PayPal Zettle POS Review 2024: Pros, Cons, and Features

In this Zettle POS review, we’re taking a closer look at the features, benefits, and potential disadvantages of the Zettle Point of Sale system, by PayPal.

Straightforward and reliable, Zettle is great for processing a wide range of payments, and tracking multi-channel sales.

We took a deep dive into the features of the Zettle platform, to help you decide whether it’s the right POS technology for your business.

Zettle Pros & Cons

Zettle POS Features

Developed and powered by PayPal, Zettle is a convenient point of sale system that allows businesses to manage and process payments both in-store, and online.

It replaced the previous “PayPal Here” service in 2021, and offers fantastic ease of use, and an affordable service.

Zettle is a highly customizable solution, which might be ideal if you’re looking for an entry-level point of sale system for a smaller business.

The core features of Zettle POS include:

Payment Processing

Thanks to PayPal’s fantastic payment processing tools, Zettle can accept a wide variety of payments, to suit any business.

You can use the system to send online invoices, sell and accept gift cards, and even process cash payments with no daily limit.

You can send payment links to get paid remotely, and integrate Zettle with your existing ecommerce store.

Zettle also supports all major credit and debit cards, as well as Android Pay, Google Pay, and Apple Pay. There’s also a handy tap-to-pay option for accepting contactless payments without additional hardware.

Card transactions come with a flat processing fee of only 1.75%, and you can even send digital receipts to customers, and issue full or partial refunds in the backend.

POS Hardware

Although Zettle doesn’t offer the broadest range of dedicated hardware solutions in the POS market, there are still a variety of options to choose from.

Solutions like the Zettle Reader 2 are simple and affordable, great for accepting card, cash, and contactless payments.

Zettle also offers access to an all-in-one terminal, with the Zettle app pre-installed. Plus, you can connect your hardware with various useful accessories, such as a barcode scanner, receipt printer, tablet stands, and your own secure cash drawer.

Product and Inventory Management

Zettle’s easy-to-use ecosystem makes it simple to build a comprehensive product library for everything you sell.

You can bulk import products to your system from Excel, and edit stock levels and item information from within the web or mobile app.

You can also list and group products in categories to help you find them faster, and add photos and descriptions to all items.

There’s the option to add barcodes to every product too, which you can scan using the Zettle app. The platform will automatically update your stock levels for you, and can even sync inventory across multiple channels and locations.

Reporting and Analytics

Zettle’s reporting and analytical tools are a little basic compared to the options you can get from brands like Clover and Square. You can create basic performance reports, to monitor the sales levels of your individual employees.

You can also track daily sales trends, but there aren’t a lot of options for creating advanced reports into cashflow, and product preferences.

There’s always the option to integrate your Zettle solution with other reporting tools to help you capture additional information, however.

Omnichannel Selling

Zettle doesn’t offer robust omnichannel selling features, like Shopify and Square, which allow you to build your own ecommerce site using the integrated software.

However, you can build a basic “web shop” and integrate it with Zettle, to sell online.

There’s also the option to integrate with social media channels, so you can sell through platforms like Instagram and Facebook.

Zettle doesn’t support marketplace sales however, so it might not be a good option if you’re planning on selling through channels like Amazon.

Staff Management

Similar to many of the basic tools offered by Zettle, the staff management features are a little basic. You can assign accounts to different members of staff, and switch quickly between “user profiles” without having to ask team members to log out.

There’s also the reporting tools built into the Zettle ecosystem which can help you monitor the individual performance of your employees.

However, there are no scheduling or payroll tools, and very few integrations available for employee management.

Specialist Features

Zettle primarily serves small companies in the retail sector, but there is a version of the application available for Restaurants.

It’s not nearly as advanced as dedicated solutions like Toast, but it does offer some handy features for menu management.

Zettle also gives you the option to access a range of features from PayPal, such as a dedicated PayPal Business account, where you can schedule transactions and payouts to your bank account.

You can also apply for PayPal business cards, with cashback on eligible purchases.

Pricing

Zettle doesn’t charge for access to its point of sale software, but you will have to pay transaction fees starting at 1.75% per payment. There are also additional fees to consider if you’re buying hardware to accompany your system.

Where Zettle POS Stands Out

Easy to use Basic Features

While the list of features available from Zettle isn’t nearly as robust as what you’d get from other POS vendors, the features they do offer are reliable and easy to use.

There’s a robust payment system for handling virtually every kind of transaction, both online and offline. Plus, you can monitor your inventory and top selling products, and track business insights.

The inventory management tools are very useful too, with the option to import an entire product list via a spreadsheet and add photos, descriptions, and barcodes to each item.

You can even set up notifications for automatic low-stock alerts.

Useful Insights

Although Zettle doesn’t have as many reporting tools as some competitors, it does allow you to track sales, and set up automatic reports.

You can instantly access a dashboard view of your company’s daily sales activity and team performance.

Plus, you can break reports down with insights into payment types, fees, top-selling products and more.

There’s also the option to export these reports in PDF, raw data, and excel format, which makes them easy to add to other applications.

Zettle also naturally integrates with QuickBooks Online, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, and Shopify, for more end-to-end insights.

Affordability

Zettle is an extremely affordable POS solution for budget-conscious companies. You don’t have to pay anything for the basic software.

Additionally, while the payment processing fees are a little more expensive than some alternatives, they’re similar to those offered by other providers.

The hardware options offered by Zettle are relatively affordable too, with discounts available for beginners who want to purchase their first card reader.

There are also no long-term commitments or contracts to worry about.

Where Zettle POS Falls Short

No Advanced Features

Although Zettle gives companies all of the basic tools they need for a standard POS system, the capabilities are very basic.

There are no options to purchase add-on features like customer loyalty programs, or leverage integrated marketing tools.

You can expand your system by buying additional hardware, but there are very few options for advanced functionality.

Limited Integrations

While Zettle does integrate with ecommerce platforms like Shopify and accounting apps like QuickBooks, the connections available are pretty limited.

Many competitors offer a much broader selection of options for accounting, customer engagement, scheduling, employee management and more. Some companies, like Shopify even have dedicated app markets.

Alternatives to Zettle POS

Zettle offers business owners a low-cost, and extremely straightforward solution for basic point of sale needs.

However, it’s definitely not as robust or advanced as many other POS systems.

If you’re looking for something a bit more comprehensive some of the best alternatives include:

Shopify POS

If you’re thinking of combining your brick and mortar store with a comprehensive online presence, Shopify POS is a great choice.

You’ll need a Shopify ecommerce plan to access the service, but this also means you get a fantastic website builder with a host of integrated tools.

Shopify POS is straightforward and reliable, with built-in payment processing through Shopify Payments.

It’s also packed with integration options, so you can connect your POS system to accounting tools, marketing, and sales solutions.

Though there are limited employee management tools on Shopify, the customer relationship management and inventory tools are far more advanced than what you’ll get from Zettle.

Plus, there are some fantastic hardware solutions available, such as the Shopify POS Go.

Clover POS

Clover is a highly customizable and powerful cloud-based point of sale system. It can process a range of different payment methods, and provides businesses with a host of management tools for inventory, orders, employees, and even customer relationships.

Clover’s hardware options are also more advanced than those offered by Zettle, with options ranging from the Clover Mobile POS system, the Clover Go, to the Clover Mini countertop register, and the Flex terminal for retail companies.

Clover offers solutions specifically designed for both retail and restaurant businesses, and it has a comprehensive app market where companies can find a host of useful integrations.

However, Clover is a little more expensive than Zettle for beginners.

Square POS

Square POS is one of the most popular solutions for smaller businesses. It’s brimming with great features for order and inventory management, customer relationships and engagement. You can even build comprehensive loyalty programs to engage your audience.

Square, like Zettle, can accept a variety of payment methods, and comes with rich security features built-in for peace of mind.

You can also build your own ecommerce website (though it is relatively basic) with Square, without paying any monthly fees.

Square has a dedicated free plan, like Zettle, and transparent payment processing costs. The hardware available is also extremely easy to use, and quite affordable compared to some market alternatives. Plus, Square has a variety of integrations to choose from.