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Best Restaurant Management Software 2025

Restaurant Management Software assists restaurant owners and managers with automation of administrative tasks, workforce management & scheduling, inventory tracking & control, orders, and payroll. More often than not, they include an integrated POS (or a tight integration with a point of sale system offered by a partner vendor). Beyond these relatively straightforward functions a restaurant management platform might distinguish itself by providing advanced and interpretable analytics and ...

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Learn More about Restaurant Management Software

What is Restaurant Management?

Restaurant Management Software assists restaurant owners and managers with automation of administrative tasks, workforce management & scheduling, inventory tracking & control, orders, and payroll. More often than not they include an integrated point-of-sale (POS) system, or a tight integration with a POS offered by a partner vendor. There are also specialized POS systems specifically for the restaurant industry, simply called Restaurant POS.


Beyond these relatively straightforward functions, a restaurant management platform might distinguish itself by providing advanced and interpretable analytics and revenue tracking, an attractive and functional mobile app, and support for e-commerce with online orders and delivery support and tracking.


There is some overlap between restaurant management software and POS systems. Restaurant POS systems are primarily concerned with taking customers orders, submitting orders to the kitchen, processing payments, and providing basic analytics while restaurant management systems provide tools for both the back and front of house such as employee and inventory management.

Restaurant Management Features & Capabilities

The most advantageous features offered in Restaurant Management software solutions are listed below, but not all software will have each of these features.

Labor Management

  • Create and manage employees’ schedules

  • Payroll tracking - Clock employees in and out, create payroll

  • Employee communication, including shift changes

  • Labor law compliance

Inventory Management

  • Manage food inventory and food expiration dates

  • Identify and track food waste

  • Forecast needed food or inventory order quantities and timing

  • Purchasing management and purchase order creation

Food Cost and Management

  • Track food costs over time

  • Analyze cost of specific recipes

  • Real time menu editing capabilities

  • Visibility of menu item order quantity and which menu items are the most profitable

Dashboards and Reporting

  • Tools to help minimize costs and maximize sales

  • Real time access for sales data and reporting

  • Forecast sales projections based on season or day of week

Interface solutions

  • POS hardware and software

  • Self-ordering solutions and kiosks

  • Web order application or integration

  • Delivery order management or integration

  • Customer loyalty program management

Restaurant Management Software Comparison

Restaurant management software as a category consists of specialized tools and more comprehensive tools that aim to be an all-in-one platform.

There are products in this space tailored to fulfill crucial aspects of restaurant management such as POS systems or employee scheduling tools. These offerings typically provide built-in integrations with other important tools so that restaurant operations managers can tailor their tech stack to their own needs. Hotschedules, Jolt, and Lavu are good examples of this sub-category of products.

For examples of all-in-one platforms that are designed to help restaurant owners cut down on the number of software vendors with whom they have to work, there are offerings like Revel Systems, Upserve, and Toast. When shopping for a restaurant management platform, pre-identify the features that are absolutely a must-have for your business. This will help you more easily create your shortlist.

Start a Restaurant Management software comparison

Pricing Information

Pricing varies greatly between the different Restaurant Management solutions. Some offer free software with basic or limited functionality. Mid range options are available in the $40 - $70 per month range while high end plans are much more and are specific to the size of your company, number of locations, and the number of employees. Several offer a free trial period prior to purchase.


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Restaurant Management FAQs

What is restaurant management software?

Restaurant management software consists of all-in-one-platforms for effectively operating a restaurant business. Rather than purchasing multiple products that are sold separately such as a point-of-sale system, employee scheduling system, and more, buyers can invest in one restaurant management system that combines those separate capabilities into one product offering.

What are the key features of restaurant management software?

Restaurant management software can assist with a variety of tasks and duties, but features that are crucial to defining a restaurant management software are:


  • Point-of-sale system
  • Inventory management
  • Table and order management
  • Timesheet management
  • Menu setup
  • Support for integration with other software you may already be using and enjoy
  • Reporting /analysis

What is a good free restaurant management software?

The large majority of full-featured restaurant management platforms are not available for free and are a considerable investment. Buyers will be able to purchase standalone point-of-sale systems, but will need to augment with other tools to fully achieve the comprehensiveness of a true restaurant management tool. Simple restaurant management software can start as low as $40/mo, but more expansive systems will require prospective buyers to contact sales for a quote.