Best POS for Bike Shops

While a bike shop could use any retail POS, there is some specific functionality that you may benefit from in this unique sector. For most bike stores, it won’t stop at just taking payments, you’ll want to manage repair orders, plus track bicycle models, spare parts, and accessories.

The right POS systems optimise your sales process, track stock accurately and improve your customer service, ultimately contributing to your bike shop’s overall profitability.

However, how do you know which is best with so many POS systems available?

Why do Bike Shops Need a POS System?

Bike shops find a POS system helpful for various reasons, such as

• Quick and Accurate Sales: The system makes sales faster and more accurate.
• Keeping Track of Stock: It helps monitor the number of bikes and accessories available, preventing having too much or running out of popular items.
• Handling Warranties and Returns: Makes dealing with warranties and returns smoother for customers and staff.
• Taking Care of Bike Services: Records service history, schedules maintenance, and notifies customers when their bikes are ready to pick up.
• Managing Customer Info: Allows bike shops to keep customer records, providing personalised service and targeted marketing.
• Setting Up Appointments: Some POS systems let customers quickly book service appointments in advance.
• Dealing with Orders: Manages special requests, customisations, or items currently unavailable straightforwardly, ensuring a hassle-free customer experience.
• Coordinating Workshops: Helps sales and workshop staff communicate better, ensuring smooth coordination to fulfil customer orders and service requests.
• Working with Suppliers: Handling relationships with suppliers by providing accurate sales data and helping negotiate better terms and discounts.

Best POS for Bike Shops: My Verdict

Choosing the best POS for your bike shop depends on several factors, including the size of your business and budget. 

Square and Shopify are great entry-level POS systems for small or new bike shops, with each provider offering some of the most affordable plans. Square has comprehensive features, including order management, making it a good all-rounder. Shopify POS works well for businesses that have or want to grow an online presence. However, if you’re prepared to go into a fixed contract, you’ll get lower rates on payment processing. 

YumaPOS and Takepayments are recommended middle-ground POS systems that offer more advanced features and hardware. Whilst smaller bike shops or those with more straightforward needs may be happy with the functionality, larger businesses may find the absence of features such as repair and service management a dealbreaker. 

Premium POS system options such as Epos Now & Lightspeed offer a more comprehensive solution with greater customisation opportunities. For the right shop Lightspeed includes some brilliant specialist features such as vendor and service management, whilst Epos Now integrates with Hub Tiger, an integration specifically designed for bike repair. Both work well for larger businesses, especially those with multiple locations. However, smaller bike shops may find the added complexity overwhelming. 

Comparison of the Best POS for Bike Shops

The Top 6 Best POS for Bike Shops

Lightspeed Retail POS

Lightspeed POS is an all-in-one solution for bike shops, streamlining online and offline sales. It simplifies bike shop management, covering everything from repair work orders to inventory tracking.

Whilst larger bike shops may find Lightspeed’s impressive features helpful, small businesses could be overwhelmed by the added complexity. The transaction processing rate, ranging from 2.6% to 2.9% plus 10¢ (approximately 8p), is also higher than other POS systems, which may make it unsuitable for businesses with a high transaction volume.

The purchase orders feature makes ordering from multiple vendors easy, while point-of-rental and appointment scheduling software diversifies offerings.

Lightspeed’s B2B Catalog streamlines supplier information, providing quick access to thousands of bike products directly from the Point of Sale. This feature saves time and ensures accurate product data.

Lightspeed Loyalty improves customer engagement with personalised rewards and targeted promotional messages through SMS and email. The Service Orders feature makes bike repair management effortless, with customisable permissions and special orders.

Powerful cloud-based stock management tools allow inventory control, setting smart reorder points and using custom tags and product matrices. You’ll also be able to sync online and in-store sales seamlessly with eCommerce support. 

Lightspeed Analytics offers insights into inventory based on customer purchase history, optimising stock and tracking staff performance. 

For bike shops with more specialised needs, Lightspeed can also be integrated with specialist software for the bike industry, including Booxi, Hubtiger, and Bike Rent Manager. 

There are software plans suitable for bike shops ranging from single-location bike shops to multi-location chains. While hardware is not included, the customer support team can obtain quotes for compatible equipment bundles.

Lightspeed POS at a Glance

ePOS and Payments platform is specifically tailored to the omnichannel needs of independent bike shops.

• Order from multiple vendors at once with purchase orders
• Diversify your offering with point of rental and appointment scheduling software
• Track product warranties and manage sales on your serialised inventory
• Explore specialised integrations catered to the bike industry
• Process sales, get settlement reports, and streamline workflows in one unified ePOS and Payments system
• Accepted Payments: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Maestro, Apple Pay and Google Pay
• Transaction Rate: Ranges from 2.6% to 2.9% plus 10¢ (approximately 8p)
• Integrations: Booxi, Hubtiger Bike Rent Manager, Ikeono, Xero, Quote Machine and much more. 
• Hardware: Bespoke packages, including receipt printers, cash drawers, payment terminals and more
• Support: Webchat or call support is available 24/7 in English. There is also limited support in German, French and Dutch. 

Price

Epos Now POS

Epos Now’s POS system is one of the most popular in the UK for the SMB market. While the system has lot of inbuilt functionality, it’s range of integrations make it customisable with any sector including bike shops.

Epos Now’s integration with HubTiger offers bike shops a streamlined system, enhancing both service and retail aspects.

1. Booking System: HubTiger lets customers book repairs online or in-store. This data is then managed in Epos Now, making the booking and payment process smoother.
2. Workshop Management: Job cards created in HubTiger can be transferred to Epos Now. This helps mechanics focus on repairs while the POS system handles sales and billing.
3. Customer Communication: The integration ensures effective communication about repair status and updates, keeping customer records in one place.
4. Stock and Sales Tracking: Real-time data sync between HubTiger and Epos Now provides accurate stock levels and customer history, aiding in inventory management.
5. Reporting: HubTiger’s reports, combined with Epos Now’s data, give insights for better decision-making and process optimization.
6. Curbside Service: HubTiger’s curbside feature, supported by Epos Now, offers customers convenient pickup and drop-off services, managed efficiently through the software.

In addition, Epos Now automated inventory management ensures you always keep track. You can search inventory by size, colour, style, and more. Schedule service appointments effortlessly and keep queues short. Managing multiple stores with the cloud-based system is effortless, allowing real-time inventory views and user permission settings.

Epos Now Payments adds flexibility and security to your transactions with seamless integration, mobile, and countertop options. The system provides easy management and consolidated reports, simplifying your financial processes.

Build personal customer relationships within the biking community using the branded loyalty scheme and customer profiles. Intelligent reporting helps you understand customer preferences, identify popular products, and set goals for growth.

Security measures include unique staff sign-in codes, role assignments, and secure cloud storage. 

Epos Now POS at a glance

• Accepted Payments: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apply Pay, Google Pay
• Transaction Rate:
• Key Features: Inventory management, eCommerce integration, payment processing, appointment scheduling, customer relationship management, reporting,
• Integrations: Hubtiger, Xero, Shopify, BigCommerce, WooCommerce and more
• Hardware: Bundles from £325. Individual hardware available 
• Support: Ranging of support including a 24/7 helpline, knowledge base and live web chat open between 9 am and 6 pm

Price

Square POS for Retail

Square for Retail is an ideal POS system for newer or smaller bike shops looking for a more straightforward, easier-to-use solution.  All plans include the essential elements you would expect from a POS system. However, larger bike stores with more complex needs may find their system somewhat limited.

One key feature for bike shops is the efficient inventory management tools. With the built-in counting tool and barcode scanner, updating stock counts is simplified, saving you hours of admin. The system’s ability to handle a wide range of inventory, including clothing, is ideal for bike shops that stock accessories.

The option to offer click-and-collect and delivery is particularly helpful, giving customers convenient options to improve their experience. 

Creating customer profiles, taking notes, and tracking spending habits helps build long-term relationships with your customers, allowing you to personalise your services and marketing.

Square for Retail also simplifies staff management with easy-to-create rotas, permissions settings, and straightforward time tracking on the POS system, so your team always stays organised. 

There are no work and service management tools, but you can upgrade your plan to add Square Appointments for better scheduling.

You can seamlessly integrate your Square POS with eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce, helping you efficiently manage in-store and online sales. 

In terms of pricing, the Free plan is suitable for smaller or newer businesses, whilst the Plus plan offers access to Square’s advanced features, including automatic purchase orders, barcode label printing and item bundling. Companies that process over £200,000 per year can get custom rates on a Premium plan. 

Transaction rates depend on your chosen plan and range between 1.6% to 1.7% for in-person sales or 1.4% to 2.5% + 25p for online orders. 

Hardware options include the Square Register for £599 + VAT, the Square Terminal for £149 + VAT and the Square Reader for £19+ VAT.

Square POS at a glance

• Accepted Payments: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Maestro, Visa Electron, Vpay, Clearpay, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay
• Transaction Rate: Between 1.6% to 1.7% for in-person sales or 1.4% to 2.5% + 25p for online orders
• Key Features: Inventory management, team management, customer engagement, eCommerce integration, payment processing, order management and fulfilment, and reporting. 
• Integrations: Booxi, Xero, GoDaddy, WooCommerce, Rentrax and more.
• Hardware: Range of options with prices from £19+ VAT
• Support: Telephone support is available from 9 am to 5 pm, Monday to Friday

Price

Shopify POS

Shopify’s POS system is perfect for bike shops that want to offer a multichannel shopping experience, in-person and online. 

With Shopify POS, you can provide a smooth shopping experience. Customers can explore and purchase bikes on your website and social media, allowing you to cater to your customer’s preferences.

Managing your bike inventory is made simple with Shopify’s innovative inventory tools. These tools help you keep track of popular products, forecast demand, and avoid running low on stock. The Stocky app further assists in optimising your inventory based on seasons and product performance.

Shopify POS lets you customise staff roles and permissions to match your team’s expertise. This feature means your staff can better assist customers, answering specific questions about bikes and accessories.

The checkout process is customisable to suit your bike shop’s needs. You can offer options like local pickup, buy in-store and ship, and buy online and return in-store, adapting to a wide range of set-ups.

Whilst you can create order notes for special requests, there are no work or service management tools, which may make Shopify POS unsuitable for some businesses. 

Detailed reports and analytics help you understand which bike models are popular, how promotions are performing, and how to optimise your inventory based on trends. This information is valuable for making informed business decisions.

Shopify POS integrates smoothly with the hardware you need for your bike shop, including tablet setups and card readers for easy transactions.

If your bike shop participates in events, Shopify POS makes on-the-go sales easy with wireless hardware. Whether at a cycling expo or a pop-up shop during a race, the system ensures you can sell bikes and accessories effortlessly.

Shopify’s pricing plans are designed with businesses in mind. Plans start at £5 per month for the Starter plan, designed for casual sellers, and scale to £344 per month for larger bike shops who want to access advanced features and better rates. 

For Basic, Shopify and Advanced plans, you’ll also have to pay £69 per month for each POS Pro location, which may make it less suitable if you have multiple locations. 

While the Starter plan may be attractive for newer businesses, the transaction rate is extremely high, priced at 5% for in-person transactions and 5% + 25p for online sales. Other plans have a more affordable transaction rate, ranging from 1.5% – 1.7% for in-person payments and 1.5% to 2.% + 25p for online payments. 

Shopify POS at a Glance

• Accepted Payments: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apple Pay and Google Pay
• Transaction Rate: In-person rates range between 1.5% to 5%, and online rates are 1.5% to 5% + 25p.
• Key Features: Omnichannel selling, inventory management, staff management, payment processing, checkouts, customer engagement, marketing,  reporting 
• Integrations: Hubtiger, Mailchimp, Zapier, Quickbooks, Xero and much more.
• Hardware: Wide range of hardware including WisePad 3 Card Readers for £49, POS Go for £299 and Retail bundles for £149
• Support: 24/7 support by e-mail, phone and web chat

Price

YumaPOS

YumaPOS is a streamlined and efficient platform offering simplicity, security, and scalability. 

YumaPOS ensures unlimited capacity for customers, products, and payment options, eliminating any hurdles as your bike shop expands. The synchronised EPOS software simplifies day-to-day operations, from managing bike transactions to efficiently handling inventory, customers, and staff.

Enhance the bike shopping experience with YumaPOS’s integrated payments. From quick transactions to seamless integrations with various payment systems, our EPOS solution ensures faster payments, streamlined transactions, and super-secure payments for your bike shop and customers.

Your Back Office platform acts as the command centre for bike shop management. Easily monitor inventory levels, create staff schedules, and track sales across multiple locations from one user-friendly platform. The system is optimised to handle the nuances of the bike retail industry, allowing you to automate stock control, receive timely updates on low-stock levels, and manage a diverse range of bike products effortlessly.

YumaPOS offers features such as a simple barcode system, unique product lists for various bike categories, and support for multiple languages. Stay on top of your bike shop staffing needs with amendable employee lists and create pre-set discounts for seasonal promotions or specific customer bases.

Unlock the full potential of your bike shop with meaningful analytics. YumaPOS records and presents vital insights into your bike sales, staff performance, and customer preferences. With over 100 integrated reports, you can make data-driven decisions to grow your bike shop.

Navigating through busy days at a bike shop is more straightforward with YumaPOS’s intuitive interface. Whether you’re a tech-savvy enthusiast or a newcomer to EPOS systems, the clean and clear design ensures a quick setup and minimal learning curve. An expert team also provides ongoing support to keep your bike shop running smoothly.

While Yuma does offer specialised Retail POS, its focus is more on hospitality businesses. Smaller bike shops or those with more straightforward needs will find the range of features sufficient, but larger bike shops will miss features such as work and service management tools.

YumaPOS at a glance

• Accepted Payments: Mastercard, Visa, American Express, Apply Pay and Google Pay
• Transaction Rate
• Key Features: Inventory management, barcode system, payment processing, marketing and loyalty schemes, reporting
• Integrations
• Hardware: Bespoke bundles available, including handheld POS devices and desktop POS systems 
• Support: 24/7 technical support and ongoing training 

Price

Takepayments POS

Takepayments offers an all-in-one POS system, known as tPOS, designed to assist you in making informed decisions and running your bike shop more efficiently.

The tPOS system securely processes card and cash sales and features end-of-day reconciliation. There are also inventory management features, allowing you to manage stock levels so you never run low. 

Data and report tools help you track sales trends and monitor employee performance seamlessly to make more informed business decisions. 

Whilst the POS system can be used for both hospitality and retail businesses, the features for retail companies are more limited.

 Although it includes all the essential features you would expect, it doesn’t include bike-industry-specific features such as service and repair management tools, which could be a drawback for larger bike shops. 

Choose between the tPOS counter, and tPOS complete to meet the specific needs of your bike shop. The tPOS counter, available for an initial payment of just £250, features a modern tablet-sized system with a large touch screen, automatic brightness adjustment, and a powerful quad-core processor. It includes a portable card machine fully integrated with the tPOS software, facilitating easy handling of contactless payments and real-time reporting.

For a more comprehensive point-of-sale experience, opt for the tPOS complete. This visually striking, dual-screen solution with a large 15.6-inch display offers super-fast performance, stock management, real-time reporting, and efficient payment processing—all tailored to enhance your bike shop’s operations.

Both tPOS counter and tPOS complete are compatible with additional devices, such as additional mobile card machines, cash drawers, and barcode scanners, available at an extra cost.

Takepauments provides full training and support from an award-winning Customer Service Team available seven days a week.

Takepayments POS at a glance

• Accepted Payments: Visa, Mastercard, Maestro, American Express, Apply Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay
• Key Features: Inventory management, payment processing, cash management, reporting 
• Hardware: Options include countertop POS systems, card readers, cash drawers, printers, and barcode scanners
• Support: Available seven days a week by telephone

Price

Key Features of a Bike Shop POS System

POS systems for bike shops often have a long list of features, each aiming to streamline your processes. Whilst most bike shop POS systems have similar features, each provider will have differences.

The table below highlights some features you may have access to.