What is a POS system? A plain guide for salon owners

A POS has two parts: the software, and the device it runs on. People often say "POS machine" for the device, but the software does the work. For each sale, it records:

• what was sold: services, products and packages, with their prices;
• who did the work, for commissions;
• discounts and points used;
• how the client paid: cash, card, transfer or PromptPay QR;
• the receipt or tax invoice issued.

At closing time, the POS adds every sale up, so you know how much should be in the drawer and in your bank account.

A retail POS is built around products and barcodes. A salon POS starts from the appointment, because most of what a salon sells is the team's time. If you are comparing offers, read how much a POS costs for a salon in Thailand.

These four tools are often mixed up, but they do different jobs. A card machine (EDC) and PromptPay take the money. A POS and a notebook record the sale. That is why a POS usually sits next to a card machine and a PromptPay QR code.

PromptPay is the Bank of Thailand's real-time transfer service, which uses a national ID or mobile number instead of an account number. It started in 2016, and clients can pay by QR code through the Thai QR Payment standard. When a client scans and pays, the money reaches your bank account, and you record the bill as paid by transfer in the POS.

A notebook and a cash drawer cost nothing, but nothing adds up by itself. Totals by payment type, commissions and client history all take manual work at closing time.

In a salon, a sale often starts before the client walks in. Here is the path of one bill in a salon POS such as SeeU:

1. 01The booking is already on the bill, with the service, the price and the team member.
2. 02You add what happened at the chair: an extra service, a product or a discount. Product stock goes down by itself.
3. 03Member discounts and package sessions apply by themselves, and an online deposit is taken off.
4. 04The client pays by cash, card, transfer or PromptPay QR, or splits the bill. You record the payment.
5. 05The receipt or a numbered VAT invoice goes out on paper, by email or as a PDF.
6. 06Staff commissions are counted per person or per service, on services and products.

The SeeU guide shows how to ring up a sale step by step. The example below follows one bill.

Not always. A cloud POS runs on the phone, tablet or computer you already have, so your "POS machine" can simply be the tablet at the front desk. Other hardware is optional:

• a receipt printer, if clients want a paper receipt;
• a cash drawer, if you take a lot of cash;
• a card machine from your bank, if you accept cards. It stays separate from the POS, and you record card payments in the POS.

All-in-one POS terminals with a built-in printer exist too, mostly for shops and restaurants. For a salon, two questions matter more: does it work on the devices you already have, and does it start from your bookings?

Tax rules depend on your business, so always check them with your accountant. Here is what the Revenue Department's own pages say.

A business with revenue above 1.8 million baht a year must register for VAT with form ภ.พ.01, within 30 days of passing that amount. Once registered, it must issue tax invoices when it sells.

A VAT-registered retailer that wants its cash register or POS to print abbreviated tax invoices must get approval first, under Revenue Department Announcement No. 46 on VAT. The owner files form ภ.พ.06 for each shop, at the area revenue office or online. Once approved, the machine prints its code, a running number and "TAX INV(ABB)" on each slip, plus a daily sales summary.

Ask your accountant whether this applies to your salon, and whether full tax invoices can be used instead. Whatever the answer, every receipt and invoice should be numbered in order and kept, which a POS does by itself.

A salon with one chair and a few clients a day can run on a notebook and a PromptPay QR code. A POS starts to pay off when closing the day takes too long. Signs it is time:

• you add up cash, card and transfer totals by hand;
• the cash in the drawer rarely matches what you expected;
• commissions take a whole evening each month;
• clients ask for a VAT invoice and you write it by hand;
• you sell packages or products and lose track of balances and stock.

The SeeU POS (Premium) starts from your bookings, records every payment, issues receipts and numbered VAT invoices, and gives you one export for your accountant. It runs on a phone, tablet or computer, with no hardware to buy. It is included from ฿990/month + VAT, with a 30-day free trial.