Softwr

Software · head to head

Square for Restaurants vs Apicbase

Square for Restaurants logo

Square for Restaurants

Software

Restaurant POS system that works for you

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Apicbase logo

Apicbase

Software

F&B management for multi-unit operations

From
$200/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Square for Restaurants has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Square for Restaurants the Square KDS and Square Kiosk apps are not available on the free plan; Apicbase the Growth plan starts from 5 outlets, so a single site or a pair of restaurants is below the entry point
  • They diverge on capability: Square for Restaurants covers Table management, Apicbase covers Centralized recipes.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Square for Restaurants and Apicbase actually diverge.

Attributes where Square for Restaurants and Apicbase differ
AttributeSquare for RestaurantsApicbase
Starting priceFree$200/month
Free tierYesNo
Founded20182017

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), platforms (Web, Ios, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Square for Restaurants

  • Table management
  • Menu customization
  • Split checks
  • Offline mode
  • Real-time reporting
  • Kitchen display
  • Caviar
  • DoorDash

Only in Apicbase

  • Centralized recipes
  • Inventory management
  • Procurement
  • Food cost analytics
  • Menu engineering
  • HACCP
  • POS systems
  • Accounting software

Both cover

  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Square for Restaurants

  • Point of Salenot Apicbase
  • Order Managementnot Apicbase
  • Inventory Controlnot Apicbase
  • Staff Schedulingnot Apicbase

Apicbase

  • Recipe and menu engineering with costed ingredientsnot Square for Restaurants
  • Food cost and margin tracking across outletsnot Square for Restaurants
  • Inventory and stock counts for multi-site restaurant groupsnot Square for Restaurants
  • Purchasing and supplier price managementnot Square for Restaurants
  • Allergen and nutrition data on menusnot Square for Restaurants

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Square for Restaurants

  • The Square KDS and Square Kiosk apps are not available on the free plan
  • KDS and Kiosk are billed per device per month on top of the plan, so cost scales with terminals rather than locations
  • Restaurants processing over $250,000 a year are moved to custom pricing rather than the published rates

Apicbase

  • The Growth plan starts from 5 outlets, so a single site or a pair of restaurants is below the entry point
  • Priced per location, with the per-location fee falling only as outlet count rises
  • Monthly billing carries a 15 percent surcharge over annual
  • No prices are published for any tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Square for Restaurants

Free
  • FreeFree
    • POS
    • Menu management
    • Basic reporting
  • Plus$60/month
    • Advanced features
    • Live sales
    • Seat management
  • PremiumFree
    • Custom pricing
    • Dedicated support

Apicbase

$200/month
  • Standard$200/month
    • Recipe management
    • Inventory
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Custom pricing
    • Full features

Which should you pick?

Choose Square for Restaurants if

  • You need table management.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want menu customization.
Square for Restaurants review

Choose Apicbase if

  • You need centralized recipes.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want inventory management.
Apicbase review

Questions people ask

Is Square for Restaurants or Apicbase better?
Neither clearly leads. Square for Restaurants starts at Free and Apicbase at $200/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Square for Restaurants or Apicbase?
Square for Restaurants has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Square for Restaurants and $200/month for Apicbase.
Does Square for Restaurants or Apicbase run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, Ios, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Square for Restaurants for free?
Yes. Square for Restaurants has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Apicbase starts at $200/month.
What is Square for Restaurants best used for?
Square for Restaurants is most often used for point of sale, order management, inventory control, staff scheduling. Of those, point of sale and order management are not what Apicbase is typically brought in for.
What can Square for Restaurants do that Apicbase cannot?
Square for Restaurants covers Table management, Menu customization, Split checks, Offline mode. Apicbase covers Centralized recipes, Inventory management, Procurement, Food cost analytics. Both handle Web support, Ios support, Android support.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Square for Restaurants

More on Apicbase

Keep looking

Other head to heads