Best iPad POS Systems for Restaurants

Waitress standing near drinks cabinet holding handheld POS device

iPad-based POS systems are becoming an increasingly popular choice for restaurants, owing to the increased agility and flexibility they give servers.

After 160 hours of research and 20 hours of lab testing 11 different iPad-based POS systems, we found that Square is still the highest‑scoring iPad POS in the US for 2025, and it isn’t even close.

In our hospitality‑focused scoring model (which weights software and usability more heavily), Square posted a market‑leading 95.4% overall score for its generous free plan, intuitive interface and deep app ecosystem.

In other words, there’s little it could do better. That said, Square is missing some POS features that restaurants and other industries could benefit from, such as cost versus profit management, a gap that can be filled, for a higher price, by Lightspeed Restaurant.

What are the best iPad POS systems for restaurants?

  1. Square – Best for scaling your restaurant
  2. Clover – Best for premium all‑in‑one hardware
  3. SpotOn – Best for automated staff and tip management
  4. SumUp – Best for budget‑friendly single‑site start‑ups
  5. Lightspeed Restaurant – Best for advanced loyalty and food‑cost analytics
  6. Epos Now – Best for deep multi‑location inventory control
  7. TouchBistro – Best for speedy table service and live floor‑plan edits
  8. Lavu – Best for ingredient‑level stock tracking and waste reduction

Click on the links above to be taken to the providers’ platforms or our quotes form. We recommend these providers based on results from our independent research and testing. Please go to our methodology section to learn more about how we test POS systems.

Best iPad POS Systems (2025): Key Takeaways

  • iPad POS software ranges from $0 to $189+ per month. Remember to budget for hardware like iPad stands (from ~$149) and card readers, which are often sold separately.
  • Hardware models vary greatly; some providers (e.g., SpotOn) offer $0 up-front kits, while others expect you to bring your own iPad and purchase accessories separately.
  • Ingredient‑level tracking isn’t universal. Only Lightspeed, Epos Now and Lavu deplete stock in real time, which can be a beneficial tool for tracking food waste at your restaurant.
  • Plan for growth. Look for an open app marketplace (e.g. with Square and Lightspeed) or at least direct integrations with accounting, reservations and delivery to avoid costly migrations later, if possible.
  • Check for a reliable offline mode, as some systems (e.g., Square, SpotOn) work without Wi-Fi while others may stop processing sales entirely.
  • Training tools can save payroll hours. Platforms with sandbox modes and in‑product tutorials (Lightspeed, TouchBistro, Lavu) cut new‑hire onboarding time by up to a shift, compared with systems that rely solely on help-center videos.

The Best iPad POS Systems for Restaurants: Overview

Here’s a quick side-by-side overview of the best iPad POS systems for restaurants. Keep reading for a more in-depth review of each POS system.

Swipe right to see more
0 out of 0

Lavu

Square

Clover

SpotOn

SumUp

Lightspeed Restaurant

Epos Now

TouchBistro

3.2
4.8
4.4
4.4
4.3
3.9
3.9
3.8
Price

Custom

Price

$0-$165/month

Price

Bundles from $89.95 /month (hardware + software)

Price

$0-$135/month

Price
  • Free POS app
  • Pay‑as‑you‑go processing (flat % fee varies by plan)
Price

$189-$399/month

Price

From $649 upfront (hardware bundle), then $59/month

Price

From $69/month core POS (add-ons cost extra)

Best For

Ingredient‑level stock tracking and waste reduction

Best For

Scaling and growing your business

Best For

Best for premium all‑in‑one hardware

Best For

Automated staff and tip management

Best For

Budget‑friendly single‑site restaurants

Best For

Advanced loyalty and food‑cost analytics

Best For

Deep multi‑location inventory control

Best For

Speedy table service and live floor‑plan edits

Key Features
  • Low‑stock pop‑ups
  • Automatic offline order cache
  • Open API means hundreds of third-party integrations
  • Tutorial prompts and training mode
Key Features
  • Forever‑free iPad POS
  • $69 Plus upgrade tier for cheaper fees
  • Built‑in online ordering
  • Large app marketplace
  • Low‑cost modular hardware
Key Features
  • 14‑inch Station Solo/Duo
  • Widest first‑party accessory line
  • Deep profit and labor reports
Key Features
  • Free countertop terminal
  • Auto tip‑pool and labor vs revenue dashboard
  • Built‑in offline mode
Key Features
  • No‑cost software launch
  • Lightweight all‑in‑one card reader
  • Lightning‑fast “park order” and table‑edit flows
Key Features
  • Advanced inventory management
  • Ingredient‑level cost tracking
  • SMS and email loyalty suite
Key Features
  • Real‑time ingredient depletion
  • Bulk CSV menu uploads
  • Margin reports by site/menu/day
Key Features
  • Customise table plan from both front and the backend
  • Color‑coded KDS tickets
  • Add-on marketing and advanced reservation tools (extra fee)
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1. Square: Best iPad POS for Scaling Your Restaurant

Square remains the most affordable, easiest‑to‑launch iPad POS for US restaurants. Stay with it through your first few locations; you’ll only need to switch providers (or to integrate specialist add‑ons via its app store) when you need cost‑of‑goods tracking or formal staff training tools.

With its free plan, Square’s app-based software starts at $0 per month, making it an affordable entry-level iPad POS system. Once you’re ready for more advanced features, like table plan customization and in-depth reporting, you can move up to its $69 per month Plus plan, which is still cheaper than most competitors.

Square
4.8
Pricing From $0/month
Suitable for

Restaurants that want a low-risk, zero-contract option

Chains with no more than three locations

Businesses that want to integrate an online store

Not suitable for

Restaurants that change their table plan a lot

Businesses that need cost management tools

Restaurants that want to track ingredient usage

Pricing
Solution typePrice
POS software Free $0; Plus $69; Premium $165/month/location
Card processing fees 2.6% + $0.10
Card machines $59-$299
iPad stand (iPad not included) $149
KDS From $20/month/device

Our experience with Square

We tested Square’s iPad POS system and found it very intuitive overall. Square uses the same layout across its systems, from its POS to its online store, and clearly labels everything in its sidebar menu, making features easy to find.

In fact, Square achieved the highest task completion score in our lab testing, edging out Zettle and SpotOn. Testers loved the universal search bar and crisp, minimalist screens, saying it “felt modern and lightning‑fast” compared with older interfaces like TouchBistro’s back office.

That polish wasn’t flawless, however. A handful of menu items refused to sync to the frontend, and cancelling an item or splitting a bill still takes more clicks than on Clover or SpotOn. We also noted that ingredient costs are totally absent, forcing larger groups to bolt on a third‑party food‑cost module.

Even so, sentiment swung markedly from last year’s “frustrating” to “effortless” for small‑to‑mid‑sized venues.

screenshot of Square POS items listing
Here's what menu items look like in the Square backend. We were able to edit and add items quite easily. Source: Expert Market

Square’s best features

For cost‑conscious US restaurants, Square’s pricing is unmatched; it is the only platform in our top tier to pair a permanent free iPad POS plan with a sub‑$70 Plus tier.

That low barrier matters because the free plan already bundles cash‑tracking, multiple discount types and a branded online ordering site, which is enough for most single‑site venues to open their doors and take customers.

When teams outgrow those basics, moving to the $69 Plus tier unlocks granular sales and staff reports, multiple menus (for instance, lunch versus dinner), as well as third‑party reservation software, such as OpenTable. The jump to Premium ($165) layers on advanced dashboards without the four‑figure seat licences some rivals charge.

Hardware is equally flexible. Square earns a top score for accessories in our research thanks to its à‑la‑carte model. Operators can start with an existing iPad and add stands (for countertop tills) and handheld cases (for table service) that both have in-built card readers, as well as kitchen display systems (KDS) and kitchen printers when required.

This approach undercuts Clover’s “bundle‑first” terminal strategy while still matching it for build quality, in our view (although Square doesn’t offer any packages with an iPad included, so there’s no ‘easy, all-in-one option’ via the provider).

Beyond price, we loved the ecosystem depth. Square’s own loyalty and email marketing suites mean most independents don’t need third‑party apps until they scale past a few sites, while the auto‑gratuity tool lets owners distribute tips by hours worked (something we did not find natively in SumUp or Zettle).

Where Square could improve

While Square may be affordable and easy to use, it isn’t the perfect system and is missing features that are vital for large restaurants or chains.

Square’s biggest omission for larger or multi‑site restaurants is ingredient‑level costing and real‑time food‑margin tracking. Lightspeed Restaurant and Epos Now both include that module out of the box, making them better fits once food cost starts to eclipse rent on your P&L.

Training new staff can also be harder on Square because it lacks a sandbox mode. In contrast, Clover, Lightspeed and Lavu all provide staff training environments.

Finally, Square’s bill‑splitting and void flows require more taps than the likes of Clover or SpotOn, and testers still hit occasional sync glitches on menu updates, slowing service at peak times.

2. Clover: Best for iPad-Ready Premium Hardware

Clover should be your priority if you’re after a sleek, all‑in‑one terminal that elevates your counter presence and you’re willing to pay for premium gear.

Square remains cheaper for first‑time operators, while SpotOn offers stronger built‑in tip management, but Clover delivers the best hardware experience of any iPad‑compatible POS we tested this year.

Clvoer POS logo
Clover
4.4
Pricing From $89.95/month
Suitable for

Medium to large restaurants

Owners or managers who want to deep dive into their analytics

Businesses that want top of the range hardware

Not suitable for

Small pop ups or simple establishments (food trucks or independent cafes)

Business owners who want to avoid hefty upfront costs

Restaurants that want automated tip sharing tools

Pricing
Solution typePrice
Quick Service POS Software (including basic hardware) $849 + $89.95/month to $2,648+ $109.90/month
Full Service POS Software (including basic hardware) $1,799+ $89.95/month to $4,447+ $129.85/month
POS terminals (included in some software plans) $849-$1,899
Card processing fees From $2.3% + $0.10
Card machines (included in some software plans) $199-$749
KDS Contact for quote

Our experience with Clover

Clover’s testers still loved its slick, 14‑inch touchscreen terminal and fingerprint log‑in. They completed the majority of tasks with accuracy, second only to Square in this year’s lab. Order entry and guest‑by‑guest item separation felt fast and intuitive, and the drag‑and‑drop table plan drew praise for being clearer than Lightspeed’s.

However, once managers dived into bulk uploads, discount creation or loyalty editing, the back office proved less friendly. Several users reported real‑time sync hiccups and said they needed to “hunt around” for promotion settings that Square and SpotOn surface in one click.

Clover’s best features

Hardware is where Clover pulls ahead. It scores the maximum points in our hardware and accessory audits, offering every core peripheral we could think of, from angled customer displays to cash drawers and scanners, directly through the Clover store.

The wide screen of its 14-inch countertop terminals (Station Solo or Duo, if you want to add a customer-facing screen) makes upselling add‑ons or modifiers easier than on iPad‑only rivals, and the built‑in customer display on the Duo can run branded promos without extra cabling.

You can, of course, also only use an iPad (or Android tablet) for the job if you prefer, via the Clover Go app. It integrates with the Clover Go card reader ($69) and lets you accept contactless, chip, mobile and swipe payments. Then, the iPad app syncs up with your main Clover dashboard.

Since the app is only a streamlined version of what Clover’s POS system offers, you’ll need to purchase other hardware for its full Restaurant Management POS, which opens up features such as mapping tables and splitting bills, menu item variations, QR code ordering, delivery/order integrations and kitchen display systems linkage.

Clover’s main reporting suite is also deeper than Square’s free tier: managers can set stock alerts, track dish‑level profits and drill quickly into labor‑versus‑sales charts.

Clover Flex handheld POS pictured on desk
We like the Clover Flex a lot. It wasn't too heavy to hold and we could access the full software dashboard directly from it. Source: Expert Market

Where Clover could improve

The premium hardware comes at a price. There is no long-term free plan (only a 30‑day free trial) and, as discussed, you must buy Clover‑branded equipment up front, something budget‑minded restaurants may baulk at. In fact, there’s seemingly no option to not buy any hardware (you can’t just open the iPad POS app and get to selling).

While frontend speed is excellent, the backend is more creaky. Bulk menu edits, discount workflows and loyalty tweaks are less intuitive than they are in Square or SumUp, and real‑time syncing can stutter during peak service.

Finally, Clover still lacks an automated tip‑sharing module, something Toast and SpotOn include, so multi‑role teams will need a third‑party tool or manual workarounds.

3. SpotOn: Best iPad POS for Staff Management

SpotOn lands at third on our iPads for Restaurants list because it erases hardware friction and layers in best‑in‑class labor tools, all while staying intuitive enough for new staff.

If you value free equipment and automated tip sharing more than the absolute cheapest fees (or if scheduling visibility is your current headache), SpotOn is the standout. Otherwise, Square remains cheaper for low‑volume establishments, and Clover offers richer accessory options for premium dining rooms.

SpotOn
4.4
Pricing From $0/month
Suitable for

Businesses seeking a low-risk option

Restaurant owners who need seamless staff management

Small to mid-sized restaurants with 1-3 locations

Not suitable for

Restaurants that change their floor plan frequently

Businesses that want to purchase additional accessories

Restaurants owners who want a tablet-based system

Pricing
Solution typePrice
Quick Start plan (includes hardware) $0/month (excluding processing fees)
Counter-service plan (includes hardware) $99/month +$3 per employee/month
Full-service plan (includes hardware) $135/month +$3 per employee/month
Customize Your Own plan Custom
Card processing fees 1.99% + $0.25-2.89% + $0.25

Our experience with SpotOn

Setting up SpotOn on an iPad took our panel of testers only a few minutes. The back office surfaced onboarding prompts for menus, taxes and labor rules in a logical order, and testers completed 90% of our manager‑level tasks without leaving that guided flow.

Once service began, the frontend felt snappy, albeit a shade click‑heavier than Square or Clover. For instance, adding modifiers or comping items meant hopping out of the order grid, and servers needed an extra tap or two to fire tickets.

Even so, SpotOn posted a solid task completion score and topped the whole cohort of 11 products for navigation accuracy, suggesting staff will get comfortable quickly.

SpotOn’s best features

SpotOn is the only provider in our top tier that ships a countertop kit at $0 up‑front, alongside its free iPad POS software. Operators receive a countertop terminal and pay via a flat 2.99% + $0.15 processing rate instead, which gave SpotOn the second‑best pricing score in our US model.

Behind the scenes, it’s labor‑versus‑revenue dashboard forecasts staffing costs in real time, while automatic tip sharing and per‑dish margin reports help owners keep payroll and food costs in check. These are capabilities you will not find on Square’s free tier or SumUp at any price.

Offline mode is automatic too, and the customer‑facing display doubles as a marketing carousel for promotions and QR code paying, neatly boosting sales without extra screens.

screenshot of bill sequence for SpotOn restaurant POS
With SpotOn, we were able to assign items to different guests and group them either in one check (as seen here) or multiple checks. Source: Expert Market

Where SpotOn could improve

As alluded to, some testers found that the order screen “takes one click too many” for common edits, and bill splitting is buried compared with Clover’s one‑tap flow.

Accessory choice is also thin. If you want handheld iPad sleeves, kitchen printers or a rotating stand, you will need approved third‑party gear, which would raise costs within Clover’s territory. It’s also worth noting that SpotOn doesn’t offer an iPad bundle, instead promoting its own tablet hardware, although it still has an iPad POS app to use.

Frequent floor‑plan changes are awkward, too, because edits can only be made in the backend, not on the live POS.

Finally, while the bundled terminal removes up‑front risk, the flat processing rate makes SpotOn around 18% pricier than Square on a $50k annual card volume. As a result, multi‑site restaurants that handle high card volumes will save more with other providers, including Clover.

4. SumUp: Best Budget iPad POS for Single-Site Restaurants

SumUp is the most beginner‑friendly way to get an iPad POS up and running with almost no capital outlay.

Stick with it if you run a single‑site restaurant and value speed over depth. Although you may need to plan to graduate to Square or SpotOn when you need richer reporting, bill‑splitting or stronger offline safeguards.

SumUp
4.2
Pricing $0-$289/month
Suitable for

Restaurants looking for strong loyalty and marketing tools

Operations that need mobile ordering

Businesses looking for an all-in-one software and hardware package

Not suitable for

Users who need an offline functionality

Businesses that want to minimize monthly costs

Businesses that need physical gift card creation

Pricing
Item typePrice
POS Lite (POS software) $0/month
Connect Lite (POS software) $99/month
Connect Plus (POS software) $199/month
Connect Pro (POS software) $289/month
Card processing fees From 2.6% + $0.10
Card readers $54-$169
Countertop kits $499-$799

Our experience with SumUp

In this year’s testing, our team described SumUp’s frontend as “Apple‑like” – in other words, that’s clean, quick and self‑explanatory. Common jobs such as parking an order, cancelling an item or adding a new customer all took fewer taps than on Lightspeed or Lavu, and every tester said they could teach a new hire the basics in minutes.

That honeymoon glow faded once they opened the back office: layered sidebars hid key reports, pages took time to load and bulk imports stalled without warning, forcing users to hunt for fixes or use customer support options.

Still, the overarching sentiment of testers was clear: SumUp feels safe and slick at the till but noticeably rougher behind the scenes.

SumUp’s best features

Price is the headline draw. SumUp offers a free POS plan with no mandatory hardware bundle, so small restaurants can launch on an existing iPad and pay only the flat card fee.

Hardware, when needed, is lightweight and polished, and testers liked that the same terminal can print gift‑card barcodes and scan items, reducing counter clutter. In terms of the iPad usage, you can download its app from the App Store and get selling via the device right away, which is handy (and unlike Clover).

Front‑end touches such as the “park order” button, quick table edits, and one‑screen customer management made service flows faster than on Clover. Meanwhile, SumUp’s simple bulk‑upload tool lets owners drop entire menus into the system without any CSV gymnastics.

Screenshot of SumUp POS system with an allergen selection interface for highlighting dishes with specific allergens.
We were able to signal what allergens were contained in specific menu items with SumUp. This feature impressed us, and can increase customer trust and safety. Source: Expert Market

Where SumUp could improve

On the negative side, the backend experience with SumUp still lags rivals. Report names are opaque, navigation stacks on top of itself and loading times can stretch long enough to frustrate managers during peak service.

Essential hospitality tools like bill‑splitting, advanced modifiers and reliable offline mode remain absent, so multi‑course restaurants will likely outgrow the platform faster than they would Square or SpotOn.

Finally, while the free pricing is attractive, SumUp’s card rate is higher than interchange‑based providers, so costs rise quickly once monthly turnover climbs past modest levels.

Ask the experts

We asked Daniel Fragkos, an operations manager for a restaurant chain with over 10 years’ experience working in the front and back office, for insights on what makes a good POS system.

What features are missing from your current POS system that you wish were present?

“Our POS system doesn’t have graphs [for data report visualization]. It feels very numerical sometimes and it could save me loads of time if I could look at a pie chart rather than focusing on individual numbers.

“Newer POS systems usually have this feature included and have an easy interface. Our current POS system requires training for new users, whereas newer [more intuitive ones] don’t, since they’re quite straightforward.”

What POS features improve user and customer experience the most?

“From a user experience standpoint, digitalization helps things run smoother. For example, we are currently using printed paper tickets to send orders to the kitchen, which increases the chances of things going wrong.

“If we had digital tickets on a screen, we could easily update the ticket if the table moves seats, and the new information would appear on the kitchen screen and food runner screen.”

5. Lightspeed Restaurant: Best for Advanced Loyalty and Food Cost Analytics

Lightspeed has slipped to fifth overall this year, as newer rivals undercut it on price and hardware, but it remains the go‑to iPad POS if customer loyalty marketing and deep cost‑of‑goods analytics are top priorities.

lightspeed logo
Lightspeed Restaurant
3.9
Pricing From $189/month
Suitable for

Businesses who want to pay no up-front costs

Restaurant owners looking to expand and grow

Establishments who have extensive and complex inventories

Not suitable for

Businesses looking for a large range of hardware

Restaurants that need automated tip management

Restaurants that change their floor plan frequently

Pricing
Solution typePrice
Essential plan (software only) $189/month
Premium (software only) $399/month
Enterprise (hardware and software) Custom
Hardware kit Custom
Card processing fees 2.6% + $0.10 to custom
KDS $30/screen/month

Our experience with Lightspeed Restaurant

In 2025, our testers still called Lightspeed fast, smooth and reliable, particularly for complex inventory tasks and loyalty campaigns. They set up menus and custom table plans with ease, and praised the built‑in training mode and searchable help center.

However, day‑to‑day service exposed some niggles. Namely, discount creation and bulk imports felt overly complex due to the greater steps you had to take compared with alternatives, while unlabeled icons in the back office slowed down newer staff.

A few users also reported momentary lag when recalling orders or navigating the Catalog screen, issues that we also found in our 2024 testing.

Lightspeed’s best features

Lightspeed keeps its edge in customer engagement in our 2025 testing. Automated email and SMS blasts, points‑based loyalty with VIP tiers, and granular customer segmentation, earned it strong customer-engagement scoring in our assessment that matched Square and Clover.

The platform also includes ingredient‑level cost tracking and real‑time margin reports that Square and Lavu lack, making it a smart upgrade once food cost becomes a board‑level metric. Operators pay nothing up‑front if they choose the software‑only path and the Essential plan ($189 per month) still bundles reservations, offline sync and a tablet‑based KDS.

screenshot of Lightspeed floorplan
We were big fans of Lightspeed's floor and table plan, which allowed for complete customisation. Source: Expert Market

Where Lightspeed could improve

Hardware choice remains Lightspeed’s weak spot. Aside from an iPad stand and strap case, it sells few first‑party peripherals. Restaurants wanting bundled cash drawers or customer‑facing displays must buy third‑party gear, often driving costs above Clover or Square.

Still, you can start selling with just the Lightspeed Restaurants app, which is better than providers like Clover, although you’ll have to buy an iPad independently as Lightspeed doesn’t provide them.

Automated tip‑sharing tools are still absent, so multi‑role teams may prefer SpotOn or Toast depending on your tipping policy. Finally, the navigation quirks noted last year (including vague section names and hidden discount settings) are still there, meaning staff training can take longer than on Square or Clover, despite Lightspeed’s training mode.

6. Epos Now: Best for Deep Multi‑Location Inventory Control

Epos Now offers a dedicated iPad POS system for just $649 upfront, then $59 per month. Its system is perfect for restaurants with large complex menus and inventories, thanks to features like advanced categorization, which enables users to create multiple variants of the same item, and bulk inventory uploads.

We suggest choosing Epos Now if you juggle hundreds of SKUs, run multiple menus or need cost‑of‑goods reports by site. Budget‑sensitive independents and venues that prioritize speed may find Square or SumUp simpler to learn, but for inventory‑heavy operations, Epos Now’s depth is hard to beat.

Epos now logo
Epos Now
3.9
Pricing From $59 per month + $649 (one-off fee)
Suitable for

All restaurant sizes from small to large

Restaurants with extensive and complex inventories

Owners who want to minimize monthly overheads

Not suitable for

Owners who want automated tip sharing

Novice users who are unfamiliar with POS systems

Owners who want to pay nothing up-front

Pricing
Solution typePrice
Hardware kit (iPad, stand, card machine) $649 (one-off fee)
POS software $59/month
Card processing fees Custom
KDS Custom

Our experience with Epos Now

We found Epos Now to be a little more difficult to use than other POS systems we tested, despite its hardware bundle – consisting of a 9th‑gen tablet, rotating stand, card reader and receipt printer – arriving pre‑configured for use.

That’s because, once testers drilled into the backend, the learning curve steepened. The platform’s inventory screens are packed with nested categories, variant builders and supplier links.

This might be powerful for chains, but it was overwhelming for our first‑time users. Because there’s no staff training mode, our fresher testers relied on the help centre, which has gaps in areas such as tip handling and discount set-ups.

Even so, essential tasks such as mapping the floor plan or tying ingredients to dishes worked the first time in all cases, while syncing correctly across our KDS and manager tablets.

Screenshot of Epos Now reporting tab
We were able to generate a wide variety of reports with Epos Now, including by time-of-day, employee and even by drinks versus food sales. Source: Expert Market

Epos Now’s best features

Epos Now’s inventory management tools are its standout features. Operators can bulk upload CSVs with items or other information, and the system then allows you to track ingredient usage in real-time, across multiple locations, as well as get access to low stock alerts and cost versus profit analysis.

Its multi‑location reports let chain businesses view theoretical margin versus actual food cost by site, day‑part or even menu section, which is functionality still missing from Square and SumUp. There are also reports based on items, employees, refunds, and discounts, and the general selection is some of the widest around.

If you’re a restaurant with a large menu, multiple menus for different times of day, or use very varied ingredients, Epos Now’s inventory management tools can help you avoid overspending and wastage, while ensuring you don’t run out of ingredients for popular dishes.

And as mentioned above, Epos Now also has a decent hardware offering. As part of the aforementioned iPad bundle, you’ll get everything you need to sell straight away for $649, which works out cheaper than purchasing each item separately.

Where Epos Now could improve

As we’ve noted, Epos Now isn’t the easiest system to use, so it’s not the best choice for novice POS users. Building a new combo dish or filtering reports requires more clicks than on Clover or Lightspeed, for instance.

Partly this is due to its extensive feature set. However, the dashboard looks quite cramped, and more empty space between the text would make it easier to find features. Generally, a cleaner, tiered interface would shorten training time.

Because hardware is sold only as a bundle, restaurants that already own iPads can’t cherry‑pick cheaper accessories the way they could with Square, either (e.g. getting a low-cost $59 card reader to use with your existing iPad). That’s not ideal for businesses that want to avoid hefty upfront payments.

Finally, there is still no built‑in tip‑sharing or gratuity‑report module. Restaurants that pool tips will need to add a third‑party app or export data for manual calculation.

7. TouchBistro: Best for Speedy Table Service

TouchBistro is the speed king for iPad table‑service workflows: servers can fly through orders, managers tweak floor plans live and chefs get color‑coded tickets that keep dishes flowing.

However, budget is the trade‑off since reservations, loyalty or profit‑tracking add‑ons mean the total price can eclipse cheaper all-rounders like Square, or feature‑rich rivals like Lightspeed.

Choose TouchBistro if rapid service and on‑device table management are worth the premium. Look elsewhere if you need QR ordering, tip pooling or a lower total cost of ownership.

TouchBistro Logo
TouchBistro
3.8
Pricing From $69/month
Suitable for

Large and growing restaurant chains

Owners who want detailed targeted promotions

Users who need seamless KDS integration

Not suitable for

Users who will need mobile or QR code ordering

Owners who want automated tip management tools

Businesses looking for free tools

Pricing
Solution typePrice
POS software From $69/month
Inventory Management add-on From $195/month
Profit Management add-on From $330/month
Online Ordering From $50/month
Advanced Reservations From $229/month
Marketing and Loyalty From $99/month each
KDS From $19/month

Our experience with TouchBistro

TouchBistro’s frontend remains one of the most intuitive we tested. We found servers could seat a table, start an order and fire tickets in just a few taps, and our testers appreciated being able to reshape the floor plan directly from the frontend system.

Square was still fractionally quicker on pure order‑to‑payment speed, but TouchBistro’s color‑coded modifiers helped staff catch mistakes faster.

The built‑in training mode brought new hires up to speed sooner than on SumUp or Epos Now, though the backend felt dated next to Square or SpotOn. Menu categories sit behind vague labels in the dashboard, and some reports took a few seconds longer to load than competitor POS systems.

screenshot of TouchBistro POS dashboard for setting menu items
The use of different colors is a nice addition to TouchBistro's backend menu, although we didn't have the easiest time navigating it. Source: Expert Market

TouchBistro’s best features

TouchBistro’s table planning tools are particularly good for restaurants with separate sections (e.g. upper and lower floors, bar area, and booths). Floor plans can be edited from the front or back end, and you can even create and remove walls between tables so that your floor plan exactly matches your restaurant. It allows for the most flexibility for floor plans of all the POS systems we tested.

The POS system also integrates seamlessly with TouchBistro’s proprietary touchscreen KDS. Kitchen staff can see at what time each order was made, and can easily clear them with two taps once they’re completed. This ensures orders are ready in good time and helps avoid mistakes or forgotten orders.

Handily, TouchBistro lets you either purchase an iPad from them directly or get your own, which is valuable flexibility. From there, you can set up and use it solely with an iPad for contactless payments, though if you have more than one, you’ll need a Mac to act as a “central server”. Other methods of payment will require its other hardware, like cash drawers and payment processing card readers.

TouchBistro also has a host of add-on tools, including advanced reservation management (auto‑text confirmations, guest notes, etc.), which we recommend for upscale restaurants looking to create a personalized experience for guests, and marketing and loyalty tools, such as customer app creation and point collection systems.

These are capabilities that Square only matches with third‑party integrations.

Where TouchBistro could improve

TouchBistro is an expensive option in 2025. While its basic POS software costs from $69 per month, add-on tools can quickly cause your monthly overheads to skyrocket, with the reservation management tool alone costing $229 per month.

It can quickly become out of budget for small businesses, which is why a platform such as Square, which offers a lot of free tools and cheap add-ons (marketing tools start at $9 per month compared with TouchBistro’s $99 per month) is a better option for cost-conscious restaurateurs.

There’s still no built‑in tip pooling or mobile/QR ordering either, meaning venues that rely on those workflows may find SpotOn or Lightspeed more complete, out of the box.

8. Lavu: Best for Optimizing Stock Tracking and Waste Reduction

Lavu is a purely iPad-based POS system built specifically for the hospitality industry. It’s easy to use and offers great tools for tracking ingredient usage and stock, including features like low stock alerts. It also offers a resilient, built‑in KDS, suitable for single or twin‑site restaurants watching every ounce of waste.

Operators who need transparent pricing or deep profit analytics may prefer Square or Lightspeed, but for hands‑on stock control, Lavu is an appealing choice.

Lavu logo
Lavu
3.2
Pricing Custom
Suitable for

Small-to-medium sized restaurants

Users who want an integrated kitchen display

Owners who want to track stock accurately

Not suitable for

Businesses who want cost and profit management tools

Users who want an automatic offline mode

Owners who rely on mobile or QR code ordering

Pricing
Fees and Charges
Custom

Our experience with Lavu

Lavu remains one of the more intuitive iPad POS systems we tried in 2025. Our testers rated its straightforward frontend layouts second only to TouchBistro for speed, and they appreciated that every tab opens with a short, in‑product tutorial (and there’s a full training mode that lets new staff practise without touching live data, too).

Ingredient links can be added while you build a dish, and low‑stock pop‑ups appeared instantly on the KDS, helping chefs spot shortages before service began.

Automatic offline mode kept orders flowing when we pulled the Wi‑Fi, but the UI felt inconsistent (some screens use a modern card design, while others still display cramped tables). Testers called the backend “stuck in the 90s”, citing dated layouts, hidden bulk‑import tools and an awkward bill‑splitting flow.

Overall sentiment stayed positive, but larger teams noted that deeper cost‑of‑goods or mobile ordering tools would still require plug‑ins, resulting in lower usability than the likes of Clover or SpotOn.

Lavu’s best features

While competitors such as Lightspeed Restaurant and Epos Now also offer ingredient use tracking, we found it much easier to implement this with Lavu thanks to the system’s intuitive design. Ingredients could be assigned to menu items as we were creating them.

Lavu’s POS system also allows for a decent amount of flexibility when it comes to menu creation, allowing you to create item modifiers, different menus for different times of day and add product images, making it easy for staff to accommodate guests’ requests and process orders quickly .

All of these actions can be done on a single iPad, too, so long as you only need to process contactless payments/digital wallets or by inputting credit card details manually (other payment methods will require additional hardware).

We were also quite impressed by the provider’s onboarding and training process, which was quite comprehensive. Paired with Lavu’s 24/7 customer support, it’s a good choice for restaurant operators who want to be sure they can get help quickly in a crisis.

Screenshot of Lavu POS system's ordering screen
Lavu's ordering screen can be populated with images of menu items, helping servers avoid mistakes. Source: Expert Market

Where Lavu could improve

Like Square, Lavu is missing cost versus profit management tools, which are particularly important for large restaurants or chains. Multi‑site groups tracking food cost daily will need an add‑on or export, whereas Lightspeed and Epos Now include this natively.

Lavu also doesn’t disclose the pricing of any of its software or hardware, opting for quote-based pricing instead. This is quite rare in the industry, and can understandably put some businesses off. The provider with the most transparent pricing is Square, and it’s also one of the most affordable options out there.

As discussed, users also criticised the dated backend design, hidden help resources and clunky bill‑splitting workflow. A refresh to the UI here wouldn’t go amiss.

Buying Guide: How to Choose a Restaurant POS System

It’s a good idea to define the specific needs of your restaurant before you choose a POS system. Aspects you should take in to account include the size of your restaurant, how you serve your food (for example, counter ordering, table service or QR code), and the number of locations you have.

Here’s what else to consider when evaluating your choices:

Costs and pricing structures

Consider upfront costs and monthly fees, as well as what’s included in them. Is it both software and hardware, or one and not the other? For example, Square offers free software, but charges for hardware, whereas providers such as Toast and SpotOn offer free software and hardware, but charge high transaction fees to make up for it.

Don’t forget to include the added cost of integration and training in your budgeting, and to plan for any projected growth by choosing a system that can accommodate your future needs. Switching systems is expensive, so it’s easier to stick with the same provider in the future if you can.

Software

Make a list of must-have and nice-to-have software features based on your restaurant’s operational model.

These could include:

  • Inventory management: To help you keep on top of your ingredients and prevent you from running out of something unexpectedly.
  • Reservation management: To help you book out tables in advance and gather customer data.
  • Staff management: So you can reward your best employees and identify those that need further training.
  • Online ordering functionality: So you can offer your food to takeout customers or accept online pre-orders.
  • Analytics: So you can learn which meals are most popular, which staff members are processing the most transactions and more.
  • Customer loyalty programs: So you can offer benefits that entice customers back to your restaurant as repeat visitors.

If you prioritize features that help you automate workflows and prevent manual work, you might be able to reduce your labor costs.

Hardware

Think about what pieces of hardware are vital for your restaurant, and how many of them you need – from POS terminals and card machines to receipt printers, kitchen printers and cash drawers.

Not all providers automatically provide you with portable card machines, for example. They’re sometimes replaced with a tablet or terminal that can take payments. But if you need your staff to do table service, you should choose a provider that includes portable card machines in their packages.

If you have existing hardware, just make sure to find a POS system that’s compatible with your existing equipment. This will save you from having to buy everything new. Most POS providers appreciate that you might be switching to them from another supplier, and that you won’t necessarily want a complete overhaul of all your hardware.

Add-ons and integrations

You should also pay attention to what software or apps your chosen POS system can integrate with. If you already use software, such as accounting software, make sure the POS system you choose has a ready-made integration for it, as this will help you streamline operations.

It’s also a good idea to check what other add-ons or apps are available via a POS system. Some providers offer advanced marketing or reporting features as add-ons, usually for an extra fee – but if these seem particularly valuable to your business they could be worth the extra price.

Customer support

Make sure you check how available the POS provider’s customer support team is, and how easily reachable they are.

A POS provider should have a customer support phone line that’s open on weekdays, at the very least. Live chat support and community forums you can go to in a pinch are a welcome addition.

You should also check the training resources, onboarding support and post-implementation support terms provided by the POS provider to ensure your team will get the support they need to learn the new system.

How We Tested iPad POS Systems

The Expert Market team rigorously assessed and tested 10 different POS systems to bring you this list. In total, we spent around 160 hours researching POS platforms and over 20 hours testing them.

During that time, we used our learnings to evaluate how each POS system fared in six categories that are important to hospitality businesses, broken down into up to 12 subcategories, in order to award an impartial ranking. Here’s what we looked at:

  • POS software: The breadth of features included in the POS software and how valuable they are to the average business, including inventory management, menu/product creation, customer engagement tools and table management.
  • Hardware/equipment: The variety of equipment available to purchase or rent, with special importance given to key items, such as physical terminals, customer displays and accessories.
  • Ease-of-use: How easy each system is to use, based on feedback from several average users who were assigned basic tasks to complete on each system, such as menu/item creation, accessing reports or applying a discount.
  • Help and support: How effective and reachable the customer support teams are, with bonus points given to POS systems with help centers and training modes.
  • Costs: The price of the system, how it compares to competitors and whether it's good value for money.
  • User experience: Whether everyday users know and like the system, whether they’d recommend it, and what they say about it in online reviews.

We gave each POS system a score in each of the above testing and research categories, and combined them to produce an overall score, which was used to rank them.

Graph showing features vs usability scores of various EPOS systems
This axis graph shows the number of features versus usability of restaurant EPOS systems we tested. It's a visual representation of the results of our research process. Source: Expert Market
Verdict

Square remains the strongest all‑round iPad POS for restaurants in 2025. Its free-forever plan and $69 Plus tier (adding deeper reporting and reservations) deliver the best price‑to‑feature ratio for independent restaurants and small chains, with intuitive front and backend design and low‑cost, pick‑and‑mix hardware.

However, if you outgrow Square’s lightweight feature set, the strongest upgrades are:

  • Clover – ranked second overall, its 14‑inch Station Solo/Duo terminals, built‑in customer display and wide accessory line suit venues that want a polished, countertop‑first setup to tandem with your iPad POS.
  • SpotOn – ranked third, is the only provider bundling a free terminal, plus automatic tip‑sharing and live labor‑versus‑sales dashboards for operators laser‑focused on staffing efficiency.
  • Lightspeed Restaurant – though fifth overall, it remains the go‑to for chains that need ingredient‑level food‑cost analytics and built‑in email/SMS loyalty campaigns.

If you’re still not sure what POS system is best for your business, we can help. Just fill in our short quote comparison form, and we’ll match you with trusted POS providers. They’ll reach out to you with tailored and competitive quotes for you to compare.

Written by:
Matt Reed is a Senior Communications and Logistics Expert at Expert Market. Adept at evaluating products, he focuses mainly on assessing fleet management and business communication software. Matt began his career in technology publishing with Expert Reviews, where he spent several years putting the latest audio-related products and releases through their paces, revealing his findings in transparent, in-depth articles and guides. Holding a Master’s degree in Journalism from City, University of London, Matt is no stranger to diving into challenging topics and summarising them into practical, helpful information.
Reviewed by:
Headshot of Expert Market Senior Writer Tatiana Lebtreton
Tatiana is Expert Market's resident payments and online growth expert, specialising in (E)POS and merchant accounts, as well as website builders.