A bar point-of-sale (POS) system is a software and hardware tool that takes customer orders, processes payments, tracks sales, and analyzes your bar’s performance metrics. Bars specifically need POS systems that pre-authorize credit cards, manage bar tabs, and track cash transactions. The best POS systems for bars are also user-friendly and include tools to count and track your inventory as it is sold.
Based on our evaluations, the best bar POS systems are:
- Revel Systems: Best overall bar POS system for any bar type
- Toast: Best POS for full-service bar and restaurants
- Lavu: Best POS for nightclubs and sports bars
- Upserve: Best bar POS for craft cocktail bars and lounges
- Lightspeed Restaurant: Best POS for hotel bars
- Rezku: Best POS for small bars and breweries
- Square for Restaurants: Best free bar POS
If you’re not sure which bar POS would best suit your needs, continue reading below for a more in-depth review of each system that we recommend. Or, you can start your search with this quick quiz below. It is only four questions, takes less than a minute, and will provide a result without redirecting you to another page.
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How We Evaluated Bar POS Systems
We compared dozens of the most popular POS systems based on what’s essential to various types of bars. Our primary considerations included price, general POS functionality, ease of use, and the strength of bar-specific functions. We also considered our retail and restaurant experts’ personal evaluations of each software.
Based on the above criteria, Revel Systems emerged as the best overall bar POS for 2021. It received the highest aggregate score according to our grading system for bar POS software (4.44 out of 5). Based on our personal experience testing POS software and working in and with small businesses that use POS systems every day, Revel Systems is the software we would personally recommend for all types of bars.
Click through the tabs below for our full evaluation criteria:
15% of Overall Score
Since small bars and breweries are typically on a budget, we looked at whether each POS system offers a free plan and a plan option under $75 per month. Then, we made sure those plans include unlimited user logins, menu items, and transactions. Finally, we gave points to systems with more than one option for payment processing since bar owners need to get the best processing rates available. Where built-in processing was the only option, we gave bonus points for systems that offer high-volume processing discounts.
15% of Overall Score
Every beverage business needs to track inventory, sell and accept gift card payments, and easily access reporting tools, like daily sales totals, from anywhere. Bars need to assign access levels to different users and, ideally, use their POS to write and publish staff schedules. We also considered the strength of each system’s inventory tracking functions since loss and theft are significant issues for bars.
30% of Overall Score
We evaluated features that are essential to bars, including pre-authorized bar tabs and dual cash-drawer tills, which are valuable for high-volume spots. Busy bars also benefit from reporting dashboards that are easy to navigate, physical inventory counting tools, and low-stock alerts, so you never run out of ingredients. We ranked for robust tip tracking functions, giving high marks to systems that allow bars to track tip pools or add suggested tip-out percentages to bartender shift reports.
20% of Overall Score
Because bars typically operate on late nights and weekends, we prioritized solutions that offer 24/7 customer support. We also awarded points to POS systems with hybrid installation or an offline mode, so the system still operates if your internet goes out.
20% of Overall Score
Finally, we considered any stand-out features of each system and whether or not the software and hardware options offer good overall value for the price. We evaluated each system’s popularity with bar owners and awarded points based on our personal experience interacting with the software and the company’s customer support.
Revel Systems
PROS
- High till alerts let you move cash to the safe when the tills get full
- Robust inventory management features help control costs and organize orders
- Detailed reports cover every aspect of your bar business
CONS
- Can get pricey
- More machine than a small bar needs
- Best pricing requires a three-year service contract
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 2.92 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 4.58 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 4.06 | OUT OF | 5 |
Revel Systems also appeared on our list of the top restaurant POS software. It is a hybrid iPad POS that operates via a local area network (LAN) with the cloud as a backup, enabling the system to work even in the case of an internet outage. Revel Systems has features like precise alcohol inventory tracking and credit card pre-authorization for bar tabs. It also has dual till cash registers functions and allows you to set high cash alerts when tills hit a pre-set amount.
This system earned our highest score, 4.44 out of 5. If it were less expensive—pricing starts at $99 per month—it would have scored even higher. It earned points for the strength of the underlying POS functions and bar-specific functions like pour-tracking integrations, dual cash drawer tills, and credit card pre-authorization. The mobile reporting app and multiple payment processing options also sent this system to the top of this list.
Revel Systems Pricing
- Software: Revel Systems’ pricing starts at $99 per month per register, which is a higher base cost than most other systems on our list. However, Revel includes customer relationship management (CRM) and employee management features in the base model, where many POS systems charge extra monthly fees.
- Hardware: It operates on iPads, which can be purchased through Revel Systems along with accessories like iPad stands, cash drawers, receipt printers, bar code scanners, scales, and kitchen printers. It supports only iPads purchased from Revel directly, with the Revel POS software configured by its team. While it’s possible to use your own hardware, that will limit your technical support options.
- Installation: Like Toast, Revel Systems requires an installation fee. Revel’s baseline setup fee is a bit higher, starting at $649. This covers the cost of the Revel team networking the hardware through an onset server, which is what gives Revel Systems its excellent offline functionality.
- Payment processing: It has a built-in payment processing solution called Revel Advantage. Payment processing rates are not disclosed on its website; quotes are customized based on your bar’s sales volume and card mix. There are options for bars to negotiate to keep an existing payment processor if switching to Revel.
Revel System’s dynamic display options are a great fit for high-volume bars.
Revel Systems Standout Features
Revel Systems has the most robust general POS tools of any system on this list. It includes standard features like creating employee login and permission levels, but it goes one better by offering built-in scheduling tools that use POS data to forecast how busy your bar will be. Many other POS on this list require a third-party integration for those tools. This system further stands out from other POS systems because it features loyalty tools in the base POS, including email marketing tools.
Revel Systems’ standout features include:
- Inventory with vendor management: Its inventory allows you to track individual bottles and portions of bottles. You can enter your vendors in the back office, monitor your inventory usage, and generate purchase orders for ordering fresh supplies. The physical count tools allow you to assign your bar areas to specific staff members to count while controlling what information each person can see. You can block the “expected” count from non-managers to ensure that counts are accurate and see where you may have lost product.
- Comprehensive online tutorials: In addition to its 24/7 customer support, it hosts a wealth of training tutorials on its website, so it is easy to troubleshoot on your own.
- Massive offline functionality: The hybrid installation means your POS never goes down. If you lose internet access, your team can still ring orders in and process payments.
- Customized reporting: Revel’s reporting function is the most robust I’ve seen in a cloud POS. Reports are customizable, and you can automatically schedule end-of-day manager log reports to email your management team. You can also customize virtually every report in this POS to drill down to granular details.
Toast
PROS
- Tons of hardware customization options, including handheld tablets
- Incredibly easy to use
- One-on-one guided installation
CONS
- Locked into Toast for payment processing
- Operates on proprietary tablets
- Accurate pricing requires a custom-quote
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 2.50 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 3.33 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 4.69 | OUT OF | 5 |
Toast is a cloud-based POS system designed for the restaurant industry, and it often tops our lists of best POS for a variety of food and beverage businesses. Its pricing starts at $69 per month, per register, which falls in the middle of the pack, price-wise. However, Toast offers flexible tab management features with payment pre-authorization settings, automated happy hour pricing, and mobile POS options for that price. Its interface is incredibly intuitive; buttons and menus swipe to reveal additional information. On the back-end, reports are clean and easy to navigate.
Toast earned an overall score of 4.31 out of 5 on our bar POS ranking. It tied top-choice Revel Systems for niche bar functions and ease of use, and the only way it could have scored higher is if it offered more options for payment processing and a mobile reporting app.
Toast Pricing
- Software: Toast POS comes at three different pricing tiers, Starter, Essentials, and Growth. Pricing for the Starter package starts at $69 per month for a single terminal. Essentials is $99, while the Growth package designed for multi-location bars is $189. It frequently runs pricing promotions to lower entry-level costs for very small food and beverage businesses.
- Hardware: Toast POS only operates on Toast’s IP54 spill-proof rated Toast Flex tablets and mobile devices. You can purchase these directly through Toast. It doesn’t list pricing publicly; you’ll need to contact its team for a custom quote.
- Installation: Toast is a deeply networked system comprised of tablets, printers, card readers, and optional kitchen display systems. The system requires a Toast technician to set up, and so it comes with an installation fee. This fee starts at $499 but can increase based on your bar’s unique needs.
- Payment processing: It is built to be an all-in-one solution, so it comes with Toast’s built-in payment processing. It does not list these fees publicly. Instead, you’ll get a customized flat-rate transaction fee for your bar based on your sales volume and the mix of cards you accept.
Toast’s handheld ToastGo tablets are a great tool for cocktail servers in busy bars.
Toast Standout Features
Combining proprietary hardware and installation fees can make Toast a higher upfront investment than Square or Rezku. But for that price, Toast gives its customers excellent one-on-one installation support and training. It also offers in-house financing to spread the payments over the length of your service contract. It exclusively supports restaurants and bars, so Toast customers tend to have the most cutting-edge food and beverage software before anyone else.
Toast’s standout features include:
- Bar tab management: Employees can pre-authorize payment cards, so no cards are left at the bar. You can set the Toast system to give any employee the ability to add items to an open tab from any register. You can split checks via multiple payment methods. Toast also has a mobile POS solution so employees can take orders or close tabs even when they’re not behind the bar.
- Inventory management: Toast tracks wholesale and retail prices of individual ingredients so that bars can track costs and profit margins for different cocktail recipes. It also offers the ability to attach a photo and recipe to your cocktails, so bartenders have a ready reference for new cocktails or specials.
- Reporting and analytics: You can manage individual recipes and their wholesale costs and profit margins to track ingredient-inventory and expenses in real time. Toast also has reports to track employee productivity. These real-time analytics can be viewed and managed on Toast Back Office, which you can access from any browser or smartphone.
- Additional functions: Advanced inventory, gift cards, payroll, and labor management are available as add-ons with prices ranging from $25 to $50 each per month. Guests can choose to sign up for loyalty programs at checkout. Toast stores order histories under each guest profile, so bartenders can see customers’ visits and what they have previously ordered.
Lavu
PROS
- Competitive price
- Robust inventory features
- Multiple options for payment processing
CONS
- Add-ons can get pricey
- Physical inventory count tools don’t support various permission levels
- Offline mode can be glitchy
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 4.17 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 4.58 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 4.58 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 4.06 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 3.44 | OUT OF | 5 |
Lavu combines low-cost iPad POS functions with a high degree of customization at an affordable price point. This system frequently ranks as one of our top POS systems for small food and beverage businesses. Lavu has been developing tools for bars and restaurants since 2010 and is a popular choice for streamlined operations, like nightclubs that have focused menus.
On our bar POS rating scale, Lavu earned an overall score of 4.19 out of 5. It didn’t beat our top-ranked choices in any category, but it performed well across the board. Lavu isn’t the least expensive POS on this list, but it’s not the priciest either. Lavu’s price, ease of use, and 24/7 customer support make this a solid choice for nightclubs that serve a high-volume of alcoholic beverages.
Lavu Pricing
- Software subscription fee: Lavu pricing starts at $69 per month for a single terminal. This price requires paying for a full year of software fees upfront. At one time, this was a very competitive price point, but in the aftermath of COVID-19, competitors like Toast have lowered its entry-level price. Now, $69 per month puts Lavu in the middle of the pack price-wise, similar to competitors like Lightspeed.
- Hardware costs: Lavu runs on iPads, iPhones, and iPod touch devices that run iOS 11 or later. Since you can download the software directly from App Store, it is easy to use Apple devices you already own. The Lavu support website walks you through the steps to configure compatible devices. You can use iPhones or iPod touch devices for tableside ordering and mobile card readers to process tableside payments.
- Installation fees: Setting up your Lavu POS is a DIY affair, so there are no related installation fees. Lavu publishes comprehensive online resources to guide you through the process.
- Processing fees: You can use LavuPay or opt for a third-party processor; Lavu is flexible with payments, as it integrates with Worldpay, Moneris, and Heartland. However, Lavu users will likely get the best software subscription rates when they enroll in LavuPay.
Lavu Standout Features
Lavu’s best quality is its combination of price and function. This system gets very close to providing the same tools as Toast and Revel at a much lower price point. Though, it’s worth noting that those higher-priced systems come with a lot more personalized attention. Lavu contains a wealth of bar-supporting tools like ingredient-level inventory with purchase order management, pre-authorized bar tabs, and employee scheduling. The system also includes foundational restaurant POS functions like table mapping, check splitting, tip tracking, and the ability to accept deposits for future events or support bottle service sales.
Lavu’s standout features include:
- Customizable integrations: This POS integrates with 100+ third-party tools for employee scheduling, accounting, marketing, and more. Bars will appreciate the integration with BeerSAVER (draft beer control) and DigitalPour (draft tracker and digital menu).
- Mobile reporting app: Lavu’s Pilot reporting app puts all of your key performance metrics at your fingertips. You can track your sales and labor in real time from any smartphone (whether you are in your bar or on your couch).
- 24/7 US-based support: When your business operates as late as 4 a.m., you need customer support available at all hours. Lavu’s team is available via chat, email, or phone any hour of the day.
- Bar features: Combining customizable floor plans with card pre-authorizations and deposit processing makes Lavu a natural fit for nightclubs that offer bottle service alongside traditional bar service. Draft monitoring integrations support breweries and sports bars equally well.
Upserve
PROS
- Sleek interface is incredibly easy to use
- Attached recipes ensure your bartenders are never stumped
- One-click ordering keeps your bar stocked
CONS
- Pricey
- Locked into Upserve Payments
- Automated inventory is only available at higher subscription tiers
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 1.67 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 4.17 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 4.58 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 4.06 | OUT OF | 5 |
Upserve is a hybrid, touch-screen POS that has a laser focus on marketing and reputation management—even its entry-level subscription includes these functions. Pricing is transparently listed on the Upserve website and starts at $59 per month, plus $60 per terminal. Upserve operates on either iPads or Android tablets that you bring, but you can also purchase through Upserve.
In this bar POS ranking, Upserve earned a score of 4.06 out of 5. The system is on the pricier side, but it scored well for its ease of use and bar-specific functions. The sleek design and robust offline functionality also make this system a good fit for craft cocktail bars and high-end lounges.
Upserve Pricing
- Software subscription fee: Upserve’s pricing is a little different from the others on this list. Monthly subscription costs are calculated by the number of terminals you need, plus the function-level you require. Upserve’s entry-level Basic package starts at $59 per month plus $60 for each terminal. Bars looking to unlock additional functions like automated inventory management, loyalty program, and bartender performance insights will need the Pro package at $199 plus $50 for each terminal per month.
- Hardware: It operates on both iPads and Android tablets. You can purchase these through Upserve or bring your own. Upserve sells accessories like iPad stands, cash drawers, receipt printers, kitchen printers, kitchen display systems, kitchen and receipt printers, and handheld tableside ordering and payment devices. Pricing for iPads starts at $459, and complete terminal setups are available at $1,350.
- Installation: Upserve offers an in-person installation and configuration service that starts at $1,700. However, you can install and configure the system yourself using its comprehensive online resources as a guide.
- Payment processing: Like Toast, Square, and Revel, Upserve customers must use Upserve’s in-built payment processing. Rates are flat rate and based on a custom quote. Upserve will match competitors’ lower rates and is open to working with other processors if your bar has a pre-existing relationship.
Upserve’s side-tab navigation helps you ring in orders quickly.
Upserve Standout Features
Upserve is one the easiest bar POS systems to use, and it looks sleek in a high-end setting. Quick order screens and sidebar navigation enable your bartenders to speed through a large number of orders efficiently. It also logs a wealth of customer data to help you create targeted marketing campaigns and track your bar’s online reviews from customers.
Upserve’s standout features include:
- Tab-based navigation: Upserve’s sleek order screen lines up various spirits along the side of the screen so your bartenders can quickly ring in long, complex orders.
- Tip management: Upserve allows you to include suggested gratuities on paper checks and payment screens or apply auto-gratuities to large parties. On the back end, your Upserve POS can manage complex tip pools, showing you the expected tip-out amounts for various employee roles.
- Recipe view: You can attach recipe instructions and photos to menu buttons on your Upserve order screens so your bartenders can see precisely how to make any drink (and what it should look like). This is especially useful in craft cocktail bars where obscure drink orders can stump your bartenders.
- One-click re-supply: Upserve’s inventory module is the most automated of any bar POS on this list. The system tracks your supplies at the ingredient level, generating a suggested order to get you back to par. You can approve the orders with one click, then Upserve sends the order directly to the appropriate vendors.
Lightspeed Restaurant
PROS
- Can process room-charge payments
- Cost-effective
- 14-day free trial
CONS
- Offline mode cannot process payments
- Advanced reporting is only available at a higher-price subscription tiers
- Built-in inventory does not include vendor management
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 4.58 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 2.92 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 3.13 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 4.38 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 |
Lightspeed Restaurant is an all-in-one POS for the food and beverage industry. With pricing starting at $59 per month, this system is incredibly affordable for independent bars. Lightspeed Restaurant includes built-in tools for employee management, inventory, loyalty, in-depth reporting, and more. If you want to kick the tires on this POS, you can try a 14-day free trial.
Lightspeed Restaurant earned an overall score of 3.69 out of 5 on our bar POS ranking. The system would have scored higher if it could attach credit card pre-authorizations to bar tabs and included more muscular offline functions. Not supporting credit card pre-authorization may immediately disqualify this POS for some bars, but in hotel bars that cater primarily to hotel guests, this feature is less critical. Unlike others on this list, Lightspeed Restaurant integrates with hotel management software and quickly processes room charges as payment.
Lightspeed Restaurant Pricing
- Software subscription fee: Lightspeed Restaurant’s entry-level software subscription starts at $59 per month for a single register when you pay annually. Additional registers are $34 per month.
- Hardware costs: Lightspeed Restaurant is browser and cloud-based and runs on compatible iPads that operate with iOS 12.2 or higher. Lightspeed sells compatible hardware at custom-quoted prices, or you can bring your own iPad and purchase peripherals like printers and cash drawers from Lightspeed.
- Installation fees: Like Square and Lavu, you can install your Lightspeed Restaurant POS under your own steam.
- Processing fees: It supports payment processing via its built-in payment platform Lightspeed Payments. If you want to shop around for rates, the system also integrates with Worldpay and TSYS.
Lightspeed Restaurant POS operates in iPads.
Lightspeed Restaurant Standout Features
The Lightspeed Restaurant POS has all the features a small bar needs to manage a team of bartenders, track inventory, and process orders and payments. Full-service bars and restaurants will find restaurant features like table mapping, kitchen display systems, and menu management. Lightspeed’s many modules work together seamlessly to feed your bar’s data into Lightspeed’s easy-to-read reporting and analytics system.
Lightspeed Restaurant’s standout features include:
- Flexible hardware: You can configure your Lightspeed Restaurant iPads to work as kitchen display screens, self-order kiosks, and customer-facing displays. To enable handheld POS functions, you can operate the POS software on iPhones and iPod Touch devices.
- Hotel software integration: Lightspeed Restaurant POS integrates with hotel property management software (PMS) systems to process room payments.
- Integrations: You can expand your Lightspeed Restaurant POS system’s functions with a variety of third-party integrations. This system syncs with accounting apps like QuickBooks and Xero, and popular scheduling apps like HomeBase. For bar operations, it has integrations like BeerSAVER for draft beer monitoring and RapidBar for expanded bar inventory tools.
- Mobile access: Since this POS is entirely cloud-based, you can access your sales and performance information wherever you are.
Rezku
PROS
- Low cost
- Feature-rich POS includes many features in the basic POS
- Month-to-month subscription options
CONS
- Newer system may have some bugs to work out
- Inventory management does not include vendor management
- Reporting has customization limitations
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 2.50 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 2.92 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 4.17 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 4.06 | OUT OF | 5 |
Like many other POS options on our list, Rezku is a cloud-based POS that operates on iPads. Like Upserve, Rezku offers marketing tools in its baseline system. It also includes loyalty features and integrates with electronic tap and pour regulators. It supports unlimited happy hour days, rules, and products so that you can create multiple promotions for different times of day.
On our bar POS scale, Rezku earns a rating of 3.63 out of 5. The system has excellent bar functions and includes loyalty, marketing, and gift card functions in the baseline POS software. The system would have scored higher if it offered more payment processing options and physical inventory counting tools.
Rezku Pricing
- Software: Rezku pricing starts at $49 per month for a single iPad license. Bars that need additional terminals will need to contact Rezku for a custom quote. Rezku has options for month-to-month subscriptions, so you aren’t locked into a long-term contract.
- Hardware: Rezku operates in iPads, which you can purchase via Rezku or elsewhere. Rezku sells hardware bundles starting at $495 for a basic setup without a cash drawer. A stationary terminal base with peripheral printers and an inbuilt card reader comes in at $1,198.
- Installation: You can set it up on your own or get one-on-one assistance for $299.
- Payment processing: Like most other systems on this list, Rezku comes with built-in payment processing. Rates are based on a custom flat rate quote, so you’ll need to contact Rezku for pricing.
Rezku’s streamlined interface is easy to navigate.
Rezku Standout Features
Rezku POS launched in 2014 and is designed to be a streamlined system for modern restaurants that need digital, cloud-accessible software tools. It includes a full suite of features in the basic POS—something most other systems charge for. You can add software for online ordering, loyalty, gift cards, kitchen display, and customer displays without upgrading your membership.
Rezku’s standout features include:
- Bar tab management: Rezku generates bar tabs with a simple card swipe and pre-authorization. The system also arranges tabs alphabetically, so they are easy to find.
- Reporting and analytics: Rezku features 60 built-in, customizable reports covering everything from daily summaries, sales, inventory, tips, taxes, and discounts. If you are looking for more detailed and custom-built reports, you might prefer something like Revel Systems.
- Additional functions: Inventory and online ordering are included in the baseline system. Rezku also has products for online ordering, reservations, and waitlists that are available at additional fees.
- Bar integrations: Rezku supports pre-built integrations with DigitalPour, Bevcheck, and BeerBoard to help you track draft beer usage and spillage.
Square for Restaurants
PROS
- Baseline POS is free
- Works on iPads and Android devices
- 30-day free trial
CONS
- Inventory is not robust
- Does not support credit card pre-authorizations
- Locked into Square’s payment processing
| RATING CRITERIA | Pricing | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 |
| General Features | 2.08 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Niche or article-specific features | 2.50 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Ease of Use | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| Expert Score | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 |
Square for Restaurants is a cloud-POS system that runs on Apple and Android tablets and smartphones. Its entry-level POS is available for free; all you pay are transaction fees on your credit card payments. This system also offers a 30-day free trial. The inventory functions are not ingredient level but very good for tracking individual items like wine and beer bottles. For a wine and beer-only spot, Square for Restaurants is a great fit.
Square for Restaurants earned an overall score of 3.13 out of 5. The fact that the baseline system is free earns this POS a lot of points, and its drawback is that the free subscription only comes with a single login. The system would have also scored higher if it included ingredient-level inventory and credit card pre-authorization.
Square for Restaurants Pricing
- Software: Square for Restaurants has three membership tiers, Free, Plus, and Premium. The Free POS has no monthly subscription fees, Plus is $60 per month, and Premium requires a custom quote.
- Hardware: You can operate your Square for Restaurants POS on iPads you already own or purchase compatible hardware from Square. Square sends all new customers a free magstripe card reader to accept credit card payments. You can buy EMV-enabled chip readers for $49 as well as other accessories like cash drawers, bar code scanners, and mobile Square Terminals via the Square website.
- Installation: To get started with Square requires creating a free account on the Square website, downloading the app onto a tablet or smart device, and connecting your business bank account. There are no installation fees to pay because you do it all yourself—uploading your menu items, setting prices, and connecting peripherals like card readers and printers.
- Payment processing*: Like Toast and Revel, Square POS comes with in-built payment processing. Unlike those competitors, however, Square lists its transaction rates transparently on its website. Currently, Squares rates are 2.6% + $0.10 per in-person transaction and 2.9% + $0.30 for online payments. Bars that process more than $250,000 in sales can get a custom processing rate from Square.
*Square for Restaurants’ rates may change at any time based on Square’s sole discretion.
Square for Restaurants operates on a wide range of mobile devices.
Square for Restaurants Standout Features
Square offers additional modules such as Square Loyalty, Square Marketing, Square Payroll, Square Appointments, and Square Online Store that all communicate seamlessly with the Square POS. Pricing for each module varies from $0 to $35+ per month; pricing is transparently listed on its website.
Square for Restaurants’s standout features include:
- Bar tab management: Square doesn’t support credit card pre-authorization to start bar tabs, but there is a workaround; some bar operators get around this by using Square’s customer profile function to store payment information. This requires a few extra steps, but for a free POS—and a lower volume bar—it can be worth it.
- Inventory management: Square allows you to create menu items and track sales by item. Unlike Toast, Square doesn’t store recipes or track ingredient-level inventory. For this reason, Square is best for bars that mainly serve beer or wine, which don’t need as detailed tracking as complicated cocktails.
- Reporting and analytics: Square shows standard reports like daily sales totals, sales per category, and item, as well as information on discounts and refunds. Square can also show you which customers spend the most and who your most frequent customers are. However, if you want to print shift reports by employee, you’ll need to upgrade to Square for Restaurant’s Plus subscription at $60 per month or add Square’s Team Management Plus for $35 per month.
- Bar integrations: Square for Restaurants integrates with DigitalPour to track beer kegs for breweries, tap houses, and growler stations.
Bottom Line
Small-scale bars and breweries will find the right-size system in a low-cost POS like Square for Restaurants or Rezku. Hotel bars will get the best use out of Lightspeed Restaurant, which can process room charges. Craft cocktail bars will enjoy Upserve’s elegant interface and encyclopedic recipe tracking. If you want to shop around for payment processors, Lavu has you covered. Full-service restaurants with bars will get the most use of Toast and Revel Systems’ extensive features.
Revel Systems received the highest score across our bar POS grading system for its general POS features, massive inventory functions, and bar-specific tools. While it is not the lowest-cost bar POS, you receive an incredibly robust POS for the price. It is great for high-volume bars and breweries, but you can customize it to suit any bar type. To see if this system is right for your bar, visit Revel Systems for a demo.
Gringo N. Honduras
Great article but these are just the big systems pushed by big businesses and they charge way too much! BarTab from Tabology is a much better solution for small business with a bar. Also, it is much cheaper at $49 bucks a month. I admit i used other systems for my bar, but none were easier to use, cheaper, or had better customer service. I really encourage you to check it out.
Amanda Norman
Glad you like the article, and thank you for suggesting Bartab. We’ll keep that in mind for a future update!
Thanks for reading and sharing.
Mandy, Moderator