Revel POS System Review for 2019: Features, Pricing, Pros, and Cons

Revel POS System Review, Summarized

Revel POS systems offer up stellar features like customizable gift card programs, Always On Mode, and ingredient-level inventory tracking. That said, Revel POS systems are also on the expensive side—you’ll have to pay $99 (billed annually) for Revel POS software, $649 for Revel POS setup, and an undisclosed amount in hardware costs and payment processing fees. Plus, you’ll have to commit to a three-year contract with Revel POS software to access it.

As a small business owner, you know that a lot leads up to the exact moment a customer makes a purchase. And that’s why choosing the perfect point of sale system for your business is such a weighty decision—last-minute customer drop-off due to long checkout lines or lack of payment options means a lot of time and energy go to waste.

The Revel POS system is a popular POS systems for small businesses in 2019—but is it the right fit for your business specifically?

We’ve compiled a Revel POS system review to help you decide whether or not it’s the right fit, so let’s dive into all the details on this point of sale option.

Revel POS Pricing

Revel POS pricing encompasses three separate costs: The cost of Revel POS Software, payment processing fees, installation costs, and hardware costs. Revel POS software costs $99 a month, but you’ll have to pay it on a yearly basis. Plus, Revel requires you to commit to a three-year contract for their software. So, the cost of Revel POS system software will be a lump sum of around $1,188 per year, for three years.

You’ll also need to pay payment processing fees when you take card payments through a Revel POS system. Unfortunately, because Revel prices these fees through a quote-based system, they’re less transparent about how much these payment processing fees will cost your business.

Additionally, you’ll need to consider setup costs when tallying the Revel POS pricing. On its own, onboarding and setup for your Revel POS system will be a one-time cost of $649.

And don’t forget the cost of hardware—Revel POS systems require Apple iPads, which retail at a minimum of around $280. And to accept card payments, you’ll also need to purchase a Revel card reader which, unfortunately, Revel doesn’t disclose prices for online.

Altogether, Revel POS pricing will cost more than many other POS system options. But thanks to their long list of powerful features (which we’ll cover in a second), it could very well be worth it for your small business.

Revel POS System Software Features

Now, for those powerful Revel POS system features we mentioned. Although the hardware of any POS system will likely be the most recognizable, the software is where all of the distinguishing capabilities tend to reside. So, let’s first see what Revel POS software can offer your small business.

Customer-Facing Features

Revel POS System software offers up six features that could seriously improve your customers’ checkout experiences:

• Customer discounts to offer simple, on-the-spot savings and happy hours
• Gift card programs to boost gifted referrals
• Customer-facing display system to speed up transactions even more
• Online ordering that can seriously increase your customer base and revenue
• Customer loyalty programs that allow you to customize your rewards structure
• Customer relationship management systems to gain customer insights

Features for Your Team

Additionally, Revel POS software will make the checkout experience much easier for you and your employees. Here are five features that make this happen:

• Revel Assistant customer service if your team comes across system complications
• Cash payment tracking to make sure all your payments are accounted for
• Customizable table management to make complicated bills a cinch
• Delivery management tools to expand your customer-base
• Always On Mode so your Revel POS can function through power outages and service disconnects

Features to Help You Manage Your Business

Even more, Revel POS system software will help you, as the business owner, zoom out and capture valuable insights on your business’s sales and inventory. Here are 11 features that Revel offers specifically to make running your business easier and more successful:

• Open API for scaling online payments
• PCI-compliant cloud technology

• Point-to-point encrypted payments

• Revel Insights provides data and visualizations through an mobile app
• In-app product list and menu building
• Kitchen management for communication between front- and back-of-house
• Employee management for roles, permissions, overtime, and administrative paperwork
• Ingredient-level inventory tracking with low-stock alerts
• Reporting to help identify best-selling products and business trends
• Enterprise management for businesses with multiple locations
• QuickBooks integration for streamlined accounting processes

Revel POS System Hardware Options

Although many other POS system companies will offer complete, all-in-one POS systems, your Revel Point of Sale hardware options will be more mix-and-match. This means that you’ll have the option to purchase—or not purchase—a cash till, scale, printer, barcode scanner, what-have-you, for your business’s POS systems. That said, the Revel POS System will always need to include an iPad, as that’s the device necessary for the Revel POS software to run on. Unfortunately, a Revel POS system won’t be able to run on a non-Apple tablet. You’ll also need to purchase a Revel payment device to accept non-cash payments from your customers, and Revel’s website doesn’t disclose prices for your payment device options.

Revel POS Systems: The Pros

So, now that we’ve combed through the details on all things Revel Point of Sale, what’s next?

Well, it’s time to zoom out and consider which of the details on Revel POS are most noteworthy—for better or worse—in your search for the right point of sale system for your small business. Let’s start on the positive side of things and take a moment to highlight the most notable upsides of choosing Revel POS systems for your business:

Really Powerful Software

As you can see from the hefty list of features that Revel POS system software offers, this is an extremely stocked point of sale technology. And the list of features Revel POS system software offers continually outcompetes competitors—capabilities like ingredient-level inventory tracking and Always On Mode are tough to find elsewhere.

Customizable Hardware

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution for Revel POS system hardware—you can pick and choose which pieces your business needs, without worrying about investing in one single piece of hardware that automatically comes with features—like a printer or a scale—that aren’t useful for your business.

Revel POS Systems: The Cons

Now, onto the downsides that opting for a Revel POS system might entail. To be frank, most of the cons that come with this POS option have to do with how Revel POS pricing works. Revel POS pricing is far from ideal and is actually pretty expensive—especially relative to their competition.

Here are the details of what to look out for with Revel POS pricing:

Quote-Based Payment Processing Fees and Hardware Costs

Put simply, you’ll have to hand over your contact information to the Revel sales team to get any idea of how much their payment processing fees and hardware options will cost your business. You won’t be able to find pricing information for these POS costs on their website.

This is a huge downside not only because getting a quote requires time and energy, but also because it will be tough to stop receiving calls and emails once you’ve handed over your contact information.

Even more, quote-based systems make it difficult to know whether or not you’re receiving a good deal. Because Revel doesn’t provide a range of payment processing fees and hardware costs on their website, it will be difficult to know whether or not the quote you receive is a fair one.

Installation Costs

Not to mention, the prices that Revel does disclose on their website aren’t exactly ideal. Namely, their installation costs of $649 are incredibly steep. For context, many Revel competitors have no installation costs, whatsoever. So that extra $649 is just another price to add onto the total Revel POS pricing you’ll need to tally.

3-Year Commitment Required

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, to access a Revel POS system, you’ll have to commit to a three-year contract. This means committing to $99 a month, plus $649, plus undisclosed hardware costs and payment processing fees for three whole years. That is a lot of money to commit to without really knowing how well Revel POS systems will work for your business.

Granted, Revel does provide free demos, so be sure to take them up on one before you sign away your other POS system options for three years.

Consider Revel POS System Alternatives That Are More Affordable

Square POS Systems

One of the most popular alternatives to Revel is Square. Thanks to their remarkably affordable POS innovations, Square has become a forerunner for small business point-of-sale solutions. Square now offers seven hardware options, all with transparent pricing ranging from free with account opening to $999.

Depending on which of these hardware options you choose, the payment you process through your Square reader cost from 2.75% to 2.6% + $0.10 to 2.5% + $0.10. Even better? There are no setup fees at all for this alternative to Revel POS systems.

Plus, if you use the standard Square POS software, it’s completely free. Otherwise, if you decide to upgrade to Square for Retail, then you will have to pay $60 a month for this upgrade.

PayPal Here

Alternatively, if you’re looking for the most affordable POS option, period, then look into PayPal Here as your top alternative to Revel POS systems. You’ll simply access PayPal Here through your PayPal login through the free PayPal Here App. PayPal Here offers four payment reader options, ranging  in price from $14.99 to $99.99. Remember that you’ll also need a smart device to use PayPal Here, so if you don’t already have access to one, tally that price into your total cost.

That said, once you’ve covered all of these upfront costs, you’ll simply have to worry about PayPal Here payment processing fees, which are some of the lowest in the game. For any magstripe, chip, or contactless payment you’ll pay 2.7% of the transaction value.

Revel POS Review: The Verdict

There you have it—our Revel POS review. Now that you’re familiar with the ins, out, ups, downs, and alternatives to Revel POS systems, what’s the verdict?

Well, having made it through our Revel POS review, you should feel empowered with the necessary information to answer that question for yourself.

The way we see it Revel POS systems are extremely powerful options to high-volume businesses that can afford them. That said, they might not be the best option for businesses that are on the smaller side. Unless you have multiple, fast-paced locations, then all the features the Revel POS systems boast might not prove to be useful.

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from Fundera Ledger https://www.fundera.com/blog/revel-pos/