Lightspeed vs Shopify: Get the top-rated POS system

Break up with your Shopify POS and get to know Lightspeed.

The complete POS comparison:
Lightspeed vs Shopify

With top-rated inventory management, free 24/7 support and effortless eCommerce, it's easy to see why retailers like you choose Lightspeed.

Main features Shopify POS

Complete inventory system

Contactless, mobile payments

Item import tool

Complete omnichannel solution on one platform

Custom reorder points

 

Purchase order management

Complete multi-store management

Special orders and layaways

 

Customer relationship management

Integrated omnichannel Loyalty program

 

Complete built-in interactive reporting

Cloud-based across all devices

Native inventory scanning app

 

Track service and work orders

 

Extensive network of integrations

Integrated B2B catalogs

 

1:1 onboarding and 24/7 support

 

Local multi-lingual support teams around the world

 

Direct connection to NuORDER by Lightspeed

 

Free trial accounts

Complete inventory system

Shopify POS

Contactless, mobile payments

Shopify POS

Item import tool

Shopify POS

Complete omnichannel solution on one platform

Shopify POS

Custom reorder points

Shopify POS

 

Purchase order management

Shopify POS

Complete multi-store management

Shopify POS

Special orders and layaways

Shopify POS

 

Customer relationship management

Shopify POS

Integrated omnichannel Loyalty program

Shopify POS

 

Complete built-in interactive reporting

Shopify POS

Cloud-based across all devices

Shopify POS

Native inventory scanning app

Shopify POS

 

Track service and work orders

Shopify POS

 

Extensive network of integrations

Shopify POS

Integrated B2B catalogs

Shopify POS

 

1:1 onboarding and 24/7 support

Shopify POS

 

Local multi-lingual support teams around the world

Shopify POS

 

Direct connection to NuORDER by Lightspeed

Shopify POS

 

Free trial accounts

Shopify POS

Why ex-Shopify retailers are falling in love with Lightspeed

Our POS comes with full inventory management

Lightspeed offers a complete inventory management system. Create bundles, POs, serialized items and products with multiple variations.

We give you full control of your purchasing

With Lightspeed, you can create purchase orders and instantly send them to the vendor with a single click.

Process special orders / layaways for free

Shopify forces you to purchase add-ons to do this. Lightspeed lets you order products that aren’t in stock and put them on hold for customers, all for free.

The important features are built in

Unlike Shopify, Lightspeed’s plans have key features you need built into the system at no additional cost.

All the support, all the time

You shouldn't have to pay for support. With Lightspeed, you get free 24/7 phone, email and chat support built-in.

Without Lightspeed, I couldn’t track anything. I wouldn’t know what I was making. When other companies ask for anything, we can actually pull reports and send them - this makes us look a lot more professional than just writing stuff up on Excel. When you do things for accounts and dealers, speed really shines. It’s just a lot more professional. I don't have to call the CPA and have her write a letter head. I can just do it myself from Lightspeed.

Logan Elliott, Bros Bike Shop

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Lightspeed better than Shopify?

Lightspeed Retail was designed to meet the complex needs of small and medium-sized retailers. Lightspeed offers enterprise-level technology without the enterprise-level learning curve. Shopify is missing key features SMBs need to run their business efficiently, including inventory management tools, complex sales workflows, varied item types and more.

Many Shopify customers require 3rd party apps for their day-to-day worklows. Shopify POS lacks the ability to manage work orders or vendor returns. And the POS can only be used on iOS devices, so you don’t have the choice between using an iPad or a computer.

Lightspeed offers comprehensive inventory management, work orders, vendor returns, layaways, varied item types, special orders and more. Lightspeed Retail can be accessed through our app or through a browser, so you get to choose how you want to run your software. Plus, we offer free onboarding, so when it's time for setup, you'll have the support you need to get up and running fast.

Does Lightspeed integrate with Shopify?

You can integrate Lightspeed with eCommerce platforms such as Shopify through use of integration partners such as Accumula.

However, we strongly recommend using Lightspeed eCom with Lightspeed Retail for the most seamless omnichannel experience. Lightspeed eCom was designed to integrate with Lightspeed Retail, no 3rd party connector apps needed. You’ll benefit from automatically syncing inventory management, omnichannel built-in reports and more. Lightspeed Loyalty’s omnichannel features were designed with Retail and eCom working together in mind.

What is the difference between Shopify and Lightspeed for inventory management?

Simply put, a comprehensive inventory management system is built into Lightspeed. With Shopify, it’s not. Even their Pro POS is missing key inventory management features.

With Lightspeed, you can view the average cost of inventory items. You can manage serialized inventory, sell boxed inventory and manage and sell assembly items (such as gift baskets). You can handle vendor returns and work orders. Shopify’s POS is missing those features. And you need to upgrade to Shopify Pro for easy exchanges, purchase orders, inventory counts and item transfers between locations. Lightspeed Retail supports those features on all plans.