Square for Retail vs Clover
Side-by-side from the Top 11 rankings of Shopify POS vs Lightspeed Retail vs Square for Retail: 11 Best POS Systems for Retail 2026 and Toast vs Square for Restaurants vs Lightspeed Restaurant: 11 Best Restaurant POS Systems 2026. Last verified June 17, 2026.
The short answer
Square for Retail ranks higher on Top 11 (#3 vs #4) for Retail store owners choosing a point-of-sale system / Restaurant owners choosing POS + kitchen management. The top choice for new retailers due to its powerful free plan and simple setup.
At a glance
| Square for Retail | Clover | |
|---|---|---|
| Top 11 rank | #3 / Shopify POS vs Lightspeed Retail vs Square for Retail: 11 Best POS Systems for Retail 2026 | #4 / Toast vs Square for Restaurants vs Lightspeed Restaurant: 11 Best Restaurant POS Systems 2026 |
| Score (out of 9.4) | 8.8 | 8.6 |
| Best for | Best for small businesses | Flexible hardware and app market |
| Pricing | $ ($0 to $60/mo) | $$ ($50 to $290/mo) |
| HQ | San Francisco, USA | Sunnyvale, USA |
| Founded | 2009 | 2010 |
Square for Retail
The top choice for new retailers due to its powerful free plan and simple setup.
squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/retailMethodology and scoring weights live at /methodology. No vendor pays for placement — see about.