When it comes to point of sale (POS) systems, it pays to choose one that’s made for food-and-drink when you run a café. General tills may not have specialised features essential for coffee shops, but hospitality EPOS will.
A small café does not always require all the larger-scale operations of a big restaurant, so the complexity of the software also matters.
For some, a simpler checkout can be more efficient, but a single café POS system to manage all daily operations with staff management and ingredient tracking can really save you time and money in the long run.
Fret not – we have tested the leading register software and found that the following POS systems for cafés are best.
Cafe POS system | Cost* | Best for | Website |
---|---|---|---|
£59+/mo | All-round POS with ordering add-ons | ||
£0-£69/mo | Cafés reliant on easy multichannel selling | ||
£29+/mo | Modular, affordable POS with click-and-collect | ||
£49+/mo | User-friendliness and detailed features | ||
£39+/mo | Busy coffee shops on a budget | ||
£50+/mo | Custom till setups | ||
Free with Zettle PayPal payments | Small cafés with a single till |
*Excluding VAT.
What should coffee shops look for?
It’s easier to choose your ideal till system if the cafe you run has defined their limitations and plans. Ask yourself these questions:
- Prefer a tablet till or hard-wearing touchscreen register? Different providers offer hardware bundles for low and high budgets.
- Do you have a kitchen to send orders to? If so, look for EPOS with a kitchen display system.
- Is your internet reliable? If not, choose an EPOS with offline mode.
- Do you take orders online or in person only? Since Covid, many – but not all – POS systems have integrated Click and Collect.
- Which card machine do you prefer? Coffee shop POS often comes with integrated payments, but maybe not for a price you like.
In addition, you should look at hidden contract terms, because some require a certain commitment. Even without lock-in, you can sometimes lower the monthly cost by going for an annual instead of monthly subscription.
But in the end, getting a feel for the software will help you see if it’s the right fit for your establishment. We recommend trialling a few options before committing to a plan.
Best for: Staff and table management features
Pricing: From £59 + VAT/mo (1 till)
Compatibility: iPad only
Pros: 24/7 customer support, offline mode, built-in payments, table service functions
Cons: Add-on fees can rack up, no Android compatibility
Lightspeed Restaurant contains a well-rounded set of features for cafés wanting shop floor and management operations covered by one system. The software works well offline, though card payments may still require a network connection.
It is relatively user-friendly, but setting up products and the app layout can take longer than other POS systems because of the customisation options. But once you get the hang of it, the system will be easy and clearly built for fast-paced businesses.
Image: MobileTransaction
Lightspeed Restaurant is not just for restaurants – its features suit cafés too.
There is no minimum contract, and you can choose to pay the subscription monthly, although annual plans are available for a lower price.
The Essentials plan includes one iPad till licence and enough features if you don’t do table service. You’ll need the Plus subscription for table service management and customer loyalty features.
Plans include the built-in Lightspeed Payments system with specific card machines provided by Lightspeed. Alternatively, you can integrate a Zettle, SumUp or Paymentsense card machine, which may cost extra.
Lightspeed Restaurant costs | |
---|---|
Essentials plan (core till features & payments) | £59 + VAT/month (annual plan) £77 + VAT/month (monthly plan) |
Plus plan (above + loyalty & advanced inventory features) | £109 + VAT/month (annual plan) £142 + VAT/month (monthly plan) |
Pro (above + custom card rates, QR code ordering) | £339 + VAT/month (annual plan) £441 + VAT/month (monthly plan) |
Lightspeed Payments | Visa, Mastercard, Amex: 1.6% per transaction |
Lightspeed Restaurant costs |
|
---|---|
Essentials plan (core till features & payments) | £59 + VAT/month (annual plan) £77 + VAT/month (monthly plan) |
Plus plan (above + loyalty & advanced inventory features) | £109 + VAT/month (annual plan) £142 + VAT/month (monthly plan) |
Pro (above + custom card rates, QR code ordering) | £339 + VAT/month (annual plan) £441 + VAT/month (monthly plan) |
Lightspeed Payments | Visa, Mastercard, Amex: 1.6% per transaction |
The till features go beyond the mere basics. For instance, different modifiers or instructions are easily added to any order. You can split bills in any way, create VAT groups, customise the product menu and create various discounts. It also allows you to accept takeaways and delivery orders, if you get the right integrations.
Lightspeed can connect with Uber Eats and Deliveroo through its Delivery add-on, or take QR code orders on your premises through Order Anywhere. Some of these add-ons cost extra, unless you’re on a high enough plan that includes it.
Customer service is included 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You get free onboarding to help you set up and get your questions answered.
Payment integrations: Zettle, Paymentsense, SumUp
Can you try before committing? Only a limited demo of the app – otherwise, get an offer from Lightspeed.
Best for: Small café with an online presence
Pricing: From £0
Compatibility: iPad & Android devices
Pros: No commitment, many payment tools included, cheap card reader
Cons: Can only use Square card machines, not for offline use
Square is a good place to start for many small businesses, because of its free, versatile Point of Sale app and complimentary tools on top. The app works on iPad, iPhone and Android devices, but has no offline mode.
There is also Square for Restaurants with more features relevant for cafés. It has a ‘Free’ plan with slightly more features than Point of Sale, or ‘Plus’ with a wider selection of features for £69 + VAT (no commitment required). This includes unlimited till licences at one location, which is good value for multi-till cafes.
Photo: MobileTransaction
Although built for restaurants, Square for Restaurants can suit many cafés.
Square for Restaurants, however, is only compatible with iPad and Square Register, not Android devices.
Features include advanced tipping and service charges, table plans with orders attached, food menus and items with variants, employee management, a kitchen display system and gift cards. If the WiFi or network connection goes, you can still accept cash payments and use certain features on iPad.
Square offers some add-on plans like Loyalty so you can create a points-based customer loyalty programme. Other advanced features in almost any area can be added through integrations like MarketMan for food inventory.
You can connect the cafe till system with Square Online for your very own click-and-collect ordering page, or print QR codes for table-side ordering (all included free). The POS system otherwise integrates with Deliverect for food ordering on Just Eat and other platforms (extra cost).
Costs | |
---|---|
Square Point of Sale software | Free |
Square for Restaurants subscription | Free: £0/mo Plus: £69 + VAT/mo |
Card reader transactions | 1.75% |
Costs | |
---|---|
Square Point of Sale software | Free |
Square for Restaurants subscription | Free: £0 Plus: £69 + VAT/mo |
Card reader transactions | 1.75% |
The apps work with Square Reader for card payments for 1.75% per card transaction. While Square Terminal syncs with the system for table-side payments, it has not got access to all the Square for Restaurants features available on iPad.
Transactions through Square settle in your bank account the next working day, or within minutes for an extra 1% fee.
You get 24/7 customer support on the Restaurants Plus subscription, and only 9am-5pm weekday support on all free plans.
Payment integration: Square
Can you try before committing? Yes, use Square’s free apps indefinitely, or get a 30-day free trial of the Restaurants Plus plan.
Best for: Good features for a low overall cost
Pricing: From £29 + VAT/mo per till
Compatibility: iPad only
Pros: Table-side & online ordering features, choice of add-ons, offline mode
Cons: No Android compatibility, extra cost for advanced features
SumUp Point of Sale (previously Goodtill), also referred to as SumUp POS Pro, is an iPad EPOS system starting at a low price: £29 + VAT for the core POS module. Cafés may then add the Hospitality module for an additional £9 per month and other feature modules like advanced promotions, kitchen display and customer loyalty.
The till software gets good reviews by users and has a nice, adaptable interface for the checkout screen. Whether you need more than the Core POS module depends on how complex your food and drink operations are. For instance, the Hospitality module includes ingredient management, customer profiles, table management and tabs – none of which are in the Core module. The till software works offline, so poor internet is no barrier.
Photo: Goodtill by SumUp
SumUp’s self-service checkout can replace face-to-face ordering in your cafe.
SumUp POS is one of the cheapest options for coffee shops that need alternative setups for online selling too. At no monthly cost, you can create a web page for your website or social media profile for ordering food online. The only thing you pay are transaction fees. This system, called Goodeats, lets you print QR codes for customers to scan with their phones to order and pay at the table.
SumUp costs | |
---|---|
Core POS module | £29 + VAT/month per iPad licence |
Optional modules: Hospitality, Kitchen Display Screen, Uber Eats Integration, Deliveroo Integration | £9 + VAT/month each |
Optional modules: Advanced Stock, Promotions | £18 + VAT/month each |
Optional modules: Loyalty Tools | £20 + VAT/month |
Optional module: Business Analytics | £29 + VAT/month |
Goodeats transactions | No monthly cost 1.7% +12p for table orders & drop-off 2.7% + 12p for collect & delivery orders |
SumUp costs | |
---|---|
Core POS module | £29 + VAT/month per iPad licence |
Optional modules: Hospitality, Kitchen Display Screen, Uber Eats Integration, Deliveroo Integration | £9 + VAT/month each |
Optional modules: Advanced Stock, Promotions | £18 + VAT/month each |
Optional modules: Loyalty Tools | £20 + VAT/month |
Optional module: Business Analytics | £29 + VAT/month |
Goodeats transactions | No monthly cost 1.7% +12p for table orders & drop-off 2.7% + 12p for collect & delivery orders |
Goodtill syncs with the accounting programs FreeAgent, QuickBooks and Xero. The EPOS system connects with a choice of traditional card machines and contract-free card readers, meaning you can start out cheap and later upgrade to a long-term card machine contract.
Payment integrations: Barclaycard Business, Zettle, Paymentsense, Retail Merchant Services, Square, SumUp
Can you try before committing? Yes, you can get a 30-day free trial or book a demo through SumUp’s website.
Best for: User-friendliness
Pricing: From £49 + VAT/mo per till
Compatibility: iPad only
Pros: Intuitive app, affordable, lots of features
Cons: Doesn’t work on Android, customer loyalty features cost extra, 12 months’ commitment
Primarily built for restaurants, TouchBistro is an EPOS that also works for cafés. The interface is easy to grasp upon first use, and it has lots of features to manage any food-and-drink business. It only works on iPad, not Android devices or computers.
You can pay for the software annually, biannually, quarterly or monthly, but you have to commit to 12 months as a minimum.
You can use TouchBistro either in landscape or portrait mode on the iPad.
The features are wide-ranging, with functions to help you sell more. It has essentials like table plans, customer tabs, advanced split bills, food menus with modifiers, tipping and staff accounts with custom permissions. You can save customer details in a library and accept gift cards, but customer loyalty features don’t go beyond this unless you subscribe to a loyalty plan (pricing not transparent).
With a Deliverect integration (additional cost), you can connect TouchBistro with online platforms like Uber Eats and Deliveroo. TouchBistro POS also has built-in options for pick-up and takeaway orders, but these are not connected to an online ordering system.
TouchBistro costs | |
---|---|
iPad licence, 1st | £49 + VAT/month |
iPad licence, 2nd-3rd | £45 + VAT/month each |
iPad licence, 4th-9th | £40 + VAT/month each |
iPad licence, 10+ | Custom quote |
Loyalty features | Custom quote |
TouchBistro costs |
|
---|---|
iPad licence, 1st | £49 + VAT/mo |
iPad licence, 2nd-3rd | £45 + VAT/mo each |
iPad licence, 4th-9th | £40 + VAT/mo each |
iPad licence, 10+ | Custom quote |
Loyalty features | Custom quote |
Friendly 24/7 customer support is included in the price, either through telephone, email or the app. The ease of use in the app is excellent, as it shows explanations next to settings so you understand what every little function does without having to look it up online.
TouchBistro is a hybrid EPOS system, meaning it can run on both your local server and the cloud. With just one iPad till, it will work if the internet is down, then upload sales and changes in the cloud when WiFi is back. A café with multiple tills will need a server to keep iPads synced. With the internet working, the software will run smoothly regardless of how many tills you have.
Payment integrations: Barclaycard Business, Paymentsense, Square
Can you try before committing? Yes, TouchBistro offers a 7-day free trial without registration, and a further 21 trial days if you create an account.
Best for: Busy cafés on a budget
Pricing: From £39 + VAT/mo per till
Compatibility: iPad only
Pros: Offline mode, ease of use, 24/7 UK support
Cons: Not the most feature-rich table orders, support can be slow
NOTE: Nobly has been discontinued as a brand and turned into the new Revolut POS, which we’ve reviewed here. It is similar to Nobly, but free of charge and requires a Revolut Business account to access. Nobly information below/above is out of date.
Nobly is another user-friendly coffee shop POS system. The software is built for iPad and is speedy and intuitive to navigate. Although cloud-based, it also works offline, making it a reliable system for busy cafés where the internet may be temperamental.
You can pay monthly or annually per iPad licence, the latter being cheapest. There is no contract or minimum subscription required, but exact pricing is unfortunately not communicated until you speak with Nobly on the phone.
Tableside orders are managed via a simple table plan in the app. Photo: Nobly
The Nobly app doesn’t have as many features as, say, TouchBistro, but that fits the bill perfectly for most cafés. You get inventory and ingredient tracking, detailed analytics and customer loyalty features (which often costs extra in other software). Table-side orders are a bit limited compared to pricier EPOS, but the simple layout is an advantage for busy tills that need to process orders quickly.
Those offering takeaway and delivery services can be listed on the Nobly Delivery app for no monthly fees, just a transaction fee.
Nobly costs | |
---|---|
Subscription | From £39 + VAT/month |
Nobly costs | |
---|---|
Subscription | From £39 + VAT/month |
The London-based customer support is available round the clock so you can phone or email any time for help. Some users have reported slow responses in some cases and lack of help during setup, but overall, the service is friendly and helpful. Given the simple interface, it takes very little time to train new staff on the till.
Payment integrations: Zettle, SumUp, Revolut Reader, Paymentsense, Barclaycard Business
Can you try before committing? You can book a free demo if you fill in contact details on Nobly’s website.
Best for: High-growth cafés that want an adaptable solution with room to grow
Pricing: From £50 + VAT/mo per till
Compatibility: iPad, Android tablets, PC, Mac, PC touchscreen register
Pros: Good-value hardware packages, very customisable, integrated payments
Cons: Costs can rack up, contract lock-in, service complaints
Epos Now is a popular till system for cafés and retailers alike. Coffee shops can choose its Hospitality subscription for either iPad, Android tablets or your choice of computer. Often, the company offers an affordable touchscreen till monitor built for food-and-drink environments in a discounted bundle from £399 + VAT upfront.
Image: MobileTransaction
The food and drink menu in Epos Now can be organised neatly into Mains, Hot Drinks etc.
Just beware that Epos Now packages often come with a commitment of up 1-3 years. The till software on its own, whoever, can be used with a month-to-month subscription.
A basic Epos Now POS subscription, giving access to general cloud till features on a tablet, costs a minimum of £50 + VAT per month. This is likely to rise in cost as you realise that small, significant add-ons are required, such as customer support that doesn’t come free with the core plan.
The app interface is intuitive, but not always user-friendly and fast to load.
Epos Now costs | |
---|---|
Software | From £50 + VAT/month |
Cost per add-on feature | From £14 + VAT/month |
Hardware bundles | From £399 + VAT, excluding £9.99+ shipping |
Epos Now Payments | 1.7% per transaction (all cards) |
The Hospitality subscription includes café features like food menus, table plans and modifiers. One of the paid add-ons is an Order & Pay system enabling customers to order their hot drinks from the table.
If you don’t want to integrate the EPOS with one of the compatible payment processors, the Epos Now Payments system is set up from the get-go when opting for one of its card machines (from £15 + VAT monthly to rent).
Payment integrations: Epos Now Payments, Verifone, Paymentsense, Zettle, RMS, Worldpay, Global Payments
Can you try before committing? You can sign up with Epos Now for a quote, demo or trial.
Best for: Budget-conscious cafés
Pricing: Free
Compatibility: iPad & Android devices
Pros: Easy to use, quick registration, free, payments built in
Cons: Limited features, support can be slow
Zettle POS is a great till system for small eateries like food trucks, bars and cafés. It works on iPad, iPhone and Android devices and is easy to get the hang of from the start, after the initial quick registration online that does not require a phone call.
Photo: MobileTransaction
Zettle EPOS fits in neatly in a modern coffee shop.
The app is called Zettle Go POS, and it comes with a product library that you can add food items to along with variants and images. You can create user PINs for different staff and add tips at checkout. There are no formal end-of-day reports, but you can view sales reports any time from the till and web portal.
The POS system can send payment links for remote payments, and accept cash, PayPal QR code payments and cards. Online payments are processed by Zettle, but the payment methods aren’t linked to an online ordering system for click and collect.
For accounting, Zettle integrates with Xero and QuickBooks.
Zettle costs | |
---|---|
Zettle Go POS app | Free |
Zettle Reader transactions | 1.75% |
Zettle costs | |
---|---|
Zettle Go POS app | Free |
Zettle Reader transactions | 1.75% |
Customer support is included and can be reached by phone, email and web chat on working days between 9am-5pm only, not weekends or evenings.
In terms of card machines, only Zettle Reader works with the system. This is a cheap card reader for £29 + VAT. If you need a standalone, mobile terminal, Zettle Terminal comes with the Go POS app built in, which would suit table-service or pop-up cafés especially.
Payment integration: Zettle
Can you try before committing? You can sign up on Zettle’s website and download the app for free.
Summary
Cafe till system | Best for | Site |
---|---|---|
Balanced POS features and ordering add-ons | ||
Cafes reliant on easy multichannel selling | ||
Great value with click-and-collect options | ||
User-friendliness, customer service and advanced features | ||
Cash-strapped, busy cafes | ||
Custom till bundles with many add-ons | ||
Small cafes with a single till and uncomplicated needs |
Cafe till system |
Best for | Site |
---|---|---|
Balanced POS features and ordering add-ons | ||
Cafes reliant on easy multichannel selling | ||
Great value with click-and-collect options | ||
User-friendliness, customer service and advanced features | ||
Cash-strapped, busy cafes | ||
Custom till bundles with many add-ons | ||
Small cafes with a single till and uncomplicated needs |