Square Point of Sale vs Lavu POS Comparison

PayPal

Venmo

Square Payments

Toast POS

Clover

TouchBistro

POS for all business size

Square is really the only POS that allows you to enter product price by weight with decimals. For this reason alone, I have stuck with Square POS. 

Make Sales From Anywhere

Stylish POS

It is a great POS and any retailers needs a POS so it is a good option. 

Very good POS

POS for dummies

Easy to use

Square POS has been Remarkable!

Great POS option for the small business owner.

I use it to accept card payments on the go.

Square point of sale review 

Square POS

Easy POS to use but very basic

I've been up and down every channel I can to resolve an issue centered around a dispute a customer filed.

For starters, this customer should have been refunded but my team never hit the refund button. Once I saw the dispute, I immediately ACCEPTED it. 

This was on October 10th. Fast forward to Nov 20th and the customer has not seen any money refunded. 

After 5 different calls with support and having the issue escalated, two different calls with our representative - I was told the same response "Square has been informed that the disputed payment should be credited back to the cardholder’s account. Please refer your customer to their bank for more information on when to expect the credit." 

Each time the customer called his bank and was told "there is no communication from Square nor are there any pending deposits or transactions"

Each time, I called back and asked for a transaction number, or some information that proves the transfer of funds from Square to customer's bank has been made - each time same response.

After asking to speak higher up each time - "there is nothing I can do beyond this" is the response. Zero opportunity to escalate.

I was patient and clear with each call, asking kindly but stating the importance of my issue and how it impacts my business, except on the 6th call - I got heated and begged for help.

Now this is no small transaction, it's $4,238 of our customers money. This customer has been patient but has threatened my business, not Square, but my business and has demanded I refund his money - the same money Square already deducted from our account. 

I've asked for escalation multiple times, asking for simple transaction data to help my case and save my business from this headache - 1-2 day wait, same response. 

I've called out the [sensitive content hidden] and the Company on LinkedIn asking, pleading for help. Nothing.

All i've heard is "I'm sorry this is a challenging situation for you, but I can't help you any further" - then get hung up on.

I've been a Square customer for 7 years, processing over $1M in transactions on this platform and still - no luck in getting information.

Now I'll have to shell out another $4,238 on top of the $4,238 Square already deducted from my account to settle this customer and save my business headache.

If you don't care about getting thoughtful support, or data you need when you're in a bind - Square may be good for you, but if you need want support - I do not recommend. 

I've tried up and down every channel I can get and was shut down each time. No luck.

I'm switching to something else for sure. Sad to see this happen. 

Dont expect great support

Square Point of Sale is a Great Option

This is a wonderful POS system for small businesses. Their rate is very low and there is no monthly cost on top of it (unlike other POS systems). You will also get access to other software and service through square at a reduced rate from other similar systems, making this a perfect set up for small businesses. 

Worth the rate, time, perfect for small buisness

Love using Square POS!

Love this system!

Awesome POS Processing

Definitely a must have for new shops!

One of the best options for POS system softwares for small businesses

A Great Option For Small Businesses

Great POS system and software

Great alternative to the big POS services

Square POS Leading the way

Great system to manage payments and invoices 

Square pos review 

There is no better way to sale with the Square POS, simple, swipe card, signature, get the money and send the receipt. accept card payments and use with others employees.

easy way to sale with you devices

I feel like this is one of the best systems you can use as a freelancer. I haven't used it in two years but I love it. It's easy and anyone can benefit from it. 

Square pos

I signed up for their free trial and after setting up for my payroll and point of sale but after 2 weeks was getting billed for the "extra" features which all should be included in the free trial.  They were taking money out my account I had set aside for other things and when 

Free Trial isn't Free for everything 

Menu items was transferred from old owner account very fast. All items. Have own pictures. Easy to choose 

Support 👍

Hi Andrei, thanks so much for letting us know how much you enjoy using Lavu! We really appreciate the feedback! 

We used this in a tequila bar that I was a bar manager at.  We were very high volume so we needed a good POS system that never crashed, and operated quickly to minimize waiting on the system to perform functions.  I think in that regard this is a great system and I would recommend it to anyone.

As good as any "Industry Standard"

Hi Sean, 
Thank you for your review. We're so glad to hear Lavu is working well for you and your team! Don't hesitate to call us at 855-767-5288 if you have any questions. 
The Lavu Team

Bumpy. But they hit a home run by the time we were all set to go. Went live a week later than they planned but a week before we planned. The entire team was super helpful in the process and delt with a really picky customer with a really large menu with patience. 

Hidden Gem

Lavu has made it much easier for our restaurant to handle the influx of customers during the summer months 

Seafood restaurant 

Hi Mia, thank you for your feedback! It's great to hear how well Lavu has worked for your restaurant and staff. Please reach out if you have any questions! 

Multiple price increases with no communication.  Have tried to cancel for 5 months, multiple emails, cases, conversations and promises to cancel, just got our 4th email this week that they can't process our card.  No access to accounting, don't believe me call their number.  Had to fight charges and cancelled the credit card to stop them from billing.  Do yourself a favor pick something else.  We moved to Square for everything!

Great solution....as long as you never plan on leaving!

Hi Sean, first off we would like to thank you for your business and for being with Lavu for 9 years. We are very sorry to hear you went elsewhere. We apologize about the billing discrepancies. Please reach out if we can do anything for you. 

I absolutely love the point of sale system. Helps to be able to take orders from customers and send the order to the kitchen from the table. Then you can move on to the next table. It is so easy to learn and use. I like that you can go into the backside of the program and check your sales for the day, your amount of hours that you worked for the week and also what your own statistics are for tables waited on, amount of food you sold and what the prices of everything are. It is so Awesome!

The Best POS System

Hi Judy, thank you for your feedback! We love hearing how great Lavu is working for our customers! We're glad you like it. 

I manage a small group of coffee shops and honestly you don't need much from a point of sale to do so. What really makes us happy with Lavu is the ability to check on the stores' sales without having to call in and take a shift supervisor off the floor and into the BOH. Their support is also stellar and some of the agents are pretty darn funny! Cool to know that I can call them at all times (even before we open at 4:30am) and get someone to tell me nicely that I set up our router wrong.

Rosetta Squadron Win

Hi! Thank you for your feedback! We truly love hearing from all types of our users. It's great to hear customer support has been so helpful for you. 

This product works very well for me and gives me a great value at the price point of the equipment.

A value buy

Hi Jet, thank you for your feedback! We're glad to hear that Lavu is working so well for you and your staff. We hope that you are able to take advantage of how customizable our product is! 

My longer story is under BF on the BBB website. [sensitive content hidden]
 But essentially, after a miserable year of trying to get Lavu to stop incorrectly and excessively charging my credit card. I switched away with a zero balance. Then this morning, a year and a half later, got a new bill for $188 which the customer service representative refused to cancel. When will they stop?

Do not trust Lavu with payment information 

Hi there, 
Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience you faced regarding the incorrect billing. We understand how frustrating such situations can be, and we're truly sorry for any stress this may have caused.
We're glad to hear that we were able to resolve the issue promptly and that you were not charged for the bill. 
Our team is committed to providing top-notch service and ensuring our customers' satisfaction, and we regret that we fell short of your expectations.
We truly appreciate your understanding and patience throughout this process. Should you have any further concerns or questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us directly. We would be more than happy to assist you in any way we can.

Horrible. Absolutely, incredibly the worst customer service ever. I feel stupid for trying this company. They lied about everything just to get the sale. Do NOT go here !!

No Free Trial. 

Hi Kevin, we appreciate your feedback and are sorry to hear about your negative experience. We take such concerns seriously and would like to investigate this matter further. Our team is actively working on this to come up with a resolution for you. We strive to provide excellent customer service, and your input helps us improve. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.

Using Lavu has made it easier to do online ordering and takeout meals. Reports are much better than our last POS. 

Great customer service

Hi Scott, 

Thanks for letting us know how well Lavu has worked for your restaurant! It's great to hear from our customers about what they specifically love about Lavu. Please reach out if you need anything! 

I started out with square pos with my single coffee shop but needing to upgrade with multiple stores I needed to be able to track and have my reports combine. This was a really good option for the money. They give me the ability to track sales and inventory across all of my stores with ease of access. 

Pretty good system

Hi John, thanks so much for your feedback. We appreciate your review, and we are happy that you chose Lavu. If you need anything, please reach out at (855) 767-5288. 

[sensitive content hidden] did an amazing job

Thank you for taking the time to share your positive experience with Lavu. We're happy  to hear that everything has gone well. If you ever need anything, please feel free to reach out to our team. Your feedback is valuable, and we appreciate your support!

Surprise charges - once I have issues, then I took multiple tries to get feedback.

Surprise charges

Pros:
If you are running a simple quick serve model restaurant (or another retail business with perhaps one terminal) then the software is easy to program and the system will probably allow for simple modifications to fit your business. 

Additionally, the pricing is fairly competitive for a single license.

Beyond that limited use I would strongly suggest looking for an alternative.  

We used the software for more than 2 years but are aggressively looking to replace.

*Literally dozens of server crashes... 100% preventable 
*Unusable features (delivery, CRM, inventory) - for clarification all of these features are promoted and are in fact inside the package - however none of them did what we expected.  None.
*Anytime there is a problem software support is very nice, and quick to point the finger at someone else (internet speeds, credit card processing, etc.)  
*Promoted (not sure if they still do or not) that user devices were unlimited. ... turns out not to be true... if your user is processing sales (as in point of sale) then that device will require a paid license...
*Doesn't appear to be supporting new CC processing technology and no communication about if they will


Overall a bust and in the three years we have been open it's the stand-out worst decision we've made.
 

Lavu ... Not For U

Hi Thomas, we are sorry that your experience with Lavu was less than optimal. Please reach out to our support team if you would like to discuss at (855) 767-5288. 

We're a high volume craft beer bar. It can start tabs. It works for now. If the complaint list keeps growing, we'll have to switch. It works fine, but when it doesn't work, it totally halts service.

Not really for Bars

Hi Stephanie, thanks for your review. It's extremely helpful for us to hear how Lavu works for all restaurant types, including bars. We are constantly improving our product so that it runs seamlessly for every customer. 

World-Class Customer Service and Support

Hi Lisa, we're so happy that Lavu has been so great, especially when it comes to customer service and support! Please reach out if you need anything! 

We have a wide range of clients that we cater for constantly. Some require specific menus be set up per location with the ability to add and subtract items from orders as well as sent tickets to another location (where our kitchen is). We tried Square for a while but did like that it couldn't track employee hours or send tickets easily. We just bring out a hot spot and Lavu. Haven't has any real problems with the system. Their support staff know the app and process well, I just wish they made on-site visits but I guess they are working on that soon. We are currently using the "Retro" version of the app without problems. 

We couldn't live without it

Hi Doran, thank you so much for your review! We love that you can't live without Lavu! If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out at (855) 767-5288. 

I deployed LAVU POS at three of my restaurants several years ago. Initially the basic product was well supported and reasonably easy to use. 

About the time of the pandemic everything changed. The US based customer support staff disappeared and was replaced by a call center in India, our monthly fees nearly doubled (in the middle of the pandemic!) and LAVU rolled out Menu Drive, an online ordering platform, which we subscribed to. 

The biggest problem is that there is little to no integration between Menu Drive (which they purchased from a third party) and the LAVU POS. So any changes you make to pricing or item availability on your POS will not show up in Menu Drive. This was extremely frustrating. Menu Drive itself appears a very rough and amateurish clunky and visually unappealing effort.  

In addition to the constant frustrations with MenuDrive, we began to have major problems with printers randomly going offline several times a day. My managers made endless calls to the LAVU customer support center in India, often waiting hours to get through. On the rare occasions that they were able to reach someone the solutions offered were basic and ineffective. Several times we had to close the restaurant because we were unable to keep LAVU operational for an entire day. 

Between the lack of customer support, the inherently low level of design/functionality in both LAVU POS and Menu Drive, the relativly high monthly cost, I would say avoid at all costs! 

Underdeveloped and unsupported 

Hi Daniel, thank you for letting us know about your experience with Lavu. First and foremost, we are sorry to hear the changes to the product (including MenuDrive) did not benefit you as they were intended. We now have customer service representatives in Mexico City, India, Tampa, and New Mexico to insure our 24/7 support line is answered. If we can help in any way, please reach out. 

I started using Lavu Point of Sale about 2 years ago. Before switching to the system we were using paper tickets, I didn't realize how inefficient this really was until I made the switch to an electronic system. Not only are we now spending less time managing each order, accuracy has gone up, and my shrinkage has gone down. The kitchen is only allowed to make items that are rung into the system and print out which has help cut down on theft or giving items away. The biggest time savings is getting the customers checked out. Previously during our lunch rush we would have a line of people waiting to pay and leave, now we are able to handle them as they come up to the counter since everything is already totaled up in the system.

Another big help has been the ability to use iPods to take orders at the table. We usually have a rush after church on Sundays, sometimes a line at the door. Before my servers had to go to the table, take the order, then take the ticket back to the kitchen. Now my servers go to the table, take the order, hit send and it prints in the kitchen. Then they can go straight to the next table. Anything we can do to speed up the time it takes to turn a table is a plus.

The amount of features that have been added in the last couple years has been amazing, it's nice to see that they are actively working on the software. The biggest thing for us has been the addition of 'always offline mode'. You just use the system and the orders go to the cloud in the background. When we first got setup we had some issues with the internet which interfered with using the system. They offered us a local server option but I did not want to install more hardware. While my internet situation was much improved by switching from DSL to cable I always worried that my connection going out could be a possibility. With the new version (3.0.3) the system keeps working even if my internet connection were to go out.

The Lavu POS software has worked great for us and I highly recommend it.

Saves us time and money, works great for us!

Hi Dennis, thanks so much for your feedback. We're so happy that you chose to use Lavu for your restaurant, and that it is working well for your operations. Please reach out if you have any questions! 

But wait there's more! How about the fact that the kitchen printer prints two checks, that no one can seem to fix. Not only does it waste an enormous amount of paper but it is confusing as the checks are not identical and it blows through a ribbon in 3 or four days!
Occasionally it will resend an order back yo the kitchen that has already been made, etc...
The is no individual item printer assignment either which means that you have to send an entire category instead of just one item to a screen or printer.

UNBELIEVABLE!!!

Hi John, 
We are very sorry to hear about the problems you are experiencing. I will have someone from our care team look into this and get back to you as soon as possible. 
Thank you

Save Your Money

Hi Jason, thank you for your feedback. We're sorry to hear you had to close down your restaurants, and that we were not able to issue a refund at the time. We appreciate your business for almost 10 years, and would love to hear from you. Please reach out so we can see what can be done. 

Financial Reports. Time cards/Payroll. Theft of employees. Tip tracking. Busy hours of operation. Training testimonials. All of this is helpful to us.

Lavu has been great for us!

Hi Lori, thanks so much for your review, we really appreciate it! Please reach out if you need anything! 

Lavu

Hi Bobbie, thank you for your feedback! We really appreciate hearing from our customers and we are glad to hear how much you like Lavu! 

A lot easier to keep track of our repeat bowling banquets

Review

Hi Brian, thank you for your feedback on us! We really appreciate it - and we are happy you like Lavu! 

Compare Square Point of Sale and Lavu POS based on features, pricing, verified reviews, integrations & more. Find out which software is best for your business today.

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Square Point of Sale vs Lavu POS Comparison

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