EPOS System Costs UK 2026: Software, Hardware & Fees Quick Answer
An EPOS system can cost from £0 per month for basic POS software to hundreds of pounds per month for advanced retail, hospitality or multi-site systems.
The real cost usually includes:
EPOS software
till hardware
card-payment processing
setup and installation
training
support
optional add-ons
contract or rental charges
As a starting guide:
EPOS setup Typical cost structure
Free POS software
£0/month + payment processing
Basic small-business EPOS
Low-cost hardware + £0-£50+/month software
Retail/café EPOS
Often £25-£150+/month + hardware + payments
Restaurant/hospitality EPOS
Often £50-£200+/month + hardware + payments
Multi-site EPOS
Usually custom or higher monthly pricing
Our View Never compare EPOS systems using the advertised monthly software fee alone.
A £0/month system with expensive payment processing can cost more than a £69/month system with a better commercial package.
Compare:
first-year cost + annual payment processing + full contract value.
Compare EPOS System Quotes
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Key Takeaways
EPOS costs normally include software, hardware and payment processing. Free POS software exists, but card-processing fees still apply.
Basic systems can start with inexpensive card-reader hardware.
Full till setups can cost hundreds or thousands of pounds once terminals, printers and scanners are included.
Retail businesses usually pay more for stock, barcode and ecommerce features.
Restaurants often need table management, kitchen systems and handheld ordering.
Payment processing can exceed the software subscription at higher turnover. Extra locations, tills and users can increase monthly software costs.
Always check setup, training, support and cancellation charges.
Our view: calculate total first-year and contract cost before choosing an EPOS provider.
How Do We Work?
Our comparisons are researched and reviewed by the Compare Your Business Costs editorial team using provider information, official UK guidance and business buying criteria. See how Compare Your Business Costs works .
Authored by: Ally Cox – Business Technology & B2B Services Specialist, 10+ years’ experience.
Last Updated: November 2026
Contents
EPOS Costs at a Glance
Cost area Typical structure
POS software
£0 to £200+/month depending on features and locations
Basic card reader
Low one-off hardware cost
EPOS terminal
Hundreds of pounds upfront or bundled monthly
Receipt printer
One-off hardware purchase
Barcode scanner
One-off hardware purchase
Kitchen display
Hardware + possible software cost
Setup / installation
Free self-setup to paid managed implementation
Card processing
Percentage/fixed transaction pricing
Add-ons
Monthly charge or included depending on provider
Our View The headline software subscription is usually only one part of the bill.
For a business taking substantial card revenue, payment processing may become the largest recurring cost.
What Is Included in an EPOS Quote? A proper EPOS quote should make each component clear.
Cost What it may include
Software
Sales, products, stock, reports, staff and customer tools
Hardware
Terminal, printer, cash drawer, scanner or kitchen screen
Payments
Card processing
Setup
Configuration and data migration
Training
Staff onboarding
Support
Telephone, chat, priority or out-of-hours assistance
Add-ons
Loyalty, bookings, ecommerce, delivery or reporting
Contract
Rental, finance, renewal or termination terms
Our View Ask providers to separate these costs rather than giving you one bundled headline price – that makes like-for-like comparison much easier.
How Much Does EPOS Software Cost? Software costs vary according to functionality.
Software level Typical monthly structure
Free POS
£0
Basic paid EPOS
£10–£50+
Standard retail/hospitality EPOS
£50–£100+
Advanced EPOS
£100–£200+
Enterprise
Quote-based
Costs usually rise when you add:
multiple locations
advanced stock management
restaurant table management
staff permissions
kitchen systems
loyalty
ecommerce integration
advanced analytics
Our View Do not buy advanced EPOS features because they appear impressive in a demo.
Pay for features that solve an actual operational problem.
How Much Does EPOS Hardware Cost? Hardware can include:
EPOS terminal
tablet or touchscreen
card reader
receipt printer
cash drawer
barcode scanner
label printer
customer display
kitchen display
A simple business could only need tablet/phone + card reader.
A larger retailer or restaurant could need several tills + printers + handheld devices + back-office hardware.
Our View Hardware is one of the easiest EPOS costs to overbuy.
If you do not need:
a customer-facing screen
three printers
an additional till
do not include them simply because they are part of a suggested bundle.
How Much Does EPOS Card Processing Cost? Card processing can be charged as:
a percentage per transaction
a percentage + fixed fee
custom merchant pricing
Square’s current UK fee schedule lists:
1.75% for standard card-present transactions2.5% for manually keyed, invoice and Virtual Terminal payments1.4% + 25p for supported UK online-card transactions
Square also offers custom transaction pricing for businesses processing more than £200,000 in annual card sales.
Why Payment Fees Matter Consider a business processing £25,000/month.
At 1.75% processing cost s £437.50/month.
At 1.25% processing costs £312.50/month.
Difference £125/month or £1,500/year.
Our View A £30 difference in software price can be much less important than a 0.5 percentage-point difference in payment processing.
For higher-turnover businesses, compare payment costs alongside the EPOS subscription.
Current EPOS Pricing Examples Square Square currently offers core POS software with £0 monthly subscription and charges when payments are processed.
Square Reader starts from £19 + VAT.
Square for Restaurants Plus currently costs £69/month per location after its trial period, while a free restaurant plan remains available.
Our View Square is a good example of the difference between free basic EPOS and paid specialist industry software.
A business should only move to the paid level if the extra workflow features justify the subscription.
Epos Now Epos Now currently advertises its Countertop 2 complete solution from £299 + VAT with a 12-month payments, care and support subscription attached to the promotional bundle.
Its current site also lists handheld systems from £15/month
and kitchen display functionality from £19/month.
their published terms show that pricing can vary according to:
device count
locations
software level
support level
and that payment-linked packages can involve recurring monthly charges.
Our View Bundled EPOS quotes should always be broken down line by line.
Ask:
What is hardware?
What is software?
What is payment processing?
What is support?
What is the minimum term?
EPOS Costs by Business Type
Business Typical requirements Main cost drivers
Small shop
Till, payments, basic stock
Software + hardware + processing
Café
Fast checkout, modifiers, loyalty
Payments + printer + software
Restaurant
Tables, kitchen, handheld ordering
Software + terminals + KDS + processing
Pub/bar
Tabs, several tills, handhelds
Terminal count + payments
Retailer
Stock, barcode, ecommerce
Inventory features + hardware
Takeaway
Online orders, kitchen printing, delivery
Integrations + ordering software
Multi-site business
Central reporting, several locations
Location/user licences + hardware
Our View Sector affects cost because different businesses need different workflows.
A restaurant needs table and kitchen functionality that a small clothes shop does not.
For more detail, use the relevant sector guide rather than adding every feature to your core system.
How to Calculate First-Year EPOS Cost Use Software for 12 months + hardware + payment processing + setup + support + add-ons.
Example Suppose a retailer pays:
£49/month software
£600 hardware
£25/month add-ons
£300 setup
£20,000/month card turnover
1.50% processing
Annual software £588
Annual add-ons £300
Annual card processing £3,600
Hardware £600
Setup £300
First-year total £5,388.
Our View The advertised “£49/month” only represent £588 of a £5,388 first-year cost.
That is why monthly EPOS pricing alone is a poor comparison.
How to Calculate Total EPOS Contract Value If the agreement has a minimum term, calculate monthly recurring costs × contract length then add:
hardware
setup
known add-ons
estimated payment-processing costs
For example – £79/month × 36 months = £2,844 before hardware, payments or setup.
Our View “£79/month” means something very different on a rolling contract than on a 36-month agreement.
Always ask for total minimum contract value.
Hidden EPOS Costs to Check Ask specifically about:
installation
configuration
training
data migration
additional tills
additional users
extra locations
premium support
weekend support
hardware replacement
payment integration
loyalty
online ordering
bookings
ecommerce integrations
accounting integrations
early termination
automatic renewal
Our View Ask providers which features shown in the demo are actually included in the quoted monthly price.
That one question can uncover a lot of future add-on costs.
How Much Does EPOS Support Cost? Support may be:
included
restricted to standard hours
sold as a premium add-on
priced per device/location
Our View The value of support depends on your operating hours.
A restaurant open until midnight needs a different support level from a shop open Monday-Friday, 9-5.
Do not pay for 24/7 support if you do not need it, but do not choose office-hours-only support if your busiest trading period is Saturday night.
What Do EPOS Add-Ons Cost? Possible paid add-ons include:
loyalty
CRM
bookings
online ordering
delivery integrations
staff management
advanced reporting
accounting integrations
Our View Start with the operational essentials.
Add extras once there is a clear business case – this avoids turning a simple £40/month system into a £150/month software stack.
Should You Buy or Rent EPOS Hardware?
Buy Rent / finance
Upfront cost
Higher
Lower
Ownership
You own hardware
Depends on agreement
Long-term cost
Often lower
Can be higher
Replacement
Warranty dependent
May be included
Commitment
Usually more flexible afterwards
Contract dependent
Our View Buying can make sense when:
cash is available
hardware needs are stable
you expect to keep the system for several years
Renting can make sense when:
you want lower upfront expenditure
you are launching a new site
several tills are needed immediately
replacement/support is included
Compare total cost rather than the initial payment.
How to Reduce EPOS Costs
Do not buy hardware you do not need.
Compare card-processing rates.
Start with core software features.
Check how many tills/users are included.
Compare buying versus renting.
Review add-ons before renewal.
Negotiate at higher card turnover.
Compare several EPOS quotes.
Our View Payment processing is the first place we would look for larger ongoing savings.
Hardware is usually a one-off cost and transaction fees repeat every time you make a sale.
How to Compare EPOS System Quotes Before requesting quotes, define:
number of locations
number of tills
number of staff
required hardware
stock requirements
hospitality/retail workflow requirements
card turnover
online sales
integrations
support hours
Then ask every provider for:
monthly software cost
hardware cost
processing rate
setup cost
support cost
add-on cost
minimum term
first-year total
minimum contract value
Our View Do not ask:
“How much is your EPOS system?”
Ask:
“What will this exact setup cost us in year one and across the full minimum term?”
That creates a much more useful comparison.
Compare EPOS Quotes
Free quotes • No obligation • Compare software, hardware and payment costs
Our Verdict: How Much Should You Budget for EPOS? Our starting guidance is:
Microbusiness: free/low-cost POS + basic reader can be enough.Small shop or café: budget for software, hardware and payment fees.Restaurant or pub: expect higher costs for multiple devices and specialist workflows.Growing retailer: stock and ecommerce functionality increasingly matter.Multi-site business: compare custom pricing and central reporting.
CYBC Verdict The best EPOS quote is not the one with the lowest monthly software fee.
Compare software + hardware + processing + implementation + support + add-ons.
Then calculate first-year cost nd full contract value.
That gives you the real commercial comparison.
Compare EPOS Providers
EPOS Cost FAQs How much does an EPOS system cost?
EPOS software can range from free to hundreds of pounds per month. Hardware, card processing, setup, support and add-ons increase the total cost.
Can EPOS software be free?
Yes. Square currently offers free core POS software, although payment-processing fees and hardware costs still apply.
How much does Square EPOS cost?
Square’s core POS software is currently £0/month and Square Reader starts from £19 + VAT. Square for Restaurants Plus currently costs £69/month per location.
How much does Epos Now cost?
Epos Now currently advertises complete Countertop 2 hardware from £299 + VAT under its promotional proposition, with recurring payments/support arrangements attached to eligible bundles.
How much does restaurant EPOS cost?
Restaurant systems can range from basic free/low-cost platforms to paid specialist systems with table management, handheld ordering and kitchen functionality.
How much does retail EPOS cost?
Retail costs depend heavily on inventory, barcode, ecommerce and reporting requirements as well as hardware.
Do EPOS systems charge card transaction fees?
Many do. Square currently charges 1.75% for standard UK card-present payments. Other providers may use different or custom rates.
What costs more: EPOS software or payment processing?
At higher card turnover, processing can easily cost more than the monthly software subscription.
Should I buy or rent EPOS hardware?
Buying can reduce long-term cost, while renting can reduce the initial investment and may include support or replacement.
What hidden EPOS fees should I check?
Check installation, training, migration, support, extra users, extra tills, integrations, hardware replacement and cancellation fees.
What is the best way to compare EPOS prices?
Compare first-year cost and total minimum contract value using the same hardware, software and payment requirements.
Can EPOS costs be negotiated?
Higher-turnover, multi-site and multi-terminal businesses may have more scope to negotiate payment rates, hardware and commercial terms.
Related EPOS Guides
Hi, I’m Ally Cox , a senior copywriter and blogger at CompareYourBusinessCosts.co.uk, the UK’s trusted platform for comparing business services.over a decade of experience in the B2B sector, I specialise in simplifying complex topics like leased lines, VoIP, business energy, HR and payroll solutions, accounting software, and EPOS systems .HR, copywriting, and business operations- from clocking-in systems to card machines and office technology .informed, confident decisions when choosing products and services that improve efficiency and save money.
