# Ovation Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Is Ovation the right iPad POS solution for you? Explore 26 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice. Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/186221/Vital-POS/reviews --- Ovation 3 (26) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/186221/Vital-POS/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Reviews of Ovation Ease of use 2.9 Customer Service 3.0 ## Pros and Cons in Reviews KJ Keith J CEORestaurants, 2 - 10 employeesUsed the software for: 1-2 years. “Unable to integrate with ecommerce stores or other apps (grubhub, doordash, etc).“ March 12, 2021 ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 1-25 of 26 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use AB Andrew B. Optometrist Health, Wellness and Fitness Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "More flexibility" September 27, 2019 4.0 We have realized flexibility, more modern process with patients. Pros We were able to have two stations that batched together. This allows a faster closing at the end of the day. We can move around with in the clinic to take payments and are not tethered to the wall. Cons Still need a little improvement on tracking transactions by name. Alternatives considered [Square Virtual Terminal](https://www.capterra.com/p/190305/Square-Payments-Processing/) Reason for choosing Ovation We could maintain the relationship with our processor which had better pricing. Switched from [Elavon](https://www.capterra.com/p/183057/Elavon/) we needed an all in one batching solution. If we had gone with another base terminal it would have had separate batches. Review Source RB Robin B. CEO Veterinary Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "More than what we need. " October 23, 2019 4.0 The only real benefit are the things listed above. My business runs a practice management software that we also have to enter the payments in, so many of the features on the Vital are redundant or unneeded for us. To be honest, I really liked my old-fashioned POS terminal better since 90% of what we do is hand-entry. Pros I like that the terminal is handheld, and smaller. I like that it doesn't use as much paper and gives you the option to email receipts. I like that it has a chip reader, a swipe option, tap option, and hand entry. We use all of those in our business. Cons I don't like that the hand-entry option is hard to use with a small number pad. The screen itself is small, making it a little difficult to do hand-entry quickly. In our office, most clients are calling in with a card number, and this slows us down. Also, the battery does not last very long. We are in the red by the end of the day, and we are not overly taxing on the machine. Often, we run only a few cards a day (less than 10). Returns/refunds are a complete nightmare. There is no way to do them on the terminal. It's a slow and tedious process. The reports are hard to use and some of them only offer an export option, no printing. Review Source DR Debra R. Owner Manufacture Mobile Saddle Fitter Recreational Facilities and Services Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Don't walk away instead run like hellfire" January 29, 2026 1.0 Our prior company was bought out by Ovation. We will now seek another way to run credit sales. Your company owes ours period Pros If I could give you a -0- I would. We have spent many HOURS on hold waiting for a HUMAN. Your hand-held processing is a out-right thief to my company. Cons The office processing we had no issue however, the mobile machine spits out the customer receipts to the customer but the funds did not appear in my bank account. We are missing conservatively about $3000 in mobile transactions. My office manager has been on the phone at this very moment to cancel the account and to arrange the return of the hand held device that takes to master. She has been on the phone for 2 hours 20 minutes this morning to talk to a person then long holds, passed to yet another, long hold again. This is unacceptable, the operators are VERY hard to understand. Can you tell that I am a bit ticked off. Debra owner Crest Ridge Saddlery LLC Switched from [ApplicantStack](https://www.capterra.com/p/264567/ApplicantStack/) FORCED. Your company purchased Swipe simple Review Source GC Grace C. Operations Manager Health, Wellness and Fitness Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Very Happy Client" February 5, 2020 5.0 My banker had suggested this comapny and I was going to just get a quote to begin with but they were able to offer al the services I've ever dreamed of having and still be less expensive then the current one terminal system we currently had. Pros Fees are the lowest I have ever been charged by a credit card processing company, on boarding and customer service has been amazing, security is one of the best in the world, and the functionality of the system has been spot on and exactly what our office needed. Plus the options for our patients to make recurring payments or create a wallet for future use has been very beneficial. Cons It was a bit of a learning curve as far as figuring out what reports to run to balance, and some payments online can be made after hours so the #'s can be different from when I closed the night before (not a bad thing just more work in figuring out) Also because the site is so secure we can had troubles accessing it and have been told it's because the URL has changed. Review Source CN Clay N. Owner Construction Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Unbelievable " February 9, 2025 1.0 Waste of time and money. Had to quit taking card payments. Pros Nothing. Have had nothing but a horrible experience with ovation. Cons Missing deposit, outrageous fees, scanner never stayed linked to my phone. Switched from [QuickBooks Online](https://www.capterra.com/p/190778/QuickBooks-Online/) Bank recommendation, horrible business decision on my part. Review Source LL Lee L. Owner Restaurants Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Vital POS System - Not for a full service restaurant" December 11, 2019 1.0 The commitments made by our ISA (independent Sales Agent) have turned out not to be true. There is no local support (Los Angeles). The only support is an 800 number which turns out to be a call in center in Ireland. After repeated calls, all of our issues can not be fixed. I am left with a POS system that does not function in a full service restaurant. I am locked into contracts and leases and no one at TSYS will return my calls. Pros The Vital POS platform is wholly owned by TSYS, a global merchant processor. The software is backed by a large Company with deep resources. Cons It simply does not work for a full service restaurant. - duplicate tickets are sent to the kitchen. - added gratuities (for large parties) can not be handled correctly by the software. - no security on tickets. Any server can simply Void a check. - There is a LOUD tone that emanates from the system when a check is printed. Can not be turned off. - There are discrepancies when totaling employee time. Reason for choosing Ovation Vital was chosen on the advise of the Independent Sales Agent who is a Representative for TSYS Merchant Services. The POS system and merchant services were presented as a bundle. Review Source KJ Keith J. CEO Restaurants Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Food Establishment - BEWARE! NOT THE POS SYSTEM FOR YOU" March 12, 2021 1.0 Should have went with other POS system Pros I was excited to get this system based on the features that were on the website and told by the sales rep. The cost for the system was within my budget. I am not happy with this system at all. Cons No Gift Cards as promised No Loyalty program as promised Unable to get accurate reports with detail Inventory management is a joke Unable to integrate with ecommerce stores or other apps (grubhub, doordash, etc). Never informed about system updates. When it updates and you go to take a payment , the system crashes and you will be kicked out and will have to log completely back in. You then will need to close batch and set up system again. The scanner never works The list goes on. Alternatives considered [Square Point of Sale](https://www.capterra.com/p/275802/Square-Point-of-Sale/)[Clover](https://www.capterra.com/p/226864/Clover/)[Toast POS](https://www.capterra.com/p/136301/Toast-POS/) Reason for choosing Ovation Promises made by the rep and the company. Review Source MA Michael A. Owner Food & Beverages Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Unreliable " April 20, 2023 1.0 Terrible would never recommend to anyone. Pros At this point there are no Pros for this product. Cons Completely unreliable, at least once a week every one of my three card readers would stop connecting to the phone or tablet being used. The solution, uninstall the app and start over. This culminated in one third of an entire days sales being lost. Reason for choosing Ovation It was recommended by my bank. Review Source SR SCOTT R. Owner Transportation/Trucking/Railroad Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Buggy and Poor Support" September 24, 2019 1.0 Pros Blue tooth connected swipers. Blue tooth swipers Cons Everything else. Daily issues. Issues connecting. Issues with payments processing properly. When it does work there are constant double charges because the app doesn't show the charge went through, even after checking the history so it's run again and then run twice. This upsets our customers, makes us look bad, and creates accounting issues and forces us to issue constant refunds. No help from customer service. Most times our staff is unable to use the app with a credit card on site and are forced to call in the card info leaving us unable to swipe cards, which because I was paying more to process the card because it wasn't swiped, which is the whole point of having swipers. Review Source DR Dennis R. Optometrist Hospital & Health Care Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Mislead about PAX" December 10, 2019 3.0 Pros Fast deposits to bank account; money is in account in 24 hours. Cons It freezes up. I spent 1 hour and 40 minutes on the phone when it froze up last time. Customer service is horrible! Also, I was misled by a salesperson. I made it perfectly clear that this was an optometry office and that my patients use HSA cards. I was assured that this was not a problem. After signing a lease for PAX 500, it was set up and when we went to process our first HSA transaction, it didn't work. I called to find out what the problem was and was then told that this unit is not designed to accept HSA cards. What a waste! I now have to use a different machine to run HSA cards. How deceiving. Review Source LM Laurel M. owner Consumer Goods Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Does not work on different devices-customer support is out of country and horrid" May 27, 2022 1.0 \-10 horrid Pros horrid product It needs complete reprogramming and US consumer support and english speaking representatives Cons Can't get it work on ipad and customer support is useless Reason for choosing Ovation Didn't choose Review Source LE Luanne E. Owner Restaurants Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Needs improvement " October 18, 2019 2.0 Constantly calling for support because of something that is going on internally such as updates and i keep losing business because the customer can’t pay with their credit card. Pros Not happy with software at all. I am constantly on the phones with customer support. Cons ~Never told about updates then u go to take a payment and system has crashed and you need to close batch and set up system again. - scanners only work on items on occasion. — was told a loyalty program is coming soon. It isn’t. Alternatives considered [Square Point of Sale](https://www.capterra.com/p/275802/Square-Point-of-Sale/) Reason for choosing Ovation Should have picked the alternative products Review Source LC Laura C. Owner Food & Beverages Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Value " October 15, 2019 1.0 Pros The bads outweigh the small good. I call for tech support and was never told it was out of country. Cons It does not function well for a bar/cafe setting. Too many steps.breaks down at worst possible times. Take long periods of hold to get support .I would love to return it but no one ever seems to read these Review Source HR HOLLY R. Gen. manager/Owner Construction Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Great product...." September 24, 2019 4.0 Pros Can tell there is way more capability then how we are using it. Wish i could be trained on how to create items and pricing etc... Cons Can't think of anything......................... Reason for choosing Ovation It has scanning capabilities. Review Source DS David S. Owner dentist Medical Practice Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Vital POS does it all" September 25, 2019 5.0 Its been excellent and my staff and customers find it very cool to use. Pros Ease of use, portability, web site is easy to navigate. Cons Would like daily emails automatically sent to me of my daily totals Reason for choosing Ovation It felt right Review Source JP James P. president Glass, Ceramics & Concrete Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "easy to use" September 24, 2019 5.0 Pros real easy for the installers to use on the job site, easy for the office staff to pull and print the invoice/payment info. easy to follow up and look at the day jobs collected Cons i wish it would auto batch at the end of the day. that is my real only complaint Review Source KT Kim T. Owner Retail Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Not a great product " October 15, 2019 2.0 Thinking seriously about cancelling. I'm not pleased. Pros It sure provides a ton of information about all the fees I'm charged. Cons Loses connection too frequently. Too many steps to process a single transaction. Sometimes it just locks up in the middle of a transaction- cant believe I actually paid money for the devise. Reason for choosing Ovation Seemed like a good alternative but I was wrong Switched from [Square Point of Sale](https://www.capterra.com/p/275802/Square-Point-of-Sale/) Thought I could save money on transactions fees Review Source KT Kimberly T. Owner Retail Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Vital POS review" September 24, 2019 4.0 I currently am not using the POS, just credit card processing. Plan on starting with the POS during my slow period Pros It's ease of use and it's fast. Rarely have had any technical issues. Cons Returns are a huge problem. You are not only unable to return individual products but actually have to go look in your history for the original transaction. This is time consuming and and annoying to customers who are waiting. Also, the fact that the machine is not compatible with any gift card companies. I did not realize this when I purchased and until I find a solution I am back to paper gift cards. Review Source EB Elyse B. Manager Medical Practice Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Optometry Office User" September 24, 2019 5.0 Overall we are satisfied, except for the inability to post a partial refund Pros Portability and intuitive use is excellent! Cons We cannot issue a partial refund without imputing into an inventory, which is not functional for our practice. Review Source AW Amy W. Secretary/Treasurer Automotive Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Vital POS" September 24, 2019 3.0 Horrible for credits. Changing machines Pros nothing, not friendly, not enough functions, have to do everything manually Cons everything. Can't issue credits unless processed on this machine Reason for choosing Ovation Rep suggested this Review Source CD Cliff D. Service Manager Construction Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Customer Service" September 24, 2019 4.0 Overall great product. Pros The best thing about the software is the fact it is very simple to use. Even the employees that are not technology savvy had no problem figuring out. Cons The one thing I did not have a good experience with is the fact that to many different hands are in what happens when card is used. It is not a bad thing but they hands don't have any integration so one group can not see what the other group will see. If this can get fixed so that the deposit in the bank account is smooth then it gets 5 stars from me. Review Source AP Alyssa P. MANAGEMENT Consumer Services Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "FAST, EFFICIENT, RELIABLE" September 24, 2019 5.0 USER FRIENDLY, THE CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT IS QUICK TO RESPOND TO ANY QEUSTIONS OR CONCERNS WE MAY HAVE. Pros YOU ARE ABLE TO LOOK UP ANYTHING ABOUT PAST RECIEPTS FOR CUSTOMERS. BATCHING ON FILE AND EASILY ACCESSABLE. Cons CHARGING IT EVERY NIGHT, AND THAT IS PROBABLY THE ONLY THING WE DON'T LIKE. Review Source LB Lorraine B. Owner Accounting Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Extremely Satisfied " October 17, 2019 5.0 Being able to receive payment in a fast manner Pros My industry is Locksmith not accounting. I could not proceed in survey until I picked one Cons Really nothing. I'm using it more every day. Review Source JM John M. Owner Hospitality Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Vital POS Review" October 15, 2019 5.0 Pros The Ease of use of the software. It is accessible on multiple devices which is also great!! Cons Refund option; only offers full refund and not partial or an amount Review Source MP Michelle P. office manager Automotive Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "great" September 24, 2019 5.0 Pros very easy to use on our front terminal, register close out simple Cons it was a little difficult to set up the drivers phones Review Source Similar Products Featured ## Send me user reviews about this product ### Fill out the form and we'll send a list of the top-rated software based on real user reviews directly to your inbox.