- Short answer
- Partly — supported readers sync with Shopify, external terminals charge outside it; Shopify-listed printers and drawers and most HID scanners stay.
- External terminal
- Allowed on your provider's account; payment runs outside Shopify, and Shopify shows only the payment status, no transaction details.
- Printers and cash drawers
- Shopify supports named models: Star Micronics and Epson printers; Star Micronics, VPOS and Kingly drawers by region.
- Barcode scanners
- Most HID scanners work, bought from a third-party seller in any region — not all.
- Reader to budget
- Shopify Tap & Chip is $49 and US only; which other supported readers you get depends on country.
Will your old card reader work with Shopify POS?
Shopify supports readers by region — their transactions sync with Shopify automatically: the Tap & Chip in the US, the WisePad 3 and POS Terminal in the countries Shopify lists for each, and the Verifone Victa Mobile in the US, Canada, Ireland and the UK. No Shopify hardware help page we checked in September 2026 — card readers, choosing a reader, barcode scanners, receipt printers, cash drawers and getting started — names Square, Clover or Lightspeed readers as compatible or incompatible.
Shopify also allows an external terminal from a payment provider: "You can use Shopify POS with a Shopify-supported card reader or an unsupported external card reader."
With an external reader, payment is processed by your terminal provider outside of Shopify, and Shopify shows only the payment status, no transaction details. An external terminal is also the route in regions where Shopify Payments and Shopify-supported card readers aren't available.
Which printers, scanners and cash drawers carry over?
Peripherals are judged by model, not by the system they came from. "Shopify POS supports most HID barcode scanners," bought from a third-party seller in any region.
Printers and cash drawers follow named lists, including several Star Micronics TSP143 models, the mC-Print3 and Epson's TM-m30III, TM-T20 and TM-T88 series; Star Micronics, VPOS and Kingly drawers by region. Check your device's model number against Shopify's lists.
What do you need to buy when you switch?
To take cards through Shopify, budget a supported reader — the Tap & Chip costs $49, US only; elsewhere, a reader Shopify supports in your country — and, if your current tablet falls short, a host device: an iPad from Generation 5, iPad Air from Generation 2, iPad mini from Generation 4 or any iPad Pro on iPadOS 15.1 or higher, or Android 10.0 or higher with Google Play Services and Google Mobile Services activated. A supported reader needs Shopify Payments and an active store on a paid plan in a supported country; Pause and Build and development stores don't qualify.
Price replacements for printers or drawers missing from Shopify's lists. Where your country has no Shopify hardware store, buy supported models from a verified third-party retailer. Our Shopify POS hardware guide covers a full new counter.
This article was written entirely by AI under human editorial direction. The editor sets the topic and structure, runs multi-stage validation on facts, links, and interactive elements, and verifies the output is useful from a business perspective. All claims are checked against official Shopify sources. Details may change — always confirm critical data at shopify.com.
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