Unlock Success With Top 5 POS Systems For Restaurants
By Sam Nguyen
To help you navigate through the sea of choices, we have compiled a list of the top 5 POS systems for restaurants. Let’s dive in!
Key Takeaways
- Shopify POS: Best for omnichannel ordering experience
- Square for Restaurant: Best free restaurant POS
- Lightspeed restaurant: Best for restaurant chains
- Clover POS: Best for full-service restaurant
- Toast: Best for fast-service restaurant
Why Do Restaurants Need A POS?
Restaurant point-of-sale (POS) systems play a crucial role in the operations of any dining establishment as they encompass a range of functions beyond mere payment processing. These systems facilitate effective communication between the front and back of the house, table and menu management, inventory tracking, and sales reports.
By automating various tasks, they can save restaurant significant time and money, allowing staff to put their efforts towards more critical tasks. Furthermore, these POS systems often incorporate features which encourage guests to spend more money, ultimately driving revenue growth. Staff can also promptly access customer profiles, enabling personalized and efficient service delivery.
From food trucks to fast food joints to fine dining venues, restaurant POS systems have emerged as the central operational hub for businesses of various scales.
What Features Should A POS For Restaurant Has?
While the best systems might include a handful of unique traits, they should also provide a selection of the following top features:
- Inventory Management: A robust system can assist in tracking inventory levels, managing recipes and ingredient costs. Most POS systems incorporate notifications that alert restaurant owners when specific ingredients need to be restocked.
- Sales Reporting: Accurate and up-to-date sales data hold significant importance for informed decision-making within the restaurant industry. A reliable POS system offers real-time sales reporting capabilities, along with the flexibility to generate customized reports.
- Table Management: A well-designed table management system empowers restaurant owners to effectively handle reservations, seating arrangements, and the flow of diners, particularly during busy periods or when short-staffed.
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM): By keeping track of customer orders, preferences, and feedback, establishments can curate a more personalized dining experience and foster stronger connections with their diners. A good CRM system will also allow you to send targeted marketing campaigns and reward loyal customers.
- Payment Processing: A good POS software should be able to process both credit and debit cards, as well as support various payment methods, such as gift cards, mobile payments and contactless transactions.
- Online Ordering: With the growing trend of online food ordering, it’s important for for restaurants to integrate an online ordering system with their POS software
- Integrations: As your restaurant grows, seeking additional functionalities that align with your specific needs is crucial. A good POS system integrates with apps and add-ons to help your restaurant to perform better.
- Mobile POS: A good POS software should be compatible with hand-held devices. The mobility and responsiveness will enable your staff to provide tableside service, process payments anywhere, which enhance overall customer experience.
Top 5 POS Systems For Restaurants
There are many different restaurant POS systems, so we’ve done the homework for you. Here are our top picks:
Shopify POS
One of the leading POS systems we highly recommend is Shopify POS. Renowned for its seamless integration with ecommerce platforms, Shopify POS has the ability to harmonize operations across both online and offline channels, which makes it a good choice for restaurants of all sizes, from food trucks to franchises.
This software is compatible with Android and iOS devices, allowing you to effortlessly process contactless payments on the move. You can read our comprehensive review of Shopify POS specifically for restaurant use to gain more insights.
This POS is best for
- Cafeteria & Bakery
- Independent restaurants
- Pizzeria
- Fast-casual dining venues
- Coffee pop-up stores
- Food trucks
Key features
- Online ordering
- Mobile POS
- Real-time inventory management
- Inhouse payment processor which supports multiple payment methods
- QR ordering
- Custom gift cards and loyalty program
- Bill splitting
- Local delivery and pickup
- Integration with apps on Shopify App Store
Pricing
- $0 for Shopify POS Lite; $89/month/location for Shopify POS Pro
- Payment processing fees: Start from 2.4%
- Transaction fees: Start from $0
Pros and Cons
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Square For Restaurants
Square for Restaurants is a well-established and widely recognized point-of-sale system in the restaurant industry. It has gained popularity due to robust features with an affordable pricing. Offering both free and paid options, Square for Restaurants caters to a diverse range of merchants. The free version has a comprehensive set of features providing almost everything necessary for smooth restaurant operations.
This POS is best for
- Fast-Casual restaurants
- Bars & Breweries
- Ghost kitchen
- Food start-ups
Key features
- Flexible payment options, even with offline mode
- QR ordering
- Online ordering
- Floor and kitchen management
- Built-in kitchen display system
- In-store and curbside pickup
- Customer relationship management
- Mobile POS
Pricing
- $0 for free plan; $60 for Plus plan; Custom plan available.
- Payment processing fees: Start from 2.6% + $0.10
Pros and Cons
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Lighspeed Restaurant
According to Lightspeed, Lightspeed Restaurant’s goal is to provide restaurant owners with a comprehensive, low-cost POS system that can take care of every component of order tracking and payments. The software has built-in tools that can help you manage your restaurant’s front-of-house and back-of-house with just a few touches of the screen.
This POS is best for
- Growing full-or quick-service restaurants
- Fine-dining restaurant
- Hotel restaurants
- Food and beverage businesses that need a Kitchen Display System (KDS)
- Restaurant chains or dining establishments with multiple locations
Key features
- Menu management
- Customizable
- Mobile POS
- Staff management
- Inventory management
- Multi-location management
- Offline mode
- Table management
- Bill splitting
- Offline mode
Pricing
- $69 for Starter plan; $189 for Essential plan; $399 Premium plan; Custom price for Enterprise plan
- Payment processing: Starts from 2.6% + $0.10
Pros and cons
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Clover POS
Clover POS is a widely Clover POS embraced hardware and software bundle that has gained popularity among small businesses, particularly restaurants and food and drink establishments.
With its robust capabilities, Clover has successfully empowered nearly 200,000 restaurants of various scales to deliver exceptional and distinct dining experiences.
This POS is best for
- Quick-service restaurants
- Small to mid-sized full-service restaurants
- Bars
- Delis
Key features
- Online ordering
- Flexible payments
- Mobile POS
- Bill splitting
- Offline mode
- Local pick-up and delivery
- Detailed reports and analytics
- Floor and table management
Pricing
- For full service dining: $1,699 + $84.95/month if pay in full with hardware included or $160/month if pay monthly for Starter plan; $2,298 + $99.90/month or $210/month for Standard plan; $4,097 + $114.85/month or $310/month for Advanced plan.
- For fast-service dining: $799 + $54.95/month if pay in full with hardware included or $100/month if pay monthly for Starter plan; $1,799 + $54.95/month or $100/month if pay monthly for Standard plan; $2,398 + $69.90/month or $190/month for Advanced plan.
- Processing fees: Start from 2.3% + $0.10
Pros and cons
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Toast
Toast is a point-of-sale solution designed to simplify the daily operations of restaurants and aid restaurateurs in managing their establishments efficiently. With comprehensive features, Toast covers all the essential functions, including payment processing, inventory tracking, staff management, and additional capabilities like promotional codes and gift cards.
Its exceptional performance and alignment with the demands of restaurant management make Toast a top choice in the list of best restaurant point-of-sale (POS) systems.
This POS is best for
- New Restaurants
- Pizzeria
- Pop-up cafe & bakery
- Food Truck
Key features
- QR ordering
- Online ordering and delivery
- Kitchen Display System
- Staff management
- Hardware included
- Detailed reports
Pricing
- $0 for Quick start bundle (Pay-as-you-go) plan; $69 for Core plan; $110 for Restaurant Basics Package; $165 for Growth plan; Custom pricing plan available
- Payment processing fees: 2.99% + $0.15 for (Pay-as-you-go) plan; From 2.49% + $0.15 if you pay the hardware upfront
Pros and cons
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Methodology
To identify the best POS systems for the restaurant industry, we conducted thorough research on numerous providers. We narrowed down our list to the top five based on factors such as price, inventory management capabilities, online ordering availability, POS hardware options, kitchen-specific features like kitchen display software and ticket management, and special features for different types of eateries.
Our evaluation process involved using the products ourselves, exploring product demos, and drawing on our industry knowledge to determine which POS systems are well-suited for restaurants. We also considered honest feedback from real customers, to gain insights into their experiences.
How To Choose The Best POS For Your Restaurant
To find the restaurant POS system that is perfect for your business now and as it grows in the future, consider these factors:
- Your customers and their demographic: Their age, social expectations, and digital adoption levels can influence the type of POS system that would best meet their needs.
- Your budget: Look for a plan that aligns with your financial investment and allows room for future updates as your business grows.
- The size of your business: Whether you have a small establishment, a single food truck, or a full-service restaurant, each will have different requirements in terms of features and capabilities.
- Your preferred operating systems: If you are already familiar with or have existing hardware, consider a POS system that supports the operating systems you prefer, such as web-based, mobile phones, tablets, iPhones, or iPads.
POS Systems For Restaurants: FAQs
The key components of a POS system for restaurants are:
- POS software
- POS hardware (it could be your phone, your computer, an ipad or any device that can runs the POS software you use)
- Receipt printer
- Card reader
- Manages your restaurant orders:
- Your waiters take orders using any device like a tablet, a smartphone or customer orders through the QR code
- The food order appears on the kitchen’s display screen, and it also gets printed for your chefs
- The food order also appears on your cash register’s computer/tablet, and you can print it when the customer checkout
- The system calculates the bill automatically
- Customer choose the payment method they prefered.
- The transaction is complete and you hand them a receipt
- Manages your table:
- You create a map of your restaurant’s table layout in the software
- Your staff take the order directly by selecting the table’s number or image from the map.
- Different indicator will appears when the table is occupied, the order are placed, the food is served.
Bottom Line
This article explores the pricing, popular features, and what to look for when selecting the right restaurant POS for your business. We recommend sign up for a free trial to test out the POS system before you committing to it.
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