User Reviews Overview
About Lightspeed Retail
Manage all locations from a unified POS and payments platform that evolves with your business. Streamline operations and accelerate growth with industry-leading tools, payment technology and integrations that enable you to keep...
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- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
A great all-inclusive system
Our industry was using a server-based software which was cumbersome and VERY outdated. Switching to Lightspeed has allowed me to more easily fulfil online orders, process transactions remotely, and communicate with our customer base more effectively.
Pros
Integration across POS, eCommerce, Accounting, Data Analytics is excellent. We have been able to increase both sales and efficiency with this system. The accounting feature and its daily export to QuickBooks allows me to spend only a few minutes each day keeping books up to date. It certainly makes year-end a breeze. Lightspeed Analytics is an invaluable resource for forecasting and identifying areas of opportunity. Customer support is available 24/7 and if they aren't able to answer my question immediately, I have received a timely follow-up within a day or two.
Cons
There are some work-arounds that I have implemented. It would be nice to have the option for recurring billing and serial number tracking (not just adding a serial number to an item) as well as a better protocol for backordered items on Purchase Orders.
Alternatives Considered
Rain POSReasons for Choosing Lightspeed Retail
Easy choice. Transitioning from a local server based software to a cloud based system was the first priority. After seeing what else Lightspeed had to offer, I immediately made the change.Switched From
AIMReasons for Switching to Lightspeed Retail
When I was ready to purchase Rain, the sales team kept putting me off time and time again. If that was indicative of their customer service, I knew it wouldn't be the right fit for me.- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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Review Source
Useful and Comprehensive
It is useful for setting up an ecommerce store with a POS system.
Pros
The main reason I signed up for Lightspeed Retail was so that I could keep my e-commerce website's stock properly synced up with my in-store retail stock.
Cons
Overall, it's a large service and there are a lot of configurations to be set up. I also had to get a separate plugin (from a 3rd-party) in order to fully get my POS and website to sync.
Alternatives Considered
HikeReasons for Switching to Lightspeed Retail
It was more comprehensive, relative to the services and features I was given access to.- Industry: Sporting Goods
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Extortion!!!
Horrible interactions when you're lucky enough to get a human involved - which is typically only on the sales side of the business. 3 months to get a response from the tech side (I wish I was exaggerating).
Pros
Fairly functional, but they'll make changes with no regard to how it affects your operation, putting your register & receiving department in turmoil at the worst times.
Cons
Extortion! A sudden "policy change" and now we're getting a additional $400 per month charge on top of our subscription fee until we switch to their merchant card service. `Wonder why it's so hard to leave a review for Lightspeed? I had an issue with the POS service - it took 3 months just to get a response! Use ANY other POS service!
Alternatives Considered
OdooReasons for Switching to Lightspeed Retail
We're planning to drop Lightspeed ASAP. They make it very difficult, leveraging your data against you to keep you and up the charges at will.Top Lightspeed Retail Alternatives
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Simple to get started
In general, it's easy for employees to figure out and use. Initial onboarding wasn't difficult, and we were up and running within a day.
Pros
It's simple to set up. With the credit payment system integrated, it avoids dealing with a third party system.
Cons
The down time when their service fails on their end. We've had transactions completely disappear after the customer already left, thus losing not an insignificant amount of money.
Alternatives Considered
CloverReasons for Switching to Lightspeed Retail
Set up cost was better, and the ability to use our own equipment was better suited to us.- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Good all in one option for POS system, inventory management and eCommerce option.
Pros
Easy to create promotions for certain products. Helpful that the platform can also be used for inventory management and restock levels can be set. Also good that it syncs with Shopify.
Cons
The reporting mobile app could be improved. The app sometimes glitches and is slow to update.
Reasons for Switching to Lightspeed Retail
We found Lightspeed Retail to be better for the various variations of products we hold such.- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 51–200 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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Review Source
Thank you Lightspeed for your amazing service.
Pros
Light speed offers some of the best Retail software on the market.
Cons
I wish we had chosen this software earlier and not wasted money trying out others.
- Industry: Apparel & Fashion
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Avoid this system unless you wish to pay very high fees
We have used Vend for many years who were recently acquired by Lightspeed. I have no words for how bad Lightspeed and their company are, and I urge anyone considering using their platform to walk away and find an alternative.
They have recently demanded that all users convert to their integrated card payment system or face charges on their monthly accounts of up to £500. We were originally paying £89.99 per month for Vend, which was then increased with Lightspeed to £129.99 per month. To then be advised that if we don't use their card processing servicing, we could face charges of up to £500 per month is astounding and unethical. We were advised that one reason for this increase was due to the charges they incur for our business using other payment providers. This is utter rubbish; I myself use a static card terminal in a bricks-and-mortar shop. Lightspeed doesn't incur any processing charges, fees or inconveniences from my card terminal. After many, many emails back and forth with our account manager and following a call, he finally understood that, as a business, we were tied into a contract with our card supplier and could not move to their integrated service as they demanded.
I was advised that these additional fees would not be charged as we aren't in a position to move our card processing across to their systems. However, I have been told that my fees for the platform this month, based on our transactions, are now £250! When trying to speak with someone from customer services (surprise, surprise only possible online). I am told that this is because I am not using their integrated card processing service!!!
I wouldn't mind quite so much if the system had shown vast improvements or if they had introduced new fantastic facilities online. We have actually found the system to be slower than before and with many glitches with stock deduction and control. There hasn't been any improvement.
I don't know how Lightspeed is able to get away with behaviour that flagrantly ignores anti-competition laws in the UK.
I'm in the process of finding a company that provides an online platform and has an honest and trustworthy approach to business. Lightspeed is definitely NOT this company.
Pros
I was originally a customer with Vend and since Lightspeed purchased the company I can not see any Pros.
Cons
Too many to list, but the company ethics are poor and I am not sure how they get away with the anti-competition methods.
Response from Lightspeed
Hi Sarah,
We sincerely apologize for any distress you've experienced regarding unified payments. Please know that it is never our intention to cause inconvenience. Our goal is to simplify your operations and offer efficient support for both POS and payments services, ultimately saving you time and resources.
Your Account Manager has reached out to you to discuss this matter further. We appreciate your patience as we diligently work to address your concerns.
Best regards,
The Lightspeed Team
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Some good capabilities, poor customer service.
Very poor customer service. Issues with inventory management. High turnover of account managers, no follow up from supervisors.
Pros
Canned reports were good, Intuitive for the most part.
Cons
Very lacking in customer service. Unwillingness to meet specific requirements, dismissive.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 51–200 Employees
- Used Daily for 6-12 months
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Review Source
Thank you Lightspeed
Super simple and easy for my consumers transactions.
Pros
the amazing POS and Inventory management offered from Lightspeed.
Cons
That we didnt start using Lightspeed earlier.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 6-12 months
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Review Source
Lightspeed Retail
Pros
User-friendly and makes it easy to manage inventory, process sales, and check stock quickly. Helps speed up transactions and reduce errors. The system’s ability to handle multiple payment methods is also a big plus.
Cons
The system can sometimes be slow, especially during busy times, which can frustrate customers. There’s also a bit of a learning curve when it comes to using some of the more advanced features.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Worst costumer service and support. Account manager dont know a shit
Pros
nothing but time waste and I dont think you will like it for sure
Cons
Please save your time and not to invest your time and efforts
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Lightspeed
Bug is casi absent. ist fast and simple. For all of my staff is quick and simple for all operations
Pros
Acces every wherre and the multi-chanel fonction!
Cons
Its realy hard to custom for specifict fonction.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Merchant is not secure against ilegal charge back
Pros
Easy to use, however Merchant allows debit card to proceed with a chargeback without returning the merchandise , scary and dangerous for any business.
Cons
Merchant allows debit card to proceed with a chargeback without returning the merchandise , scary and dangerous for any business.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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Review Source
Dissatisfied with customer service
Very poor Customer Service! Calls not returned, you're pretty much forced to use Lightspeed payments otherwise you have to pay a monthly fee which is ridiculous! Lightspeed fees are way to high compared to other providers and no facility to pass fees onto customers yet.
Pros
Deffinelty not the customer service. Very poor.
Cons
Definitely the customer service was the worst. Basically forced to use Lightspeed payments otherwise high monthly fee. Can't pass on bank fees to customers still! Extremely poor customer service. Been trying to speak with someone for Months.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1-5 months
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Review Source
No customer service
Terrible. The POS X-series card reader that was delivered was faulty, wouldn’t stay charged and would give error messages when trying to process transactions. The additional equipment wasn’t comparable with our iPads. I left two voicemails asking for support with the faulty ready, never got a call back. Canceled my account and asked for a refund for the card reader and the subscription fee for the month we couldn’t process anything through them (Square stepped in and took care of us). Lightspeed never even responded. I called and spoke with a rep asking for a refund, it took a month for a response and the email was generic with no explanation for declining my request for refund. The company is not for small businesses and doesn’t care about clients.
Pros
There’s nothing I like about the company.
Cons
Customer service and support is nonexistent. Management only communicates through email (absurd). Messages and voicemails aren’t returned. Emails are automated blanket emails.
Response from Lightspeed
Hi Dave,
We would like to sincerely apologize for your recent experience with Lightspeed. It is our utmost priority to provide products and services that allow our customers to focus on running their businesses with ease. We value all feedback and would like to learn more about your specific experience, to have the opportunity to address your needs and concerns.
As we are unable to identify your account within our records, please feel free to contact our Customer Success team should you wish to provide further feedback. You may reach us via email at [email protected].
Thank you,
The Lightspeed Team
- Industry: Hospitality
- Company size: 5,001–10,000 Employees
- Used Daily for 1+ year
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Review Source
Lights open
Pros
It integrates with several systems and card payment terminals which allows you to use it easier
Cons
Nothing I can complain about as it a great product
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Do not recommend
Horrible. We were hounded by the sales rep to try and add ecomm for a "good deal" so we purchased a 3 year contract. My team has been trying to get a hold of someone, anyone, and there has been ZERO response for help.
Pros
Honestly, not a lot of pros.
Its simple enough if you know how to dink around and look for things.
Cons
Features are not up to par
The way ecomm is set up for connecting to retail is a mess
- Industry: Wholesale
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 6-12 months
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Review Source
Solid system for retail
It is capable software system can handle your small retail shop with ease. inventory management, barcoding, point of sale, price tracking, reports etc all work well. It is bit hard to reach for customer service and lots of training required.
Pros
Software is intact, does not give random errors. you can count on
Cons
it is a bit hard to settle if you have an inventory at some other software. it would be better to have more sync options.
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1-5 months
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Review Source
DO NOT PURCHASE - look elsewhere
Pros
The support staff, while unelpful, are friendly
Cons
The entire system was over promised, and entirely under delivered
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Dont use their payment system
Pros
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i know, better than [sensitive content hidden]
i dont know
Cons
frustrating to utilize. lots of data to enter, once you start using it, it's hard to break away. they always blame the other guy when problems arise with integrations
- Industry: Retail
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for Free Trial
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Review Source
If I could leave them negatives, I would. Horrible Customer Service and billing issues.
Miserable. A Nightmare. Between transferring someone else's inventory into our account (a completely random business) then locking us out of our "back end" and refusing to cancel our account during the free trial service, it has been an absolute nightmare.
Pros
I never got a chance to actually try the product. We purchased a company that used them and the transition was supposed to be "seamless" during our free trial but they transferred inventory from a marina (not the company we bought) several states away and they were locked out at the first of the month and could not do business. We called Lightspeed to let them know and we were then locked out of OUR "back end" and we could not get customer service help to get us back in. They are still trying to bill us, changing their name by one or two characters to get around the block that we have on our bank account for any payments to them. As of May, they billed us for $516 (we terminated on the 7th day of our free trial via multiple emails and a phone call) and then signed an affidavit with our bank that we have a contract so they could use our new debit card info for auto-billing. This is FRAUDULENT and we have had zero contact from customer service in 3 weeks since we filed a claim.
Cons
[sensitive content hidden] the Customer Service Rep. - would not get back to me on issues, did not try to help when I was beyond frustrated, sticks to the party line "sign into your back end" even though that was the entire issue. Refuses to cancel billing.
- Industry: Restaurants
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
5 1/2 years of disappointment
For over a year I have had issues with Tip Adjustments applying to checks. Procedure is followed to the letter and the adjustments just " fall off " and some just never get charged to the customer. In short, this means the employees get their tips, the customers believe they left a tip but were not charged and the money is for lack of a better term MISSING at the end of the day for the business. HOURS have been spent trying to work with this company on this issues and the level of customer service is so sub par I was JUST told " I know you'd like a call back but we'd prefer EMAIL and will not be calling regardless of you asking for a call back. I am not a litigious person but this time around I think I am going to turn the 5 years of receipts over to my attorney and sue the pants off these clowns.
Pros
Ease of training - So simple a caveman could use it
Cons
Customer supportPayments not applyingCustomer support
- Industry: Furniture
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Daily for 1-5 months
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Review Source
Lightspeed Customer Support
It feels a lot like bait a switch. Sales Team was very responsive and went out of their way to make sure we were getting all the information we needed. Now that we have paid for Lightspeed, we cant reach anyone for assistance. This includes Customer Support and the formerly responsive Sales Team.
Pros
Easy to set up and initial entry of inventory was very straight forward.
Cons
Lack of human support options. We have lost more revenue waiting to speak with Lightspeed technical support that we spent on the system. DO NOT BUY Lightspeed unless your business has only plain vanilla types of customer interactions because you will not be able to reach anyone at Lightspeed for assistance after your get their system..
Response from Lightspeed
Hi,
We would like to sincerely apologize for your recent experience, and we are sorry to hear you were less than satisfied with the services received. It is our utmost priority to provide products and services that allow our customers to focus on running their businesses with ease.
If ever you would like to provide more feedback, please don't hesitate to reach our Customer Success Team via email at [email protected].
Thank you,
Lightspeed Commerce
- Industry: Cosmetics
- Company size: 11–50 Employees
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
My review
Pros
Ease of using the system and the accuracy of sales reports
Cons
Improve on the turnaround time for support when contacted using email.
- Industry: Design
- Company size: 2–10 Employees
- Used Weekly for 6-12 months
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Review Source
Loved it!
It was amazing. Loved ii!
Pros
The Lightspeed Retail system is a comprehensive management solution for retailers, offering a variety of tools to manage inventory, process payments, handle orders, and facilitate e-commerce. Its user-friendly interface and customizable features make it a standout option, allowing retailers to personalize the system to meet their individual needs. In addition to its robust capabilities, Lightspeed Retail also provides mobile access and website management functionality, providing retailers with a versatile solution for managing their business operations.
Cons
The level of customer support provided could be improved as there have been instances in the past where reports were not able to be downloaded. But compared to all the pros it's nothing!
