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Compare OpenTable vs Tock: pricing, features, pros, cons, and which is right for your business.

OpenTable vs Tock

Updated October 2026 · Restaurant Reservation & Table Management Software software comparison

OpenTable

OpenTable

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Reservations, waitlist, and table management backed by the OpenTable diner network

★ 4.7 1322 reviews from $149.00/mo
Tock

Tock

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Reservation, table-management and event-ticketing platform built around prepaid bookings and deposits

★ 4.2 96 reviews from $289.00/mo

At a Glance

Criteria OpenTable Tock
Overall Rating ★ 4.7
1322 reviews
★ 4.2
96 reviews
Starting Price $149.00 /mo $289.00 /mo
Pricing Model Paid Paid
Free Trial No No
Deployment cloud, mobile cloud, mobile
Best For Smb, Mid Market, Enterprise Smb, Mid Market, Enterprise

Strengths & Weaknesses

OpenTable
Tock
Pros
✓The OpenTable diner network and 100+ booking partner sites push inbound reservations you can't generate on your own
✓Best-in-category prepaid bookings, deposits, and ticketed experiences — turns no-shows into banked revenue
✓You pay the per-cover fee only for seated network diners — not phone bookings, walk-ins, no-shows, or cancellations
✓Flat monthly pricing with no cover fees on reservations, unlike per-cover network models
✓Direct reservations from your own site are included on Core and Pro, so repeat guests don't cost you a cover
✓Full event-ticketing module for tasting menus, chef's counters, and one-off ticketed dinners
✓Customizable floor plans, Smart Assign table management, and in-house plus online waitlist run the host stand from one dashboard
✓Real-time two-way Micros/Oracle Simphony POS integration auto-populates deposits against the check
✓Guest profiles, spend alerts, and a pre-shift report turn booking history into repeat business
✓Pushes bookable inventory to Reserve with Google, the MICHELIN site, and Facebook/Instagram
✓Integrates with your existing POS instead of replacing it — no proprietary hardware to buy
✓Backed by American Express; mature platform with ease-of-use and support praised in reviews
Cons
✗Per-cover network fees stack on top of the monthly subscription and scale with volume, so a busy room pays well above the $149–$499 headline
✗Bugs and glitches are the most common complaint theme across its reviews
✗One-year contract that auto-renews annually unless you give 30 days' notice before renewal
✗Rigid workflows — operators want more flexibility to customize the booking flow
✗Learning curve and setup friction getting floor plans, Access Rules, and guest data dialed in
✗Reporting and analytics depth called out as a weak spot
✗Login and session issues reported by some operators
✗Prepayment fee (3%/2% on the Tock-named plans) is charged on top of standard card-processing fees
✗Some capabilities cost extra — Premium SMS messaging is an add-on and waitlist direct-messaging is limited on the lower tier
✗Integration gaps outside the featured partners cited by some operators
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✗Not a POS and no walk-in-friendly free tier; the $289/mo floor is hard to justify for a non-reservation concept

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 OpenTable if…
  • Your team fits the smb or mid market or enterprise profile
  • Budget matters — OpenTable starts $140 cheaper per month
  • You prioritise peer-verified quality — higher rating (4.7 vs 4.2)
  • Your preferred deployment is cloud or mobile
  • The OpenTable diner network and 100+ booking partner sites push inbound reservations you can't generate on your own
Choose Tock if…
  • Your team fits the smb or mid market or enterprise profile
  • Your preferred deployment is cloud or mobile
  • Best-in-category prepaid bookings, deposits, and ticketed experiences — turns no-shows into banked revenue

Our Verdict

OpenTable
OpenTable edges ahead with a higher overall rating (★ 4.7 vs ★ 4.2) and stronger review volume (1322 vs 96 verified reviews) .

OpenTable targets smb/mid_market/enterprise businesses with paid pricing starting at $149.00/mo. Its strongest selling points include the opentable diner network and 100+ booking partner sites push inbound reservations you can't generate on your own and you pay the per-cover fee only for seated network diners — not phone bookings, walk-ins, no-shows, or cancellations.

Tock targets smb/mid_market/enterprise businesses with paid pricing starting at $289.00/mo. Its key advantages include best-in-category prepaid bookings, deposits, and ticketed experiences — turns no-shows into banked revenue and flat monthly pricing with no cover fees on reservations, unlike per-cover network models.

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

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