Australia is blessed with a wide range of point of sale (POS) systems, but there are actually not many straightforward and affordable ones for a small restaurant or café. Many of the best solutions worldwide are not available in Australia, but some are.
Easy POS software is one you can set up quickly and includes all the hospitality features needed at the register. Even easier is a setup already linked to a payment system. Contract lock-in is another factor that many POS providers like to sneak in – but not all solutions require this.
Let’s compare the best POS systems for restaurants and cafés we recommend specifically for Australia.
| Hospitality POS | Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|
 Lightspeed |
Annual and monthly plans from $79*/mo | Full-service, hotels and bigger restaurants who want an easy iPad POS to grow with |
 Square |
Monthly plans between $0-$129/mo | Quick-service and cafés with a busy kitchen and want for fast cash flow |
 Epos Now |
Annual plans from $499*/yr | Stable restaurants who want the best hardware bundles and might have a retail area too |
 Abacus |
Monthly plans from $0/mo | New venues looking for a low-cost tablet POS with flexible ordering tools |
 Impos |
Fully custom plans requiring a quote | Larger, multi-venue restaurants who can afford a premium setup and service |
*Excludes GST
| Hospitality POS |
Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Lightspeed |
Annual and monthly plans from $79*/mo | Full-service, hotels and bigger restaurants who want an easy iPad POS to grow with |
| Square |
Monthly plans between $0-$129/mo | Quick-service and cafés with a busy kitchen and want for fast cash flow |
| Epos Now |
Annual plans from $499*/yr | Stable restaurants who want the best hardware bundles and might have a retail area too |
| Abacus |
Monthly plans from $0/mo | New venues looking for a low-cost tablet POS with flexible ordering tools |
| Impos |
Fully custom plans requiring a quote | Larger, multi-venue restaurants who can afford a premium setup and service |
*Excludes GST
Lightspeed Restaurant – all-in-one POS for most food businesses
Lightspeed POS has been through several iterations, but the latest version for hospitality is one we have tested and approve of. The new Lightspeed Restaurant (K-series) is an iPad point of sale designed for full-service restaurants and bigger establishments.
“Inventory features are enough for many small table-service restaurants. But maybe the main strength of Lightspeed Restaurant is how the team helps business owners to set the system up, so even those with no experience can get an easy start.”
– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, MobileTransaction
The software works with a WiFi connection, but the offline mode enables you to carry on operations during internet outages.
Lightspeed gives all new users a free video onboarding session where you can have any questions answered. Their customer support lines are open 24 hours, seven days a week, excluding holiday periods. Emailing and chatting via the website are also possible, and there’s a help section on their website.
Lightspeed Restaurant prices start at $79/month per register in one store. Both monthly and annual contracts are available.
The cheapest plan, ‘Starter’, is great for cafés, bars and quick-service. It’s not a basic plan with its many features like pay-at-table, bar mode, takeaway and restaurant workflows and integrated payments. Once you get the hang of it, the system is very user-friendly.
‘Essential’ is better for quick- and full-service restaurants in need of inventory, online ordering and multi-location management. Chains and hotels with more advanced revenue insights or need for integration with property management software should opt for ‘Premium’.
Cost for first register licence
Starter: $79/mo
Essential: $179/mo
Premium: $359/mo
Per extra register: $39/mo
Note: Prices exclude GST.
The POS system has basic inventory features (e.g. purchase orders via email and wastage tracking), but advanced inventory functions require the higher plans. Different add-ons are available, such as a kitchen display system and pickup order screen.
Lightspeed has its very own card payment system built in, but you must first get the EFTPOS machines from Lightspeed. Transactions are charged as a fixed lump sum per month, but there’s no monthly fee for terminal hire. No other EFTPOS integrate with Lightspeed any more (Tyro used to).
The software connects with well-known software platforms for accounting, online ordering, marketing and more. Accordingly, you won’t feel stuck if you can afford the extra software and add-ons.
How do I learn more?
Contact Lightspeed for a call, download the POS app on iPad and try the free demo (with limited features).
Square for Restaurants – good value, with payment tools
Square for Restaurants is a POS system for fast-paced cafés, small restaurants and quick-services. The software only works on iPad and Square Register, together with Square’s own EFTPOS terminals (not others), but you do get a lot of additional online payment tools integrated with the front-facing POS system.
Photo: MobileTransaction
To sign up, you only need to complete a short online form and connect your bank account. You can then get started using the Restaurants Free plan that covers essential hospitality features, or Plus for the full range of restaurant features.
The software is simple, but sufficient, for a small restaurant where tills need to coordinate kitchen orders and table service.
The Free plan lacks some important features like close-of-day reports, seat and course management, advanced employee management and a Kitchen Display System (KDS). These are all included on the Plus subscription for $129 incl. GST per month for unlimited registers at one location.
Pricing
Free plan: Free
Plus plan: $129/mo per location
Note: Prices include GST.
The iPad app works with Square Reader (1.6% per card transaction) or you can use the POS software on Square Register ($1,099 incl. GST) with a touchscreen and attached card terminal (1.6% per transaction). The standalone Square Terminal works well for table service payments (1.6% per transaction).
“Square is excellent for fast access to funds with its instant payout option. And it’s one of the fastest and most clutter-free POS systems we’ve tried, but you first have to spend some time setting up all the workflows and inventory.”
– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, MobileTransaction
Apart from POS features, you can set up click and collect, integrate with takeaway platforms and accept bookings over the phone. Alternatively, you can use eGift Cards, payment links and QR codes for touch-free ordering.
Overall, Square is excellent value for money, but we do recommend trialling the software in case it lacks features you need.
The Free plan only includes customer support on weekdays between 9 am and 5 pm, but Plus has 24/7 support to suit social hours.
How do I learn more?
Sign up on Square’s website to start a 30-day free trial of Plus, or just use the Free plan indefinitely.
Epos Now – custom packages for any hardware setup
Epos Now is a scalable system that works on iPad, Windows and Android tablets. It is suitable for small businesses as well as large restaurant chains.
The company sells hardware packages including touchscreen monitors, receipt printers, cash drawers and more, along with its hospitality POS software. The system has its own payment system (Epos Payments) with a fixed 1.7% Visa and Mastercard rate, but the EFTPOS terminals come at a cost.
Photo: MobileTransaction
Epos Now offers 24/7 customer support, but only on the Premium plan. The Standard licence only includes email support and some initial help with setting up, so it is expected you can manage most things yourself on the cheapest plan. On the Enterprise plan, you can get onsite support.
There are three subscription tiers: Standard, Premium and Enterprise. In all of them, you can add unlimited products, users and customers, and software and security updates are included. The Standard and Premium plans both have cloud reporting, while the Enterprise plan has more advanced reporting.
POS pricing
Annual plans from $499* upfront
* GST is added to prices.
The additional charge for customer support (i.e. you have to be on Premium) could be a deal-breaker for cash-strapped merchants considering most other POS systems include phone support at any price level.
“Epos Now doesn’t have the most appealing app interface – the text is small and the blue colour scheme is not for everyone. That being said, it’s a good POS system with useful integrations like card payments and affordable hardware bundles.”
– Emily Sorensen, Senior Editor, MobileTransaction
While there have been reports of features being limited, technical issues getting started and usability challenges, Epos Now offers many essential functions for restaurants and the option to integrate with popular apps for accounting, marketing and customer loyalty. You can also rent touchscreen PC terminals in equipment bundles if you can’t afford to purchase them upfront.
How do I learn more?
On the website, you can request a callback for more information.
Abacus – modern, frequently updated iPad app
Abacus is an easy-to-use POS system for iPad. The relatively new company was founded in 2015, but its development of POS software has been fast and they update the app very frequently, which is always a good sign.
Photo: Abacus
Abacus can give you custom packages to suit your physical setup, but its POS app is available in App Store for those who just need a simple, perhaps portable, POS register. The software is cloud-based and works with an ongoing internet connection or offline.
An ‘Access’ Abacus subscription includes one register licence free – this is great for trying out the system or if you just have a straightforward setup.
For more POS features and registers, you pay $49 per extra tablet register. With 4 total licences, your subscription is called ‘Grow’, whereas ‘Enterprise’ is for more than 4 registers. The higher than plan, the more advantages you get, like accounting integrations and “restaurant mode”.
POS pricing
Access plan, 1 register: $0/mo
Grow and Enterprise plans: Custom pricing
* GST is added to prices.
The POS app includes essential restaurant features like floor plans, menu, course and staff management. You can add discounts, tips, surcharges and check your business remotely via an Android or iPhone app.
Advanced functions are available as add-ons for inventory management, online ordering, loyalty tools, a kitchen display system, waiter tablets, and more.
You get some decent reporting tools to analyse sales and staff performance, as well as end-of-day reports. The software connects with popular EFTPOS machines from Tyro, Westpac, Stripe and Smartpay.
Customer support is available via live chat or email between 7 am and 11 pm Melbourne time. If you provide a phone number, a team member can call you right away during this time, but there is no helpline to dial directly.
Impos – personalised setup for established venues
Impos is a premium POS system for medium-to-large food and drink venues, with tailored packages only. It offers everything a restaurant needs to run a professional business, but certain shortfalls mean it doesn’t suit many small businesses.
The main issue is a lack of transparency about features and pricing, which means you’ll likely pay several $100s per month just for the software and a lock-in contract. Although the website says you can use it with any operating system, there is no iPad or Android app available publicly. If requested, Impos can set up a portable iPad register, but it does not have all the POS features available on a computer.
Photo: Impos
Instead, it is encouraged you buy or rent an industry-grade touchscreen register through Impos. These POS terminals are made to withstand liquid splashes and dirty environments – important for many coffee shops and dining venues.
The POS interface in the register software is colourful and highly customisable. It has in-depth reporting, inventory, rostering, table and staff management functions. Waiters can even log into the software with their fingerprint, if not swiping a staff card on the commercial-grade touchscreen till.
POS pricing
Custom quote only
The extent of available customer service depends on your support plan, which is separate from the POS subscription. The basic support package includes business-hours support, whereas premium plans include dedicated 24/7 support that cannot be cancelled until after 12 months.
Impos has its own EFTPOS payment system now: ImposPay. Although the company is eager for you to use that, it still connects with Tyro EFTPOS machines as an alternative.
The POS system mainly stores information on your local hardware, as opposed to the cloud, which makes it fast in offline mode. As a downside, integrations with online software may not work as well as Impos’ own features installed on your premises.
