Calculate How Much Your Convenience Store/Gas Station Can Make on Lottery
Danielle Dixon | 13 Min Read
Changing a price on the shelf sounds simple—until you have hundreds or thousands of products to update.
For many retailers, price changes still mean printing new labels, walking the aisles, replacing tags, and hoping every shelf reflects the same price customers see at checkout. Multiply that process across promotions, markdowns, new pricing, and multiple locations, and a seemingly small task can eat up a surprising amount of time.
That’s where digital price tags come in.
Did You Know?According to IHL Group’s 2026 Retail Transformation Study, sales-winning retailers are 164% more likely to have up-to-date electronic shelf labels than retailers that are lagging behind—26% compared with 10%.
Also known as electronic shelf labels (ESLs), they replace traditional paper shelf labels with electronic displays that can connect to a retailer’s point of sale (POS) and other systems. Instead of manually changing individual tags, retailers can update pricing and product information electronically—often across an entire store or multiple locations.
In this guide, we’ll break down how digital price tags for retail stores work, compare them with traditional price tags, look at why retailers are adopting them in 2026, and highlight seven providers worth knowing.
What Are Digital Price Tags?
Digital price tags, also known as electronic shelf labels (ESLs), are electronic displays placed on retail shelves to show product information such as prices, promotions, and product names.
Unlike traditional paper tags, ESLs can be updated electronically. So, when a price changes in a connected POS or pricing system, the corresponding shelf label can update automatically—no printing, swapping, or sending employees down every aisle to replace tags.
That makes digital price tags more than just a modern replacement for paper labels. When connected to a retailer’s POS, they can help automate pricing, keep shelf and checkout prices in sync, and make day-to-day store operations a little easier.
How Do Digital Price Tags Work?
The basic idea is straightforward: your POS updates the price, and the digital shelf tag reflects that change.
A typical setup connects the retailer’s POS or pricing system to a gateway or communication network, which then sends information to the appropriate digital price tag.
The basic flow looks like this:
POS → Gateway → Digital Price Tag
For example, with FTx Digital Price Tags, retailers can connect shelf pricing directly to their POS pricebook.
The setup process is designed to make mapping a product to a tag simple:
1. Choose a design template.
2. Scan the digital tag.
3. Scan the product to map it to the tag.
4. Go live.
Once the tag is mapped to the product, pricing and product information can be updated from the connected POS system. FTx also supports instant or scheduled mass price updates, allowing retailers to make changes to multiple products without updating each item individually.
The result? Less time spent walking the aisles swapping labels and fewer chances for shelf prices to fall out of sync with the register.
Traditional Price Tags vs. Digital Price Tags
Traditional price tags can work well, but frequent price changes can quickly turn into extra work for store teams. Digital price tags take a more automated approach by connecting shelf pricing with the systems retailers already use.
Here’s how the two compare:
| Factor | Traditional Price Tags | Digital Price Tags |
|---|---|---|
| Price changes | Employees must manually replace labels | Prices can be updated electronically |
| Labor required | Requires printing, sorting, and replacing tags | Reduces manual shelf-labeling work |
| Price accuracy & consistency | Depends on employees updating every label correctly | Pricing can sync with a centralized system |
| Pricing discrepancies | Paper tags can become outdated | Automated updates help keep shelf and POS pricing aligned |
| Promotions | New promotional labels must be printed and installed | Promotional pricing can be pushed electronically |
| Multi-store management | Changes may need to be repeated at each location | Centralized systems can support updates across locations |
| Paper consumption | Requires ongoing paper labels and printing | Reduces the need for paper shelf labels |
| Update speed | Changes can take hours or longer | Updates can happen in seconds or in scheduled batches |
| Shopping experience | Static information | Can display pricing, promotions, product information, and more |
Digital price tags don’t replace good pricing practices—they just make it easier to get pricing changes from your system to the shelf.
Why Are Retailers Switching to Digital Price Tags in 2026?
The appeal of ESLs goes beyond having a more modern-looking shelf. They can take repetitive pricing work off your team’s plate while making it easier to keep prices accurate, launch promotions, and manage changes across stores.
Reduce Manual Pricing Work
Changing hundreds of paper labels is repetitive work. Employees have to print the right labels, locate the products, remove the old tags, and install the new ones.
Digital price tags automate much of that process. Once products and tags are connected, retailers can push pricing updates electronically instead of sending employees down every aisle.
That means employees can spend less time swapping labels and more time helping customers, stocking shelves, and handling other store priorities.
Improve Price Accuracy
Few things are more frustrating for shoppers than seeing one price on the shelf and another at checkout.
Because ESLs can connect to a retailer’s POS or pricing system, the shelf price can be updated alongside changes in the pricebook. That helps reduce the risk of outdated paper labels creating pricing discrepancies.
Launch Promotions Faster
Promotions often have a very specific start and end time. With paper labels, getting every shelf updated at exactly the right time can be difficult.
Digital price tags make it possible to push or schedule promotional pricing electronically. Retailers can change multiple products at once and, depending on the system, manage updates across stores from a centralized platform.
Support Multi-Location Retailers
Pricing gets more complicated as a retail business grows.
A single-store retailer might be able to manage shelf labels manually. A retailer with five, 20, or 100 locations has a much bigger job.
Centralized ESL platforms can help retailers manage pricing and shelf information across multiple stores without having to handle every location separately.
Wondering what digital price tags look like in a large retail environment? See how Walmart
is putting them to work and what that could mean for the future of in-store pricing.
Improve Store Operations
Modern ESLs can do more than show a price.
Depending on the provider and hardware, digital shelf labels can support employee workflows such as inventory checks, replenishment, order picking, product locating, and task alerts.
Enhance Customer Experience
Customers don’t want to wonder which price is correct.
Clear, current shelf pricing can reduce confusion, pricing questions, and checkout disputes. Some ESLs can also display more than a price, including promotions, product information, QR codes, and other shopper-facing content.
That gives retailers another way to make the shelf more useful—and potentially more engaging for shoppers.
7 Best Digital Price Tag Providers for Retail Stores in 2026
There isn’t one provider that makes sense for every retailer. Some focus heavily on enterprise deployments, while others emphasize connected store operations, colorful displays, scalability, or integration with existing retail systems.
Here are seven digital price tag providers to consider in 2026:
1. ATEC IoT — Digital Price Tag Partner for FTx POS
Best for: Retail businesses of all sizes looking to automate shelf pricing
For retailers using FTx POS, ATEC IoT provides the digital shelf label hardware that connects directly with FTx’s automated pricing capabilities.
The key advantage is the connection between FTx POS and the shelf. When a price changes in FTx, the corresponding digital tag can update automatically, helping keep shelf and checkout pricing in sync without requiring employees to print and replace paper labels.
FTx also gives retailers the flexibility to make pricing changes instantly or schedule them ahead of time, making it easier to manage everyday price changes, promotions, and planned updates.
Key features include:
- POS pricebook synchronization: Connect digital shelf labels to FTx POS pricing.
- Automatic price updates: Push pricing changes directly to the corresponding shelf tag.
- Instant or scheduled pricing: Make changes immediately or plan them in advance.
- Multi-store support: Manage pricing across multiple locations.
- Dynamic templates: Create consistent shelf displays with pricing, promotions, product images, barcodes, and more.
- Multiple tag sizes: Choose from Air 1.5″, 2.1″, 2.9″, 4.2″, 5.8″, and 7.5″ models, with additional sizes available.
Getting started is simple: choose a template, scan the digital tag, scan the product, map the two, and you’re live.
Ready to make price changes easier? See how our automated pricing solution can help you update prices instantly or on a schedule, keep shelf pricing in sync, and reduce the manual work that comes with changing tags.
2. VusionGroup – Best for Enterprise Retailers
Best for: Enterprise retailers
VusionGroup offers electronic shelf labels as part of its connected-retail technology. Its solutions support centralized pricing along with features for inventory, product picking, replenishment, and shopper engagement.
Key features include:
- Centralized price management
- Multiple ESL sizes and color options
- QR and near field communication (NFC) capabilities
- Pick-to-light and employee guidance
- Inventory and connected-store tools
3. Hanshow — Best for Large-Scale ESL Deployments
Best for: Large retailers
Hanshow provides electronic shelf labels designed to support automated pricing and reduce manual shelf-label work. Its product range includes different display options and features that can support store workflows beyond pricing.
Key features include:
- Automated price updates
- Centralized ESL management
- Multi-color displays
- Long battery life
- Light-emitting diode (LED) picking and navigation
4. Pricer — Best for Smart Store Operations
Best for: Retailers looking beyond basic price updates
Pricer offers electronic shelf labels that can support pricing, promotions, and other store tasks such as inventory management, replenishment, and order picking.
Key features include:
- Real-time price and promotion updates
- LED alerts
- Product locating and picking
- Inventory and replenishment support
- Multiple display formats
5. Displaydata — Best for High-Impact Color Shelf Displays
Best for: Retailers focused on visual merchandising
Displaydata offers graphic electronic shelf labels that can display pricing, promotions, product information, and branding. Its displays are available in color and can be managed across multiple stores.
Key features include:
- Graphic color displays
- Promotional and product information
- Branding capabilities
- Wireless communication
- Multi-store support
6. SOLUM — Best for Connected Retail Environments
Best for: Retailers connecting ESLs with other store technology
SOLUM offers electronic shelf labels alongside other retail and IoT solutions. Its technology supports applications such as dynamic pricing, product picking, navigation, and digital signage.
Key features include:
- Automated pricing
- Fast updates
- Multi-page displays
- LED capabilities
- Picking and navigation tools
- Digital signage integration
7. ZKONG — Best for Flexible Digital Shelf Deployments
Best for: Retailers looking for flexible ESL options
ZKONG offers electronic shelf labels in different sizes and formats for displaying pricing, promotions, product information, and other content. Its solutions also support centralized management and customizable displays.
Key features include:
- Real-time price updates
- Promotional displays
- Multiple display sizes
- Customizable templates
- LED product positioning
- Cloud-based management
What Features Should You Look for in a Digital Price Tag Provider?
Choosing an ESL provider isn’t just about finding a tag that displays a price. It’s also about finding a system that fits the way your store already operates.
Here are a few features worth paying attention to:
POS Integration
Your digital price tags should work with the systems you’re already using.
Look for a provider that can connect with your POS, pricebook, inventory system, ERP, or other retail software. The smoother that connection is, the less manual work your team has to do.
Want to see what happens behind the scenes? Check out our guide to how digital price tags work
to see how pricing information moves between your retail systems and the shelf.
Automated Price Updates
The biggest benefit of digital price tags is automation.
Look for a system that can update prices as your pricing changes, rather than having employees manually update every tag.
Centralized Management
If you operate multiple stores—or plan to in the future—centralized management can make a major difference.
Look for tools that let you manage pricing, templates, promotions, and tags from one platform rather than treating each location as a separate project.
Bulk Pricing Updates
Changing one price is easy.
Changing 500 prices is where automation really starts to pay off.
Look for support for bulk or mass pricing updates, including the ability to schedule changes when needed.
Display Options
Not every product needs the same size or type of display.
Consider whether you need small shelf tags, larger displays, multiple colors, product information, promotional messaging, QR codes, NFC, or other features.
Store Size and Scalability
Think beyond what you need today.
A solution that works for one location may not be the right choice if you expect to add stores or significantly increase your stock keeping unit (SKU) count. Ask how the provider handles larger deployments, multiple locations, connectivity, maintenance, and ongoing management.
How to Implement Digital Price Tags in Your Retail Store
Once you’ve decided that ESLs make sense for your business, it’s time to figure out how many tags you need and how they’ll fit into your existing setup.
Step #1: Measure Store Square Area
Start with the physical layout of your store.
Measure the areas where digital price tags will be installed and identify the shelving, displays, coolers, freezers, peg hooks, or other fixtures that will need tags.
Your store’s layout can affect the number of tags, communication equipment, and mounting accessories you’ll need.
Step #2: Decide Product SKUs & Number of Tags Required
Next, determine which products will receive digital price tags.
You may want to start with every SKU, or you may prefer to begin with high-turnover products, frequently discounted items, or categories where pricing changes often.
From there, estimate how many tags you’ll need based on your product assortment and shelf locations.
Step #3: Contact Your POS Vendor
Before purchasing hardware, talk with your POS provider.
Ask about available integrations, supported ESL hardware, pricing automation capabilities, and what you’ll need to connect the tags to your existing system.
This step is important because digital price tags are most useful when they can connect with the system that actually controls your product pricing.
Step #4: Connect & Run a Pilot Test
You don’t have to transform the entire store overnight.
Start with a small pilot area. Connect the tags, map products, test price changes, run a promotion, and make sure the shelf display and POS stay in sync.
A pilot gives your team an opportunity to work out installation, connectivity, workflows, and employee training before rolling the system out across the rest of the store.
Conclusion
Digital price tags can take much of the manual work out of retail pricing. By connecting shelf labels with your POS, you can automate price changes, improve accuracy, launch promotions faster, and make day-to-day store operations easier.
There’s no one-size-fits-all ESL solution. Providers like VusionGroup, Hanshow, Pricer, Displaydata, SOLUM, and ZKONG offer different options for retailers based on their size, store operations, and technology needs.
For retailers using FTx POS, ATEC IoT digital price tags offer a direct way to connect automated pricing with the shelf. With FTx handling pricing updates and the digital tags reflecting those changes, your team can spend less time replacing labels and more time focused on running the store.
FAQs
Digital price tags, also called electronic shelf labels (ESLs), are small electronic displays attached to retail shelves that show product prices and other information.
Unlike traditional paper tags, digital price tags can be updated electronically, so retailers can change prices across the store without printing and replacing individual labels.
Digital price tags make it easier to keep product information current and consistent. Retailers can use them to update prices, display promotions, show product details, and make changes across multiple products or locations at once.
They can also reduce the time employees spend printing, sorting, and replacing paper price tags.
Yes. Many digital price tag systems can integrate with a retailer's POS system or other back-end software.
When connected, price changes made in the POS can be sent to the digital tags, helping keep shelf prices and checkout prices consistent. Integration capabilities vary, so retailers should confirm that the ESL provider supports their POS system.
They can be, especially for small retailers that frequently change prices, run promotions, or manage a large number of products.
While digital price tags require an upfront investment, they can save employees time by eliminating many manual price changes and reducing the risk of mismatched shelf and checkout prices. For stores with fewer products and relatively stable pricing, traditional tags may still be a better fit.
Many digital price tag systems can update prices within seconds or minutes after a change is made, depending on the system and its connection to the retailer's POS or management software.
This makes them particularly useful for time-sensitive promotions, price changes, and keeping shelf pricing in sync with the latest information.
Yes. Many digital price tags can display more than just a product's regular price.
Depending on the system, retailers may be able to show sale prices, promotional messaging, discounts, loyalty pricing, or other product information. That gives retailers another way to put promotions right at the shelf, where customers are making their purchasing decisions.