An independent restaurant with one location, the owner and one office person in the books and an outside accountant: bank feeds, reconciling POS deposits and paying supplier bills matter most.
The ranking
Xero
By Xero
Cloud accounting from Xero with unlimited users on every plan. The Growing plan, $59 a month, adds unlimited supplier bills to bank feeds, reconciliation and tracking by location; support is online only.
RTC SCORE
8.7
#1 for Restaurants
Pros
- Unlimited users on every plan, so the owner, the office and the accountant all get their own login at no extra cost.
- Growing ($59) has no cap on supplier bills or invoices, includes auto-reconcile and free standard ACH bill payments.
- Tracking categories show results by location on every plan, and Lightspeed's connection posts daily sales by accounting group and payment method.
Cons
- Support is by online case and email only: no live chat and no phone line you can call.
- Cancelling takes one month's notice, and that month is billed.
- Only Square and Lightspeed are listed; Toast and Clover need a connector from another company, and there is nothing for Shift4 POS, SpotOn or Heartland.
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), POS data that reaches the books, and bank feeds. Weakest on POS systems that connect.
QuickBooks Online
By Intuit
Intuit's cloud accounting. The Essentials plan, $85 a month month to month for 3 users plus 2 accountants, has bank feeds, reconciliation and supplier bills; results by class or location start on Plus ($140).
RTC SCORE
8.4
#2 for Restaurants
Pros
- Essentials includes 3 users plus 2 free accountant seats, with bank feeds, reconciliation, supplier bills and free ACH bill payments.
- Documented POS connections: Toast's Sync posts a daily sales entry by category, and Intuit's free Square Connector imports sales, tips, taxes and fees.
- Month to month with no early termination fee, a 30-day free trial and live chat or callback support six days a week.
Cons
- At $85 a month, Essentials costs more than most rivals' plans with supplier bills, and results by class or location need Plus at $140.
- No extra users can be bought: a fourth person means moving up to Plus.
- No documented connection for Clover, Shift4 POS, SpotOn or Heartland Genius.
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), POS data that reaches the books, and bank feeds.
Zoho Books
By Zoho
Cloud accounting from Zoho. Supplier bills start on the Professional plan, $50 a month month to month for 5 users, with bank feeds, reconciliation and a built-in Square connection that books daily sales, tips and fees.
RTC SCORE
8.3
#3 for Restaurants
Pros
- Built-in Square connection that books each day's sales, refunds, discounts, tips and Square fees in separate accounts.
- Published prices, month to month, with 5 users on the reference plan and extra users at $3 a month.
- Phone, chat and email support on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern.
Cons
- Supplier bills only start on Professional ($50 a month); the cheaper Standard plan has no bills.
- No connection documented with Toast, Clover or other restaurant POS systems besides Square, and the Square sync covers one location.
- Separate locations need Premium or a $12-a-month add-on per location.
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), POS data that reaches the books, and bank feeds. Weakest on POS systems that connect.
Patriot Accounting
By Patriot Software
US accounting software with a published price: Accounting Basic is $20 a month with unlimited users, automatic bank imports, reconciliation, supplier bills and departments. It connects with Patriot's own payroll and documents no POS connection.
RTC SCORE
8.0
#4 for Restaurants
Pros
- Accounting Basic at $20 a month covers unlimited users, automatic bank imports, reconciliation, supplier bills and departments.
- Phone, chat and email support from the US on weekdays, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern.
- Month to month and billed in arrears: canceling mid-month costs only the days used, and your records stay read-only after you leave.
Cons
- No POS connection documented: POS deposits arrive only through the bank feed, without sales, tips and tax split out.
- No connection with outside payroll providers into the books.
- Per-user permissions, recurring invoices and receipt storage need Premium ($30 a month).
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), bank feeds, and initial term. Weakest on POS data that reaches the books.
Wave
By Wave
Simple accounting for small businesses: the free Starter plan covers bills and invoices, and Pro at $19 a month adds automatic bank imports and unlimited users. It documents no POS connection and is only in English.
RTC SCORE
7.3
#5 for Restaurants
Pros
- Low published price: Pro is $19 a month per business with unlimited users, so your accountant's login costs nothing extra.
- Bills, invoices and bookkeeping records are unlimited, even on the free Starter plan.
- Month to month with no early termination fee; you can export all your accounting data yourself.
Cons
- No POS connection documented: POS deposits arrive only through the bank feed, without sales, tips and tax split out.
- No class, location or department tracking for results by location.
- Live support only by chat and email on weekdays, with no phone line.
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), bank feeds, and initial term. Weakest on POS data that reaches the books.
Digits
By Digits
AI-driven accounting for US businesses: Essentials costs $65 a month with no user limit, bank feeds with automatic reconciliation, bill pay and invoicing. It has no POS connection; sales reach the books as bank deposits.
RTC SCORE
7.1
#6 for Restaurants
Pros
- Published price: $65 a month with no user limit, no setup fee and a 30-day free trial.
- Bank feeds with AI categorization and reconciliation, bill pay and invoicing on every plan.
- Month to month with no early termination fee; your accountant gets a login at no extra cost.
Cons
- No POS connection: Toast, Clover, Lightspeed and Square sales reach the books only as bank deposits, without the split by tax and tips.
- Results by location start on Core ($100 a month), and each business or location needs its own subscription.
- Support only by email or web form, with no published hours; plan changes go through support.
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), bank feeds, and initial term. Weakest on POS systems that connect.
FreshBooks
By FreshBooks
Invoicing-first accounting from FreshBooks. Supplier bills (accounts payable) start on Premium, $70 a month month to month for the owner alone; each extra team member is $11 a month, and no POS connection is documented.
RTC SCORE
6.8
#7 for Restaurants
Pros
- Premium has bank import, reconciliation, accounts payable and unlimited client invoices, with a free login for your accountant.
- Month to month with no early termination fee, a 30-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
- Its own payroll is available in the same account, at $40 a month plus $6 per person.
Cons
- Supplier bills need Premium ($70), and Premium covers only the owner: a second person is $11 a month more.
- No POS connection documented, so POS sales reach the books only as bank deposits.
- No results by class or location, only by project.
- Initial term
- Month to month
Strongest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant), bank feeds, and initial term. Weakest on POS data that reaches the books.
Restaurant365 Accounting
By Restaurant365
Restaurant-specific accounting inside Restaurant365's back-office suite, priced by quote on a term contract. It books each day's POS sales by category, tax, tips and payment type from dozens of POS systems, including Shift4 POS, and reports by location.
RTC SCORE
6.8
#8 for Restaurants
Pros
- Each day's POS sales post as one journal entry split by category, sales tax, tips and payment type.
- Connects with dozens of POS systems, including Toast, Square, Clover, Shift4 POS, SpotOn, Lightspeed and TouchBistro.
- Built for restaurant groups: results by location and legal entity, with bank feeds and supplier invoice automation.
Cons
- No published prices: the subscription, setup and each location's POS setup fee come by quote.
- Term contract that can't be canceled or downgraded early, renews automatically unless you give 60 days' notice, and allows increases of up to 8% a year.
- You must export your records before the contract ends; R365 deletes them the next day.
- Initial term
- Quote only
Strongest on POS data that reaches the books, bank feeds, and POS systems that connect. Weakest on published pricing.
Sage 50 Accounting
By Sage
Sage's long-standing desktop accounting, now sold with cloud access on a one-year commitment. Premium with 2 users costs $260.50 a month paid monthly, with bank feeds, reconciliation, supplier bills and reports by department.
RTC SCORE
5.2
#9 for Restaurants
Pros
- Full double-entry books with supplier bills, purchase orders, inventory and job costing on every plan.
- Premium adds multiple companies and reports by department.
- Unlimited phone and chat support included, with a dedicated Customer Success representative.
Cons
- Expensive for two people: $260.50 a month for Premium with 2 users, and Pro allows only 1 user.
- Minimum one-year commitment with automatic yearly renewal.
- No connection with Toast, Square, Clover, Shift4 POS or SpotOn; restaurant sales come in as bank deposits.
- Initial term
- 12 months
Strongest on bank feeds, bank reconciliation, and supplier bills. Weakest on 12-month cost (reference restaurant).
This is general information about published contracts, not legal advice: read your own contract and check with a lawyer before you sign.
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