A POS (point of sale) system is a software and hardware businesses use to process customer orders and payments as well as manage other business operations such as employee, inventory management and customer relatioinship management.

Here’s everything you need to know about POS systems—from how they work to what they can (and should) include to how you can choose one that’s right for your small business.

POS systems use software to process transactions. When a customer makes their product selections, you can use your POS system to scan the items via a QR code or barcode, ring up the total, and then process their payment method and print a receipt. That’s basically how a POS system works.