Lightspeed Restaurant is a user-friendly iPad point-of-sale (POS) system designed for restaurants. This system has expansive reporting capabilities and excellent inventory management. Getting the most out of the system requires enrolling in Lightspeed Payments. There are additional monthly fees if you want to use a third-party processor, but that can get pricey.
Overall, Lightspeed’s Restaurant’s user-friendly interface, self-installable hardware, and excellent reporting earned it a 4.12 out of 5 on our restaurant POS scoring criteria.
Ligthspeed Restaurant pros and cons
Pros
Cons
Is Lightspeed Restaurant right for you?
Lightspeed Restaurant is a great fit for growing restaurants that need expanded reporting to manage customer relationships and inventory.
- You need flexible self-service options: Lightspeed Restaurant supports multiple self-service kiosk options — for counter service and table service — making it a great fit if you struggle with short staffing.
- You need advanced reporting: Lightspeed’s reports are detailed, and many of them include scannable insights in chart and graph form, so it is impossible to misinterpret your data.
- You need best-in-class inventory: Lightspeed Restaurant’s inventory management tools include vendor and purchase order management. And it’s built right into the POS; no integration required.
However, unlike some competitors, Lightspeed Restaurant doesn’t offer a free trial or baseline subscription. So, if you need a low-cost restaurant POS, you should look elsewhere.
- You need delivery driver management: Lightspeed doesn’t have native delivery driver management tools. If you want to manage in-house delivery drivers with Uber-like efficiency, you won’t be happy with Lightspeed; consider SpotOn.
- You need catering and event management: Lightspeed doesn’t include invoicing, lead management, or a record of catering and event contracts. If you need those tools, Toast is a better option.
- You need employee scheduling and advanced staff management: Lightspeed does not include built-in employee scheduling, payroll, or digital onboarding tools. They are available via integrations, but if you want a fully POS-built solution, look at Toast or SpotOn.
Lightspeed Restaurant alternatives
 |  |  | |
| Best for | Free restaurant POS and flat-rate payment processing | Industry-grade hardware & catering tools | Delivery driver routing & employee management tools |
| Monthly fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Learn more | Visit Square | Visit Toast | Visit SpotOn |
Lightspeed Restaurant reviews from users
| Users like | Users dislike |
| ✅ Incredibly user-friendly ✅ Excellent inventory tools ✅ Responsive customer service | ❌ Employee management tools are basic ❌ Monthly fees for using a third-party processor ❌ Customer support can have long wait times |
Overall, Lightspeed Restaurant users review the system well. I see a lot of 5-star reviews, giving Lightspeed an average of around 4.40 out of 5 on most popular software review sites.
- Capterra: 4.4 based on 210 reviews
- G2: 4.4 based on 52 reviews
- GetApp: 4.4 based on 210 reviews
But this system has changed a lot since 2021 when it started acquiring competitors like Upserve and Shopkeep. So there are discrepancies in Lightspeed Restaurant user reviews. For example, many user reviews mention positive experiences with customer support representatives who are knowledgeable about the POS. However, you’ll also find users saying the experience needs improvement, taking 30 minutes or more to reach Lightspeed restaurant customer support.
Lightspeed’s functions and pricing have changed numerous times; some functions that were once not so great (like the reporting and inventory) have become incredible strengths. While others that were highlights — like flexible payment processing — appear to no longer be available.
In restaurant networks, several users complain that Lightspeed now requires a monthly fee for using a processor other than Lightspeed Payments. It is unclear if new Lightspeed Restaurant users have the option to use a third-party processor; I reached out to Lightspeed for clarification, and they have not yet responded.
Because of all the recent changes, I suggest that anyone interested in Lightspeed Restaurant schedule a detailed product demo. The demos give you more reliable information about Lightspeed’s current capabilities than user reviews from 2022 or earlier.
Lightspeed Restaurant pricing: 4/5
Lightspeed Restaurant is mid-priced, compared to other cloud restaurant POS systems. Lightspeed doesn’t offer a free baseline subscription like competitors Square and Toast, but it is less expensive than Revel and legacy POS systems like MICROS.
It scored 4 out of a possible 5 on our restaurant POS pricing criteria. Full Lightspeed Restaurant POS pricing consists of three parts: software fees, hardware fees, and payment processing fees.
Lightspeed software fees
The POS is offered at four subscription levels: Essential, Premium, and Enterprise. This pricing scheme helps small and mid-size restaurants afford this comprehensive POS without paying for high-volume tools they don’t need. I deducted some points for this category due to Lightspeed’s lack of an annual subscription option with more attractive pricing.
| Essential | Premium | Enterprise | |
| Monthly software fees | $189 | $399 | Custom-quoted |
| Menu management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Basic inventory | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reporting and analytics | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Integrated payments | 2.6% + 10 cents | Custom rates | Custom rates |
| CRM and loyalty | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Advanced insights | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Advanced inventory | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Online ordering | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Contactless ordering | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Order and pay at the table | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Lightspeed hardware fees
Lightspeed Restaurant operates on iOS devices like iPads and iPhones that run iOS 13 or later. If you have compatible iPads or other devices, you can use them to run your POS, or you can purchase tablets from Lightspeed for custom-quoted prices.
Lightspeed also operates with industry-standard printers, cash drawers, and barcode scanners from Epson, Star Micronics, and Socket.
| Epson TM-M30II-NT Receipt Printer | Socket Mobile S700 Barcode Scanner | Lightspeed iPad Stand by Vault | iPad hardware kit |
 |  |  |  |
| Thermal receipt printer | Bluetooth barcode scanner | Restaurant-grade iPad stand | Receipt printerCash drawerLightspeed iPad stand (iPad not included)Kitchen printer |
| Visit Lightspeed | |||
Lightspeed Payments processing fees
With Lightspeed Payments, transaction fees are flat-rate, so you pay the same fixed fee no matter the card type (unlike interchange-plus rates, which can vary by card type). This makes it easier to budget for your expected processing fees.
| Lightspeed Payments Baseline Processing Rates | |
| In-person tapped, dipped, or swiped | 2.6% + 10 cents |
| Card-not-present | 2.6% + 30 cents |
| Manually keyed-in | 2.6% + 30 cents |
Note that these are baseline rates. And they’re hard to confirm on the website alone. I used the customer chat to confirm the current rates. I encourage potential customers to contact Lightspeed for a custom quote based on sales volume and business type.
Lightspeed Restaurant general pos features: 4.25/5
I score Lightspeed Restaurant features as two separate, major categories — general and niche — in my restaurant POS scoring criteria. For general features like inventory, payments, workforce management, reporting, integrations, and gift card functions, Lightspeed scored 4.25 out of 5.
This system has all the tools you need to run a restaurant, but some of them require additional fees, which kept Lightspeed from getting a perfect score.
New features from January 2025
Location summary report: “If you’re running a multi-location business for the first time, you can easily have an overview of your sales across all locations, letting you compare up to 12 months of sales metrics at a glance.”Back-office home page: “See your key KPIs by day, week, month, or year at a glance. Access quick links to new features, products, and funding; get direct Help Center access and explore product release notes to find out what’s new in Lightspeed.”Financial Services user permission: “Unhide the Financial Services tab for selected users in the Back Office.”Import allergens and item descriptions: “Instead of updating each of your items individually, do it all in one go using our import template.”
Advanced insights
Lightspeed calls its reporting feature Advanced Insights — and it is advanced — and it’s currently available on all subscription levels. Advanced Insights unlocks automated analytics like menu quadrant reports showing which menu items are your highest performers, and which you should 86.
It also includes detailed staff performance reports that help you identify top performers or training opportunities, and uses payment data to generate detailed customer profiles automatically.
Advanced Insights is excellent, but it only works with Lightspeed Payments. If you use a different integrated payment processor, you won’t reap the benefits of the automated customer reports.
Workforce management
Lightspeed supports customer user permissions and detailed performance reporting for servers and other sales staff. If you use restaurant technology like the built-in kitchen display system, you can also get detailed kitchen reports.
Like virtually all restaurant POS systems, Lightspeed can also act as your time clock to track employee hours. But scheduling, digital onboarding, detailed tip pool management, and payroll are only available via integration.
Third-party integrations
Lightspeed Restaurant fills in any functional holes by integrating with some of the best third-party software available. It integrates with QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, Xero, and Sage One for accounting accuracy.
It also connects with over 50 popular third-party apps like Homebase (employee scheduling), Restaurant365 (restaurant accounting), and MarketMan (restaurant inventory management).
Lightspeed POS niche restaurant features: 3.54/5
Lightspeed has every major tool you’d need to run a single restaurant or multiple locations. I can’t give it a perfect score mostly because competitors like Toast, SpotOn, and Square keep adding specialized tools at a faster clip. And Lightspeed charges additional fees for most advanced tools, which also lowers its score here.
Advanced inventory management
Advanced inventory is essentially the automated inventory module from Upserve, which Lightspeed acquired in 2021. This inventory tool has long been a strong, automated inventory tool, featuring purchase order and vendor management, alongside deep-level inventory insights that show real-time food costing, highlight price fluctuations, and show where you can save on your cost of goods sold (COGS).
Loyalty & customer management
Lightspeed’s Loyalty features are included in all the subscription plans. The robust loyalty features help you reward returning customers and target your promotions to their interests.
You can sort your customers into groups based on their purchases, dining frequency, birthday month, or any custom grouping you choose. For example, you can create a group of customers who drink bourbon and then email them an invitation to a bourbon tasting.
Digital ordering & delivery management
Lightspeed offers two options — Order Anywhere and Lightspeed Delivery — to support digital ordering and delivery management. Both are useful, but not really groundbreaking. Many competing POS systems offer comparable tools but don’t feel the need to list them as separate modules.
Order Anywhere
Lightspeed’s Order Anywhere tool enables you to receive pickup orders from a POS-connected online ordering site. This site is optimized for mobile devices and supports orders from internet-connected computers, mobile devices, and smartphones.
Order Anywhere also includes QR code ordering tools that enable customers to place contactless in-person orders and payments from their smartphones. To accept payments in your Order Anywhere module, you need to enroll in either a Lightspeed Payments or a Stripe account.
Lightspeed Delivery
Lightspeed Delivery operates via a third-party online ordering aggregator, Deliverect. This module directs orders from third-party delivery platforms into your POS order stream. With Lightspeed Delivery, you can create a separate delivery menu with delivery-only pricing that you can manage from a central dashboard. Updating this menu will update your menus across any integrated third-party delivery platform you partner with.
I think this name is a bit misleading. Calling something “delivery,” I expect to see tools for managing and dispatching a team of in-house drivers. Lightspeed Delivery is a useful tool that can save you from housing a sea of tablets in your kitchen, but it does not include tools for routing or managing in-house delivery drivers.
Lightspeed Restaurant ease of use & customer support: 4.06/5
Lightspeed Restaurant support is available through a customer care team 24/7 — except for holidays — via phone. It also offers live web chat during standard business hours and responds to emails within a day. You’ll find various training videos in the manager dashboard, and Lightspeed maintains a database of helpful training resources online that you can access at any time.
Lightspeed Restaurant earned a high score on our ease of use evaluation, only losing a few points due to a specific limitation to its offline functionality. You won’t be able to accept or spool offline card payments in an internet outage, even if you use the optional LiteServer.
This is mostly due to Lightspeed’s Canadian roots. Canadian banking regulations do not support spooled offline payments. This may feel like a missing function to US restaurant owners, who are used to systems like Square and Toast spooling payment information when they lose internet access.
Lightspeed Restaurant expert score: 4.69/5
Lightspeed Restaurant has grown exponentially in the past couple of years. The POS is as easy to use as it comes and offers the most functionality available in an iPad restaurant POS. The addition of advanced inventory and reporting capabilities makes this user-friendly POS a truly excellent system for restaurants of all types.
Lightspeed would be even more compelling if they offered a free or pay-as-you-go subscription option. And it would be great to see Lightspeed include more functions in the base POS that currently exist only as third-party integrations. Lightspeed tends to develop new tools quickly though, so there’s every chance we’ll see these offerings when we next review this excellent system.
How I evaluated Lightspeed Restaurant
Pricing: 15% of overall score
Independent restaurants operate with tight budgets. I first considered whether each system offers a free plan, free trial, and entry-level software subscription under $75 per month. To help ensure restaurants can get the lowest possible prices, I gave high marks to POS systems that support multiple payment processing options.
Finally, I considered hardware costs and subscription length. Systems that allow restaurants to bring their own hardware or avoid long-term service contracts earned the highest marks.
General POS features: 25% of overall score
Every restaurant needs to track employee hours, process contactless payments and gift cards, and quickly access sales and labor reports. Because many restaurants process tips for employees, I looked for systems that have robust tip-tracking functions. I also considered advanced workforce management features like built-in employee scheduling and enforced clock-ins to keep costs in line.
Niche POS features: 15% of overall score
To determine the best overall restaurant POS, I compared the number of restaurant-specific functions that are relevant to various restaurant types. Since many restaurants operate with some type of bar, we looked for functions like cash management and credit card preauthorization.
I also rewarded POS systems with customizable reports, ingredient-level inventory tracking with physical counting tools, integrated online ordering, and dynamic loyalty and marketing tools.
Ease of use and customer support: 30% of overall score
Because various restaurants operate in early mornings, late nights, and on weekends, I prioritized restaurant POS systems that offer 24/7 customer support. I also awarded points to POS systems with a hybrid installation or an offline mode, so it is still operational if your internet goes out.
Finally, I considered how much installation support each system offers and whether it’s cloud-based, enabling mobile access to management and reporting dashboards.
Expert score: 15% of overall score
Lastly, I evaluated any standout features for individual systems and considered whether the system offers good overall value for its price and judged each system’s popularity among restaurant businesses. Then, I awarded points based on my personal experience interacting with the software and the company’s customer support representatives.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
The last bite
Lightspeed Restaurant tops our list of iPad POS systems for restaurants. It is one of the most functional iPad POS systems available for restaurants, though it is not the cheapest. If you need advanced reporting and intensive, built-in inventory management tools, though, you won’t find a better iPad restaurant POS.
