PayPal POS (ex Zettle) vs ShoWorks™
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PayPal POS (ex Zettle)
This app allows businesses to accept in-person payments via card, contactless, and e-wallets. It also helps manage inventory, track sales with reports, and create staff accounts. Integrations are available for accounting, e-commerce, and specific industries.
- Accept card and contactless payments
- Inventory management
- Sales tracking and reporting
- Staff account creation
- Customizable receipts
- Tap to Pay functionality
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The PayPal POS app (ex Zettle) empowers you to easily and seamlessly accept in-person payments. From accepting card, contactless, e-wallet payments to tracking sales, PayPal POS has a suite of payment solution to fit your business' needs. Whether you’re running a coffee shop, clothing store or barber shop, PayPal POS is the one app you need accept payments, manage inventory, and track sales in one complete app. No monthly fees, no set-up costs and no lock-in contracts. The PayPal POS app is free to download and comes with a range of features: • Simplify your inventory management with an intuitive product library • Accept contactless payments with TTP or accept payment types including card, contactless, e-wallets, and more with the Card Reader or Terminal • Customize receipts and print, text or email them to your customers • Collect sales data and use easy-to-understand reports to grow your business • Create multiple staff accounts to track individuals’ sales • Benefit from a wide range of integrations, including Accounting and E-commerce integrations as well as integrations specially tailored for restaurants, retail, and health & beauty business How do I get started? 1. Download the PayPal POS app and sign up for an account 2. Start taking card payments immediately with TTP, or order your PayPal Reader, with rapid delivery (2-3 working days) Tap to Pay: Quickly and easily capture contactless in-person payments on-the-go with just your phone and the Point of Sale app. Just download the app and start selling. No storefront or additional hardware required. PayPal Reader and Dock: The new PayPal Reader and Dock are quick to set up and easy to use, allowing you to accept all major credit cards and contactless payments - including Apple Pay. A clear pricing model without fixed costs or fixed contracts. The PayPal Reader meets all requirements from the payment industry and is EMV-approved and PCI DSS-compliant. *A stable WiFi and Bluetooth connection may be required
ShoWorks™
This companion app streamlines event management for fairs and livestock shows. It allows for easy check-in, judging, and updating of exhibits by syncing with desktop software. Utilize your device's camera for quick scanning and efficient data management.
- Entry management for events
- Check-in and judge exhibits
- Syncs with desktop software
- Barcode scanning via camera
- Kiosk check-in functionality
- Animal weigh-in and placing
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ShoWorks is the world’s leading entry management software for fairs, festivals, livestock shows, and exhibitions. Manage, check-in and judge exhibits with this “must have” tool by swiping ribbons, places, weights, and more, onto entries downloaded from your existing ShoWorks fair management software for Windows. Not a ShoWorks user? Start your FREE trial today. How does ShoWorks work? • Install the full client version of ShoWorks onto any Windows machine. • Receive entries to your show via the built-in online entries website or manual data entry, letting exhibitors optionally print their barcoded receipts and entry tags. • Use this free iPad app as a companion to manage and update these entries in various ways, such as kiosk check-in, animal weigh-in, judging and placing, and more. • Use the existing built-in iPad camera to scan barcoded tags and receipts for quick access. • Sync the changes back to the client version of ShoWorks where you can complete the process of distributing awards and reports for your participants. Requires ShoWorks for Windows.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ShoWorks™ at 100% against PayPal POS (ex Zettle)'s 50%. ShoWorks™ also leads on rating (4.5 vs 3.2). PayPal POS (ex Zettle)'s advantage is ratings volume (1.2K vs 2) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ShoWorks™ holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: PayPal POS (ex Zettle) has 1.2K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of PayPal POS (ex Zettle)'s written reviews are positive against 100% of ShoWorks™'s.
PayPal POS (ex Zettle) ships an update every 3 weeks, ShoWorks™ every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PayPal POS (ex Zettle) | ShoWorks™ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.2 (1.2K ratings) | 4.5 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.4% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.2K — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 4 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 159 MB | 163 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | PayPal, Inc. | Gladstone Inc. |
Customer experience
PayPal POS (ex Zettle)
ShoWorks™
Bugs and requests
PayPal POS (ex Zettle)
Reported bugs
6 issues- App crashes after update
- Constant update notifications despite updating
- Inability to login
- Inability to access money for days
- Zettle staff can access all past PayPal invoices
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- Barcode scanner not working with existing products
Requested features
10 requests- Auto file delivery after invoice payment
- Repeat payments (easy tips) in USA
- Dark mode
- Ability to categorize products
- Ability to apply tax rate to all products at once
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- Ability to link Zettle with other platforms
- Ability to process cash sales offline
- Ability to split payments
- Ability to manually enter card details
- Ability to customize receipts
ShoWorks™
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
PayPal POS (ex Zettle)
No in-app purchases
ShoWorks™
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is PayPal POS (ex Zettle) free?
Is ShoWorks™ free?
Which has better reviews, PayPal POS (ex Zettle) or ShoWorks™?
Do PayPal POS (ex Zettle) or ShoWorks™ have ads?
Which is updated more often, PayPal POS (ex Zettle) or ShoWorks™?
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