Best POS systems in Canada, compared on published prices.

The short answer

• A small shop, café or market stall starting out: Square has a $0 plan, publishes its card rates and has no long-term contract. If your customers pay by debit, check its debit fee.
• You also sell online: Shopify POS keeps the store and the counter on the same inventory. If you use a processor other than Shopify Payments, it adds a fee of 2% down to 0.2%, depending on the plan.
• A restaurant: choose for the kitchen and the service first. Toast, Lightspeed Restaurant, Clover and several Quebec-built systems are made for it. See our restaurant POS comparison.
• A restaurant in Quebec: your POS must be certified for WEB-SRM, the Revenu Québec system that records each bill, for the way you serve. Square says it is not compatible. See the certified list.
• Several stores or a growing retailer: look at Lightspeed Retail, Erply, Hike or Shopify POS Pro. Check how each one handles stock across locations, and read the processing terms.
• You want to keep your current processor: pick a POS that lets you choose. Many do not, and several say so in writing.

How we compared them

• Published facts only. Prices, rates and terms come from each company's own Canadian page or agreement, linked in the table. If a company does not publish it, the table says "Quote" or "Not published".
• Checked on 1 October 2026. Prices change and promotions end. Check the linked page before you sign.
• Canadian dollars where shown. Some Canadian pages show "$" without saying CAD; the table says so.
• No ranking for pay. Nobody paid to be listed. The table is grouped by the kind of business each system is built for.

The comparison table

Starting software prices and card processing as published on each company's Canadian page, checked 1 October 2026. "Quote" means the company does not publish it.

"Interface" means the company says its POS screens can run in French. "Site" means it publishes a French website, but we could not confirm the POS screens. Revenu Québec's list applies to restaurant establishments only.

What a POS really costs

A POS has five costs, and only some of them show on the pricing page:

1. Software: a monthly fee per location or per device, often higher for more registers or features.
2. Hardware: bought once, or rented or financed each month.
3. Card processing: a percentage and cents on every sale, usually the biggest cost.
4. Add-ons: online ordering, loyalty, a kitchen display, extra devices.
5. Setup and leaving: installation, training, and the cost of ending the contract early.

A worked example: a small café

An example only, using published prices, to show how the pieces add up. It is not a quote.

A café takes $10,000 a month in card sales: 250 credit sales and 250 debit sales of $20 each, on one terminal.

The totals are close, but they are built differently. Square charges debit as a percentage, which grows with your average sale; Moneris charges cents. Square has no contract; Moneris publishes a 3-year initial term. Change the average sale or the share of debit and the answer changes. That is why we always start from your own statement.

Do you have to use the POS company's card processing?

Often, yes, and many companies say so in writing. Card processing is often the largest part of what a POS costs you, so it matters more than the software price.

If you already have a processing agreement you are happy with, or a term you cannot leave yet, pick from the right-hand column. If you are open to switching, compare the POS and the processing as one package.

Contracts, leases and cancelling

Published terms range from none to several years:

• No contract: Square, Helcim and Jane's payments say you can leave without a penalty.
• Auto-renewing terms: Toast's agreement renews for six-month periods and charges the remaining software fees if you leave early. MYR's terms say you cannot end the agreement before the initial term, and it renews yearly unless you give 30 days' notice.
• Multi-year processing terms: Moneris publishes a 3-year initial term and a $300 fee per location when the agreement ends.
• Hardware strings: Epos Now's discounted hardware bundle needs a 12-month subscription.

Card processing agreements are covered by the Code of Conduct, which gives you 70 days to cancel without penalty after a fee increase. POS software subscriptions are not. Read both before you sign. Our processor comparison lists the processing terms side by side.

For retail: what to check

• Stock tracking that fits your products: sizes and colours, weights, bulk goods, serial numbers, deposits.
• Barcodes and labels: scanning, printing labels, and receiving stock from suppliers.
• Online and in store together: the same inventory if you sell online, so you never sell the last unit twice.
• Several locations: moving stock between stores and reports by location, if you have more than one store or plan to.
• Canadian cash rounding: in Canada, cash totals round to the nearest 5 cents. Some POS systems point this out, so test it.
• Debit: Interac, Canada's debit network, is a large share of in-store sales here. Ask what each debit sale costs.

For restaurants: what to check

Restaurants need more than a fast checkout. Think tables and seats, a kitchen display, handhelds for ordering at the table, tips, split bills and delivery orders. We compare restaurant systems separately in our restaurant POS guide.

Selling in Quebec

• French software. Quebec's language office says that, as a rule, employers must provide the French version of the software their staff use, installed by default. Ask whether the POS screens, not only the website, run in French. OQLF.
• Restaurants need a certified system. Every bill must come from a certified sales recording system (SRS) that works with WEB-SRM. On 1 October 2026, Revenu Québec's list included Clover (through two certified apps), Lightspeed Restaurant, Toast, Maitre'D, Veloce, Cluster, MYR and Yperon, among others. Square states that its products "are not compatible with the online sales recording module (WEB-SRM)", and points restaurants to an integration with MYR, which is certified. See the full list.
• No credit card surcharges for consumers. Quebec's consumer protection law does not allow it, even if your POS offers a surcharge feature. See the surcharging guide.
• Gift cards on Clover. Clover says its Gift Cards app is currently unavailable in French and in Quebec. See what Clover costs.

The best-known systems in brief

Clover

Clover is Fiserv's POS, sold directly and through banks, partners and dealers like us. Its Canadian page does not publish prices; the software plans are Starter, Standard and Advanced. Clover says its devices "cannot be used with other payment processors", and that contract terms and termination fees vary by provider. In Quebec, restaurants use one of two certified Clover apps. Our Clover cost guide lists every line of a Clover quote.

Square

Square publishes everything: a $0 plan, 2.5% for in-person credit, 0.75% + 7¢ for debit, and hardware from $69. There is no long-term contract. Square processes its own payments, and it says its products are not compatible with Quebec's WEB-SRM for restaurants; it points them to an integration with MYR, which is certified.

Shopify POS

Built for retailers who also sell online, with one inventory across the store and the website. The Basic plan is $37 a month billed yearly, and POS Pro is $119 per location. Shopify adds a fee of 2% (Basic) down to 0.2% (Plus) if you use a processor other than Shopify Payments.

Lightspeed

Headquartered in Montreal, Lightspeed sells separate retail and restaurant systems. Lightspeed Restaurant starts at CAD $89 a month, with integrated payments at 2.6% + 10¢ on its first two plans, and is on Revenu Québec's certified list. Lightspeed Retail starts at CAD $119 a month billed yearly and charges a monthly fee if you use another processor.

Toast

Toast's Canadian plans start at CA$120 a month, including the first terminal. Its merchant agreement names Adyen as the "sole provider of payment processing services", renews for six-month periods, and charges the remaining software fees if you leave early. Toast is on Revenu Québec's list for counter service and platform orders; table service is not listed.

TouchBistro

A Toronto company built for full-service restaurants, from $89 a month (currency not stated). It says it works with a wide range of payment processors. It is not on Revenu Québec's certified list as of 1 October 2026.

Moneris

Moneris Go Retail is $10 a month on a Moneris Go terminal, which rents for $34.95 a month, with published processing of 2.45% + 10¢ for credit and 12¢ for Interac. Moneris publishes a 3-year initial term. RBC and BMO agreed in August 2026 to sell Moneris to Francisco Partners.

Helcim

A Calgary company with a free POS, interchange-plus pricing from interchange + 0.40% + 8¢, Interac from 9¢, and no contract or cancellation fee. Hardware is bought: a card reader at $239 or a smart terminal at $429.

Quebec-built restaurant systems

Maitre'D and Veloce (both owned by PayFacto), Cluster, MYR and Yperon are built in Montreal and Laval and are all on Revenu Québec's certified list. Maitre'D says you can keep your processor; MYR says you can choose yours; Cluster's GO plan requires Cluster Payments.

Where CleverPays fits, and where it does not

We fit when you want Clover chosen, set up and supported by people you can reach, especially for restaurants, retail counters and businesses in Quebec that need a certified setup. We will also tell you plainly that Clover comes with Fiserv processing.

We are not the best fit if you want to keep your current processor no matter what, or you want to sign up online in five minutes and never talk to anyone. Pick a system from the "lets you choose" column, or a self-serve option like Square, and you will be well served.

Common questions