesses that want to save a bit of money, though, as it offers an impressive free plan and its pricing plans feature some of the lowest transaction fees across our research at only 1.99% and $0.25. All that to say, if you need a budget POS system and can do without some bells and whistles, you’ve found it with SpotOn.
We found the SpotOn interface quite customizable with thorough modifiers for each item, even in dark mode. Source: Tech.co testing
Most suitable for:
- Hotels seeking a low-risk, low-cost option
- Owners who need seamless staff management
- Small to mid-sized hotels with 1-3 locations
Less suitable for:
- Users who change their floor plan often
- Those who want to purchase additional accessories
- Hotels that want a tablet-based system
SpotOn pricing
SpotOn offers just one hospitality-focused pricing plan that costs $50 per month, as well as an additional $55 per month per POS station. This plan allows for transaction fees of only 1.99% + $0.25 for each transaction on most cards.
SpotOn also has a free forever plan that gives you access to the software at no cost. You will have to endure higher processing fees, though, which will come out to 2.89% + $0.25 for each transaction.
If you like SpotOn, you may also like…
- Square, if you want to purchase additional POS accessories.
- TouchBistro, if you want a portable, tablet-based POS system.
How to Choose the Right POS System for Your Hotel
We’ve provided a lot of information above about which POS systems are best for hotels, which can be a bit intimidating for businesses that aren’t entirely sure what they should be looking for. That’s why we want to lay out exactly what kind of features and functionalities you should be looking for to help you choose the right one for your particular hotel.
- Hotel size – Smaller establishments like hostels and B&Bs would be fine with more simple tablet-based solutions, while larger hotels and resorts will likely need enterprise-level solutions with advanced hardware to keep up.
- Budget – The price range on hotel POS systems is substantial, so if you can’t afford the advanced functionality, you should probably opt for one of the lower-cost solutions.
- Staff expertise – Some POS systems are easier to learn than others, so if your team isn’t well-versed in the technology, you’ll want to be sure that your system isn’t too complicated for beginners.
- Marketing needs – If you are trying to attract new customers while managing your patron needs, some POS systems offer built-in marketing tools that can help you get started.
- Connectivity – Not all hotels have reliable internet, and the last thing you want is a long line at checkout if the Wi-Fi goes out, so finding a solution that offers offline functionality can go a long way.
- Property management compatibility – Many POS systems integrate with property management systems, which can be beneficial for hotel operations to keep everything in one place.
Need to upgrade how you communicate with customers? Check out our guide to the best hotel phone systems.
We take our impartial research and analysis seriously, so you can have complete confidence that we're giving you the clearest, most useful recommendations. After identifying the most relevant, popular POS platforms on the market, we put them through their paces with hands-on testing to better understand their strengths and weaknesses.
In total, we put 16 POS systems to the test, with a vigorous research and testing methodology. We carried out 40 user testing sessions, which amounted to 720 hours of testing in total. In these sessions, participants were asked to carry out tasks on POS software and describe their user journey, to help us understand what it's like to use the systems first-hand. In addition to first-hand testing, we developed a detailed methodology that focuses on six categories of investigation, including criteria like software features and help and support centers.
These categories were broken down into a further 41 subcategories, so we were able to drill down further into certain topics, to make our insights as granular and useful as possible. Here’s an overview of our main testing categories for POS systems:
- Software features: The capabilities provided by the POS product. Includes general features like ordering and payment functionality, as well as industry-specific tools like KSU uploads, and inventory-level stock tracking KDS software.
- Hardware: The quality of a POS’s hardware selection. The presence of an own-brand terminal, as well as hardware accessories like kitchen display systems, receipt printers, and barcode scanners.
- Pricing: The cost associated with acquiring and using the POS system, such as the initial purchase cost, transaction fees, licensing fees, subscription plans, and any additional charges or ongoing costs.
- Ease of use: We test out the software to gauge how intuitive and easy to navigate it is. We also consider how easy the software is to navigate, and whether any errors took place during testing.
- Help & Support: The assistance and resources available to users when they encounter issues or need guidance while using the POS system, including documentation, tutorials, or knowledge bases.
- Customer satisfaction: The aggregate score from customer review sites like Trustpilot and TrustRadius, to understand how POS providers are viewed by their own customer bases.
When it comes to calculating a product's final score, not all testing areas are weighted evenly, as we know some aspects matter more to our readers than others, For example, we’ll prioritize certain industry-specific features for specific reviews, like an offline mode when reviewing POS systems for food trucks, or kitchen display systems (KDS) when reviewing restaurant POS systems.
At Tech.co, we have a number of full-time in-house researchers who re-run this testing process regularly to ensure our results remain reflective of the present day.
Verdict — Ready to Choose a Hotel POS?
Our research found that Toast is definitely the best POS for hotels, thanks to its robust set of features that can handle the complex aspects of the business. From reservations to mobile ordering, the platform makes it easier to run a hotel.
Beyond that, though, there are lots of options out there. From the growth features of Square to the ease of use of TouchBistro, it all depends on what you need a POS system for that will decide your best option.
Even with resources like this, finding a POS that matches your budget isn’t always easy. If you’re looking to cut through the noise and find accurate pricing, our quote-finding tool can provide you with tailored quotes in minutes — it’s completely free too.
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