EPOS and till systems for independent shops

An EPOS (Electronic point of sale) system for a retail shop records each sale, takes the payment and keeps your stock count up to date. This article covers what these systems do, what a small shop typically needs at the start, what you pay for, and how your takings reach your bank account.

This is an overview of the things to think about, not a full guide to any one system or rule. Where the detail matters, we point you to the official source or to the provider, because the right answer often depends on your own circumstances.

For advice on your specific situation, speak to a qualified accountant, solicitor or professional adviser.

Key takeaways

• EPOS stands for electronic point of sale. It is the software, and often the hardware, that runs your till.
• A card machine takes the payment. An EPOS system records what was sold and updates your stock. Many EPOS systems do both, using a card reader that plugs into the till software.
• Many shops start with an app on a tablet or phone, then add hardware as the shop grows.
• Card takings usually pass through a payments provider before they reach your business bank account, and the till software is not where your money sits.
• Cash takings still need banking. Zempler Bank is an authorised UK bank, that provides business current accounts to retail businesses including shops, market stalls and online sellers.

What is an EPOS system?

EPOS stands for electronic point of sale. An EPOS system is the software, and usually the hardware, that runs the till in a shop. It records what you sell, applies the price, takes the payment, issues a receipt and updates your stock count. Most systems also produce sales reports.

The term covers a wide range of setups. At one end is a phone app paired with a small card reader. At the other is a full counter with a touchscreen, cash drawer, receipt printer and barcode scanner. What they share is a record of every sale as it happens.

Till, card machine or EPOS: what is the difference?

These three often get talked about as one purchase. They are not the same thing, and knowing the difference can save you money.

One term to get straight first. A payments provider is the company that processes your card payments and passes the money on to your bank. It is not your bank, and it is not the card machine itself. Card sales run through one, though how that arrangement is set up varies between providers.

Two related articles cover the payment side in more detail: how to take card payments in a shop and how to choose a card machine for a small shop. This article covers the till and the software behind it.

How does an EPOS system work?

The sequence is the same across most systems.

1. You build a product list with prices, one entry for each item you sell.
2. At the counter, staff find the item on screen or scan its barcode.
3. The system adds up the basket and shows the total.
4. The customer pays by card or cash. Card payments run through your payments provider.
5. The system issues a receipt, printed or by email.
6. The stock count drops by the number of items sold, and the sale appears in your reports.

Many systems now run in the cloud, which means your sales data sits online rather than on the till itself. You can check the day's takings from home. It’s worth asking each provider what happens when the internet drops. Some keep taking payments and catch up once the connection returns, and some stop.

What does a small shop actually need?

What you need depends on how you trade, not on how much the system can do. The table below shows what tends to be enough at each stage.

It usually makes sense to buy for the shop you run now. You can add a scanner or a second till later, and software subscriptions tend to be easier to change than hardware contracts.

Stock control and reporting

For many shops this is the reason to move on from a basic till. When each sale reduces a stock count, you can see what is running low before the shelf is empty.

Depending on the system, stock tools can cover:

• Current stock counts by product and variant, such as size or colour
• Low stock alerts, and reorder points, which is the stock level at which you order more
• Purchase orders and supplier records
• Stock takes, counted on screen or with a scanner
• Margin by product, which is what you keep after the cost of the item, once you enter what you paid for it

Reporting matters as much as stock. Sales by hour show you when you need a second person on the till. Sales by product show you what to reorder, and what is sitting on a shelf tying up money you could spend elsewhere. Systems vary in how far this goes, so ask to see the reports before you commit.

What does an EPOS system cost?

Prices change often and vary by setup, so check current pricing with each provider. It helps to know what you are being charged for, because the monthly fee is rarely the whole cost.

• Software subscription, usually monthly and sometimes per till or per site
• Hardware, which can include a tablet or touchscreen, stand, cash drawer, receipt printer and barcode scanner
• Card processing fees, charged by your payments provider. These are often a percentage of each sale, though pricing structures vary
• Contract term, as some hardware-led systems ask for a minimum term
• Extras such as loyalty schemes, online shop sync, extra users and priority support
• Setup, training and data import at the start

Add up the first year rather than comparing monthly fees. A low monthly fee with a higher charge on each card payment can cost more overall than a higher monthly fee with a lower charge. Which way round it falls depends on how much you take through the till.

An EPOS setup is a business purchase, and how you treat it in your accounts depends on your circumstances. This is the general position. Other factors can apply depending on how your business is set up, so check with HMRC or a qualified accountant.

Which EPOS providers do independent shops use?

The systems below come up often for UK independent shops. This is not a ranking, not a recommendation and not a full list of the market. Features, pricing and contract terms change, so check each provider's own site before you decide. Details listed here were correct in September 2026.

The useful comparison is not which system has the most features. It is which one fits how you trade, and what happens if you want to leave.

Seven questions to ask each provider:

• Can it handle the number of product lines and variants you carry?
• Can you use your own payments provider, or are you tied to theirs?
• Is there a minimum contract term, and how do you give notice?
• Does it export to the accounting software you use?
• What are the support hours, and where is the support team based?
• What happens to your sales and customer data if you move to another system?
• Are the provider fees and chares suitable for your business model?

Where the money goes: your till and your bank account

Your EPOS system records the sale. The money itself is held by whoever processes the payment. With some providers the till software and the payment processing come from the same company, so your takings may sit in a provider account before they reach your bank. Check how your provider handles this.

A card payment passes through your payments provider first. The provider processes the payment, takes its fee and pays the rest into your business current account. It usually sends one batch for the day rather than paying you sale by sale. That transfer is called settlement. How long it takes depends on the provider. This is the general position. Other factors can apply depending on how your account is set up, so check the timings in your provider's terms before you plan a stock order around them.

Cash works differently. It sits in the drawer until you bank it, which means a trip to a branch or a Post Office. If you take a lot of cash, it helps to build banking into a routine rather than leaving it.

Once a week, check your end of day till totals against what has landed in your account. This is called reconciliation, and it is how you spot problems early. Gaps usually turn out to be provider fees, refunds or a settlement that has not arrived yet. Catching them weekly is quicker than unpicking three months of it at year end. An account that shows payments as they land, and lets you sort them into categories, makes that check faster.

Keeping your records straight

HMRC requires businesses to keep records of what they earn and spend. What you need to keep, and for how long, depends on how your business is set up, so check which records apply to you on GOV.UK. Most businesses can choose how they keep those records, although Making Tax Digital (MTD) requires digital records in some cases.

MTD is changing how tax information is submitted to HMRC. VAT-registered businesses generally need to keep digital records and file returns using compatible software. MTD for Income Tax started on 6 April 2026 for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000, extends to those earning over £30,000 from April 2027, and to those earning over £20,000 from April 2028. The rules vary depending on your circumstances, and some businesses may qualify for an exemption, so check your position on GOV.UK.

An EPOS system can make compliance easier by creating digital sales records automatically as you trade, rather than leaving you to piece them together later. Many EPOS systems export to Xero, QuickBooks or Sage, and some connect straight to them. If your till and your bank account both feed the same accounting software, your sales and your banking line up without you retyping anything.

Some business accounts help with the filing side too. Zempler Bank business accounts include a VAT filing tool for Making Tax Digital, which a VAT-registered shop can use to send returns to HMRC.

Your till may also hold customer data if you run a loyalty scheme, email receipts or build a mailing list. The ICO publishes data protection guidance for small organisations, including how to check whether you need to pay a data protection fee. Card payments bring their own security rules, and these come from your payments provider and the card schemes rather than from your till software. Your provider's terms set out what applies to your shop, so read them before you sign up.

Zempler Bank: where your takings land

Whichever till you choose, the money has to go somewhere. Zempler Bank offers a UK business account built for independent retailers. You can apply online in minutes and, once approved, you get a sort code and account number, so you can start taking payments within 24hrs. Eligibility criteria apply. Your card follows in three to five working days.

Five things tend to matter for a shop.

• Cash deposits. You can pay cash in at any of the UK's 11,500 Post Office branches, so you do not need a bank branch nearby. Fees apply.
• Cashflow tracking. You can see your takings, your costs and your seasonal ups and downs with spending insights, and sort spending into your own categories.
• Pots. You can set money aside for VAT, rent and the next stock order using a pot, which helps when takings arrive in bursts.
• Integrated accounting. The account connects to Xero, QuickBooks and Sage through integrated accounting, so your banking and your till data end up in the same place.
• Making Tax Digital. A tool for filing VAT returns is included with the account, which matters once your shop is VAT registered.

Zempler Bank business customers can also take contactless payments through Tap to Pay in the Zempler Bank app. Zempler Bank has partnered with Stripe, so the phone acts as the payment terminal and there is no separate card reader to buy. Customers pay with a contactless card or a mobile wallet. That can suit a market stall, a pop-up or a second counter where a full EPOS setup is not worth the outlay. Stripe fees and T&Cs apply.

Support comes from a UK-based customer service team of real people, which is worth weighing alongside the support hours you get from your EPOS provider.

Eligible deposits with Zempler Bank are protected up to a total of £120,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

Fees and charges are set out on the pricing page, and the account options for shops are on the retail business account page.