Poynt POS Reviews & Complaints

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Overview

In this article, we explore Poynt, an innovative POS provider known for its smart payment terminals and diverse services. We'll cover key features of Poynt's systems, including EMV reading and NFC capabilities, and delve into their mobile payment solutions suitable for various businesses. This discussion includes an analysis of pros and cons, highlighting areas such as data security and potential system failures. We also touch on Poynt's acquisition by GoDaddy and what it means for the company.

Crucially, we examine Poynt's rates, fees, and customer support options, offering insights into the real experiences of users and employees. This includes a look at online ratings and customer feedback to provide a comprehensive understanding of the company's market reputation. Finally, we conclude with an overall assessment of Poynt, considering its place in the competitive world of payment processing.

About Poynt

Originally created to sell the “world’s first smart payment terminal,” Poynt is a POS provider that offers credit card processing software and hardware for merchants. Poynt was launched in late 2014 by the former head of Google Wallet to promote a single piece of hardware with pre-installed POS software as well as a built-in register, scanner, and printer. The company started shipping its first orders in September 2015 and has since expanded its service offering to include a proprietary operating system, business management tools, and an app marketplace.

Acquired by GoDaddy

In December 2020, GoDaddy announced its intention to acquire Poynt for $320 million cash at closing, with an additional $45 million in deferred cash payments due over the next three years. GoDaddy plans to integrate Poynt payment systems into its existing hosting platform.

Poynt Point of Sale

Poynt sells its own proprietary POS system that uses its own software. These POS systems come in both mobile and tabletop options and feature EMV reading, NFC, mag stripe swiping, gift card reading, EBT, a cash option, PIN on glass, and accept all major debit and credit cards. They have PCI compliance built-in and can also accept MOTO and virtual terminal purchases. Poynt also sells a variety of accessories, including USB and wireless printers, paper rolls, cash drawers, and USB/HID barcode scanners. Poynt is compatible with all major credit card processors, so clients will not need to switch processors to use the product

Mobile Payment Solutions

Poynt's mobile payment solutions allow businesses to process payments on-the-go using the Poynt Mobile app. This feature is particularly useful for businesses that operate outside of traditional brick-and-mortar locations, such as food trucks, pop-up shops, and service providers.

Robust Reporting and Analytics

Poynt offers robust reporting and analytics tools, giving businesses access to valuable insights about sales trends, customer behavior, and overall performance. These data-driven insights can help merchants make informed decisions about their business strategies and identify areas for improvement.

Location & Ownership

Osama Bedier is the founder and CEO of Poynt, which is headquartered at 4151 Middlefield Rd Floor 1, Palo Alto, California 94303.

Video Summary

Poynt point of sale
Poynt sells its own point-of-sale hardware and software combo
Pros & Cons
Pros: Cons:
Data security: Strong privacy policies. System failures: Prone to breakdowns.
Advanced hardware: Sleek, practical design. Report limitations: Limited reporting capabilities.
24/7 support: Efficient, responsive assistance. Technical issues: Some devices unreliable.
No extra fees: Simplified fee structure. Tax calculation errors: Inaccurate tax collections.
Versatile payments: Accepts diverse payment methods. Connectivity problems: Inconsistent payment processing.
App integration: Extensive business tools. Contract confusion: Unclear lease terms.

Poynt Customer Reviews

Here's What Their Clients Say

Customer Reviews Summary
Total Online Complaints 30+
Live Customer Support No
Most Common Complaint Product Malfunctions
Recent Lawsuits No

Product Malfunctions

We are currently able to locate over 30 negative Poynt reviews across various consumer protection websites, though none outright accuse the company of being a ripoff or a scam. Common complaints include persistent software and hardware malfunctions, poor customer service, and difficulty setting up the system. A consistent theme in these Poynt reviews seems to be frustration with constantly glitching devices that often load slowly or malfunction within the first few months of use. If you have your own Poynt review to make, please do so in the comments below.

Poynt Lawsuits

We have not found any outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints filed against Poynt. In 2016, the company was sued by Verifone for trademark infringement following its acquisition of the company Point International AB. However, Verifone’s lawsuit was unsuccessful when a federal judge ruled against them, and this lawsuit was not in regard to any of Poynt’s merchant services. Dissatisfied clients who wish to pursue a non-litigious course of action against the company should consider reporting it to the relevant supervisory organizations.

Poynt Customer Support Support Options

Poynt generally refers clients to the processor or agent who sold them the terminal for customer support, but it does offer technical support via a contact form and live chat feature on its website as well as a new phone number. The company’s FAQ page and dedicated “Help Center” section also provide information about the product. The company does appear to attempt to remedy complaints, particularly those that come through on its Facebook page. Although Poynt has a relatively low complaint total for a company that has been in business since 2014, many of the complaints are recent enough and echo severe enough issues to negatively impact Poynt’s score in this category.

Poynt customer support
Poynt offers a customer support form, a website chat, and a phone number

Poynt Online Ratings

Here's How They Rate Online

Online Ratings Summary
BBB Report 6

Under 5 Complaints

Poynt currently has an “A+” rating with the Better Business Bureau and does not receive BBB accreditation. The company has received 4 complaints in the last 36 months.

What Merchants Say

Poynt has also received 2 informal reviews, which are negative in tone. It should be noted that these reviews are not subject to authentication by the BBB. The most recent review describes faulty equipment and a poor response from customer service:

Very bad service, we got our machine on 4-28 , we start using it, then we called them because there is no option to do settlement and the guy told us it will do it automatically, the next day we is it and still no settlement and on the 3d day the machine stopped working and all the transactions still in the machine none of then went to our account made our checks pounced, I been calling and send them emails and all I get from them the same answer which is the issue been escalated to our team , it is been over a week now , what kind of company is this , and the funny thing is they have more 3 phone numbers and every time I call different number the same guy answer,

Merchants should review the best providers for customer service before entering into any contract as well as the reputation of a company’s sales tactics.

An “A” Overall

In light of the company’s low complaint total,  we agree with the BBB’s rating of an “A.” Merchants should note, however, that there are reasons to be skeptical of the BBB’s rating system.

Poynt Fees, Rates & Costs

A Closer Look at The Contract

Cost & Fees Summary
Cancellation Penalties No
Monthly & Annual Fees No
Processing Rates 1.00% - 4.99%
Equipment Leasing Possible through resellers

No Contract Terms

Poynt can be purchased at a variable cost from a business’ current provider and does not come with a linked merchant account. This means that Poynt does not charge any per-transaction fees, monthly fees, or cancellation fees, and there are no contract terms associated with its use. Poynt is simply a piece of equipment that connects to a client’s chosen credit card processor or existing POS system. Any additional fees that a business pays on a per-transaction or monthly basis will be charged by that business’ processor.

Avoid Equipment Leases

Like other smart terminals, it is likely that Poynt will be priced higher than conventional credit card swipers. However, the versatility of the product will likely justify any one-time purchase cost. If businesses are presented with an option to lease Poynt, then they are advised to scrutinize the terms of the lease carefully. Traditionally, equipment leases are occasions for providers to lock merchants into long-term contracts that end up costing much more than the equipment is actually worth. Although a Poynt terminal is worth more than a conventional terminal, it still isn’t worth paying thousands of dollars over the course of several years just to have one. In fact, most credit card terminals can be purchased for under $500.

Poynt Employee Reviews & Sales Tacitcs

Should You Work For Them?

Jobs & Marketing Summary
Uses Independent Resellers No
Telemarketing No
Misleading Marketing No
Discloses All Important Terms Yes

Removed From Sales Process

Poynt does not market directly to businesses. Instead, business owners can purchase Poynt through one of its partner processors if they wish. This means that Poynt is generally removed from the sales process. We therefore will assign the company a rating of “A” unless information emerges to suggest that the company is complicit in deceptive sales tactics.

Our Poynt Review Summary

Our Final Thoughts

Poynt rates as a quality point-of-sale system for credit card processing according to all available information, but it has received some complaints related to its setup process, regular device malfunctions, and poor customer service. Business owners should be sure to determine whether they are likely to make use of the product’s versatility before paying its higher-than-average purchase cost.

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Which is Most Important for You?

If you had to pick one, which quality would you say will be the most important with your next credit card processor? Tap or click your selection to register your vote:

  1. Low Transaction Fees
  2. No Monthly Fees
  3. No Contract
  4. Reliable Customer Support
  5. Quick Signup

Testimonials & Complaints

How Did Poynt Treat You?

16 User Reviews

  • JoeDes

    Ancient City Art Gallery LLC

    Absolutely the WORST decision I made when opening my business. I got caught up in the “GoDaddy” name and regret not understanding enough about possible issues. AMAZING how limited is the reporting! Updating the terminal doesn’t take. You have to delete an item and reenter rather than just trying to edit the one that already exists. YOU CAN’T RUN A REPORT TO EXPORT CLIENTS TO A LIST! The lack of a cohesive report to show products sold is ridiculous! You can’t run a report to show SKU’s sold! AVOID THIS PRODUCT LIKE THE PLAGUE!

  • Timothy Hughes

    I do not recommend poynt, I overlooked the bad reviews, due to the good ratings for equipment. This company has been nothing short of a nightmare. They are quick to take the customer’s money but very slow on returning funds.

  • Brian Heavens

    I’ve been dealing with poynt for 2 months regarding a tax issue. My state and city retail taxes are set at 13.5. Poynt is not collecting the proper amount. This leads me to Paying the gap out of pocket. For every ten thousand dollars they fail to collect about 500 dollars. I’ve talked to poynt four separate times. Each time I get a ticket number and I’m told it’s been elevated to urgent, the engineers are working on it.. I’ve yet to hear from anyone. I’ve lost money and more time than I care to admit. This is absolutely crazy. It has taken their engineers 2 months to give me no answer. Avoid this company if you can.

  • Phet Bouaravong

    I have bought a poynt smart terminal last month. Since then I had nothing but problem with it. It will process payment only half the time. I talk to there support technician, they seem clueless. They keep saying it has poor wifi connection, even though i got fiber optic and full bars. I even connected straight using Ethernet wire and still the same. I took the poynt terminal home and try it at my house, still they say the same thing, poor connection. I spoken to 5 tech spend hours on the phone with them and all of them don’t know what else they can do. They send me another one to replace it, and the new one wont even process any card at all. Call there support team, again no help. They are sending me another one to replace the other two. haha…
    This will be my last try, if the 3rd one dont work, I will try to get my money back. Because what good is a poynt terminal, if it cant process payment.

  • Jaron Rice

    FULL DISCLOSURE: I’m a Poynt reseller through Elavon. I have a number of them in the field and have seen some of them fail. The ones that have had issues thus far have been the 3G models. I’ve never had an issues with the WiFi models or the Poynt 5 handheld. I think the entire undertaking was ambitious and they probably launched a years sooner than they should have. That said, they recognized early on the issues they were having and have authorized Elavon to replace any failing units no questions asked. My clients were overnighted new devices. Elavon recently invested $100 million into Poynt and I’m confident that the investment will pay huge dividends. The best thing about the device in my opinion is the options you get. You can use it’s native register app, you can use eHopper POS, Lightning Register, Silver Fox POS, eThor, talech and a bunch of other POS softwares through this single device. Ultimately, it gives you freedom and flexibility unlike anything I’ve seen. I’m excited to see where it’s going.

  • Rebecca Sermon

    This is the worst device I’ve ever used. It can’t do the simple things it’s designed to do. Imagine buying a car and then finding out it comes with half a steering wheel. Then they tell you if you want to use it you have to spend hundreds of dollars per month to rent the other half from some third party developer. To make things worse the other half of the steering wheel has its own issues and never quite works correctly. I’m sorry to be so harsh but this company and its products are complete garbage. I have spent $1000s on multiple devices and none of them work. They will reboot randomly or simply crash while you are trying to make a charge. The worst is when an entire customer order doesn’t print in the kitchen and the staff looks around while the customer gets ready to walk out. I think I have spent more time fighting to keep customers while using this device than actually managing and running my business. There is also no customer support. I’m in the middle of getting a lawyer to null this contract and then go to Square Register as soon as possible. I would recommend you stay away from Poynt before you end up like all the rest of the reviews.


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  • Karen

    I’ve had fairly good success with my terminal, and for a “small” merchant this system is a good option, although a bit pricey. My biggest complaint of the terminal is the customer facing pinpad screen. It does not resemble your typical pinpads with the associated letters on the numbered keypad – only numbers. I find many of my customers use a 4 letter word to remember their pin and are stumped when they don’t see the letters. I have sent the suggestion to Poynt several times and each time get the same scripted response saying “this would be a great improvement and will escalate my request to the appropriate team”. So far no improvement (7 months later).


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  • Kerri Bauer

    I am sure the machine has potential but the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing. Horrible Service thru both Elavon and Poynt. I don’t believe it is ready to be launched. I am having the same problems as everyone else. It works, it doesn’t work, it takes cards it doesn’t take cards. Terribly disappointed in all of the companies involved. They all just pass the problems off to someone else. Nothing but stress.

  • Ty

    DO NOT BUY!! It is cute but it sucks. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesnt. It says card error, I call customer service they say reboot the machine. Then it declines cards. Customer service advised me ,it only takes cards with chips. That’s news to me it has been taking cards without chips for over 5 months. Second customer service person,(slightly better English )” We repaired a glitch”. It will take chipless cards now. Numerous other problems like dropping prices, modifiers, changing taxes. Now my BIGGEST problem I just looked at my bank account. Poynt made no deposits into my account for 14 days. Nothing new, everything else was deposited for months. It just stopped! Then I am told by very nice people, it was a Poynt software problem. They its fixed “it will not happen again “. Can you do without 14 days of business, I can’t. That is the only thing they got right. It will not happen again! Dont walk away from Poynt, RUN!!!!

  • Julia Park

    Very bad service. We have been told incorrect information by the people at POYNT, and we have had to figure things out ourselves. There are many things we still are trying to figure out, and we have been given incorrect answers, or no answers. There are serious problems with the functions and the design of the machine, and the worst part is they themselves cannot give any help. And the sales people don’t know how to use the machine at all.

  • Susan

    This was honestly a disappointment. I have had this terminal for less than month, and it’s no longer working properly. I called customer service, and spent roughly an hour looking for the solution to this problem, but they were no help. I tried asking for a refund, and they also didn’t accept that. It was the biggest mistake to get this. Take this review as a warning to never get this.

  • Mindy

    This system is very limited in what kind kind of storefront it can serve.
    It doesn’t have unit pricing programming options unless you pay for one of their TERRIBLE 3rd party apps they partnered with.
    If there are any connection errors, the system stalls and makes the checkout process even longer because they are sourcing all of your products from their website, rather than the device itself.
    If you have a large inventory of product items in one category, it is not able to scroll through them on the register app.
    This device need more development! I would suggest looking into another POS system that has been on the market longer, unless you like paying to work out the kinks.

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