Restaurants payments

Restaurant POS built for a Friday dinner rush.

Compare systems around coursing, tabs, split checks, tip workflows, online ordering, and handheld service—not a polished demo.

Shift4 · SquareCompared around your workflow and complete written terms.

What usually costs you money

The three we find most often in restaurants.

Tickets die at the station

Servers walk back to a terminal to fire every course, and the line waits on paper. Handhelds and kitchen displays cut minutes out of every table.

Tips and pooling are a spreadsheet

Cash tips, card tips, pooled shares, and payroll rarely line up. The right setup handles it at the POS instead of after close.

Your rate crept up quietly

Small tickets can make per-transaction charges material. Compare total monthly cost at the restaurant’s real volume and ticket count instead of relying on one advertised percentage.

What we set up

Configured around a real service before go-live—not after.

01

Front of house

Table maps, coursing, seat-level ordering, bar tabs with preauth, and check splitting that works mid-service.

02

Back of house

Kitchen displays with station routing and prep timers, so dine-in, online, and delivery tickets land in one queue.

03

Off-premise

Compare online ordering, QR, pay-at-table, and supported delivery connections as part of the same ticket and kitchen workflow.

04

Staff & close

Scheduling, time clock, tip pooling, and a close-of-day report your manager can actually reconcile.

Self-ordering kiosks should be quoted alongside the complete restaurant POS configuration.

Platforms we compare for restaurants

Test each viable option against the same dinner-service workflow and complete written terms.

Shift4

A restaurant-centered countertop, handheld, kitchen, kiosk, and payment ecosystem. Verify the included hardware, warranty, support, and service in the written offer.

See Shift4
Square

A streamlined counter, handheld, online-ordering, and catering setup that can run under one Square account.

See Square
How it works

Start however suits you.

1

Send a statement, or just book a call

A recent statement supports an exact cost review. If one is not available, start with the workflow, current setup, and operating questions you already know.

2

See the comparison

Review each viable configuration against the same workflow, hardware, software, processing, support, and contract assumptions.

3

We negotiate

Use competing written options to clarify the offer and put the complete commercial terms in writing before signing.

4

Install and stay

Configure, test, train, and verify funding before cutover, then keep a named escalation path after launch.

Good to know

Do I have to close to switch?

No. We configure and test the replacement before a controlled cutover planned around a slower operating period, while keeping the current payment path available until the new setup is ready.

Can I keep my current POS?

Possibly. Confirm hardware ownership, compatibility, processor requirements, software access, and whether improving the current arrangement is the better answer.

What about my delivery apps?

Ask each candidate to demonstrate how required delivery services enter the ticket queue, who supports the integration, and what happens during an outage.

See your numbers before you decide anything.

Bring one recent statement or start with what you know. We will document the complete comparison and every assumption behind it.