There have been some exciting developments in EPoS systems designed to optimise the management of hospitality businesses, including many specifically for restaurants of all types – from street food outlets to cafés to formal dining establishments.
A good restaurant EPoS system should help you manage and streamline all aspects of your business, from front of house to back of house. For example, EPoS systems can typically help you with handling reservations, taking and assigning orders, taking customer payments, cashflow, inventory management (stock levels and usage to reduce wastage), staff matters (such as scheduling and tracking labour costs) and kitchen management.
>See also: Opening a restaurant: The key ingredients to start-up success
The other key part of any hospitality PoS solution comes from the data it generates.
All the systems on offer provide business data and analytics, but the best EPoS systems for restaurants present you with reports that are easy to understand, as well as useful overviews of how each part of your business is performing.
Perhaps most important is the data that can help you with customer engagement and marketing. For example, tracking customer order history can help identify favourite food and beverage combinations so you can customise special offers, loyalty programmes or discounts. Insights such as these can help your business to grow and expand, creating a firmer base for a longer lasting project and help secure your future.
Remember, it’s not just about efficiency, it’s also about building a place where you and your staff enjoy working and thereby creating the best customer experience.
This article will cover:
- How much does a typical EPoS system cost?
- Future-proofing and the importance of system updates
- EPoS systems for restaurants and cafés
- Summary
How much does a typical EPoS system cost?
It’s tricky to pin down the cost as PoS system pricing will vary depending on the size and/or type of restaurant you run. If you’re buying your hardware upfront, you could be looking at upwards of £300. Monthly software costs will set you back anywhere from £20+ depending on its functionality and how many devices you use.
These costs are quite broad and will also depend on many other factors around your business.
Future-proofing and the importance of system updates
Technological development in the market continues apace, so it is important to choose a supplier that is updating its software and hardware configurations on a regular basis.
There are a good number of EPoS suppliers in the market to choose from and as mentioned earlier, some are pure play specialists in the hospitality sector, tailor their offer by restaurant type. Below, we list 15 systems available in the UK market.
EPoS systems for restaurants and cafés
As mentioned above, a lot of variables can affect the price of your EPoS system and are therefore bespoke to your needs. Where possible, a price is included in the listings below. Just be aware of hidden costs like payment processing and hidden hardware costs. It’s wise to ask about any additional pricing upfront.
The Restaurant EPoS Providers listed here are:
- Square
- Tabology
- Clover
- eatPOS
- Epos Now
- Gardiff
- Goodtill
- JeM
- Lightspeed
- Lolly
- NFS Aloha
- TillPoint
- TouchBistro
- Zettle
- Zonal
Square
Square has its own suite of features and products that work together to create an all-in-one restaurant PoS system. These include Square KDS (Kitchen Display System), Online Ordering (with Click and Collect), and Deliverect Order Manager (integrates with companies like Deliveroo, Uber Eats, Just Eat etc.). The Square POS app allows you to take orders, adjust menu item counts, and manage customer profiles.
You can enhance your setup via Square add-ons – like loyalty, marketing and kiosk functions – and integrations with restaurant tech partners like OpenTable, Sage, and BevSpot.
A flat charge of 1.75 per cent for chip and PIN and contactless payments and 2.5 per cent for manually keyed-in or card on file transactions across all of the packages.
Free – Unlimited devices and unlimited locations.
Plus – £69 per month per location. 30-day free trial.
Premium – Custom pricing for business that process more than £200,000.
Features
- Repeat round of drinks function
- eGift cards
- Reopen closed bills
- Live sales figures
Hardware: Square reader, Square terminal, Square stand, Square register
Customer support hours: Phone support Monday-Friday 9am-5pm for customers on Free package and 24/7 support for customers on Plus or Premium package. Call 0800 098 8008.
Tabology
Tabology EPoS & management suite is built specifically for hospitality businesses and backed by a team with real-life experience in the sector.
The Essentials plan is £39 per month and includes an easy to use iPad-based EPoS with table plan, industry relevant reporting, full stock management capabilities and mobile ordering.
The EPOS Essentials plan is £39 per month and includes everything you need for your hospitality business, including stock control, kitchen and product management, and reports. The Pro Plan is £59 per month and includes a built-in booking system, loyalty CRM, staff scheduling tools, and multi-site management. The EPOS partner plan adds branded mobile ordering, API access and a dedicated account manager.
Features
- Stock tracking with recipe management and low stock alerts
- Built-in booking system, including auto-allocation, deposits and pre-orders
- Loyalty points system with digital loyalty cards and CRM for targeted marketing campaigns
- Email reports giving a snapshot of business performance
- Kitchen screen enabling order tracking and two-way messaging with front of house
- Multi-site management allows you to manage products, prices, and stock centrally
- Create staff rotas and forecast real-time sales vs wages
Hardware: iPads, iPhones, card readers, iPad cases, receipt printers, kitchen printers, cash drawers
Customer support hours: Phone, email and dedicated instant messaging support (via Telegram app) 8am – midnight, 365 days per year. Call 01924 806 495.
Website: tabology.com/restaurant-epos
Clover
Also available in the US and Europe, Clover wants to customise the dining experience for your restaurant. This means you can add Clover-approved hardware such as a kitchen printer or a cash drawer. You’ll also have access to additional apps through Clover Dining to help you manage bar tabs, shift, tips and Happy Hour.
There are three basic systems: Station Pro (for larger restaurants), Flex (for small businesses that need to take orders on the go) and Mini (for mid-sized restaurants with a limited number of tables). The transaction fee is 1.49% on all cards and there’s a £15 monthly service fee.
Features
- Custom floor plans
- Split the bill function
- Offer discounts by time slot
- Take payments when WiFi is down
- Run sales reports in real-time
- Create rotas and run payroll
Hardware: Clover Flex (handheld unit), Clover (small tabletop unit), Clover Station Pro (14-inch HD display tabletop), printer
Customer support hours: Contact number can be found through your account or you can call 0345 605 0615. No support hours specified.
Website: eu.clover.com/restaurants
eatPOS
As its name suggests, eatPOS specialises in systems for restaurants, cafés, pubs, takeaways and other eateries. It integrates payments and order processing in one multi-functional device, as well as kitchen and stock management and customer engagement. What really sets the this system apart is its use of AI. You can create employee schedules using natural language prompts and get your system to retrieve essential data by asking questions in plain English.
A digital menus integration means that you can create a digital menu with a drag and drop editor.
There are three EPoS packages available for hospitality.
Starter: £0 per month
Professional: £25 per month
Enterprise: Bespoke
Features
- Park and hold bills
- Extensive stock reporting capabilities and have audit trails to help reduce waste
- Personalised branding on app
- Pre-defined meal deals and automatic calculation of multi-buy deals
- Live stock-take counters on the PoS
Hardware: PoS units, tablet, cash drawers, printers, self-service kiosk, fingerprint reader, card scanner, LCD customer display, barcode scanner, thermal printer, secure tablet stand, loyalty cards
Customer support hours: Phone support available 9:30am-5:30pm Monday to Friday on standard plan; 9:30am-12am Monday-Sunday on extended support plans. Call on 0116 380 0299.
Website: eatpos.co.uk
Epos Now
Epos Now promises to help you get ahead and evolve your business with its PoS offering. Unlike some other providers, you can do tableside orders on mobile phone and do a stock take with the phone’s camera.
Epos Now’s restaurant PoS system is available from £249.
Features
- Connect to payment order and delivery apps
- 15.6″ single HD touchscreen with a built-in printer
- POS software and access to the Epos Now AppStore
- Track inventory, calculate costs and profit and simplify reordering
- Integrations with over 100 apps including: Mailchimp, Xero, Deliveroo, various loyalty programmes (e.g. Loyalty Dog, Gift Trees etc.) and their own Epos Now Apps for Delivery and Pay at Table.
- Automate purchase orders and use low stock warnings
Hardware: Kitchen Display System, iPad stand, additional iPad (optional), thermal receipt printer, all-metal cash drawer
Customer support hours: Phone support on 0800 294 5945 but no hours stated. Web chat also available.
Website: eposnow.com/uk/hospitality-epos-systems/restaurant-epos-system/
Gardiff
Gardiff’s main focus is managing your account and letting your customers order from anywhere. It offers an end-to-end view of your restaurant operations whether a small restaurant or a multi-site chain. Its full suite of products and solutions for hospitality businesses encompasses payment processing, online ordering, front. and back of house support, and customer loyalty.
Integrate with:
- Accounting software like Sage, Quickbooks and Xero
- Other integrations include Preoday, Shopify and Woo Commerce
- Delivery apps Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats
Rent a Gardiff EPOS for £20 -£40 a week or get a purchase quote.
Features
- Take orders through your own branded app or website
- handheld mobile EPOS devices for taking orders and payments at table
- Customisable kitchen display systems
- Full reporting and analytics
- No commission on any orders and no minimum term
- Tackle transaction fraud
- Integrated payment processing – discuss your need with in-house payment experts and they tailor your system to your requirements
- Support available 365 days a year
Hardware: Touch screen tills, self-service kiosk, digital menu screens, Kitchen Display System
Customer support hours: Phone support 365 days a year, early morning until late at night. Call on 0203 846 5564.
Website: gardiffepos.com/restaurant-epos-system/
Goodtill
Goodtill is the EPoS from payment provider, Sumup. This feature-all-in-one solution is easy to can adapt to your restaurant or café, with table and tab management, stock management, kitchen display, online ordering, business analytics, and much more available as add-on modules. Each starting from £9 per month, you only ned to pay for what you use.
The GoodEats platform lets you run a click and collect service while Table Ordering means that customers can order from their table using a QR code. Both methods efficient and contactless.
The Sumup reader starts at £29 per month, but you can add additional devices starting at £19. transaction fees start from
Features
- Manage multi-site effectively under one unified system
- All of the tech is iPad-compatible
- Integrate with your existing hardware, delivery, and software providers (payment providers, accounting software etc.)
- Loyalty iOS app which creates promotions, points-based programmes and QR codes
Hardware: iPads, mini iPads, iPad stands, printers, card readers, kitchen display screens, customer display screens.
Customer support hours: Live chat 9am-5pm Monday- Friday. Weekends and bank holidays 10am-6pm. Phone and email support 8am-7pm Monday-Thursday, Friday 8am-9pm, Saturday 10am-9pm. Call 0203 322 4095 or email moc.pumus@ei.ku.troppus.sop.
Website: thegoodtill.com/hospitality/restaurant-pos/
>See also: How to shift your pub or restaurant from eat-in to takeaway and delivery
JeM
JeM offers an all-in-one solution that’s a little more tech-savvy as it can produce sales forecasts with artificial intelligence technology. You can even place JeM iPad terminals on the tables so that customers can do their own orders. The company works in partnership with the Payment Sense merchant service provider.
Prices are competitive and bespoke.
Features
- Sales forecasting through artificial intelligence
- Have your own website for integrated ordering online (or via App)
- Table management allows you to define dining areas and provides live table status and timers
- Reservation management allows you to track and set reserved tables for any point in time
- Takeaway Management
- Generate voucher codes on receipts which will encourage diners to visit again
- Designate roles to each staff member
- Check-in and out feature makes it easy to record staff working hours and generate reports
Hardware: iPad, printer, cash drawer, till stand, printer rolls, Zettle card reader
Customer support hours: 9am-5pm Monday-Friday, 9am-3pm Saturday, closed Sunday. Call 0175 338 6565.
Website: jempos.co.uk/restaurant-epos-system/
>See also: Restaurant website: Things to do and things to avoid
Lightspeed
Lightspeed has been around for 20 years and, as an indication of its quality, counts over 150 Michelin-starred restaurants as customers. It offers three feature bundles depending on your needs:
Starter – £51 per month (basic features including floor plans, a customisable POS, menu manager, and payments).
Essential –1-15 locations. £140 per month (advanced insights, loyalty incentives for customers, online ordering, inventory management and real-time reporting).
Premium –16-500+ locations. £296 per month (all of Essential features plus API access and PMS integration).
Enterprise – Bespoke, with dedicated support team and unlimited consultation services.
Features
- No hidden fees or monthly transaction limits
- Chargeback management and fraud assistance from an expert team
- Self-ordering integrations
- Handle reservations using OpenTable
Hardware: iPad stand, printer, cash drawer, bluetooth scanner, receipt paper, zebra label printer, branded gift cards
Customer support hours: Live web chat available. Phone support on 0203 695 9599 but no hours specified.
Website: lightspeedhq.co.uk/pos/restaurant/
Lolly
Lolly prides itself on having an intuitive and dependable platform with a range of hardware and software to suit your restaurant business, from high-speed payment processing to mobile EPoS.
You’ll also get card machine warranty and next day till replacement if yours is faulty. There are over 30 kitchen management, self-serve and payment solutions that work ‘straight-out-of-the-box’.
One of its latest features is the ‘LollyBot’, a 1.2m freestanding robotic waiter that can provide automated table service, deliver food and assist with cleaning.
A three-month free software trial is available and there’s no minimum contract for software.
Features
- Cloud-based hospitality software with real-time reporting
- Bar tabs, tables and happy hour promotion functions
- Customer loyalty features like stamps and rewards
- Easy-to-update menus with seasonal dish changes and nutritional information
- Hardware to rent or buy at affordable rates
- Table management function
Hardware: PoS screen, digital signage, self-serve kiosk, kitchen screen, card machines.
Customer support hours: Phone support available 9:30am-5:30pm Monday-Sunday. Emergency support until 10pm. Call 0800 038 5389.
Website: https://www.itslolly.com/sectors/lolly-for-pop-ups-hospitality
NFS Aloha
NFS Aloha is used by 140,000 outlets worldwide, including some big names like Brewdog, Dishoom and Five Guys. It offers restaurant PoS and EPoS systems, multi-site management, including a cloud-based back office, and much more.
Features
- Dynamic pricing
- Payment solutions
- Table service
- Prevent staff fraud and monitor your reputation on social media
- Upselling prompts for waiting staff
- Labour cost forecasts and efficient schedule creation
Hardware: Screens, receipt printers.
Customer support hours: 24/7 phone support on 0800 731 8451.
Website: alohaepos.co.uk
TillPoint
TillPoint has a range of specialised apps to help you manage sales, promotions, operations, finances and HR/staff. You can integrate it with your existing hardware as the software can be used on any device.
They offer ‘Hand-Held Ordering Pads’ – a paper-free way to take food and drinks orders as well as pay and print a receipt directly from the pad. They also have a feature called ‘TouchLoyalty’, which allows you to add a loyalty scheme for customers with member discounts and loyalty points based on how much they spend with you. Essential features like stock control, cloud reporting, reservations software, and more are also available.
For price points you need to contact the company.
Features
- Front of House management
- Kitchen Display system
- Online reservations
- Real-time reports
- Scalable – you can add new branches or more locations
- Staff hours tracking
- Stock tracking
Hardware: EPoS system
Customer support hours: Phone support 9am-5pm Monday-Friday. Call 0207 096 0965.
Website: https://www.tillpoint.co.uk/products/epos-systems/
TouchBistro
TouchBistro’s PoS is built especially for restaurants. It starts with a core unit which you build up with add-ons for customer engagement and restaurant operations.
The basic unit is $69 (£51) a month with quotes for extra features such as online ordering and gift cards. Contact TouchBistro to get a quote which will be tailored to the type of restaurant you operate, e.g. Fine Dining, Fast Casual, Coffee Shop, Cafe, etc.
Features
- Upselling tools in the form of colour-coded menus
- Custom modifiers for menu personalisation
- Tableside Ordering
- Menu Management
- Staff Management
- Reporting and Analytics
- Gift card and loyalty scheme functions
Hardware: PoS units, Kitchen Display System, customer facing display, digital menu board.
Customer support hours: Phone support 24/7 on 44-0800-051-3311.
Website: touchbistro.com
Zettle
Zettle (by PayPal) offers hardware, flexible PoS (meaning you can customise your system to your needs) and transparent pricing.
Card transactions are 1.75 per cent; invoice transactions are 2.5 per cent; and payment link transactions are between 1.2 and 2.9 per cent (+30p).
Zettle by PayPal is the free point of sale app. It delivers sales reports, gift cards, refunds and discounts. You can use your smartphone as a device to collect customer payments using the Zettle app, or you can use one of Zettle’s payment terminals. Bear in mind that there are additional fees for hardware – card reader from £29, terminal from £149 and customised store kits from £169.
Features
- Switch quickly between accounts and checkout in seconds
- Edit stock, track sales and see staff performance
- Integrations with a couple of other providers on this list including Goodtill and Lightspeed
- No contracts or recurring fees
Hardware: PoS terminal, card reader, card reader dock.
Customer support hours: Phone support is available 9am-5pm weekdays. Call 020 3984 8464.
Live web chat is available 9am-5pm on weekdays.
Website: zettle.com/gb/pos-systems/food-and-drink
Zonal
Family-owned Zonal works for any size of restaurant and the software can be accessed from any device. It offers EPoS, kitchen management, stock control, and reporting in one neat package. They have a customer base of over 16,000 hospitality businesses and a UK-based training and customer support team.
Features
- Measure staff performance and monitor targets. Time and Attendance module has in-built reporting tool that allows you to view reports for days, weeks or any specific period
- Get data on which promotions are working effectively
- Has a series of rental packages
- Stock and inventory management with real-time alerts helps you optimise usage and determine portion size
Hardware: PoS terminal, bar, kitchen and receipt printers, cash drawers, cash counting machines, scanners, printer rolls
Customer support hours: Phone support 8am-12am seven days a week. Call 0333 234 1210.
Website: zonal.co.uk/products/epos-restaurants/
Summary
There is lots of choice and software options allow you to pick what’s best for your type of establishment. Even though companies offer largely similar products, it could be an individual function they have that is crucial to running your business so do your research carefully.
Remember to factor in availability of support during your operating hours as well as ease of use. Finally, consider whether you want a free trial before you commit to an EPoS system and don’t forget the customer experience in your purchasing decision. Good luck!
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