| Concern | A free POS app | PosMasr |
|---|---|---|
| The product list | Often starts empty: you type names, prices and barcodes | A catalogue of 50,000+ Egyptian products with names, barcodes and categories, many with pictures; you type your prices |
| Bringing your old list | Check whether it imports | Excel or CSV with any column names, another program's database or an old PosMasr copy, with a preview |
| Taking your data out | Check whether it exports | Export any day; online, "Download a copy" on every plan, even after you stop paying |
| If the service changes or ends | Check what its page says happens to your data | Your data is in files on your PC, or in a full download online |
| The receipt printer | You may have to find the driver | Since 5.1 the installer sets up the common USB receipt printers by itself |
| No internet | Depends on the app | The PC program never needs it; the online till keeps selling and syncs later |
| When the free app is enough | It passes the four checks and does what your shop needs | — |
Where the hours go
A free cashier program costs nothing on the day you download it. The bill comes in evenings instead. You spend them choosing and installing the software, getting the printer to work and learning where the discount, the return and the daily close are hidden.
The biggest line is entering the products, and it grows with every product you sell. Then come the cashiers to teach, and months of credit, supplier accounts and sales history: the one thing you cannot type again.
When free ends
Free services end in ordinary ways: a new version drops the free tier, limits appear, the app stops being updated, or the company is bought and the product closed. None of that is a scandal. What decides the damage is whether you can take your data with you. If yes, you lose a few days learning a new program. If not, you start from zero, and the balances and history do not come back.
A paid program can waste the same hours, and a free one can save them. So the useful question is not "free or paid?" but "how many hours before the first sale, and do I keep them if I leave?"
Four checks for any program, free or paid
Each takes a few minutes. Do them in the first week, while there are ten products in the program:
- Can it import? Bring ten rows in from a file you already have.
- Can it export? Add ten products and one sale, export them and open the file in Excel.
- What happens when it ends? Find the page that says what happens to your data when the free tier stops or you stop using it.
- Where does the data live? On your PC, on their servers, or both.
How PosMasr answers the four checks
PosMasr includes an import wizard for up to 20,000 rows, with a column map and a preview before anything is written.
Your data is in files on your PC, and online you can download a full copy on every plan, even after you stop paying. You can also move between the PC program and PosMasr Online in either direction.
Who this is not for
- If a free app already passes the four checks and fits your shop, keep it.
- Shops outside Egypt: PosMasr is built for shops in Egypt, with prices in EGP.
- Anyone who needs the PC program on a Mac or Linux, as the PC program is Windows only.
Quick questions
Is PosMasr free?
No. You get a 14-day free trial with no card, then the PC program costs from 1,838 EGP once at the launch price until 31 December 2026 (list 2,450), or PosMasr Online from 125 EGP a month. See the pricing page for the current price.
How fast can I start selling?
You tick the products you sell in the catalogue and type your prices, a few seconds a product. Our estimate is that a shop opens in under an hour; it is an estimate, so time yourself on the trial.
Can I bring my products from a free app?
Yes, if it exports a file. PosMasr reads Excel or CSV with any column names and shows a preview first.
What if I stop using PosMasr?
Export everything any day. Online, you can download a full copy on every plan, even after you stop paying.
Does the catalogue include prices?
No. It has names, barcodes, categories and pictures, never prices. You type your own.
Run the four checks on PosMasr yourself.
Try it free for 14 days, no card: download the PC program or start the online trial. The full worked example is in our article “Free” POS software is paid for in hours.
