Best Restaurant Management Software: Top 9 Best Restaurant Management Software (2024)

Take some of the mystery out of restaurant management and finances with restaurant management software. This list features platforms designed to help you manage labor, inventory, ordering, reservations, and every other aspect of operations.

Use our research as a foundation to choose the best restaurant management software for your business.

• Toast 
• Posist 
• Lightspeed
• Restaurant365
• Zenput
• HungerRush
• Micros
• Upserve POS
• TouchBistro

Choosing the Best Restaurant Management Software

Restaurant management software platforms aren’t all the same – each offers its range of services to help you keep your restaurant operating at its peak. 

To know what software to pick, think about your needs. Do you need a solution for accounting? Front- and back-of-house operations? Streamlining processes? Inventory management? Choose the platform that offers the solutions and integrations to fit the unique demands of your business.

Toast 

Toast’s highly rated restaurant management software gathers all the tools you need to manage your restaurant in one place. 

Pros:

• Manage your restaurant’s inventory, staffing, online and delivery orders, and sales all in one place

• Grow your reach when you list your restaurant on the Toast TakeOut app marketplace

• Streamline ordering and inventory management, saving you on labor and helping you to serve guests faster

• Easy to use point-of-sale and back-office software – perfect for beginners or old-pros

• Build engagement with loyalty programs and marketing assistance from Toast

• Powerful analytics on all of your restaurant’s operations, from the host stand to the back office

Cons:

• Toast does not offer a reservation or online booking solution - it integrates with OpenTable, Resy, and Tock.

Pricing

While restaurants can get started with Toast for free, the New Restaurant Basics package is $110/month and $4 per employee per month. Add online ordering and delivery with the Essentials package for $165 a month. In addition, Toast offers custom pricing and packages for enterprise-scale restaurants.

Posist

Posist is an enterprise restaurant management software offering global partnerships.

Pros:

• Control your front-of-house and back-of-house operations with one solution

• Powerful analytics and customer relationship management to keep your restaurant running at its peak

• Integrations with other software solutions, such as contactless payments and loyalty programs

Cons:

• Posist does not offer online ordering or delivery solutions.

• Back-of-house software interfaces are difficult to navigate for reporting and operations

Pricing

Posist offers custom pricing to partners based on the scale and needs of their business. 

Zenput

Zenput is a labor-focused analytics software that helps restaurants to save on labor and prime costs.

Pros:

• Helps you to manage hiring, staffing, scheduling, and labor costs for your restaurant

• Receive assistance developing a memorable brand and marketing your restaurant to the right guests

• Manage your inventory and processes in detail to reduce your prime costs as much as possible

Cons:

• Focused primarily on employee productivity – many restaurants won’t find a need for an advanced process solution

• Does not integrate with other restaurant management software

Pricing

Zenput offers custom pricing based on the needs of each restaurant partner.

NCR Aloha POS

Aloha POS is restaurant management software from NCR Bank focused on simplifying operations.

Pros:

• Accounting, payments, and banking are integrated directly into restaurant management software.

• Manage FOH and BOH processes in one place with staffing, kitchen, and inventory management

• Visualize your restaurant’s performance with data and reporting to optimize operations

• Marketing, loyalty, and CRM capabilities to help you engage new customers and keep current ones

Cons:

• No delivery solution or an app marketplace

• Does not offer integrations for third-party apps

• Learning curve for front and back-of-house software

Pricing

NCR Aloha creates custom packages and pricing to match a restaurant's needs.

Oracle MICROS

MICROS is a restaurant POS system and management solution from Oracle technologies that lets you integrate your preferred restaurant management programs.

Pros:

• Manage FOH and BOH operations with the same system and track their performance with analytics and reporting

• Build schedules, hire employees, and track labor

• Create digital menus that keep track of prime costs on every sale

• Integrates with the software solutions not provided by Micros

Cons:

• No built-in reservation solution, loyalty program, delivery services, online ordering, or payments

• Lack of in-house services forces owners to build-your-own restaurant management suites, which requires additional time and cost

Pricing

Oracle Food and Beverage offers custom pricing on its wide range of restaurant management solutions.

Restaurant365

Restaurant365 provides accounting, operations, and staffing solutions that scale to the size of your restaurant. 

Pros:

• Manage hiring, onboarding, scheduling, payroll, and benefits 

• Empower your operations with data on employees, production, and sales performance

• Powerful inventory and prime cost management system included in the accounting solution

• Hosts a database of resources to support partners’ success

Cons:

• Restaurant365 is operations software – it is not a point-of-sale or payment solution.

• No delivery or online ordering integrations

Pricing

Advanced analytics come at premium prices – the Restaurant365 Essential package starts at $399/month, while the Professional package for $489/month includes all the advanced features.

Lightspeed Restaurant

Lightspeed Restaurant is a point-of-sale solution designed for all food service businesses.

Pros:

• Contactless ordering and payment

• FOH and BOH operations management, including inventory, staffing, and sales

• Data and analytics to help you make the best decisions for your business

• Integrates online, in-house, and delivery orders for speedy service

• Loaded with a floor plan and seating solution

• Offer guests contactless ordering and payment

Cons:

• Does not manage delivery drivers or an app marketplace

• Floor plan package does not include reservation management – but it does integrate with OpenTable

• Reports on employee performance are limited

• Steep learning curve for front-of-house and back-of-house software

Pricing

Lightspeed’s Starter package is $39/month and their Plus package, which provides a full range of solutions, is $119/month. The Pro package offers advanced reporting for $289/month. Lightspeed also offers custom pricing for enterprise solutions.

HungerRush

HungerRush is a full-stack restaurant management solution focused on improving the guest experience.

Pros:

• Control FOH and BOH operations on the same platform

• HungerRush delivers user-friendly POS hardware and software

• Take control of your labor, staffing, and processes with analytics and reporting

• Customer Relations Management (CRM), loyalty, and online ordering solutions are available.

Cons:

• Limited customization for POS menus and interfaces in some instances

• Learning curve for back-office software is steep

Pricing

HungerRush provides custom pricing packaged based on the needs of the business.

TouchBistro Restaurant POS

TouchBistro is a simplified POS and restaurant management software solution that helps you to focus on the business.

Pros:

• Point of sale with floor plan and reservation management

• Menu management and inventory management to help you keep track of prime costs

• Tableside ordering and payment processing to reduce error

• Manage staff, scheduling, labor, and hiring with back-office software

• Loyalty and marketing campaigns to help you enhance the guest experience

Cons:

• Does not offer a delivery management solution

Pricing

Pricing for TouchBistro Restaurant POS is custom to the hardware and software the business requires.

Lavu

Lavu is restaurant management software focused on helping bars, cafes, bistros, and other small restaurants succeed.

Pros:

• Manage FOH and BOH operations with ease

• Inventory management capabilities

• Process payments, manage invoices, and keep track of all of your finances

• Visualize your business performance with reporting and analytics

• Create loyalty programs and get marketing assistance to build your business

Cons:

• Does not offer an in-house online ordering or delivery solution – integrates with DoorDash and other solutions for online ordering

• iPad POS systems are not built to endure hot, humid restaurant environments.

Pricing

Lavu’s Starter package is $59/month, but the $129/month Growth package includes all the software a restaurant needs to manage its operations.

The Optimize package includes Lavu’s complete advanced reporting and integrations for $279/month.

Best Overall Restaurant Management Software

Toast POS and restaurant management software have all the features restaurants need to take control of their operations. Whether you’re starting a restaurant or looking for an alternative to facilitate your business’s growth, Toast solutions help restaurants succeed.

Compared to the competition, Toast POS offers the best software package for restaurants of all sizes. Manage your FOH, BOH, scheduling, delivery, and inventory in the same system. Toast’s custom data and analytics are built by restaurants for restaurants – they’re invested in your restaurant’s growth as much as you are.

At the end of the day, the restaurant management software you pick should suit your business. Be conscientious as you think about your needs and how the software will serve your business. Once you commit to a POS, it’s hard to switch. That’s why we put together this list - to ensure you make the best, future-forward choice for your restaurant.

Curious to learn more about POS and restaurant management software? Discover more about Toast and how it can facilitate your management needs. 

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