POS App vs Retail App -- questions

johnvoliva — Sat, 20 Sep 2025 13:04:04 GMT

Have done a quick search, but haven't really seen anything that addresses our questions.

We deployed the POS app on an iPad using the Square stand about 2 years ago. I pay for the "Retail" subscription, because I needed visibility to COGS.

Been bombarded by Square about switching to the Retail app -- one of the biggest reasons I want to do so is because of the (supposedly) lower CC rates on the Retail app.

However, training staff to get through the process (albeit, it looks like it won't be _that_ different -- but change is still change) might be *fun*.

So -- questions:

1) Can I run both app side by side without any data loss? Sales, inventory, etc? This is probably the keystone question -- if I can run them both SxS and allow for a more gentler transition... staff would appreciate it.

2) We just kicked off the Square loyalty program this week -- moving to retail, any issue with data loss there?

3) Last one -- with a caveat that I have not looked into it *that* much yet -- timecards for employees -- what do y'all think about the reporting system for that? What I have done on a limited basis doesn't have me too excited about switching from our current system -- timecard reports appear to be uber cumbersome. Am I missing a simpler export other than Excel? Mind you, I am _NOT_ running payroll through Square -- I am doing it separately via QB.

TIA!

John

Re: POS App vs Retail App -- questions

Kassi_ — Mon, 09 Mar 2020 17:58:57 GMT

Hey there @johnvoliva -

Welcome back to the Community!

I've got a couple of answers for your questions. There is only a 0.1% fee difference between Point of Sale and Retail. I would weigh your options to see which suits your business better - operationally.

There is an option to switch between both of them and the COGS will still report on the back end. Loyalty and times cards will still work too. I would advise only keeping one app launched at a time, to cut down on any glitches.

The big things I see used with Retail is exchanges, adjusting the price of the items and receiving purchase orders. The biggest asset of SPOS is the item grid.

In reference to your timecards question. Most Sellers find the Labor Cost section helpful. Dashboard > Timecards > Labor Cost (top left). Excel is the only option for export at this time

Hope this helps!

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POS App vs Retail App -- questions

Re: POS App vs Retail App -- questions