Best Accounting Software for Restaurants of July 2025
Look for strong POS system integrations, inventory management features and advanced reporting capabilities.
Learn more Strong restaurant accounting software restaurant point-of-sale systems
Why you can trust NerdWallet
Sponsored partner picks for
Best Accounting Software for Restaurants
| Product | Best for | NerdWallet rating | Starting at | Promotion | Learn more |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Xero on Xero's secure website | Low price, rich features | $20/month Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80. | 90% off for 6 months. | on Xero's secure website | |
 QuickBooks Online on QuickBooks Online's secure website | Reporting capabilities | $35/month Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235. | 90% off for first three months or free 30-day trial. | on QuickBooks Online's secure website | |
 FreshBooks on FreshBooks' secure website | Food truck accounting software | $21/month Additional pricing tiers (per month): $38, $65, custom. | 50% off for 6 months. 30-Day Money Back Guarantee. | on FreshBooks' secure website | |
 Restaurant365 on NerdWallet's secure website | Overall restaurant accounting software | $435/month (billed quarterly) Additional pricing tiers (per month, billed quarterly): $635, custom. | N/A | on NerdWallet's secure website | |
 MarginEdge | Restaurant management system with accounting integrations | $330/month | N/A | ||
 Plate IQ | Automated restaurant accounts payable | N/A | N/A |
Best Accounting Software for Restaurants
Our pick for simple accounting software
Starting at
$20/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80.
Promotion
90% off
for 6 months.
on Xero's website
Pros
- Unlimited users in all pricing plans.
- Integrates with more than 1,000 third-party apps.
- Feature set includes an excellent mobile app and suite of reports, capable invoicing features, plus automated bill and receipt capture through Hubdoc.
- Simple layout and easy to use.
Cons
- No inbound phone customer support (callbacks are available, though).
- Entry-level plan limits bills and invoices to five and 20 per month, respectively.
- Must subscribe to the highest-tier Established plan to claim expenses.
Our pick for simple accounting software
Xero
Best for Low price, rich features
Starting at
$20/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80.
Promotion
90% off
for 6 months.
on Xero's website
Pros
- Unlimited users in all pricing plans.
- Integrates with more than 1,000 third-party apps.
- Feature set includes an excellent mobile app and suite of reports, capable invoicing features, plus automated bill and receipt capture through Hubdoc.
- Simple layout and easy to use.
Cons
- No inbound phone customer support (callbacks are available, though).
- Entry-level plan limits bills and invoices to five and 20 per month, respectively.
- Must subscribe to the highest-tier Established plan to claim expenses.
Starting at
$35/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235.
Promotion
90% off
for first three months or free 30-day trial.
on QuickBooks' website
Pros
- Easy to share information with your accountant and to find QuickBooks experts and online resources if needed.
- More than 750 app integrations.
- Robust feature set includes record-keeping, reporting, invoicing and inventory management, plus a capable mobile app.
- Chat and phone support available Monday through Saturday in all plans.
Cons
- Expensive compared with the competition.
- Frequent price increases and a tendency toward upselling.
- Limited account users with each plan.
QuickBooks Online
Best for Reporting capabilities
Starting at
$35/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235.
Promotion
90% off
for first three months or free 30-day trial.
on QuickBooks' website
Pros
- Easy to share information with your accountant and to find QuickBooks experts and online resources if needed.
- More than 750 app integrations.
- Robust feature set includes record-keeping, reporting, invoicing and inventory management, plus a capable mobile app.
- Chat and phone support available Monday through Saturday in all plans.
Cons
- Expensive compared with the competition.
- Frequent price increases and a tendency toward upselling.
- Limited account users with each plan.
Starting at
$21/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $38, $65, custom.
Promotion
50% off
for 6 months. 30-Day Money Back Guarantee.
on FreshBooks' website
Pros
- Stay in touch with clients through the FreshBooks mobile app and get notified when invoices have been viewed or become overdue.
- Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.
- Track time and add billable hours to invoices in all plans.
- Weekday phone support in all plans.
Cons
- Highest-tier Select plan only comes with two users (additional users add $11 per month) and lower-tier plans put limits on billable clients.
- Least expensive plan lacks double-entry accounting reports, bank reconciliation and accountant access.
FreshBooks
Best for Food truck accounting software
Starting at
$21/month
Additional pricing tiers (per month): $38, $65, custom.
Promotion
50% off
for 6 months. 30-Day Money Back Guarantee.
on FreshBooks' website
Pros
- Stay in touch with clients through the FreshBooks mobile app and get notified when invoices have been viewed or become overdue.
- Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.
- Track time and add billable hours to invoices in all plans.
- Weekday phone support in all plans.
Cons
- Highest-tier Select plan only comes with two users (additional users add $11 per month) and lower-tier plans put limits on billable clients.
- Least expensive plan lacks double-entry accounting reports, bank reconciliation and accountant access.
Starting at
$435/month (billed quarterly)
Additional pricing tiers (per month, billed quarterly): $635, custom.
Promotion
N/A
Pros
- Built-in accounting and scheduling functions.
- Recipe costing features, plus ability to track food waste.
- Create purchase orders from within the software.
- Add-ons for hiring, payroll and HR available.
- Forecasting tools for predicting labor needs and stock.
Cons
- Implementation fee.
- Could be excessive for very small, single-location restaurants.
Restaurant365
Best for Overall restaurant accounting software
Starting at
$435/month (billed quarterly)
Additional pricing tiers (per month, billed quarterly): $635, custom.
Promotion
N/A
Pros
- Built-in accounting and scheduling functions.
- Recipe costing features, plus ability to track food waste.
- Create purchase orders from within the software.
- Add-ons for hiring, payroll and HR available.
- Forecasting tools for predicting labor needs and stock.
Cons
- Implementation fee.
- Could be excessive for very small, single-location restaurants.
Starting at
$330/month
Promotion
N/A
Pros
- Unlimited invoices.
- Free setup help.
- Industry-specific features such as food costing, inventory management and menu analysis.
- More than 60 POS integrations.
- Integrates with popular accounting software.
Cons
- Integration needed for accounting functions.
MarginEdge
Best for Restaurant management system with accounting integrations
Starting at
$330/month
Promotion
N/A
Pros
- Unlimited invoices.
- Free setup help.
- Industry-specific features such as food costing, inventory management and menu analysis.
- More than 60 POS integrations.
- Integrates with popular accounting software.
Cons
- Integration needed for accounting functions.
Promotion
N/A
Pros
- Automation technology increases AP efficiency.
- Customizable approval workflow.
- Direct integrations with well-known accounting products.
Cons
- Integration needed for complete accounting capabilities.
- Lack of pricing transparency.
Plate IQ
Best for Automated restaurant accounts payable
Promotion
N/A
Pros
- Automation technology increases AP efficiency.
- Customizable approval workflow.
- Direct integrations with well-known accounting products.
Cons
- Integration needed for complete accounting capabilities.
- Lack of pricing transparency.
Our picks for best restaurant accounting software
Restaurant365: Best for overall restaurant accounting software
Price:
- $435 per month per location (billed quarterly) for Essential bundle.
- $635 per month per location (billed quarterly) for Professional bundle.
- Custom bundle available by request for enterprise and franchise businesses.
- Core solutions (Accounting, Operations and Workforce) require custom quote.
Why we like it: Restaurant365 is an all-in-one software platform that offers accounting, inventory management
Restaurant365 also includes restaurant-specific features, like inventory management and recipe costing, that could otherwise cost extra or require third-party integrations. The same goes for restaurant-specific reporting. Built-in dashboards let you compare labor costs and sales according to date, and the platform runs analysis reports on actual versus theoretical costs, which can help you flag food waste and identify opportunities to save on controllable costs. Theoretical costs and quantities are automatically added to the report based on POS and vendor data. This process is particularly important for higher-cost ingredients that hold more sway over your bottom line. Read our full review of Restaurant365
QuickBooks Online: Best for reporting capabilities
Price:
- $35 per month for the Simple Start plan.
- $65 per month for the Essentials plan.
- $99 per month for the Plus plan.
- $235 per month for the Advanced plan.
Why we like it: Although QuickBooks Online isn’t made specifically for the restaurant industry, its advanced reporting capabilities, scalability and versatility render it a contender, especially when integrated with restaurant POS systems and other apps. On its own, QuickBooks Online can generate purchase orders, track time and inventory, handle multiple locations, automate bill and invoice approvals and run profit and loss reports. Another plus: It can create reports on up to 40 tracking categories of your choosing. You can use the tags to separate products sold based on location and sales channel, for example. Subcategories within the sales channel tag could include delivery, in-house and pickup orders. QuickBooks Online’s Advanced plan allows for unlimited tag groups, although 40 should be sufficient for most small restaurants.
Since QuickBooks Online isn’t an all-in-one restaurant software platform, however, expect to spend extra time finding and setting up restaurant management integrations, as well as figuring out how to run restaurant-specific reports. While QuickBooks Online has exceptional reporting capabilities, it isn’t shaped around restaurants and might take more effort to customize initially. Read our full QuickBooks Online review
» MORE: Top alternatives to QuickBooks
Xero: Best for low price and rich features
Price:
- $20 per month for the Early plan.
- $47 per month for the Growing plan.
- $80 per month for the Established plan.
Why we like it: In addition to strong general accounting capabilities, Xero offers fixed asset management, which helps restaurant owners take into account the changing values of POS hardware, kitchen equipment and properties. While it’s not the most essential feature, it’s a definite bonus. You can also bundle any Xero accounting plan with Gusto for payroll. The integration with Gusto syncs payroll data with the accounting software and allows you to run payroll or access payroll reports from Xero.
Additionally, Xero’s extensive app marketplace boosts your chances of finding restaurant-specific integrations. Just make sure the app you have in mind gets positive reviews for its Xero integration. Read our complete Xero Accounting review
MarginEdge: Best for restaurant management system with accounting integrations
Price: $330 per month per location.
Why we like it: MarginEdge is restaurant management software designed to help you stay on top of invoicing and billing, managing food usage and costs, tracking inventory as well as designing and analyzing menus. It directly integrates with a number of top-rated POS systems, like Clover TouchBistro Sage
FreshBooks: Best for food truck accounting software
Price:
- $21 per month for the Lite plan.
- $38 per month for the Plus plan.
- $65 per month for the Premium plan.
- Custom pricing for the Select plan.
Why we like it: FreshBooks accounting software is ideal for freelance and self-employed professionals FreshBooks review
Plate IQ: Best for automated restaurant accounts payable
Price: Quote-based.
Why we like it: For well-established restaurants that have a lot of invoices and bills to manage on a regular basis, accounts payable (AP) automation can be especially useful in reducing human error and freeing up your time to manage other aspects of your business. Plate IQ can handle your entire AP process with its automation and AI-driven technology. Although it’s designed to manage only this one area of your overall restaurant accounting, the software does integrate directly with a number of prominent accounting platforms, including QuickBooks, Oracle NetSuite, Xero and Sage.
How to choose restaurant accounting software
At a minimum, restaurant accounting software should be cloud-based
Cost
Cheaper isn't always better. Don’t underestimate the value of advanced, more costly reporting capabilities — they're vital to a restaurant’s success, especially when you take into account the added complexity of recipe costing and working with food vendors. QuickBooks Online, for instance, offers lower-tier, less expensive plans that aren’t included in this review because they lack features like inventory tracking and don’t come with comprehensive reporting.
Less expensive and free general accounting solutions Wave
Accounting software integrations
While certain restaurant-specific add-ons can help fill in the gaps when it comes to scheduling employees or automating the invoicing process, beware of the additional costs that sometimes come with third-party app integrations. For example, you might have to pay extra just to connect your POS and accounting systems — and that’s in addition to what you’re already paying for the POS system, accounting software and payroll software.
Before choosing accounting software for your restaurant, know which POS system and payroll software
Restaurant reports
Restaurant owners keep track of a handful of reports that provide insight on menu item sales, cost of goods sold
Prior to setup, think about how to customize your reports. For example, you might categorize menu items according to the sales channel to see which ones sell better in-house versus online. Similarly, choose an accounting system that syncs with your inventory, vendor and POS data to automate as much of the reporting process as possible.
Methodology
NerdWallet independently reviews accounting software products before determining our top picks. We collect the data for our software ratings from products’ public-facing websites and from company representatives. Information is gathered on a regular basis and reviewed by our editorial team for consistency and accuracy.
NerdWallet’s accounting software ratings favor products that are easy to use, reasonably priced, have a robust feature set and can grow with your business. The best accounting software received top marks when evaluated across 10 categories and more than 30 subcategories. Learn more about how we rate small-business accounting software
These ratings are meant to provide clarity in the decision-making process, but what’s best for your business will depend on its size, growth trajectory and which features you need most. We encourage you to research and compare multiple accounting software products before choosing one.
NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines