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Compare CAKE POS vs Epos Now: pricing, features, pros, cons, and which is right for your business.

CAKE POS vs Epos Now

Updated October 2026 · Restaurant POS Software software comparison

CAKE POS

CAKE POS

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All-in-one restaurant POS with a guest display, processing, and support bundled at $0 down

★ 4.6 522 reviews
Epos Now

Epos Now

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Low-cost iPad and tablet restaurant POS with in-house flat-rate card processing

★ 4.6 26 reviews

At a Glance

Criteria CAKE POS Epos Now
Overall Rating ★ 4.6
522 reviews
★ 4.6
26 reviews
Starting Price Contact vendor Contact vendor
Pricing Model Quote Only Quote Only
Free Trial No No
Deployment cloud, mobile cloud, mobile
Best For Smb, Mid Market Freelancer, Smb

Strengths & Weaknesses

CAKE POS
Epos Now
Pros
✓All-in-one bundle: POS, payments, online ordering, loyalty, gift cards, and kiosk under one vendor
✓Low upfront cost — the hardware bundle headline (around $349) undercuts restaurant-native rivals
✓Guest-facing Customer Touch Display included on every plan — an upsell and loyalty screen at checkout
✓Transparent flat card processing at 2.6% + 10¢ with free refunds and no long-term processing contract
✓No up-front capital and no monthly POS bill — hardware, software, and support ride the processing rate
✓Runs on your own iPad or Epos Now tablet kit — not locked to fully proprietary hardware
✓24/7 U.S.-based human support on all plans — the dominant praise across reviews
✓Ingredient-level inventory with automated purchase orders and low-stock alerts
✓Lifetime equipment replacement advertised on every package
✓KDS groups tickets by course and order type to speed the line during a rush
✓Commission-free online ordering and DoorDash/Uber Eats/Grubhub consolidation in one ticket queue
✓In-house payments plus accounting, loyalty and reservation integrations in one platform
Cons
✗Cost is embedded in the card-processing rate rather than a transparent monthly line — fees can add up and are harder to compare
✗Reporting depth is the dominant gap — basics are covered but data-driven operators outgrow it
✗Tied to CAKE's own payment processing; you cannot bring your own processor
✗Fees draw recurring complaints even with the flat published processing rate
✗Reviewers cite gaps connecting some third-party tools
✗Integrations can bring gaps or friction connecting some third-party tools
✗Reporting depth can fall short of what some operators want to pull
✗The mobile app experience is a repeated gripe in reviews
✗A learning curve during initial setup
✗Software subscription is sold by quote with no public monthly price
✗Runs only on CAKE's proprietary hardware, not off-the-shelf iPads
✗General retail-and-hospitality platform — restaurant workflows are broader but shallower than restaurant-only rivals

Who uses restaurant software — and what each person does with it

🧑‍🍳 Owner / GM

Watches sales, food cost, labor and prime cost across shifts and locations on one dashboard — sees which menu items and dayparts actually make money.

📋 Floor manager

Builds the schedule against forecasted sales, approves shift swaps, seats the floor and clears the waitlist, and pulls the daily close from the POS.

🍽️ Server / FOH

Fires orders from the POS or a handheld, splits and adjusts checks, takes payment tableside, and the kitchen sees the ticket instantly on the KDS.

👨‍🍳 Kitchen / BOH

Works tickets on the kitchen display with station routing and timers, marks items 86'd, and depletes inventory automatically as dishes sell.

The flow the software runs end to end: guest orders (dine-in, online or delivery) → ticket fires to the KDS → items depleted from inventory → payment captured at the POS → sales, food and labor cost post to reporting and accounting → schedule and purchasing adjust to the numbers. Each stage hands off to the next without re-keying.

Who Should Choose Which?

Choose CAKE POS if…
  • Your team fits the smb or mid market profile
  • Your preferred deployment is cloud or mobile
  • All-in-one bundle: POS, payments, online ordering, loyalty, gift cards, and kiosk under one vendor
Choose Epos Now if…
  • Your team fits the freelancer or smb profile
  • Your preferred deployment is cloud or mobile
  • Low upfront cost — the hardware bundle headline (around $349) undercuts restaurant-native rivals

Our Verdict

CAKE POS targets smb/mid_market businesses with quote only pricing . Its strongest selling points include all-in-one bundle: pos, payments, online ordering, loyalty, gift cards, and kiosk under one vendor and guest-facing customer touch display included on every plan — an upsell and loyalty screen at checkout.

Epos Now targets freelancer/smb businesses with quote only pricing . Its key advantages include low upfront cost — the hardware bundle headline (around $349) undercuts restaurant-native rivals and transparent flat card processing at 2.6% + 10¢ with free refunds and no long-term processing contract.

Both tools are reviewed independently — see the full reviews below to dig into integrations, implementation timelines, and user sentiment.

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