Frequently asked questions

VoltaPOS is a cloud point-of-sale and back-office platform for South African shops: retail, bottle stores, delis, restaurants, and multi-site operators. You get native Windows and Android tills, a browser back office, reports, and optional VoltaBooks accounting. On Pro, products, staff, stock, and sales sit under one login, with no fee per feature module.

Go to Get started, enter your business name, email, and password. We create your organisation, apply a 14-day Pro trial with VoltaBooks included, and walk you through onboarding: business details, first location, sample or imported products, and pairing your first POS terminal. No credit card is required to start. Subscribe before the trial ends to keep access.

Back office (/login) is for owners and managers: dashboard, products, inventory, reports, settings, and billing. The same sign-in opens VoltaBooks when Books is enabled. Cashiers use the Volta POS app on Windows or Android. KDS login (/login/kds) opens kitchen or bar display screens. Staff invited to payroll use the Employee Portal (/employee/login) for payslips, leave, and roster.

Yes. The web POS and back office work in modern browsers on phones, tablets, and desktops. For a full-screen till experience, install the native Android POS app on a tablet. It uses the same UI, pairs from back office, and queues sales offline when Wi‑Fi drops. Kitchen teams can use the Android KDS app or open Kitchen Display login (/login/kds) in a browser.

Yes. VoltaPOS ships native Android and Windows apps for the till (Volta POS) and an Android kitchen display (Volta KDS). After you register, download them from Back office → Apps. Pair your terminal, sign in on the device, and trade as normal.

Any modern PC or laptop with Chrome or Edge works for the back office. For tills, use the native Windows or Android POS apps (and Android KDS for kitchens) for full-screen use and offline queue. On Android tills you can connect receipt, kitchen, and label printers over network, USB, or Bluetooth; USB/BT weighing scales for sold-by-weight; and Bluetooth barcode scanners for fast lookup. Configure devices per till in POS → Settings. You do not need proprietary terminal hardware. Pair each device from Terminals in back office.

Most owners complete first location, products, terminal pairing, and a test sale within an hour. Kitchen display, inventory, and loyalty add another 15–30 minutes each when you enable them. See Getting started on the homepage or the step-by-step guides for a full walkthrough.

New accounts get 14 days of VoltaPOS Pro with all modules enabled, plus VoltaBooks (accounting and SA payroll). The trial includes one location. Subscribe to Pro to add more sites. No credit card is required to start.

Pro is R400 per month per location. It includes unlimited SKUs and sales volume, all feature modules with no per-module activation fees, and up to two paired POS devices per location. Toggle inventory, kitchen display, loyalty, and loss prevention in Settings → Features. The subscription price stays the same.

VoltaBooks is R499 per month standalone. During your 14-day Pro trial, VoltaBooks is included at no extra cost. After trial, add it for R399 per month on top of Pro (R799 combined) from Billing, or subscribe to Books-only at R499 if you do not use the till.

Each Pro subscription covers one location with up to two paired tills. Extra locations are R400 per month each (requires Pro). If you need more than two paired devices at one site, buy extra device slots at R79 per month per device per location. Manage add-ons from Billing.

Payment Gateway is an optional add-on (not included in the Pro module price). It lets you send Pay online links from the till and pay links on customer invoices using Payfast, PayGate, or Yoco. Billing is R100 per month per location that has Payment Gateway enabled. Money settles to your own merchant account. Volta never holds customer card funds.

If you do not subscribe, the till and back-office changes are paused. Reports remain viewable. Advanced modules turn off until you renew. Your data (products, sales history, settings) is retained. Subscribe from Billing to restore full access immediately.

VoltaPOS uses shift-based trading: each cashier opens a shift with a starting float on a terminal, records sales during the shift, then closes with a cash-up. Completed and parked sales require an open shift so reports, cash reconciliation, and loss-prevention data stay accurate per cashier and terminal.

Park saves the current basket without completing payment, which is useful for tables or customers stepping away. The first park prints a bill and sends the order to the kitchen. Recalling the ticket and parking it again updates the kitchen but does not reprint. Use Print bill from the ticket menu if the guest wants another check. Removing a line from a parked ticket needs the parked-ticket remove permission, or a manager PIN (managers skip the PIN). Voiding the whole ticket needs the void permission, or a PIN from someone who has void. Both actions are audited, and the kitchen display scratches only the removed line.

Yes. The first time you park a ticket it prints a bill. On an open or recalled ticket you can also use the ticket menu to print the bill (or tax invoice preview) without completing payment. Parking a recalled ticket again does not reprint. The sale stays open so you can still take payment, tip, or park again.

Yes. Enable tipping under Settings → Tipping for locations that need it. Staff can add a tip during payment (presets or custom amount) according to your house rules. Tip totals appear on cash-up and reports where tipping is entitled.

The till supports cash, card, and any custom tenders you configure in Settings → Payment methods, for example EFT or house accounts. Each tender can have its own label, icon, and cash-up bucket. Split payments across methods on one sale. When Payment Gateway is enabled for the location, Pay online appears as a tender so staff can send a WhatsApp pay link. Payment mix appears on the dashboard and in sales-by-payment reports.

Yes. Open Review receipts, choose Refund, and tick the lines to return. Staff without refund permission are prompted for a PIN from someone who can refund. You can refund part of a quantity when more than one of the same item was sold. Remaining items stay on the ticket for a later refund. Tip is only included when you refund everything still outstanding.

Yes. Products can be set to sold by weight (kg or g). Staff enter the weight at checkout and the till calculates the line total. Open or variable price products let staff type the selling price on the till, useful for deli counters, daily specials, or market pricing. Both work alongside modifiers, loyalty, and split payments.

Depends on staff permissions set in back office. Voids are logged with staff identity. On a new ticket, removing a line needs the remove-line permission. On a parked ticket, staff need the separate parked-ticket remove permission, or a manager PIN. Voiding a parked ticket needs the void permission, or a PIN from someone who has void. Managers review void and removal patterns in Reports.

Create modifier groups in back office (e.g. size, extras) and attach them to products. On the till, adding a product with modifiers opens the modifier picker; price deltas apply to the line. Modifier sales appear in reports by modifier and option.

Turn on Payment Gateway under Settings → Features (or Billing if you manage add-ons there). Open Settings → Payment Gateway, enable each location that should send pay links, then connect Payfast, PayGate, or Yoco with your merchant credentials. Mark the provider connected, set a default if you use more than one, and Save. For Payfast and PayGate, copy the Webhook / notify URL shown on that page into the provider account. It must be Volta’s URL so the sale can complete. Yoco registers the webhook automatically on Save. Each enabled location is billed at R100/mo.

Payfast, PayGate, and Yoco. You use your own merchant accounts and keys. Customers pay on that provider’s checkout; settlement goes to you. Volta only creates the link, shows the branded pay page, and marks the sale paid when the provider confirms payment.

With a shift open, ring up the sale, tap Charge → Pay online, enter the customer’s WhatsApp number, then Create link & open WhatsApp (or Send via WhatsApp Business API if Communications is connected). The ticket moves to Open sales as awaiting payment. When the customer pays, Volta completes the sale, updates stock, and prints the tax invoice.

No. Without Communications connected, staff still use Create link & open WhatsApp (wa.me) with a ready-made message. Settings → Communications is optional: connect Phone number ID, WABA ID, access token, and an approved utility template to enable one-tap Send via WhatsApp Business API on the till.

The ticket stays under Open sales until paid, voided, or the pay link expires (about 60 minutes). Any till at the location can recall an awaiting ticket. Recalled awaiting tickets are not editable like a normal park. Take another payment method or void if you need to cancel.

Yes. Customers → Invoices in the back office can include a pay link so clients settle deposits or accounts online. The same provider keys and location enablement apply. Those invoices are separate from the invoices you raise inside VoltaBooks.

Each sellable item needs a unique SKU and name. Categories control POS layout (category buttons on the till) and can be hidden from POS without deleting products. Use consistent SKU naming (e.g. BEV-WATER-500) for imports and integrations.

Yes. On Products, use CSV import. Required columns are SKU and name, with price, cost, barcode, category, and location when you have them. You get a preview and choose which rows to import. Categories in the file are created if missing. A Shopify-style export (Handle and Default price) is accepted too.

A composite product is sold as one item but built from ingredients (e.g. burger, platter, case-break). Define a recipe on the product with ingredient quantities and yield percent; cost rolls up from ingredient costs. When you sell a composite, ingredient stock deducts automatically if advanced inventory is enabled.

Yes. Upload a product image in back office and it appears on the till category grid, which helps cafés, bakeries, and retail where staff recognise items faster. Prefer 400×225 (16:9); uploads are auto-cropped, compressed to WebP, and synced to paired terminals.

Products can track each, pack, and case with conversion factors, which is common for bottle stores and wholesalers. Receive stock in cases on a GRV, sell singles on the till; inventory converts using your units-per-pack and units-per-case settings. Set UOM on the product form under advanced inventory.

Open Suppliers → Goods receipts → New, or receive against a purchase order. Add supplier lines with quantities, then enter either the unit cost or the invoice line total. The other field updates automatically. Posting the GRV increases on-hand quantity and updates weighted average cost (WAC) for each product at that location. On the till, Menu → Receive stock needs the receive-stock permission, or a PIN from someone who has it. Every change writes to Products → Movements.

Start a count session for a location, enter counted quantities per product (supports UOM entry), and complete the session. VoltaPOS calculates variance vs system stock and posts adjustment movements to your inventory audit log.

Production turns ingredients into composite products without a sale, for example prep kitchen batches or breaking cases into singles. Choose a recipe-based product, enter quantity to produce, and confirm. Ingredient stock decreases and finished goods increase according to the BOM.

From Products → Transfers, create a transfer from one location to another, add line items and quantities, then send it. Stock decreases at the sending site immediately. The receiving location marks the transfer as received when goods arrive. Stock increases there and the movement is logged at both ends. Staff with the inter-branch transfers permission can also send and receive from Menu → Transfers on the till. The trail is in Products → Movements.

When you set reorder levels on products, VoltaPOS flags items below minimum in Reports → Low stock & reorder and on the dashboard. Suppliers → Suggested orders groups products by supplier so you can raise a purchase order from current stock and your reorder levels.

In Settings → Opening stock count you can require a blind count of selected high-value products (for example premium spirits) before a shift opens, before it closes, or both. Staff enter the count from Menu → Stock count on the till. This sits alongside full stock counts in Products → Stock counts, goods receipts, and transfers.

Create one under Suppliers → Purchase orders and add the supplier lines. Mark ordered when you place it. When the delivery arrives, use Receive to GRV, check the costs on the draft goods receipt, then post. Posting updates on-hand quantity and weighted average cost. Suggested orders can start the purchase order when stock is under the reorder level.

Products → Movements lists every adjustment with reason (GRV, sale, count, production, transfer, manual). Filter by product, location, and date. Use this for stock audits and for checking a delivery or a count against what the system recorded.

On Pro (or during trial), open Settings → Features and turn on Kitchen display. Then go to Settings → Kitchen displays to create stations (e.g. Grill, Bar, Cold prep) and route product categories to each station.

Parking a ticket and taking payment both send line items to the kitchen, routed by product category. Each KDS station only shows tickets for categories assigned to it. Parking the same ticket again updates the kitchen and does not print another customer bill. On the kitchen device, open Kitchen Display login (/login/kds), sign in with your back office owner or manager account, choose your display, and tickets appear with prep timers.

Yes. Create multiple stations and assign category routes. One category can broadcast to several displays at once, which is useful when every pass screen should see takeaway tickets. Reports include kitchen prep time metrics when KDS is active.

The Android KDS app caches tickets after first sign-in and continues showing the queue when internet drops. When cloud sync is unavailable, the till can push tickets to kitchen tablets over your local network (LAN). Browser KDS at /login/kds requires an active connection.

Staff can attach a kitchen-only note to a line item on the till (e.g. allergy or cooking instruction). The note appears on KDS tickets but not on the customer receipt, so the pass stays informed and the printed bill stays clean.

Enable loyalty in Settings → Features, then configure the program under Settings → Loyalty & discounts. On the till, open Menu → Customer / loyalty and link a member by phone. Rewards apply only when a customer is attached. Walk-in sales with no linked member do not earn points or trigger free-item rules.

Yes. In Settings → Loyalty & discounts, create a rule with reward type free item, trigger product purchase, set buy quantity (e.g. 5) and free quantity (e.g. 1) on the product you choose. When a linked member has bought enough paid units, the next matching item they enter on the ticket is free. The till does not add an extra drink they did not order.

Both live under Settings → Loyalty & discounts. Promotions apply discounts (percent off, amount off, or promo codes) with optional active days of the week. On the till they are under Menu → Discounts & codes. Loyalty is member-based: points, visit bonuses, and free-item rules that require a linked customer. Both can run on the same ticket when configured.

Managers can always add members in back office. On the till, cashiers need the register loyalty members permission (Supervisor/Manager tiers by default). Members can be created at POS with name and phone for quick signup at the counter.

Voided sales, items removed from tickets (with staff and terminal), parked-ticket removals, refunds, shift floats, cashups, cash payouts, and cash pay-ins. Reports include voids, removed from ticket, shrinkage by product, and an employee dossier. Cashup can be blind when the role cannot view expected totals.

Parked orders are a common shrinkage vector. Removing a line from a parked ticket is a separate permission from removing a line on a new ticket. Staff without that permission need a manager PIN. Voiding the ticket also needs the void permission or a PIN from someone who has void. Both are audited, and the kitchen display scratches only that line.

Open Reports and use the removed-items section. Filter by date range and location. Each entry shows product, quantity, staff email, terminal, and timestamp. Cross-check with void reports and shift cash-ups for patterns.

In back office go to Terminals → Add terminal, choose location and name. A 6-digit pairing code appears (expires after a set time). On the device, open POS login, enter the code and a device identifier. Pro allows two paired devices per location, with optional extra slots from Billing.

Settings → POS role tiers has Cashier, Supervisor, and Manager, and you can change each permission. The list is: process sales, park tickets, void, discounts, refunds, remove lines, remove lines on parked tickets, view shift receipts, open and close shifts, record cashups, view cashup expected totals, receive stock on the till, inter-branch transfers, opening stock counts, loyalty lookup, register members, edit the till layout, and terminal settings. A cashier can sell, park, discount, look up loyalty, and cash up without seeing the expected total. Supervisors add voids, refunds, line removals, expected cashup totals, member registration, and opening counts. Managers also open shifts, receive stock, transfer between branches, edit the till layout, and change terminal settings. Actions the role lacks still appear on the till and ask for a PIN from someone who has them. Up to five staff can be linked to a till for PIN quick-switch.

Each paired till has a terminal record with location, device ID, and active session. Sales, voids, removals, and shifts attach to the terminal and staff email. Reports break down performance by terminal, which helps on multi-till sites and when you are checking a discrepancy.

Create locations in back office. Products can be global or location-specific. Terminals belong to one location. Reports and dashboard filter by location. Each Pro subscription covers one location; add extra location slots from Billing as you grow.

Sales totals, trends, payment mix, top products, and a terminal breakdown. When inventory is on, you also see stock value and low-stock signals. Filter by date range and location. New businesses see a setup checklist until the core steps are complete.

Sales: overview, category, item, payment type, modifier, receipts, refunds, gross profit, promotions, taxes, and loyalty when that module is on. Financials: cashup, cash payouts, cash pay-ins, and shifts. Operations: voids, removed from ticket, open parked tickets, and kitchen prep time when KDS is on. Inventory: stock valuation, stock movements, transfers, low stock and reorder, and shrinkage by product. Staff: sales by employee and terminal, and an employee dossier. Filter by date and location, then export PDF or CSV.

Invite them as a back-office user, or enable VoltaBooks for full accounting. Export sales history from back office for external systems if needed.

Yes. Full SA payroll is included in your VoltaBooks subscription at no extra per-employee fee. Add employees, run monthly pay runs, and download payslips. You do not need a separate payroll product.

Each pay run calculates PAYE (income tax), UIF (employee and employer portions), and SDL (Skills Development Levy) using South African rules. You can also record pension fund and medical aid deductions per employee.

Yes. Set each employee as salary (fixed monthly gross) or hourly. For hourly staff, enter hours per period or import a timesheet CSV before you run payroll. Casual, part-time, contract, and permanent employment types are supported.

VoltaBooks builds EMP201-style monthly summaries from your processed pay runs: PAYE, UIF, and SDL totals, with a due-date reminder on your dashboard. Download an EMP201 PDF for your records and mark months as filed. IRP5 draft export is available for year-end preparation.

After you process a pay run, export a salary payment file formatted for your bank: generic bulk payment, FNB beneficiary upload, Capitec bulk payment, or Standard Bank. Files use each employee's bank account details stored on their profile.

VoltaBooks tracks annual, sick, family, and parental leave balances with monthly accrual from each employee's start date. Staff can request leave in the Employee Portal (calendar days; fixed SA public holidays excluded); managers approve or adjust days in Books. Leave taken in a pay period flows onto the payslip. Staff loans and advances can be set up with repayments deducted automatically when you run payroll.

Yes. Invite staff to the Employee Portal from payroll. They sign in at /employee/login to view payslips, request leave, see published rosters, download warning PDFs, and acknowledge warnings.

Yes. Publish shift rosters in VoltaBooks, then pull hours into the pay run for hourly staff so you pay from the schedule you already set. Timesheet CSV import is still available when you need it.

Yes. When you finalize a pay run, VoltaBooks creates salary and payroll tax expense entries in your books (net salaries, PAYE, UIF, SDL, and employer costs), so your accounts stay up to date without manual journals.

VoltaBooks is cloud accounting for South African businesses. It covers payroll (PAYE, UIF, SDL, payslips, EMP201), an employee portal, leave and rosters, VAT, invoices, quotes, credit notes, supplier bills, bank reconciliation, POS reconciliation of shift cashups, fixed assets, recurring transactions, loans, budgets, and financial reports. Purchases → Products & stock shows the live VoltaPOS catalogue for invoices and quotes.

Each till sale is not posted as its own invoice. Shift totals do come across. In VoltaBooks open Business → POS reconciliation, link the company to the shop, then Import from POS. You review each shift (cash, card, EFT, payouts, and pay-ins) and post the ones you want on the ledger. Line-level sales stay in VoltaPOS reports if you need the detail.

No. VoltaBooks works standalone at R499/month. Most retail clients run both: Pro for the till and inventory, Books for compliance and management accounts. Bundled pricing applies when Pro is already active.

Keep suppliers in the back office under Suppliers. Goods receipts use that list. When VoltaBooks is on, posting a goods receipt can send the supplier bill into Books, so the amount you owe shows with your other bills.

Purchases → Products & stock in VoltaBooks is the live VoltaPOS catalogue, used on invoices and quotes. Change names, prices, and stock in VoltaPOS, then use Refresh from POS in Books to reload the list.

Settings → Features lists modules: advanced inventory, kitchen display, loyalty, and advanced loss prevention, all included on Pro with no per-module fees. Payment Gateway is a separate paid add-on (R100/mo per enabled location). VoltaBooks is included during your Pro trial; after trial it requires a Books subscription (standalone or Pro add-on). Without an active subscription, advanced modules are unavailable until you renew.

Organisation tax enabled/disabled and VAT percentage live in Settings. The till and sale sync use these values when calculating line tax and totals. Update before go-live if your business is VAT registered.

Each organisation is isolated with Postgres row-level security. POS APIs require authenticated paired terminals. See our Privacy & POPIA page for collection, retention, and deletion requests.