Best restaurant POS systems in the UK

Choosing a restaurant point of sale (POS) system is easier when you know what to look for.

Certain features are essential for restaurants, so if they're lacking in a basic package, we wouldn't recommend the solution highly.

For example, any quick-service, takeaway, fine or casual dining restaurant needs a food and drink menu displayed in a user-friendly way on the till screen and ingredients highlighted so staff can inform customers with allergies. They typically also need to split bills, display VAT and share tips among staff.

Full-service restaurants need open orders attached to a seating plan, table reservations and courses timed with the kitchen. These are not always included as standard, in which case they should be available as add-ons.

We've looked at all these aspects – balancing cost, features and value of each POS system for restaurants – and analysed the best solutions for a small-to-medium restaurant in the UK.

Comparison of restaurant POS systems:

What does it cost?

Prices start at £69/month for one till on a Basic plan, which give you enough to run a simple checkout. The Core plan (from £129 monthly) suits full-service restaurants, with 2 POS licences, advanced insights, inventory management, customer loyalty and QR code ordering.

Big, multi-location restaurants or hotels should opt for Pro for £219 + VAT per month, which includes 3 checkout licences, online ordering integrations and competitor insights.

Subscriptions are billed monthly, but require annual commitment. All the plans offer add-ons, so the full cost is likely higher, especially if you need extra register licences (£39 + VAT each).

Lightspeed Payments is included for accepting Visa, Mastercard and American Express, but requires buying a card machine through Lightspeed. Instead of a pay-as-you-go rate, the system charges a fixed sum monthly according to your sales volume on the Basic plan – not to everyone's liking. Higher plans allow custom rates, though.

"Lightspeed Payments is convenient, but I recommend calculating if the monthly fixed transaction cost is worth it for your business."

– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, Mobile Transaction

Integrations and hardware are an extra cost quoted upon request.

Why might this POS system work for you?

All plans contain key point of sale functions and possible add-ons to tailor your setup. Where Lightspeed lacks in functionality, integrations are available such as Uber Eats, Deliveroo, etc. for takeaway ordering.

Lightspeed is also good at onboarding new users, providing a video session for getting your questions answered. They have customer support lines open 24 hours, seven days a week excluding holidays.

What we didn't like

You'll need to buy as many iPads as you have tills, which adds up alongside cash drawers, printers and card machines.

We were also surprised when the old Lightspeed Restaurant app was replaced (a few years ago) with the current version reviewed here. The old app had many more features and integrations, making it much more versatile.

Can you try it before committing? There's a limited demo account in the app for testing, or you can contact Lightspeed for an offer.

Epos Now is a scalable system that works on most types of hardware (PC, Mac, iPad, Android tablets) online or offline. It has many essential functions for restaurants on software that feels professional, although not as up-to-date on usability as we'd like to see.

Its restaurant-specific features include table management, custom floor plans, split billing and kitchen printing, helping staff manage orders efficiently between front- and back-of-house operations. The system works both online and offline, so internet outages shouldn't be a problem.

What we like about Epos Now

Epos Now suits small businesses with its fairly affordable hardware packages containing a touchscreen monitor, receipt printer and cash drawer. The tablet registers are hardwearing and wipeable, ideal for bar areas and greasy spoons.

What does it cost?

The Epos Now Hospitality software has monthly fees and upfront costs if opting for a hardware bundle.

That said, Epos Now locks you into a contract of 1+ years. This is not transparent on the website, like the other costs that are not apparent until you realise missing features requiring a paid add-on or external software.

"Epos Now can be a good deal with their hardware bundles and breadth of restaurant features, but I stress the importance of checking contract terms and hidden fees thoroughly before committing."

– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, Mobile Transaction

There are different subscription tiers, only communicated at sign-up. In all of them, you can add unlimited products (or rather: Epos Now does this for you, which is not always convenient), users and customers, and software and security updates are included.

The EPOS works out-of-the-box with Epos Now Payments, if you also rent a card machine from £15 + VAT per month. Otherwise, the system integrates with card machines from Verifone, Retail Merchant Services, Worldpay, Paymentsense, PayPal and Global Payments.

Why might this system work for you?

Epos Now support many types of setups for growing businesses. For instance, integrations with online ordering, delivery platforms and third-party apps like customer loyalty tools are available, though some integrations are smoother than others.

Staff can use handheld devices to take table-side orders, speeding up service and reducing errors. For multi-site restaurants, cloud access allows for real-time reporting and centralised management of inventory.

We also noticed that Epos Now's backend system and frontend POS are compatible with both retail and food-and-drink operations, so this is an EPOS catering to both (rare to see!). Businesses with a mix of both should therefore check it out.

What we didn't like

There are reports of features being limited, technical issues and usability challenges with the Epos Now software. We personally don't like the tiny font sizes in the POS app, though the general user flow is mostly logical.

Epos Now offers 24/7 customer support, but only with an extra care package. This could be a deal-breaker, considering most other POS systems include phone support at any price level.

Without the care package, there's only email support and initial help with setting up, so it is expected you manage most things yourself.

Can you try it before committing? You can request a demo or free trial through a contact form on the website. Just beware that Epos Now is known for using contact details for marketing purposes, which you may need to opt out of.

Square for Restaurants is a POS system built for fast-paced food and drink businesses. The software only works on iPad together with Square's own card terminals, but you do get a lot of additional online payment tools integrated with the front-facing EPOS.

What we like about Square for Restaurants

It's really easy to sign up. You only need to complete a simple online form and connect a bank account. You can then get started using the free Point of Sale app with general features, Restaurants Free plan with more hospitality features, or Restaurants Plus with a full range of restaurant features.

The POS interface doesn't overwhelm with too many buttons. From what I've experienced in the iPad app, Square for Restaurants strikes a good balance between a user-friendly interface and a smart workflow for any kind of food ordering.

The secret behind its efficiency is how you tailor the menu, ordering flow, staff communications and checkout process – and there are many settings to decide before you get started.

The Restaurants software is in other words simple, but sufficient, for a small restaurant where tills need to coordinate kitchen orders and table service. It works best with a WiFi connection, but has recently started working offline too.

What does it cost?

There's a free ('Free') and paid ('Plus') subscription with no contractual commitment.

The Free plan lacks important features like end-of-day reports, item availability tracking, seat management, advanced service charge settings and a Kitchen Display System. These are all included on the Plus subscription for £69 + VAT per month for unlimited registers at one location.

Why might this system work for you?

Square's ecosystem of hardware, payments and software is perfect for businesses that want a simple, all-in-one POS system that works out-of-the-box.

For example, the iPad POS works with the cheap Square Reader for card transactions and syncs with the standalone Square Terminal for table service payments. If you don't want to use iPad, the elegant Square Register (£599 + VAT) with a touchscreen and card terminal is a great alternative we think looks very stylish.

Apart from POS features, you can set up click-and-collect, integrate with takeaway platforms and accept bookings over the phone with the complimentary virtual terminal. QR codes for touch-free ordering are included free, as well as many other tools like staff timesheets and gift cards. It's a lot of value in one system.

What we didn't like

The Free plan only includes customer support on weekdays between 9am and 5pm. Plus has 24/7 support to suit the social hours of restaurants.

We also didn't like that some features aren't included, like ingredient-level tracking and supply-ordering. You'll need an integration with external software to handle those things.

"Square is generally excellent value for money, but I do recommend trialling the Restaurants software since it lacks certain features you might find important, like ingredient-tracking."

– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, Mobile Transaction

Can you try it before committing? Yes, there's a 30-day free trial of the Plus subscription.

SumUp Point of Sale (or 'SumUp POS Pro') is a highly customisable POS system with features for both hospitality and retail. It's a rebrand of Goodtill's original EPOS that has now been taken over by SumUp.

What we like about SumUp POS

My first thought when testing SumUp Point of Sale was how much I liked the interface. The colourful layout, menu pictures and custom-size buttons can be tailored beautifully, and the system works offline and online alike.

The POS system contains a good mix of hospitality features like table plans, a kitchen display system and various ordering functions. You might have to add an additional feature module for some of it, but it's still a fairly affordable system that's easy to use.

Users also get low rates and a business account for next-day payouts if using SumUp's own payment system.

What does it cost?

For £49 a month per iPad, this is a cheap POS system with decent reporting and more-than-basic POS features for a variety of face-to-face businesses.

Included on the main POS Pro plan are general features for the till. A Kitchen Display Screen, Advanced Stock, Advanced Loyalty and a Hospitality Module (includes table management) are optional add-ons for £19 each. All users get free online ordering software (from 1.7% +12p per transaction).

A minimum of a year's SumUp POS subscription is required, though.

Why might this system work for you?

SumUp POS is a good first POS system for new food-and-drink operations that want an affordable hardware package, free payment tools and modular POS features on the same platform.

Since it integrates with third-party software like takeaway and delivery platforms, your business won't be limited by SumUp's own features. So we recommend it as a stepping stone for small food establishments that might later wish to expand their services.

Although it can be used with card machines from Dojo and PayPal, merchants will also be offered an attractive, low transaction rate (0.99%-1.25%) if using one of SumUp's card readers.

What we didn't like

The POS system gets a mix of positive and negative user reviews, mainly about inadequate customer support. The online resource section is poorly structured and lacks information about some features. But you can contact customer support every day within set daytime and evening hours for help.

Moreover, the system works only on iPad, so you can't buy cheap Android tablets or hardwearing touchscreen registers.

Can you try it before committing? Yes, you can request a free demo on the website. After submitting contact details, SumUp will get in touch to discuss trial options.

TouchBistro is an elaborate till for single-location, full-service restaurants, upscale wine bars and other independent food-and-drink businesses.

The system is cloud-based, but can work offline through a local network of iPads connected to an iMac, Mac Mini or Mac Pro. If you're using more than one iPad register, it's a requirement to have such an Apple network in place to connect them up.

What we like about TouchBistro

TouchBistro's interface is very user-friendly with detailed, on-screen descriptions next to complicated functions. The first time I used it, I really liked how this saved me time, as I didn't need to look up explanations in help guides for individual features.

The POS system also offers granular seat-level ordering, modifier flexibility and course firing without the need of third-party add-ons. This makes it really good for for fine dining, high-turnover floors or upscale wine bars where the exact order details and speed of changing details matter more than usual.

In line with this, the POS app prioritises mobility and quick edits, which benefits waiters who can manage order details directly without having to deal with the kitchen.

What does it cost?

We were quoted £49 + VAT per iPad licence using the software. It is possible to pay monthly, quarterly, every 6 months or yearly, but the minimum commitment is a year.

Licences include a complete range of TouchBistro till features. A Reservations module can be added for an additional fee to manage table bookings.

Why might this system work for you?

We found the EPOS app comprehensive and useful, with both standard functions and thoughtful extras designed to maximise the customer service experience. It's also possible to add customer-facing displays and a kitchen display system (KDS) to optimise operations – all available as separate apps created by TouchBistro for an extra subscription.

Delivery platforms like Uber Eats can be connected through an integration, and Flipdish connects if you need customer loyalty tools. Their preferred card machine partner is Barclaycard Business, which won't suit everyone.

TouchBistro's customer support is generally okay. Within the app, you can send screenshots directly to the support team who can then guide you more easily on the phone or by email – both available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What we didn't like

Because TouchBistro no longer has a UK website, it looks like they only serve North American businesses. The information online is misleading, to say the least, because several features on the website are for US or Canadian users only.

We can confirm they do still accept British users, but signing up requires requesting a quote from TouchBistro who will phone or email you back with details.

Can you try it before committing? Yes, you can book a free demo or try the demo account in the app without registering.

Toast is an all-in-one POS system installed on Toast's very own, spill-proof Android terminals.

This means you purchase a hardware bundle with a touchscreen register, table-side terminal, receipt printer, customer facing display and/or kitchen display screen.

What we like about Toast

Not only do you get cloud-based till software allowing you to check sales from afar, you also have offline functionality in case the internet fails. Just beware that you still need to manually back up important data, since Toast's system does not do this automatically.

The EPOS is generally easy to work out, with genuinely useful features for a full-service restaurant. It would be overkill for a very small establishment with few staff members, as the features are made for complex operations like pizza chains and burger joints.

Apart from standard features like customisable food menus, table plans and split bills, it offers a kitchen display system (KDS) for different food prep stations, solid inventory tools and a portable checkout terminal for table-side ordering.

What does it cost?

There are a few different pricing plans available: Starter from £80 + VAT monthly for one terminal, Essentials from £150 +VAT per month and Custom with tailored pricing. If features are missing on your chosen plan, you can get them as add-ons or integrations with external software.

Card payments are integrated in the system and require a custom quote and card machine from Toast.

Why might this system work for you?

If you prefer having all operational features (like payroll, self-service kiosks and POS) on the same software platform and need complex features for a busy restaurant, Toast would be ideal. It's very scalable for new food-and-drink operations, but does take commitment given the hardware cost.

What we didn't like

A common complaint about Toast is its slow and lacking service beyond the initial installation. It can take weeks to get a resolution to a query, and we've seen users saying the company lacks email or chat support.

It's up to you which combination of equipment you buy, but Toast has to install it on your premises for a fee. This makes it pricier than most other POS systems to set up.

We also didn't like the fact it only works with their Android registers, so there's no flexibility in how the looks or links with other hardware.

Can you try it before committing? You can request a quote and demo from Toast's website. There's no trial to test on your own devices.