Lightspeed vs Shopify POS
Lightspeed publishes detailed US retail pricing and unusually specific contract terms; Shopify publishes plan prices and rates but renders them in the visitor's local currency, so US figures need a direct check. Lightspeed fits a retailer that wants a dedicated retail platform and accepts its own payments requirement; Shopify fits one that wants the priced, published option to use an outside processor.
Lightspeed vs Shopify POS, side by side
Figures below come from each vendor's own published pricing or terms pages, checked 17 September 2026. Where a vendor withholds a figure, the cell says "not published." Shopify's figures were read from a Canadian connection and rendered in Canadian dollars; they are recorded as they appeared, not as verified US prices.
| Factor | Lightspeed (US retail) | Shopify POS (as rendered, CA$) |
|---|---|---|
| Software plans, monthly price | Basic $89, Core $149, Plus $289 — each includes one register; annual billing saves up to 18% | Basic from CA$49, Grow from CA$132, Advanced from CA$517; top Plus tier from CA$3,400 on a one- or three-year term; not verified as US dollars |
| Card processing rate | 1.5% card-present figure published for Lightspeed Payments; page notes prices vary and additional service fees may apply | 2.6%, 2.5% or 2.4% + 0¢ in person by plan; top tier rate described qualitatively, not published |
| Hardware cost | Not published on the retail pricing page | Not published on the pricing page |
| Contract / early termination | Published in the service agreement: 90 days' notice not to renew; early termination is the remainder of the term plus repayment of discounts received | Lower plans described as month to month; Plus tier states a one- or three-year term; detailed cancellation terms not published |
| Use your own processor | Lightspeed Payments mandatory in eligible jurisdictions; additional monthly fee for a third-party processor, amount not published | Yes, published and priced: extra 2%, 1% or 0.6% by plan for a third-party payment provider |
| Offline mode | Not published on the retail pricing page | Not published on the pricing page |
| Retail features | Retail-specific POS with register-based plans; extra locations and registers available, prices not listed | POS Pro add-on at CA$119 per location billed yearly; ties into the broader Shopify e-commerce platform |
Choose Lightspeed if
- You want a dedicated retail POS with unusually detailed, published contract terms — you can read the exit before signing the entrance.
- You are comfortable with Lightspeed Payments as the default processor in your jurisdiction.
- Your business is primarily in-store retail rather than integrated e-commerce.
Choose Shopify POS if
- You already run, or plan to run, e-commerce on Shopify and want one platform for both online and in-person sales.
- You want the explicit, published option to use an outside payment provider and can do the arithmetic on whether the extra fee beats your alternative processing rate.
- You want simpler, mostly month-to-month terms on the lower plans rather than a fixed notice period.
Processing rates: fixed by the vendor, but shoppable on Shopify where the fee makes sense
This is the one pair in this comparison where the two platforms genuinely differ on processor lock-in. Lightspeed makes its own payments product mandatory in eligible jurisdictions and only allows a third-party processor for an unpublished extra monthly fee — so Lightspeed's processing is effectively fixed unless you push hard in the sales conversation for that fee amount. Shopify's rate is also fixed if you use its own payments, but it explicitly publishes the price of stepping outside it: an extra 2%, 1% or 0.6% depending on plan. Where Shopify allows it, an independent agent can shop the processing rate and the math is straightforward — compare the alternative interchange-based rate plus Shopify's third-party fee against Shopify Payments' blended rate. On Lightspeed, get that unpublished third-party fee in writing before assuming the same math applies.
What to get in writing before choosing either
- The exact US-dollar plan price on both platforms — confirm Shopify's from a US connection or directly with a sales rep.
- Lightspeed's third-party processor fee amount, since it is not published.
- The total monthly cost at the number of registers and locations you actually run, not the single-register headline price.
- Lightspeed's notice date — 90 days before renewal — written into your calendar on day one if you sign.
- Shopify Plus term length and what happens at renewal, if that tier applies to you.
Run both against your own last three months of card volume rather than the headline rate — the free statement analysis does that arithmetic, and our retail payment processing page covers the interchange detail behind either platform's rate.
Related reading
- Lightspeed POS pricing: what Lightspeed publishes
- Shopify POS pricing: what Shopify publishes
- POS pricing compared: what ten providers publish
- Payment gateway vs processor: who does what
- Retail payment processing and POS
Sources
- Lightspeed, retail POS pricing, checked 2026-09-17: lightspeedhq.com
- Lightspeed, service agreement, checked 2026-09-17 (terms render client-side and were read in a browser): lightspeedhq.com
- Shopify, POS pricing, checked 2026-09-17 (rendered in Canadian dollars from this connection): shopify.com
Lightspeed and Shopify are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here for identification only. CELER Merchants is independent and is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, either company. Prices and terms change; confirm current pricing with each provider before deciding.
Related questions
Lightspeed's US retail plans are published at $89, $149 and $289 a month, each with one register, checked 17 September 2026. Shopify's POS plans render in the visitor's local currency; read from a Canadian connection on the same date they showed CA$49, CA$132 and CA$517, so US figures need confirming on Shopify's own page from a US connection before comparing to Lightspeed's US prices.
Shopify is the more open of the two: its pricing page publishes both the option and its cost, an extra 2%, 1% or 0.6% depending on plan for using a third-party payment provider. Lightspeed's service agreement makes Lightspeed Payments mandatory in eligible jurisdictions and adds an unpublished monthly fee for using a third-party processor instead.
Lightspeed publishes unusually detailed terms: 90 days' notice not to renew, and an early termination amount equal to the remainder of the term plus repayment of discounts received. Shopify's lower plans are described as month to month; its top Plus tier states a one- or three-year term, with detailed cancellation terms not published on the pricing page.
Lightspeed tends to fit a retailer that wants a dedicated retail POS with detailed, published contract terms and is comfortable with its own payments requirement. Shopify POS tends to fit a retailer that already runs or plans to run e-commerce through Shopify and wants the explicit, priced option to use an outside processor. Confirm both plan prices in US dollars directly on each vendor's page before deciding.
Send one statement. Every fee named, back, usually within 4 hours.
It is free, there is nothing to sign and nothing to cancel. We read your current merchant statement line by line, name every fee on it — including the ones buried in the fee schedule — work out your true effective rate, and send the written analysis back, usually within 4 hours. Do not want to wait? Call 1-888-705-7896 and we will read your statement with you on the call in about 5 minutes.
Every fee named, usually within 4 hours. Or call now and we quote you on the spot.
Everyone else in this industry says twenty-four hours. We say four — and if that is still too slow, pick up the phone and get your numbers while you are on the call. No contract, nothing to cancel, no pressure.