4 Best Restaurant POS Systems 2021

Ever feel like there are obstacles eating away at your profits?

If it’s any consolation, you’re not alone. It’s especially frustrating when you can’t pinpoint what those obstacles are!

With the power of digital technology, you can optimize your restaurant’s operations, avoid common pitfalls, and – yes – make even more money.

Here, we’ll give you the full scoop on restaurant POS systems, how they work, and which are best for you.

Ready to get started? Let’s get cookin’!

What are restaurant POS systems?

Restaurant point of sale software is one part of what is known as a restaurant POS system. Essentially it’s a network of computers that uses specialized programs to streamline a restaurant’s operations. Restaurant POS systems are among the most popular restaurant tech trends since they offer such a wide array of functions and advantages to restaurant business owners.

Restaurant POS systems are used to:

• Track sales
• Keep records of cash flow
• Manage staff
• Measure inventory consumption
• Simplify bookkeeping
• Organize floorplans
• And more

8 key software features of a POS system

Generally speaking, the goal of using restaurant POS software is to increase sales and decrease the number of inefficiencies in the system. With that in mind, it’s clear that the best restaurant POS software will improve your business in a wide variety of ways.

Some of the key software features of a restaurant POS system include:

1. Easy user interface
2. Fast responsiveness
3. Inventory control
4. KPI reports
5. Seating and reservations
6. Training
7. Marketing features
8. Support and warranty

1. Easy user interface

Restaurant POS systems are meant to make things easier. If the system is confusing for servers to use on the floor, it will slow down sales and drive customers away. Likewise, if managing the restaurant POS software becomes a lengthy and stressful task, it can eat away at the time which could otherwise be put towards more productivity. An intuitive user interface is absolutely essential in restaurant management software.

2. Fast responsiveness

People come into restaurants because they’re hungry – go figure! And while it may be controversial, we’re going to make the bold claim that there isn’t a single person out there who likes to wait for their food to come. That’s why a reliable restaurant point of sale software won’t lag or glitch. Staff needs to move quickly to keep their responsibilities covered, and slow-working restaurant POS systems will frustrate those efforts as well as the workers, and the customers as well.

Side note: Speaking of speediness, if your restaurant finds itself in need of fast business funding, you can turn to Become for approval within 24 hours.

There are plenty of reasons why your business may require fast access to financing – broken equipment, disaster recovery, getting through the slow season, and so on.

3. Inventory control

Your restaurant has better-selling dishes and it has those that are ordered less frequently. To keep up with demand, you’ll need more of some products and less of others. That means your inventory will need to reflect those differences.

For that reason, it’s important that the restaurant point of sales system you choose will be able to keep track of the rates at which different ingredients are consumed. Having an accurate inventory tracking system can equate to avoided losses and wasteful spending.

4. KPI reports

Besides ingredient consumption rates, you’ll want to have up-to-date insights into a broad variety of different key performance indicators (KPI’s for short). Those indicators can include table turn rate, the ratio of sales to labor cost, server benchmarks, sales by item, and so on. Having the best restaurant POS software means that you’ll be able to pull those sorts of reports from your database at any time and adjust your business plan accordingly – it may even have an impact on how you design your pricing strategy.

5. Seating and reservations

Most restaurant management software has a function that allows you to design a virtual layout of the floorplan. That will let servers track orders by the table at the touch of their finger, which helps keep their tasks organized and easy to find. It also hosts to easily reserve tables and communicate that to servers through the shared computer system. Finally, having a seating function in your restaurant point of sale software allows you to gather even more data, including the average sales per head at different areas of the restaurant, table turn rate, and so on.

6. Training

On-boarding new restaurant staff can be time-consuming to begin with. If the restaurant POS software doesn’t have some type of training included (either with a live support representative or as part of the software), it can make it even harder for the new staff to get integrated and active. If you’re looking for the best restaurant POS software, you’ll want it to offer you and your employees lots of tools – the best way to learn those functions is directly from those who designed the system.

7. Marketing features

Tired of having the same customers claim it’s their birthday every time they come in so they can get free dessert? You can use a restaurant POS software to offer customers membership to your loyalty program, through which they can get exclusive perks, discounts, promotions, rewards, and so on. That’ll also give you valuable insights into your customers such as demographics, retention rates, and more – which will make it even easier to improve your customer experience strategy. Just be sure to ask for their birthdate so they can’t keep pulling a fast one on you!

8. Support and warranty

As with any quality service, you’ll certainly want to know that in the event you need help, you’ll be able to contact the support center for your restaurant POS system 24/7. While POS systems are extremely helpful in so many ways, restaurants can grow very dependent on them. That means that the best restaurant POS software must come with quality support and user warranty that you know has got you covered if the system has serious glitches or crashes completely.

Top 4 restaurant POS systems for 2021

Most restaurant POS software isn’t too expensive to acquire or maintain, but some of them do include a sizeable charge for hardware installation and for upgrades. If a lack of funding is an obstacle to obtaining a restaurant point of sales software, business loans can help cover those costs and get your eatery operating at full capacity in no time.

Side note: Of course, the type of business will affect the kind of industry loans a business needs, as well as the specific circumstances that business finds itself in.

In fact, there are a number of business loans best for restaurants. Be sure to weigh your options carefully in order to choose the right funding solution for your business.

POS System	Price	Best Feature	Best for…
	$69/month	Easy for staff to learn	Restaurants of any size
	$79/month	Intuitive interface	Covering essential needs
	$99/month	Deep analysis of your restaurant	Advanced performance insights
	2.75%/transaction or 2.6% + 10¢/transaction	No monthly fee	Quick and easy setup process

1. TouchBistro: Best restaurant POS system for businesses of all sizes

Though this list is in no particular order, TouchBistro still takes a symbolic first-place in our ranking. This restaurant POS software offers a high level of customizability, detailed expense reports, efficient in-house communications, and much more. Plus, TouchBistro allows servers to bring the restaurant POS system around in the palm of their hand, which streamlines operations from the get-go. More than 15,000 restaurants in over 100 countries around the world are using TouchBistro to bolster their management and operations – they must be doing something right!

2. Toast: Best restaurant POS system for covering the essential needs

Of all the restaurant POS systems mentioned here, Toast stands out thanks to its no-nonsense approach. While other examples of restaurant POS software try to flaunt all of the extra functions that you won’t get anywhere else, Toast focuses on getting the basic necessities done right. This restaurant point of sale software includes a seamless offline loan so that, in the event that the internet connection is lost, you can keep operating with no delay. Toast also has a battery-powered mode that will keep your restaurant’s wheels turning even if the power goes out. Perhaps the best feature of all is how easy it is for new staff to learn this restaurant POS system.

3. Upserve: Best restaurant POS system for advanced insights

If you’re looking for the best restaurant POS software to collect loads of data and generate useful insights, then Upserve may be the one for you. After analyzing your business, Upserve also provides you with easy-to-navigate dashboards that plug the data into charts and graphs so you can visualize those stats. Upserve also offers certain features that you’ll seldom find with other restaurant POS systems, such as a training mode, tableside ordering, and bill splitting.

4. Square: Best restaurant POS system for quick and easy setup

Square is one of the more well-known restaurant management software for good reason. The biggest highlight of Square is probably the extreme ease of setting it up – it’s as simple as plugging the card reader into your touch tablet. Square is compatible with popular operating systems including iOS and Windows, and is very popular among smaller businesses since there’s no monthly fee. Instead, the payment scheme is on a per-transaction basis, which is extremely attractive for small businesses such as food trucks where sales are less predictable.

Important: Some restaurant POS systems may turn out to be more costly for your budget compared to others. Restaurant loans can be extremely useful in overcoming the expenses that stand in the way of making improvements to your business – don’t hesitate to look into the different funding options that are at your disposal.

Bottom line

There are many different restaurant POS systems to choose from, because each and every business has different needs, focuses, and goals. We’ve covered the top 4 restaurant POS software that offer different perks and advantages – so be sure that you’ve got your business plan in mind when deciding on which one you want to use! There’s no right or wrong answer here, just what works best for you.

There are plenty of restaurant owners who are still in the dark when it comes to choosing a restaurant point of sale software, so don’t forget to share this article with them. You can also follow Become on social media to stay updated on even more small business info and insights.