6 Best Ghost & Cloud Kitchen POS Systems
With more than a decade of hospitality experience, Mary has worked in some of the most celebrated restaurants in the world. Her expertise is featured across Fit Small Business in restaurant, retail, and starting a business content.
Karina Fabian writes and reviews business software, services, and topics for starting a business, startups, and small businesses. She has more than seven years of business writing experience.
This article is part of a larger series on POS Systems.
Ghost kitchens (also called cloud kitchens or dark kitchens) differ from traditional restaurants as they prepare food for takeout and delivery only. They take online or phone orders and most often work with one or more third-party delivery services. While some delivery services like DoorDash provide an iPad for managing orders, ghost kitchens can benefit from a point-of-sale (POS) system as it coordinates all orders, tracks ingredients, and manages drivers so you can concentrate on creating great food on schedule.
We considered over a dozen POS systems to choose the six best for ghost kitchens. The best cloud kitchen POS systems are:
- Square Restaurant Plus: Best overall POS for ghost kitchens
- Rezku: Best for low processing rates and driver management
- Lightspeed: Best for choice of payment processors
- Toast: Best for managing third-party delivery orders
- Oracle Simphony: Best for workforce management
- Poster: Best for new ghost kitchens or those that change menus frequently
Best Ghost Kitchen POS Systems Compared
Monthly fees* | Online transaction rates | Third-party delivery integrations | Contract | Driver management | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | $0–$60 | 2.9% + 30 cents | 10+ | None | Good, but lacks maps |
 | $0–$99 | 3.59% + 25 cents | 5+ | 2 years | Excellent |
 | $90–$519** | 2.6% + 30 cents | 4+ | None | N/A |
| $0–$165 | $2.99% + 15 cents | 12+ | None | Excellent |
 | $55–$75 | Varies by processor | 2+ | One year | Good; sends customer time estimates |
 | $24–$64 | Varies by processor | Via GetOrder | None | Excellent |
*Based on month-to-month rates. Annual subscriptions may be cheaper.
**Additional $39 for Delivery add-on
Square Restaurant Plus: Best Overall Ghost Kitchen POS
Overall Score:
4.60 / 5
What We Like
- Easy setup
- Includes delivery management tools, online ordering website
- Square Teams (scheduling) included
- Auto86-ing of items, auto gratuity
What's Missing
- Tied to Square payment processing
- High keyed-in rates (such as for phone orders)
- No options for industry-grade hardware
Square Restaurant Plus Deciding Factors
- Monthly software fee: $0–$60
- Custom plans available
- Hardware: Square operates on iPads, Square Terminals, and Square Registers
- Online processing fee: 2.9% + 30 cents
- Custom rates available for over $250,000 per month in processing
- Customer support hours: Mon.– Fri., 6 a.m.–6 p.m. Pacific time
- 24/7 with Plus Plan
Square often ranks high among our best-of lists for POS systems and payment processing. It offers a free basic version that includes online ordering; you only pay for credit card processing. However, in this case, we recommend Square for Restaurants Plus (at $60 per month), which also includes advanced inventory, scheduling, and the KDS software. Plus, as you grow, Square grows with you—with features like payroll, banking, and scheduling.
It earned an excellent 4.6 out of 5 on our rubric. The only thing keeping it from maxing the pricing score was that it only offers Square payment processing. Extra charges for onboarding and one-on-one live training (starting at $1,399) took it down in ease of use, but don’t worry. Square is one of the most intuitive systems we’ve reviewed. The ordering tools, backend functions, and delivery system are very well done.
Square lets you select incentives for deliveries like paying part or all of the fees. (Source: Square)
Square Restaurant Plus Standout Features
- Set up multiple online menus: Why limit yourself to one concept? Square lets you launch as many online ordering pages as you need, so your ghost kitchen can provide anything from sushi to Southern homestyle cooking. You can create a QR code for each site for mobile ordering. Plus, it’s all free and they all feed into your kitchen display system (KDS).
- Auto86 reflects across menus: Square’s automated inventory counts will automatically 86 an item across all internal menus (you’ll still need to update third-party menus yourself or via a middleman app). Toast and Lightspeed also have this feature. With the others, you need to take off or snooze an item manually.
- Delivery management: Square integrates directly with third-party platforms Slice, Postmates, and DoorDash. If you prefer aggregating apps, you can choose from several, including Deliverect and Chowly. Like Toast, Square allows you to hail third-party drivers on-demand for flat rate fees, or deliver via an in-house team. Square charges a fee of 50 cents for each delivery processed by your in-house team, so you can pay as you go. Others on our list require flat monthly fees no matter how many deliveries you process. However, Square’s driver management system does not include maps. Rezku offers the best for drivers, with route optimization tools.
- Chargebacks waived to $250 per month: Virtual kitchens don’t have to deal with dine-and-dash, but you are still in danger of losing money to chargeback requests. While the others on our list provide varying levels of protection, Square is the only one that simply waives the fees associated with chargebacks for up to $250 per month.
- Integrated Square ecosystem: Square and Toast are the two systems on our list that are designed to help you with all aspects of your business. Square for Restaurants includes scheduling, and if you want payroll and onboarding, it has that as an add-on. It also offers banking services with benefits for Square users, like instant payout into your Square account. (Oracle Simphony is our top choice for scheduling and onboarding, but lacks payroll and banking.)
Where Square Restaurant Plus Falls Short
You are tied to Square Payments, which has reasonable rates but is certainly not the cheapest on our list. The keyed-in rates, like you may use for phone-in orders, are especially high. Rezku may offer better rates, while Lightspeed and Oracle let you incorporate third-party payment providers. It works on iPads, so if you want industry-grade equipment, consider Toast. Square also lacks free in-person onboarding or training.
Read our full Square for Restaurants review.
Rezku: Best Ghost Kitchen POS System for Driver Management
Overall Score:
4.30 / 5
What We Like
- Driver route optimization tools
- Baseline POS includes online ordering, loyalty, and gift cards
- Pace or throttle orders easily
- Cash discount program
What's Missing
- Limited reporting capabilities
- Limited to Rezku payment processing
- Minimum 2-year contract
Rezku Deciding Factors
- Monthly software subscription fee: $0–$99
- Custom plans available
- Online processing fees: 3.59% + 25 cents
- Cash Discount Program: 3.99% to 4.99%
- Hardware costs: $428–$797, remote installation/launch support included
- Customer support hours: 24/7
Rezku requires a two-year contract; however, it offers excellent tools for ghost kitchens, a cash rewards program (that can save you processing fees), loyalty programs and gift cards, and free POS software that contains everything from online ordering to gift cards and KDS software. The driver management tools are first-rate, not only with maps but also route optimization. So, if you are OK with a contract, Rezku is a great choice.
It earned 4.3 out of 5 on our rubric. We found it easy to use with a lot of great features. However, it lost points for requiring a contract and lacking scheduling tools (like Square offers) and onboarding tools (like Toast offers). Rezku does offer some of these via integrations. If you need an API (such as for integrating a delivery service not on its list) or handle multiple locations, you will need the Enterprise Plan.
Rezku’s driver management includes route optimization. (Source: Rezku)
Rezku Standout Features
- Online ordering included: Like Square, Rezku includes online ordering even in its most basic system. You’ll get a custom-branded menu website, and can create a QR code for it, which is a great tool for marketing. Online orders will sync with your inventory and your KDS. If you 86 an item on the menu, the online menu is also updated.
- Order pacing: One great feature, which it shares with some of the others on our list, is order pacing. Pacing is based on 15-minute slots; orders over the limit you set automatically bump to the next slot. This gives better pickup and delivery estimates for customers. You can set this temporarily to throttle orders or to permanently keep a specific pace.
- Delivery management: We were impressed with the delivery management tools. While many, like Toast, have GPS tracking, Rezku will also optimize routes so your drivers can do multiple deliveries with the best times. Like Toast, Rezku also works with DoorDash Drive, allowing you to route deliveries to DoorDash drivers and only pay a flat rate for orders.
- Cash discount option: It’s not legal to penalize customers for using credit cards, but if you want to reduce your credit card transaction fees by accepting cash on delivery, Rezku offers a cash discount option that automatically applies a reduced price for cash purchases. It’s the only one on our list with this program.
- Integrations: Rezku integrates directly with all the major delivery platforms, including DoorDash and UberEats, Grubhub, and Postmates. If you prefer a middleman aggregating app, Rezku integrates with Chowly. You can use Rezku’s Open API to integrate with other services as well.
Where Rezku Falls Short
Rezku, like Oracle, requires a contract. While you pay monthly, you are obligated to subscribe for at least two years. If you are just starting out, you may want to consider Square or Poster, which have no obligations and are inexpensive.
Read our full Rezku review.
Lightspeed: Best Cloud Kitchen Software for Choosing Your Payment Processor
Overall Score:
4.16 / 5
What We Like
- Supports multiple options for payment processing, so users can shop for the best rates
- Streamlined third-party delivery integrations
- Easy self-install; operates on iPads
What's Missing
- Driver management not available
- Lacks employee scheduling
- API in highest plan only
Lightspeed Restaurant Deciding Factors
- Monthly software subscription fee: $90–$519
- Discounts for annual subscription
- Custom plans available
- Lightspeed Delivery: $39 per month
- Hardware costs: Call for quote; includes installation
- Online processing fees: 2.6% + 30 cents for manually keyed transactions; also integrates with Cayan, BridgePay, and Worldpay
- Customer support hours: (Eastern time)
- Mon–Fri: 24 hours
- Sat: 12 a.m.–7 a.m. and 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
- Sun: 12 a.m.–8 a.m. and 11 a.m. +
Lightspeed is a powerful and popular restaurant POS system well known for its ease of use and excellent, ingredient-level inventory tracking. It ranked on our restaurant POS list specifically for ghost kitchens because of its excellent add-on for third-party delivery services. Even with the add-on, it is still less expensive than Toast. One thing that sets it apart on this list is the ability to use payment processors other than Lightspeed Payments.
Earning 4.16 out of 5 on our list, it got the only perfect score for pricing and payment processing, in particular, because it integrates with other payment processors, letting you shop for the best rate. It lost points since it lacks driver management and workforce management tools. Nonetheless, it’s a solid system that’s easy to use and lets you purchase your own hardware.
Lightspeed lets you enable different delivery services for different locations. (Source: Lightspeed)
Lightspeed Standout Features
- Lightspeed Delivery: Lightspeed Delivery is a premium add-on to the Lightspeed Restaurant POS with a custom quote. Pricing for this add-on averages $39 a month. This module consolidates online orders from third-party services like UberEats, Skip the Dishes, and DoorDash. It also lets you manage your menus across all third-party delivery sites in one location.
- Promotions: Lightspeed Delivery also comes with excellent promotional tools that others charge extra for. You can create discounts on delivery prices or promotions to attract new or returning customers. Additionally, you can create promo codes to use with social media and advertising as well. Use its tools to share positive reviews to let others know how much people love your food.
- Auto86 reflects across menus: With Lightspeed Delivery, you can update your menu across all platforms from a single dashboard; plus Lightspeed’s inventory tools allow auto86ing of items as they run out. This puts it on par with Toast and Square.
- QR code ordering: Like Toast, Square, and Rezku, Lightspeed has QR code tools so that you can include a code in your marketing materials. Customers can scan the code with their smartphones for quick and easy ordering on mobile. This tool, called Order Ahead, syncs with your in-house menu so you don’t sell items you don’t have.
- Excellent POS with choice of payment processors: Lightspeed ranks high in many of our lists, including best restaurant POS systems and leading POS systems. We are impressed with its in-depth inventory tools, 40+ preset reports, and excellent customer support that includes onboarding. As with Oracle Simphony, you can select Lightspeed Payments, TSYS, WorldPay, and others. It also has country-specific payment processors.
Where Lightspeed Falls Short
Lightspeed lacks driver management tools for in-house drivers, and it does not currently integrate with any driver dispatch tools. If you need tools to manage in-house drivers, check Rezku or Toast.
Read our Lightspeed review or see how Lightspeed compares to Square.
Toast: Best Virtual Kitchen POS for Third-party Delivery Orders
Overall Score:
4.15 / 5
What We Like
- The Toast TakeOut app helps you find new customers
- Robust driver management with GPS integration
- Industry-grade hardware can handle high-volume restaurant use
- Onboarding, scheduling, and payroll tools are available
What's Missing
- Must purchase Toast-built hardware
- Online ordering is an add-on, or comes with the highest plans
- Tied to Toast payment processing
Toast Deciding Factors
- Monthly software subscription fee: $0–$165
- Custom plans available
- Online ordering: $75 per month, or Pay-as-You-Go with an additional 0.40% in processing fees
- Hardware costs: $799+
- Or $0 with higher processing fees (2.99% + 15 cents per in-person transaction)
- Professional remote install: $250; contact for in-person installation pricing
- Processing fees: Starting at 2.99% + 15 cents for online transactions
- Volume discounts at higher subscription tiers
- Customer support hours: 24/7
Toast ranks No. 1 in our list of leading food delivery POS systems and places high in our list of best online ordering systems for small restaurants. For ghost kitchens, you will need the online components, which you can get in one of three ways:
- Purchasing the higher Essentials Plan—a good choice if you have a busy restaurant with a dark kitchen devoted to takeout and delivery
- Getting the Starter Plan free with Pay-as-you-go pricing and adding 0.40% per transaction (3.39% + 15 cents per transaction)—a good choice if you are just starting out
- Purchasing the Standard plan and adding online ordering for an extra $75 per month (total monthly fees: $144 per month)—best for high-volume ghost kitchens
It will onboard your system for you, but you need to use its hardware and payment processing. While we found it second only to Rezku for delivery tools, what really makes it stand out is that it has its own mobile food ordering app, Toast TakeOut. It’s a popular food ordering app that highlights Toast users and is a great way to get instant advertising.
Toast earned a solid 4.15 out of 5 on our list. Pricing was an issue since the online component requires a more expensive plan, and some of the components we looked for (like scheduling) also cost extra. However, the tools for online orders and delivery are excellent both for direct orders through your own site or through third-party services like DoorDash.
Toast Standout Features
- Toast aggregator: Toast offers its own app for hungry customers. Toast TakeOut & Delivery lists your restaurant and menu so diners in your area can order food directly from you. This then feeds into your POS system like other delivery services. It has over 500,000 downloads with 4.7 out of 5 stars on Android and 4.9 out of 5 with over 51,000 ratings on iOS.
- Auto86 reflects across menus: Toast has automated inventory counts so that if you run out of an item, it will 86 that on your menu, which reflects across all menus on services you work with. Square and Lightspeed also have this feature. Others need you to 86 an item manually to have it reflected across the menus.
- Delivery services: If you have your own drivers, Toast lets you assign them routes, record tips, and schedule and manage them easily. It offers Google Maps and custom delivery areas, and lets you program delivery fees. It also works with DoorDash Drive if you need to hail additional drivers for a flat-rate fee. The maps and DoorDashDrive options make it one of the best on our list; only Rezku with its route optimization does driver management better.
- Order and pay via QR code: Toast, like Square, Rezku, and Lightspeed, offers payment via QR code. Its Order and Pay module allows customers to scan a QR code with their smartphone camera to place their orders and pay via their phones. Include QR codes in your marketing materials or on your food containers to build your customer base.
- Kitchen display system (KDS) syncs with customers: Like the others on our list, online orders are coordinated and routed to your KDS or kitchen printer. Where Toast stands out, however, is that it automatically sends a text to customers when an order is completed by your kitchen team, a function also found in Simphony.
- Workforce management: Unlike most on our list, Toast offers a complete workforce management system. You can onboard new employees through the system, storing their paperwork and prepping information for payroll. Plus, you can create schedules and control clock-in/clock-outs. However, like with Square, most of these features are add-ons that cost extra. (Simphony includes these in its system.)
Where Toast Falls Short
Toast has a lot to offer, but it can get pricey if you add features. Also, you are tied to its hardware and payment processing. Many users consider this a great trade-off, but it’s worth keeping in mind as you make your decision.
Read our Toast review or see how Toast compares to Square for Restaurants.
Oracle Simphony: Best Cloud Kitchen POS Software for Workforce Management
Overall Score:
4.12 / 5
What We Like
- Built-in onboarding, scheduling, training
- Industry-grade hardware withstands high-volume use
- Built-in loyalty program
- Supports three options for payment processing
What's Missing
- Hardware is custom-quoted
- One-year contract required
- Most integrations require an API
PricingOracle Simphony Deciding Factors
- Monthly software fees: $55–$75
- Single Tenant: Custom-quoted
- Hardware costs: Starting at $1 per terminal; requires a custom quote
- One-time installation fees: Custom-quoted
- Payment processing: Varies by processor; choose from Ayden, Elavon, or Oracle Payments
- Contract length: 1 year
- Customer support hours: 24/7
Oracle Simphony is a hardy POS system for restaurants, and with the GloriaFood app (also by Oracle), you can manage your online orders from mobile, website, or third-party delivery sources. It estimates delivery times, has marketing tools, and provides strong analytics. Simphony stands out, however, for its workplace tools. Included in all plans are scheduling, onboarding, training, and time off management tools. Some, like Square and Toast, offer these but for additional fees. It offers hardware for as little as $1 per terminal. However, you need to commit to a one-year contract.
This POS earned 4.12 out of 5 on our rubric. It missed a perfect score on pricing because it requires a contract, and earned excellent scores for its backend tools and online training. The included workforce tools and loyalty program were definite points in its favor. Plus, at $55 for the most basic program, it’s nicely priced and gives you a choice of payment processors so you can get the best deal.
Oracle offers industry-grade hardware and an open API so you can easily integrate delivery services. (Source: Oracle)
Oracle Simphony Standout Features
- Hardware designed to withstand kitchen environments: Like Toast, Oracle Simphony operates on industry-grade hardware designed for humid, hot, and dusty conditions. Many on our list, like Square, mostly employ standard iPads. Simphony advertises its terminals for as little as $1 each, but you need to contact Oracle for a precise quote as conditions may apply.
- Workforce management: Simphony offers excellent tools for managing your employees. The HR module lets you onboard employees with contact and other information that it applies to scheduling—such as notifying you if you overschedule a minor. It tracks time and PTO for accurate payroll. Even more, employees can use the self-serve app to manage schedules and request time off. It doesn’t just let you create schedules; its forecasting tools can make recommendations for schedule optimization.
- Set up specials, fees, and promotions: Simphony is highly customizable, and any changes you set can reflect across all channels, or you can set specific channels—such as takeout vs delivery. You can create menus, set specials for specific times, dates, or locations, and create fees or discounts as needed. We found Square the closest competitor for flexibility in an online venue.
- Support for non-US businesses: While others on our list may work with a few other countries, Oracle supports over 180 countries.
- Customer updates: Like the other ghost kitchen POS systems on our list, you can let customers know when an order is out for delivery. Oracle Simphony goes one step further, however, by tracking driver location to give customers live updates.
Where Oracle Simphony Falls Short
Simphony requires a one-year contract, and onboarding costs extra. Its customer service hours are not 24/7 like Toast or Lightspeed. Rather than native integrations, you need to use Oracle’s Open API to integrate with most delivery services; it currently only includes pre-built integrations with Grubhub and middleman apps like Deliverect and ItsaCheckmate. Try Toast or Square for more direct third-party integrations.
Poster: Best for New Ghost Kitchens or Those That Change Menus Frequently
Overall Score:
4.06 / 5
What We Like
- Cheapest plan still includes delivery management
- Kitchen Kit/KDS includes recipe management
- Loyalty program included
- Driver app includes maps
What's Missing
- Need the highest plan for KDS
- Limits on products and dishes
- Delivery integrations through API or middleman app
Poster Deciding Factors
- Monthly software fees: $24–$64
- Hardware fees: Custom pricing
- Payment processing fees: Varies by payment processor
- Customer support hours: 24/7
Poster is the only POS system on our list that includes access to recipes in its kitchen display system. This, along with price, makes it a great choice for new cloud kitchens, but it’s also a good choice if you have high staff turnover or like to change up your menu often. It also offers a strong app for drivers.
This POS earned a respectable 4.06 out of 5 on our rubric. It would have earned a much higher score if it had had scheduling tools, an online ordering website (you can get an integration for this), and the ability to easily update menus as you run out of items. However, it got top marks for training and setup, customer support, reporting, and loyalty. Real-world user reviews were few but averaged 4.77 out of 5.
Poster has a simple interface for tracking delivery drivers. (Source Poster)
Poster Standout Features
- Inexpensive, especially for small kitchens: If you have a limited number of items and don’t need a KDS, then the mini plan at only $24 per month may fit the bill. It includes inventory management, loyalty programs, and integration with delivery services via GetOrder ($30+ per month). However, unlike Square, which offers a free online ordering site, Poster charges for this and limits the number of orders by plan.
- Kitchen Kit: Like the others on our list, Poster can send orders to a kitchen display system—like Square, this is a tablet rather than an industry-grade KDS. (Consider Toast and Oracle Simphony for the best hardware.) What sets it apart from the others, however, is that the orders can include the recipe and cooking instructions. This is a great tool if you have new staff or frequently change your menu.
- Delivery tracking: Once an order is ready, a message is sent to the cashier’s terminal. You can then assign a driver. Like Square, you can create special offers and cash-back options for delivery services. The Poster Courier mobile app lets you notify your delivery drivers through the app and provides maps for delivery locations. However, it does not do route optimization like Rezku.
- Marketing: Unlike Square, Poster includes a loyalty feature in all its plans. You can offer different discounts or bonuses such as based on points. It works via SMS rather than cards so customers can activate rewards with just their phone number.
- Works on many devices: Another advantage for a kitchen just starting out is that Poster works on Android tablets or iPads rather than proprietary hardware like Toast or Simphony.
Where Poster Falls Short
We didn’t find scheduling or item-86ing tools with Poster. Chargeback protection seems to depend on the payment provider you select. If you want to design your own site for taking online orders, it’s another $19 per month for up to 500 orders or $39 per month for more. For free online ordering, check out Square.
How We Evaluated Cloud Kitchen POS
We considered the large selection of POS systems that we normally review and sought out lesser-known systems that specialize in cloud kitchen tools. Then we narrowed it down for the best in terms of price, delivery options, online and contactless sales tools, and ease of use. We also took into consideration the input of real-world users via 3rd-party review sites like Capterra.
Square ranked No. 1, with 4.6 out of 5. Always a top contender for POS systems both online and in-person, its pricing, versatility, and integrations earned it excellent scores across the board.
Click through to see the scoring criteria:
20%
Pricing
30%
Features
20%
Backend Tools
15%
Ease of Use
15%
Expert Score
20% of Overall Score
Here, we looked for month-to-month pricing and card processing fees that don’t eat all your profits. We took off points for extra charges for online ordering tools or use limits. Lightspeed earned a perfect 5 out of 5, with Square coming in second.
30% of Overall Score
Features refers to delivery tools like integrations, online menus, and delivery management. We also evaluated the kitchen display options (taking points off if it cost extra), and chargeback protection. Square earned 4.81 out of 5, making it the best in this category.
20% of Overall Score
Backend tools make running your ghost kitchen easier: inventory management, scheduling, marketing, reports, and the like. Oracle’s Simphony took the lead with 4.56 out of 5; several lost points because they only included these tools as add-ons or in their significantly more expensive plans.
15% of Overall Score
Onboarding, training, help tools, and customer service hours make up the bulk of this score, but we also considered the ease of 86-ing an item from all the menus of delivery systems you work with. Lightspeed won out in this category with 4.81 out of 5.
15% of Overall Score
Here, we rely on our years of experience with POS systems and the opinions of real-world users as posted on multiple third-party sites. Square had a perfect score, but Rezku came in a close second with 4.88 out of 5, losing points only because we found fewer than 50 user reviews.
*Percentages of overall score
Cloud Kitchen POS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What’s the difference between a cloud kitchen, a ghost kitchen, and a dark kitchen?
Ghost, dark, and cloud kitchens refer to the same thing, although “CloudKitchens” is also a service that provides kitchen space for rent along with the equipment for managing orders. Dark kitchens are usually small, mobile, self-contained spaces (sort of like a semi-permanent food truck) filled with kitchen appliances and accessories that connect to electrical and water, but they serve the same purpose.
What’s the advantage of a cloud kitchen?
Cloud kitchens work for delivery or takeout only (usually just delivery). Thus, there’s no overhead associated with on-location eating, like floorspace, waitstaff, or public restrooms.
Are cloud kitchens more profitable than restaurants?
According to a study published in ResearchGate, the average profit for a restaurant runs from 3% to 5%, while cloud kitchens usually enjoy a profit margin of 10%—12%. Cloud kitchens also have lower startup costs.
What is a POS system?
A POS or point-of-sale system is software that lets you manage your in-person (and sometimes online) sales. It acts like a register in ringing up payments but also tracks inventory, costs and profits, customer information, and more. The best also include clock-in tools and out-of-stock alerts, and send information to a kitchen printer or display system. Learn more in our article on POS software.
Do I need POS software for my ghost kitchen?
In all honesty, it depends on your business model. Delivery services like DoorDash give you a system for tracking orders. Thus, if you are using only a single delivery service or working with a franchise like CloudKitchens, they supply all the equipment you need. (Cloud kitchens will coordinate all the delivery services they use for you.)
However, if you take your own orders and orders from multiple delivery sites, a POS system will help you coordinate orders, track inventory, prompt for re-orders when supplies are low, and give you internal reports that you can use to audit your accounts with third-party platforms. A POS will also help you track staff hours and ease your payroll processes.
What else do I need for my ghost kitchen?
In addition to the items you need to create and pack the meals for delivery, you need a payment processing service, an online store, and a kitchen display system or kitchen printer for keeping track of orders. Most of these tools are provided by the POS system you select or the delivery service you work with.
What’s the difference between a direct order and delivery service and a delivery service aggregator?
There are two types of third-party platforms that send online orders to POS systems. Direct ordering and delivery platforms are third-party services that provide the orders, drivers, and hardware, while middleman apps aggregate orders from multiple direct ordering and delivery platforms and send them to your POS.
Direct integrations with third-party platforms are better, because you only pay per order processed. With the middleman apps, you still have to pay the third-party fees, but you also have to pay a monthly subscription fee (which can be pretty expensive).
Direct delivery integrations (not an exhaustive list):
- DoorDash
- UberEats
- Grubhub
- Postmates
Middleman integrations (not an exhaustive list):
- Chowly (from $89/ mo)
- ItsaCheckmate ($85–$100/ mo)
- Cuboh ($80–$200/mo)
- Deliverect ($69–$149/ mo +$199 setup fee)
Bottom Line
The market for takeout and delivery food has grown in popularity, and as a result, so have ghost kitchens. Removing the expense of a dining room with its staff, overhead, and upkeep means a greater profit margin. However, working with multiple delivery systems can get complicated. A good cloud kitchen POS software can help coordinate orders, while the best offer you your own online menu and delivery system.
Square for Restaurants is the least expensive yet best ghost kitchen POS software. It offers free resources for creating your own online ordering website, the ability to coordinate across multiple third-party delivery services, chargeback forgiveness of up to $250 a month, and more. The kitchen display system costs extra if you use the free POS or comes free with the inexpensive Plus subscription. Check out Square for Restaurants today and determine which plan is best for you.
