Be it a nightclub, wine bar, or gastropub serving meals, you want a degree of sale (POS) system that makes yours and your workforce’s lives simpler and retains your prospects coming again for one more spherical.
However that are the very best POS methods in your bar or pub? And the way do you determine between the various comparable merchandise that, these days, appear to do every part shy of constructing the drinks?
We’ve in contrast the options, charges, and features of among the prime POS methods available on the market that will help you select one which’ll set your bar up for fulfillment, whether or not you’re a cocktail king or a craft ale connoisseur.
Learn on for our choose of the 6 finest POS methods for bars and pubs. Or, when you’re able to get quotes, simply give us some fundamental data about your corporation utilizing the shape on the prime of the web page and we will match you with prime suppliers right now.
You may soar straight to one of many suppliers beneath to be taught extra or preserve studying to check all of them.
The 6 finest POS methods for bars and pubs: A deep dive
>See additionally: Best payment processors for UK small businesses – 11 of the best
Lightspeed
Pricing
Necessities: £109 per yr
Premium: £339 per yr
Enterprise: customized pricing
Options
- No month-to-month transaction restrict
- Cut up bars by merchandise, course or seat
- Create an infinite variety of menus and assign to particular gadgets
- Computerized inventory maintaining
- Get insights direct to your cellphone
Lightspeed is a cloud-based EPOS system that you could entry from an iPad or different machine.
Lightspeed Funds, which accepts a spread of credit score, debit, and cell fee choices, makes this EPOS system an awesome choice for busy bars. There are not any month-to-month transaction limits, so you may course of an infinite quantity of drinks orders, and the quick take a look at course of reduces handbook processes for fast buyer turnover.
From throughout the system, you may handle every part from designing customized ground plans to creating menus and combos of things which can be steadily ordered collectively. You additionally get a wealth of knowledge on funds and worker efficiency that you need to use to make strategic staffing selections.
Nonetheless, a lot of Lightspeed’s finest options can be found via third events relatively than in-built, that means you could have to pay subscription prices. Additionally, when you’re utilizing Lightspeed Funds, you additionally don’t have any selection over the {hardware} you utilize – it’s important to buy the Castles S1F2 fee terminal via Lightspeed with the intention to be appropriate.
Lightspeed additionally begins from £109 per yr however prices decrease transaction charges than BarTab (credit score and debit playing cards: 1.2% + 10p, American Categorical: 2.75%).
Epos Now
Pricing
Epos Now for pubs and bars: £25 monthly
Options
- EPOS system, money until, and printer included in value
- Actual-time knowledge to any of your gadgets
- Cellular ordering software program for at-table service
- Integrations with greater than 100 enterprise instruments
- Actual-time stock
Epos Now has a whole resolution for bars and pubs that features every part it’s good to handle your bar – EPOS system, money until, and printer – for the very aggressive value of £25 monthly.
The {hardware} itself is powerful, with a water resistant touchscreen to guard it from clumsy prospects or employees spillages. However it’s not all about {hardware}. You may handle every part from one hospitality platform, with real-time reporting knowledge on gross sales, employees, and margins. Better of all, with superior bar and pub inventory management software program, Epos Now claims it may observe stock proper right down to the final remaining millimetres of a bottle, so you may get an order in to your provider with loads of time to spare.
Epos Now’s Professional+ multi function EPOS and transportable funds system is a useful instrument when you’ve got servers offering an at-table service. The machine permits them to take orders and settle for funds whereas on the transfer. And with fee authorisation, you may examine whether or not a buyer has enough funds earlier than they open a tab.
Lastly, Epos Now integrates with a dizzying 100+ enterprise instruments and apps that make the day-to-day working of your bar even simpler.
Compare bar and pub POS system quotes
BarTab
Pricing
Bar Necessities: £39 monthly
BarTab Professional: £59 monthly
BarTab Associate: £99 monthly
Options
- At desk and cell ordering
- Inventory administration
- Reporting and insights
- On-line money up and accounting software program integration
- Gives, promotions, and loyalty
BarTab (which is accessible via Tabology) is an iPad-based EPOS, reserving, employees scheduling and ordering system that’s been constructed with the wants of bars and pubs in thoughts. It prides itself on being a user-friendly system, that means it’s straightforward to on-board employees, whereas fast entry to key actions from the menu retains your bar queue transferring.
You may predefine units of spirit mixers to make it easy for bar employees to key in frequent drinks and create upsell choices that may immediate employees when related. And also you get a digital display to show your beer and drinks choices that routinely syncs whenever you replace your EPOS system.
BarTab additionally comes with a good vary of admin options, together with inventory management, which may observe beverage and cocktail ingredient provides and permits you to order immediately based mostly on gross sales historical past and inventory ranges; and money management, which may combine along with your accounting software program, present automated updates on gross sales, and provide you with a warning to any gross sales/money up discrepancies.
Costs for essentially the most fundamental system begin from an inexpensive £39 monthly, with every further POS additionally charged at £39. Cellular ordering charges are between 1.5 to 2.5% + 20p per transaction relying on which plan you’re on.
TouchBistro
Pricing
TouchBistro POS: £56.78 monthly (+{hardware} and extra charges)
Options
- Monitor visitor spending and reward loyalty
- Integrations with a wide range of bar stock software program
- Handle entry by setting employees permissions
- Two faucet quick bar order mode
- Reporting and analytics give insights into every part from gross sales by workforce member and drink recognition
Velocity and comfort is the secret with TouchBistro’s Bar POS. Prospects pays in a wide range of methods, and it’s straightforward to arrange tabs, cut up payments and switch tabs to completely different tables, whereas Quick Bar register mode permits you to take and shut orders in simply two faucets.
We additionally like that it encourages upselling – you may set automated prompts that alert your employees to related promotions and upgrades – and loyalty, by permitting you to trace buyer spending and reward your common prospects with particular gives.
Lastly, TouchBistro has some wonderful inbuilt analytics, with greater than 50 stories that may provide essential insights into your corporation, together with each day and weekly income, and breakdowns by workforce member, product, menu class, and extra.
And when you can’t discover a essential perform, TouchBistro, integrates with a spread of fashionable accounting, stock administration, fee processing, employees scheduling, and on-line ordering software program, so you may construct a setup that works for your corporation.
The primary draw back of TouchBistro is that, at practically £60 monthly, its beginning value is considerably greater than rivals.
Zettle
Pricing
Zettle card reader: From £29
Full POS setup: From £189 (excluding VAT)
Options
- Specialist POS integrations
- Ship distant fee hyperlinks
- Ship digital receipts and handle every part from the cloud
- Edit inventory ranges and add objects throughout the app
- Day by day stories on gross sales and employees efficiency
Whereas Zettle hasn’t been designed as a specialist POS system for bars like a few of our different suppliers, its simplicity, smooth design, and low charges make it an awesome choice for smaller bars and pubs.
Utilizing Bluetooth, you may arrange Zettle inside minutes and begin promoting immediately, and the intuitive POS app makes it straightforward in your employees to stand up and working shortly. You too can have a number of accounts, which employees can swap to with out logging out, whereas each day stories for every consumer help you regularly monitor efficiency.
What we love about Zettle is how versatile it’s. You don’t even have to make use of the Zettle POS system with its {hardware}. You probably have an current system or one thing extra specialist POS, it’s straightforward to sync it with the Zettle card reader.
The {hardware} itself is sleeker and smaller than many legacy methods, with a spread of ready-made and customisable POS setups in each black and white, so it’s straightforward to discover a resolution that matches your wants and price range.
Lastly, Zettle accepts all main debit and bank cards, in addition to Apple, Android, and Google Pay, so no buyer must be turned away empty-handed.
Sq.
Pricing
Free: Free
Plus: £69 monthly
Premium: Customized pricing
Options
- Conversational modifiers can velocity up ordering
- Combine with a wide range of accounting and hospitality apps
- No refund or chargeback charges
- Organise stories by time of day, covers, and staff
- Electronic mail advertising and loyalty features obtainable
Sq. for Eating places and Bars says it’s designed that will help you and your employees get essentially the most out of each shift.
A fast overview of its options and features exhibits that description to be just about spot on. Sq. makes it straightforward for busy bar employees to key in orders with ‘conversational modifiers’ reminiscent of ‘add’, ‘additional’, and ‘no’, and an intuitive order entry system to enhance accuracy, and the fee processing is fast and straightforward: funds could be transferred to you as quickly as the subsequent day, and Sq. doesn’t cost refund or chargeback charges.
You may get a reasonably complete POS system on the free plan, however when you actually need your bar to soar, you’ll wish to transfer on to the Plus plan, which has extra superior options, although at £69 monthly, is considerably greater than a lot of different prime POS methods.
That mentioned, like Zettle, Sq. gives a customisable vary of well-designed until and POS setups, with terminals, readers, registers, and printers to swimsuit all necessities. For instance, you may select to run Sq. POS from your personal pill for £329 or get a Sq. Register Equipment with no pill wanted for £839.
Zonal
Pricing
3-in-1 POS, On-line ordering and desk bookings: £265 monthly
Options
- Customisable interface
- Quick fee resolution
- Centralised inventory administration
- Information-driven planning for peak instances
- Finish of day reporting
Zonal’s PoS system offers you an all-in-one level of sale system, permitting you to run your entire operation easily. Zonal’s software program is absolutely customisable, so you may management the design and structure of the PoS terminal, due to this fact slicing down on employees coaching instances and getting your corporation transferring quick.
This method additionally retains observe of inventory, so that you at all times know the place you stand on a busy night time. With regards to re-ordering, customers can do that instantly from the software program with a couple of faucets for stress-free restock.
The software program is accessible to load onto tablets and smartphones, so that you don’t should splash out on any further {hardware} when you don’t wish to (however Zonal does provide a spread of {hardware} for those who require it).
In addition to the client expertise, Zonal additionally makes the worker expertise extra seamless, with reservation and on-line ordering methods in-built. And as soon as the shift is over, the improved knowledge instruments present stories on gross sales, reductions, loyalty transactions and funds.
Subsequent steps
Nonetheless unsure that are the very best POS methods in your bar? Why not use our free instruments to check prime suppliers right now.
Merely fill in our free quote-finding form, and reply a couple of easy questions on your corporation (it takes lower than a minute). We’ll match you with essentially the most acceptable POS methods in your wants within the UK.
All pricing data is correct as of twenty first June 2022.