Cash register & POS terminal: Evaluate the fundamental difference

Sakshi Narayan
Wish A POS
Published in
4 min readOct 25, 2019
POS Terminal
POS Terminal

New retail outlets often find themselves struggling with choices to make while buying their POS equipment. With myriad options available in the market, keeping your hands on the right set of tools can be confusing.

It is advisable to explore, examine and then buy the perfect device for your POS system. One of the most essential parts of the checkout counter is cash management devices.

While modern-day businesses prefer going with a POS terminal, small-sized stores still invest in cash register because they are more affordable.

Let’s look at what you can choose to streamline your point of sales cash management:

SAM 4S Cash Register

Cash Registers

Cash registers were specifically introduced for reliable and safe storage of cash payments. In 200 years, these devices have evolved in terms of features, sizes, and more. In earlier days, traditional cash registers were used by most retailers around the world. These devices came with a mini keypad to record transactions, a screen for display and cash drawer to store money.

With the advancement in technology, electronic cash registers were launched with additional features. Equipped with a touch screen monitor and a digital keypad, these cash registers mostly range between AUD 350 to AUD 600. Even though a thermal receipt printer is integrated into the device, there will still need to buy scanner and card machines. Durability is the biggest reason why these printers are still in the market. You can expect these to last at least 10 years!

Sam4s Cash Registers are popularly used in restaurants, cafes and other smaller chains for their cash management. The dual station cash register has a huge graphic display with an LCD rear display.

Suggestion read: Cash Registers — Important Features To Look For

POS system with cash management

Point of sales terminal

POS terminal is an all-rounder point of sales equipment that offers complete management of payments, staff management, and inventory management. The features of the device help in effectively managing the stream of work.

Like cash registers, you can find a traditional model and mobile POS model of a terminal. The difference between the two features they extend.

A traditional POS terminal was introduced years ago and has been a popular choice amongst small scale businesses ever since. You can process both cash and card transactions with this system through its single terminal. The completely computerized system comes with a touchscreen display and costs much higher than a cash register.

mPOS comes with a cutting edge technology for an amazing user interface. This system can be used both with a mobile phone or tablet through POS software or individually. Bigger brands often go with this system for the amazing look and less space it takes on the desk, not to forget the advanced features. For payments, you can use cash, card, or wallet.

Suggestion Read: Revolutionize Your POS Terminal Device

Wrapping up

Both cash registers and POS terminals are great systems for payment management. Deciding the one that is perfect for your business completely depends on your requirements.

To clear the cloud of thoughts, ask yourself the following questions:

· What is the size of your business?

· How many transactions will you carry out in a day?

· Do you look forward to growing your current store?

· Will require an in-built inventory management system?

· How many staff members will you have and how will you manage them?

· What mode of payments will you accept?

· What will be the size of your store?

A set of right questions with honest answers will help you decide the right set of devices that your store will need.

If you are an owner of small scale business, you can always go with a cash register or a traditional POS terminal. There is no point in investing in an expensive system if your business doesn’t need it.

However, if you plan to expand in the near future, buy POS Terminal (traditional or mPOS) that will work well for an outlet with heavy footfall and numerous transactions. The same will apply for retail stores that are launching on a massive scale.

Wish A POS is amongst leading POS Company Australia that offers more than 5000 products including barcode scanners, cash registers, printers, cash drawers, POS terminals and other equipment to streamline a retail business operation.

Get in touch with Wish A POS to know more.

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