The best hospitality EPOS system in the UK depends on the type of business you run. A small takeaway needs fast order entry, kitchen printing and delivery integrations. A café may need simple payments, product buttons and loyalty tools. A full-service restaurant needs table management, split bills, staff controls, reporting and reliable support.
For UK restaurants, cafés, takeaways and bars that want a practical all-in-one system without a long contract, Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS is a strong option. It combines an Android POS terminal, receipt printer, cloud dashboard, online ordering website, kitchen printing, QR ordering, delivery integrations and UK support.
Other well-known choices include Square, Lightspeed, Epos Now, Clover and PayPal POS/Zettle. This guide compares the top hospitality EPOS systems in the UK so you can choose the right one for your business.
Key Takeaways
| EPOS System | Best For | Main Strength |
| Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS | UK restaurants, cafés, takeaways and bars | Affordable all-in-one hospitality EPOS with online ordering and UK support |
| Lightspeed Restaurant | Larger restaurants and multi-site venues | Advanced reporting, inventory and scalability |
| Epos Now Hospitality | General hospitality and retail businesses | Flexible POS with broad business use |
| Square POS | Small cafés, pop-ups and simple food businesses | Easy setup and simple payment-led POS |
What Is a Hospitality EPOS System?
A hospitality EPOS system is a digital till system built for food and drink businesses. Unlike a basic cash register, it helps manage orders, payments, tables, menus, staff, kitchen printing, reporting and sometimes online orders.
A good hospitality EPOS system should help your team serve customers faster, reduce mistakes and give owners better control over the business.
For example, in a takeaway, the EPOS should send orders straight to the kitchen printer. In a restaurant, it should manage tables, split bills and service charge. In a café, it should make fast counter service simple during busy morning hours.
Modern hospitality EPOS systems usually include:
- Touchscreen order entry
- Cash and card payment handling
- Kitchen receipt printing
- Table and floor plan management
- Product modifiers and meal deals
- Staff PIN login
- Sales reports
- VAT reports
- Online ordering
- QR table ordering
- Delivery platform integrations
- Stock and supplier tools
The best system is not always the most expensive one. The right choice is the one that fits your business size, service style and budget.
Best Hospitality EPOS Systems in the UK Compared
1. Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS
Best for: UK restaurants, takeaways, cafés, bars and small hospitality businesses that want an affordable all-in-one EPOS package.
Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS is designed for UK food businesses that need more than a basic till. It includes an Android POS terminal, web dashboard, receipt printer options, online ordering website, kitchen printing, reporting tools and integrated card payment support.
One of its strongest advantages is that it is built around real hospitality workflows. Staff can take orders on the Android POS terminal while owners can manage sales, orders, menus and reports from the web dashboard.
Switch & Save is especially useful for businesses that want:
- Dine-in, takeaway, pickup and delivery order handling
- Table orders and floor plans
- Product modifiers, variants and cooking notes
- Cash, card, split bills, tips and service charge
- Kitchen printing and kitchen display support
- Online ordering website
- QR table ordering
- Self-service kiosk ordering
- Uber Eats, Just Eat and Deliveroo integrations
- Staff roles, PIN login and clock-in/out
- Sales, VAT, payment and product reports
- Free menu migration
- UK support and training
Switch & Save currently promotes its hospitality bundle from £349 + VAT one-off, with cloud software from £20 per month and no long contract. This makes it a strong choice for small UK hospitality businesses that want a professional system without high upfront complexity.
It is a particularly good fit for independent takeaways, cafés, restaurants, dessert shops, burger shops, pizza shops, shisha lounges, pubs and small chains.
Pros
- Affordable entry price
- UK-based support
- Online ordering website included
- QR, kiosk and delivery integrations available
- Suitable for restaurants, cafés and takeaways
- Free menu and data migration
- No long contract
- Good for businesses switching from another EPOS provider
Things to consider
- Businesses should confirm the final package, hardware size, software cost and optional add-ons during the demo.
- Very large chains may still need a bespoke enterprise deployment plan.
2. Lightspeed Restaurant
Best for: Larger restaurants, multi-site venues and operators that need advanced reporting and inventory.
Lightspeed Restaurant is a well-known hospitality POS system used by restaurants, bars and growing hospitality groups. It is often chosen by businesses that want detailed reporting, advanced inventory tools, integrations and multi-location management.
Lightspeed is a good option for businesses that need strong operational control. For example, a restaurant group with several branches may benefit from central reporting, menu performance insights and ingredient-level inventory tracking.
Pros
- Strong reporting and analytics
- Good for multi-site operations
- Advanced inventory features
- Restaurant-focused tools
- Useful integrations
Things to consider
- Pricing can become higher when add-ons, integrations and extra features are needed.
- It may be more advanced than a small takeaway or café actually requires.
3.Epos Now Hospitality
Best for: Businesses that want a flexible EPOS brand used across retail and hospitality.
Epos Now is a popular POS provider in the UK and is used by different types of businesses, including hospitality, retail and service-based companies. Its hospitality setup can support restaurants, cafés, bars and food businesses that need a cloud-based till system with reporting and payment options.
Epos Now may be suitable for businesses that want a recognisable provider with a broad feature set and different hardware options.
Pros
- Well-known UK EPOS provider
- Suitable for several business types
- Cloud reporting and business tools
- Hardware and software packages available
- Good general POS functionality
Things to consider
- Some features may depend on plan, package or add-ons.
- Businesses should check contract terms, monthly fees and support options carefully before signing.
4.Square POS
Best for: Small cafés, pop-ups, food stalls and simple hospitality businesses.
Square is popular with small businesses because it is easy to start using. For small cafés, market food stalls, mobile coffee businesses or pop-up kitchens, Square can be a simple way to take card payments and manage basic sales.
It is not always the strongest choice for complex restaurant operations, but it can work well when the business needs simplicity more than advanced hospitality features.
Pros
- Easy to set up
- Good for small and mobile businesses
- Simple card payment options
- User-friendly interface
- Useful for low-complexity operations
Things to consider
- It may not be enough for busy restaurants that need full table management, kitchen routing, delivery integrations and advanced reporting.
- Transaction and feature costs should be reviewed based on your sales volume.
Best EPOS by Business Type
Best EPOS for Takeaways
For takeaways, the best EPOS should handle fast orders, delivery, collection, kitchen printing and delivery platforms. Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS is a strong choice because it supports takeaway, delivery, collection, online ordering, kitchen printing and integrations with major delivery platforms.
Best EPOS for Restaurants
Restaurants need table management, split bills, service charge, staff controls and reporting. Switch & Save is suitable for independent restaurants, while Lightspeed may suit larger restaurants or multi-site operators that need deeper analytics and advanced inventory.
Best EPOS for Cafés
Cafés need speed, simple product buttons, card payments and easy reporting. Square, PayPal POS/Zettle and Switch & Save can all work, depending on how advanced the café needs to be. If the café also wants online ordering, loyalty, kitchen printing or growth features, Switch & Save is the better long-term option.
Best EPOS for Bars and Pubs
Bars and pubs need fast order entry, tab management, staff permissions, payment handling and strong reporting. Switch & Save and Lightspeed are good options depending on the size of the venue. Smaller bars may prefer Switch & Save for affordability and support, while larger venues may prefer Lightspeed for scale.
Best EPOS for New Hospitality Businesses
For a new restaurant, café or takeaway, cost control matters. You need a system that is not too expensive, not too complicated and not locked into a long contract. Switch & Save is a practical option because it offers hardware, cloud software, support, menu migration and hospitality features in one package.
What to Check Before Choosing a Hospitality EPOS System
Before choosing an EPOS system, compare more than just the headline price. A cheap system can become expensive if you need paid add-ons for basic hospitality features.
Check these points carefully:
1. Does it fit your service style?
A takeaway, café, restaurant and bar all work differently. Make sure the EPOS supports your actual workflow.
For example:
- Takeaways need delivery and collection orders.
- Restaurants need tables and split bills.
- Cafés need fast checkout.
- Bars need tabs, staff controls and quick payment.
2. Does it support kitchen printing?
Kitchen printing is essential for most food businesses. Orders should go straight to the correct printer or kitchen screen so staff do not need to shout orders or re-type them.
3. Does it support online ordering?
Online ordering can reduce dependency on third-party platforms and help customers order directly from your business. If the EPOS includes a branded ordering website, it can be a major advantage.
4. Does it integrate with delivery platforms?
Many UK takeaways rely on Uber Eats, Just Eat and Deliveroo. If orders from these platforms can land directly in the POS, it can reduce tablet clutter and manual mistakes.
5. Are card payments integrated?
Integrated card payments help avoid typing the total manually into a separate card machine. This reduces errors and speeds up checkout.
6. What are the real monthly costs?
Ask about:
- Software fee
- Hardware cost
- Contract length
- Support cost
- Online ordering cost
- Delivery integration cost
- Card transaction fees
- Setup and training fees
- Cancellation terms
7. Is support UK-based?
For hospitality businesses, support matters. If your till stops working during a Friday night rush, you need fast help. UK phone or WhatsApp support can be valuable for small businesses that cannot afford long downtime.
For most small and medium UK hospitality businesses, Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS is one of the strongest options because it combines affordability, practical hospitality features and UK-based support. It is especially suitable for restaurants, takeaways, cafés and bars that want online ordering, kitchen printing, delivery integrations, reporting and card payments without a long contract.
Switch & Save helps UK hospitality businesses run faster service, manage orders more clearly and reduce operational stress with a modern Hospitality EPOS system.
Explore the Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS system here
Book a free demo today and see how it can work for your restaurant, takeaway, café or bar.
FAQs
What is the best hospitality EPOS system in the UK?
The best hospitality EPOS system depends on your business. Switch & Save is a strong option for UK restaurants, cafés, takeaways and bars that want an affordable all-in-one system. Lightspeed is better suited to larger or multi-site restaurants, while Square and PayPal POS/Zettle are better for simpler setups.
What EPOS system is best for a takeaway?
A takeaway should choose an EPOS system with fast order entry, kitchen printing, delivery order handling, online ordering and delivery platform integrations. Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS is a good fit because it supports takeaway, delivery, collection, kitchen printing and online orders.
How much does a hospitality EPOS system cost in the UK?
Hospitality EPOS costs vary depending on hardware, software, support, payment processing and add-ons. Switch & Save promotes a hospitality EPOS bundle from £349 + VAT one-off, with cloud software from £20 per month. Always confirm final pricing before buying.
Do restaurants need a hospitality-specific EPOS system?
Yes, most restaurants benefit from a hospitality-specific EPOS because they need table management, split bills, service charge, kitchen printing, staff controls and reporting. A basic retail POS may not handle restaurant workflows properly.
Can an EPOS system handle online orders?
Yes, many modern hospitality EPOS systems can handle online orders. Switch & Save includes a branded online ordering website where takeaway, delivery and collection orders can come through to the POS.
Is Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS suitable for cafés?
Yes. Switch & Save Hospitality EPOS is suitable for cafés, especially those that want fast checkout, product buttons, card payments, reporting, online ordering and future growth options.
Is Square good for restaurants?
Square can work well for small cafés, pop-ups and simple hospitality businesses. However, larger restaurants may need more advanced table management, kitchen routing, delivery integrations and hospitality reporting.
What should I check before buying an EPOS system?
Check the full cost, contract length, support options, card payment rates, hardware included, online ordering features, kitchen printing, delivery integrations and whether the system fits your business type.
