Shopify vs Shopkeep: Which POS Solution is Best for your Business?

Should You Use Shopkeep or Shopify for Point of Sale Tech?

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This question can be harder to answer than it might seem. After all, on the surface, both Shopify and Shopkeep have a lot of excellent functionality and capabilities to offer today’s business leaders.

With both tools, you can create a powerful one-stop solution for all of your commerce needs, tracking valuable data, managing your inventory, and processing endless credit card and debit card payments. Shopkeep (now Lightspeed POS) and Shopify also provide access to a range of tools to help business leaders create omnichannel sales strategies, including site builders and ecommerce capabilities.

However, the focus of each company is a little different. While Shopkeep’s technologies primarily focus on iPad-centric solutions for retail, restaurant, ecommerce, and hospitality vendors, Shopify’s technology is a little more versatile.

The Shopify POS is entirely customizable, packed with tools to help you seize more sales, and equipped with everything service and product-focused companies need.

Let’s take a closer look at each solution.

Shopify vs Shopkeep: An Introduction

If you’re planning on installing a Point of Sale system for your retail or service company, there are plenty of options available to choose from. Shopkeep and Shopify are just two of the market leading vendors in this landscape, primarily used by businesses looking to create powerful omnichannel strategies for marketing, sales, and growth.

Both Shopify and Shopkeep (now LightSpeed POS), allow companies to sell products online and offline, manage payments from different sources, and track inventory. Shopify and Shopkeep can also offer access to crucial funding and capital for businesses looking to expand.

However, there are some core differences between the two solutions.

What is Shopkeep?

Shopkeep (owned by Lightspeed), provides access to iPad-based POS systems, built to accommodate different kinds of retail companies, restaurants, and even hospitality companies offering access to golf courses. Through Lightspeed, Shopkeep offers a variety of hardware and software tools for business leaders, including Lightspeed Payments for transaction processing, scanners and receipt printers, inventory management tools, as well as marketing and loyalty software.

Some of the key solutions offered by Shopkeep (Lightspeed) include:

  • Instant site creation by Lightspeed eCom, with drag-and-drop content blocks
  • Payment processing with Lightspeed Payments and other integrations solutions
  • Inventory and resource management
  • Customer facing displays, hardware, and scanner tools
  • Integrations with leading sales and marketing solutions
  • Shipping management and fulfilment
  • Marketing and loyalty features for boosting sales
  • Advanced reporting, analytics, and insights
  • Social media integrations for TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook

What is Shopify POS?

Shopify POS is all-in-one solution for point of sale software and hardware. It allows companies to turn any mobile device into a point of sale system, with the Shopify Retail POS app for Android and iOS. It comes with access to customizable terminals, extensive hardware options, reporting tools, and advanced inventory management. Plus, the Shopify POS ecosystem integrates with the rest of the Shopify landscape, providing ecommerce companies with endless opportunities to market and grow.

Some of the core solutions offered by Shopify POS include:

  • Ecommerce website building with the Shopify platform
  • Support for selling products, services, and dropshipping products
  • Integrations with leading sales and marketing tools, as well as fulfilment options
  • Comprehensive inventory management and product tracking
  • Countless delivery options, including buy in store, pick up in store, and more
  • Integrated loyalty and marketing programs to increase sales
  • Fully synced customer profiles with comprehensive order histories
  • Sleek and sophisticated POS hardware with built-in payment processing
  • Payment processing Via Shopify Payments and other tools
  • Custom staff permissions and collaboration tools
  • Unified reporting to blend in-store and online insights
  • Support for transactions in more than 175 countries worldwide
  • Employee management, tracking and payroll features

Shopify vs Shopkeep: Point of Sale Software

Shopify and Shopkeep both offer comprehensive tools for both POS hardware and software. From a software perspective, both platforms are designed to offer exceptional ease of use and customization to business leaders. The Shopkeep POS software comes from Lightspeed.

Lightspeed Software

shopkeep pos software

Lightspeed Retail comes with access to a convenient and straightforward interface, accessible on a range of laptops, PCs, tablets, and other devices. The solution comes with fast checkout features like quick keys and product lookup tools. It allows you to accept all payment types, from credit cards to mobile Google Pay and Apple Pay transactions. Plus, companies can personalize the customer experience by collecting shopper details at checkout and adding notes to sales.

With POS solutions for golf, retail, and restaurant companies, Lightspeed ensures organizations from every environment can access the intuitive tools they need to run a more successful store. The software comes with access to in-depth analytics and reporting tools, gift cards, discounts, and customer profiles, and extensive inventory management. You can even offer click-and collect shipping, set up low stock alerts, and access stock management features.

Plus, there are dedicated solutions available for specific companies, like kitchen displays and order management for restaurants, and marketing and loyalty campaigns for retailers.

Shopify POS Software

shopify pos homepage

Like Shopkeep, Shopify offers a POS environment that’s both straightforward and feature rich. The solution allows you to turn any device into a point of sale, and customize your terminal however you like. You can even use modules to adjust different parts of the interface for your users.

Shopify’s solutions come with advanced inventory management tools, with purchase order tracking and inventory forecasts. You can set custom staff permissions for your employees, and access unified reports for insights across your online and offline sales landscapes. Shopify also allows companies to deliver products in a range of different formats, and accept returns from online purchases.

With fully synced customer profiles, you can track the preferences of each customer. Plus, Shopify provides access to a range of integrations and in-built tools for social media marketing, email, and loyalty campaign creation. The omnichannel selling solution even offers access to product QR codes, demand forecasting, low stock reports, and more. Plus, you can manage taxes and other financial issues directly within your Shopify dashboard.

Shopify vs Shopkeep (Lightspeed): Ecommerce

As mentioned above, one of the things that sets Shopify and Shopkeep (Lightspeed) apart from other POS solutions in the modern market, is their approach to omnichannel selling. With both of these platforms, companies can create comprehensive online and offline sales strategies, to boost their chances of higher revenue from a range of customers.

Lightspeed (Shopkeep) offers ecommerce solutions which allow companies to build an online store without any subscription costs. You can sell to people all over the world, using a convenient drag-and-drop modular builder to create your own website. There’s also the option to connect Lightspeed to your existing website, if you already have one, or sell across social media platforms.

The solution works alongside marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and Google Shopping, and gives companies the freedom to expand their online presence without the need for any coding requirements. There are 30 free themes to choose from to get you started. Like Shopify, you can use your ecommerce solution from Lightspeed to sell both physical and digital goods, as well as subscriptions for recurring revenue. Plus, there are various tools included for marketing, including SEO solutions, abandoned cart emails, and automated product ads for Google and Facebook.

Shopify, on the other hand, takes ecommerce functionality to the next level, with probably one of the most versatile platforms around for online and offline stores. Alongside your Shopify POS software, you can access the full Shopify ecosystem, to develop a comprehensive, customizable store, with countless free and premium themes. There’s a drag-and-drop website builder to eliminate the need for code, as well as options for creating headless commerce environments.

Because Shopify focuses heavily on the ecommerce landscape, it also ensures you can rapidly sync and monitor your transactions across all channels. You can connect to social media, boost your marketing strategy with automated emails and SEO-driven blogs, and create PPC ads. Plus, you’ll be able to collect emails and phone numbers from your customers for marketing purposes.

Shopify’s comprehensive ecommerce platform allows companies to sell globally, across all channels and marketplaces. Set up endless payment options, and even chat with customers through Shopify Inbox. You can leverage powerful customer insights and stock management features, own your own site domain, and expand your website with endless add-ons from the Shopify marketplace.

Shopkeep POS vs Shopify POS: Hardware Solutions

While finding the right solution for ecommerce and retail software may be crucial for any business investing in a modern POS solution, it’s important to select the right hardware too. The right devices will make it easier to serve your customers anywhere, while tracking important data about preferences, transactions, and business growth.

The Shopkeep POS solution (now Lightspeed POS) provides access to a host of versatile hardware options, mostly focused on the Apple iPad landscape. It allows you to turn any Apple tablet into a convenient solution for sales, with accessories like Bluetooth scanners, printers, iPad stands, cash drawers, and more. If you shop through Lightspeed directly, you can also access a range of desktop hardware kits, with cash drawers, USB scanners, and receipt printers included.

Lightspeed also offers access to payment terminals, powered by Bluetooth, which can handle standard payments, as well as contactless transactions. Most options are available to be shipped to the US for free, and come with hardware warranties, as well as free exchanges and returns.

The Shopify POS hardware solutions provide access to a fully integrated ecosystem of tools for managing payments and records. You can leverage tools like the WisePad 3 reader for tap and chip insert payments, as well as comprehensive bundles with their own displays and cash drawers. All of the solutions also come with direct access to Shopify Payments for cheaper transactions.

Shopify’s tools can integrate with a range of accessories to expand your functionality, such as barcode scanners, Bluetooth receipt printers, and secure cash drawers. The hardware comes pre-integrated with the Shopify POS app too, so you can get your entire team up and running as quickly as possible.

Shopkeep POS vs Shopify POS: Performance and Analytics

To thrive in today’s competitive business environment, companies need to ensure they’re making growth decisions based on insightful data. Fortunately, both Shopify and Shopkeep (Lightspeed) can offer various tools to help you increase your sales and discover new opportunities.

The Lightspeed ecosystem built into Shopkeep technology comes with access to sophisticated POS reporting solutions, which you can customize based on your specific KPIs. You can use the tools to forecast demand, track information about customers, and even find ways of improving staff performance. You’ll be able to access your data from anywhere using the Lightspeed app.

To boost your store’s performance, Shopkeep not only integrates with a host of social media and marketing tools, but also comes with a comprehensive platform for building loyalty campaigns, offering discounts, and creating customer gift cards.

Shopify’s advanced reporting and analytics tools cover all of the data you need about both your online and offline stores. You can access a dashboard overview of all your key metrics in seconds, create custom sales reports, and forecast finances. There are daily sales reports available, as well as cash flow and product reports. Plus, you can track inventory analytics, discounts, taxes, and finances all in the same convenient environment.

Like Shopkeep, Shopify also offers a range of tools to help you increase your sales, including in-built loyalty programs with discounts and voucher codes, marketing tools for social media and email, and endless content solutions for building your presence online. You can even collect product reviews, and promote your store automatically via the Google Merchant center.

Shopkeep vs Shopify: Pricing Plans

The exact price you’ll pay for POS solutions from either Shopify or Shopkeep will vary depending on your needs. If you’re looking to create an omnichannel marketing and sales strategy for both an online and offline store, for instance, you might expect to pay a little more.

Shopkeep Pricing

The Lightspeed software powering the Shopkeep ecosystem comes with a range of pricing plans to choose from, with discounts for companies using Lightspeed payments. If you’re not using Lightspeed Payments, you’ll need to account for additional costs, and processing fees.

Without Lightspeed Payments options for retail companies include:

  • Lean (Retail): $119 per month for retail POS, 1 register, a dedicated account manager, 24/7 customers support, and free training resources.
  • Standard: $169 per month with all the features of Lean, plus Accounting tools, ecommerce (so you can build an online store) and more.
  • Advanced: $249 per month for all the features of Standard, plus omnichannel loyalty features and advanced reporting capabilities.
  • Enterprise: Custom price for all the features in the Advanced plan, plus specialized support, consulting services, and API assistance.

If you’re looking for a POS for restaurants or golfing companies, there are various different prices to consider, starting at $69 per month for restaurants, and custom pricing for golf companies. If you just want to leverage the ecommerce features, you can access the ecommerce plans starting at $14.08 per month for sales of up to 100 products.

The hardware available from Lightspeed and Shopkeep also comes with a range of price tags to consider, depending on what you need.

Shopify POS Pricing

Shopify POS Lite is included with all Shopify pricing plans. This comes with in-person credit card rates starting at 1.5% plus 0c, a mobile POS, order and product management, and customer profiles. Shopify ecommerce plans start at $24 per month, with access to multiple sales channels, unlimited products, and various forms of customer support.

If you want to upgrade to a more advanced POS solution, you can access the Shopify POS Pro plan. This costs $89 per month, per location, and needs to be added on top of an existing Shopify plan (Basic Shopify for $24 per month, Shopify for $69 per month, or Advanced Shopify for $259 per month). You can also add Shopify POS Pro to the enterprise level Shopify Plus service.

Shopify POS Pro comes with all the features of Shopify Lite, plus unlimited store staff, smart inventory management, omnichannel selling, unlimited registers, staff roles and permissions, and in-store analytics. You can calculate the cost of your Shopify Plan and POS service on the Shopify site.

On top of the monthly subscription fees, you’ll also need to account for transaction costs (particularly if you’re not using Shopify Payments), and the prices of hardware, which can vary depending on the bundle or accessories you need.

Shopkeep vs Shopify: Which is Best?

If you’re a small business looking to connect your ecommerce store to your retail location, both Shopkeep and Shopify have a lot to offer. Shopkeep offers a cloud-based solution for invoicing, account management, and order tracking. It integrates with a range of different tools, from BigCommerce, to MailChimp, and QuickBooks. Plus, Shopkeep (and Lightspeed) offer a variety of card reader options and hardware tools for business leaders.

Shopify, like Shopkeep, allows you to manage and monitor transactions in real-time, with a range of payment processors, and integration options. While Shopkeep works with a variety of different ecommerce and back office solutions, the Shopify POS is generally best-suited to people in the Shopify ecosystem. For small and medium-sized businesses, Shopify makes it easy to create a compelling website, and leverage the benefits of automation for their retail store.

Both of these tools will allow you to choose from a range of hardware options to help with customer management, and integrate with various solutions for accounting software, CRM and more. The right choice for you will depend primarily on what kind of physical store you want to run, and how much you want to invest in your online presence.

Rebekah Carter

Rebekah Carter is an experienced content creator, news reporter, and blogger specializing in marketing, business development, and technology. Her expertise covers everything from artificial intelligence to email marketing software and extended reality devices. When she’s not writing, Rebekah spends most of her time reading, exploring the great outdoors, and gaming.

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