2020 Review of QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale

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From the 2020 reviews of point of sale systems.

QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale is best suited for small to mid-sized retailers that are using QuickBooks Desktop financial applications. Designed to be installed online, QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale is available in three editions, Basic, Pro, and Multi-Store.    

QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale’s Navigator offers easy access to point of sale, purchasing, and employee features. To the left of the screen is a vertical menu with tabs for accessing frequently used point of sale features such as Make a Sale, Receive Items, Item List, and Department List. Users can easily customize the vertical menu bar to reflect only the features they desire.

 

The sales entry screen offers multiple options including access to quick pick items and the ability to add a new item or give a discount. Users can process a sale by entering the sales item, looking up an item code from the list, or by using a bar code scanner. One of the newer features in QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale is integration with Microsoft Surface Pro 4, which allows users to process a sale anywhere in the store, which can later be synced with the main application.  

All versions of QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale offer multi-user capability, allowing users to set the application up on multiple workstations, with multiple licenses required in order to run workstations simultaneously. Users can easily add both products and customers on the fly as well as apply a discount or place a product on hold directly from the main sales screen. In addition, both the Pro and Multi-Store editions easily track product inventory, with the Multi-Store edition offering inventory transfer capability between locations, as well as the ability to track inventory by serial number if desired.  

QuickBooks Point of Sale supports a variety of tender types including cash, credit, debit, check, gift card, and on account, with an option to accept both Gift Cards and Gift Certificates available. Using QuickBooks Point of Sale Payments, users can easily accept and process all credit cards directly from the payment entry screen.  

QuickBooks Point of Sale allows retailers to easily manage customer information, including the ability to track a customer’s purchase and payment history. The application also supports customer loyalty programs for those that wish to track customer buying habits and provide rewards.

QuickBooks Point of Sale includes inventory management capability in all three editions, with the Pro and Multi-Store editions offering more in-depth inventory management capability including the ability to assign reordering points along with the option to process purchase orders directly from the Navigator screen when product levels drop. Product images can also be added to any inventory items, with users able to process pricing updates and discounts individually or across multiple items, departments, or locations.

QuickBooks Point of Sale offers a standard selection of point of sale reports, with all financial reports processed in QuickBooks Desktop. Reports available include Best Sellers, Worst Sellers, a Department report and a Discount Summary report. All reports offer limited customization, with an option to export the report to Microsoft Excel if customization is desired.   

QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale is designed to integrate with QuickBooks Desktop financial applications, with users able to exchange data between applications easily. Users can also import both customer and product files directly into the point of sale application using either Microsoft Word or Excel. In addition, both the Pro and Multi-Store editions offers seamless integration with UPS for easy shipping management. Integration with other add-on applications is also available including QuickBooks Payments, as well as QuickBooks Gift Card Services. QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale also integrates with common point of sale hardware peripherals including PIN Pads, receipt printers, barcode scanners, cash drawers, pole displays, tag printers, and wireless barcode scanners.  

All new users of QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale receive 60 days of free support immediately after registering the application. In addition, users have access to a variety of support plans with one-time support and unlimited support options available. Help is easily accessible from within the application, and technical support is available during extended business hours, with support available on Saturday and Sunday as well. The support center also provides access to a variety of frequently accessed topics and users can download the Point of Sale User Guide for additional assistance.   

QuickBooks Desktop Point of Sale is an excellent point of sale solution that is best suited for brick and mortar retailers that are already using QuickBooks Desktop applications, although the product can also be used as a stand-alone point of sale application as well. Pricing for the Basic edition starts at $1,200 per year, with the Pro edition running $1,700 per year, and the Multi-Store edition $1,900 per year.

2020 Rating – 4.5 Stars

Product Strengths:

• Seamless integration with QuickBooks Desktop applications
• Intuitive user interface
• Extended hours and weekend support available

Potential Limitations:

• Works with a limit of 20 workstations or locations
• Not well suited for high-volume retailers
• No cloud option