How much does custom restaurant software cost?

Scope drives cost. An online ordering platform or loyalty program typically falls in the $20k to $35k range, while a POS system with kitchen display and multi-location management is scoped based on the number of locations. Most projects deliver in 12 to 14 weeks at a fixed price agreed before work starts.

Can you build an online ordering system with direct delivery so we stop paying 15-30% commission to third-party platforms?

Yes. A branded online ordering platform with direct delivery dispatch, where orders come to you with zero third-party commission on top of the payment processing fee, is a product we build for restaurants and restaurant groups. The online ordering integrates with your POS and kitchen display so orders flow without re-entry.

We manage four restaurant brands under one loyalty program. Can you build that?

Yes. Multi-brand loyalty programs where a customer earns and redeems points across different restaurant brands in the same group, with a single customer profile and a shared points balance, are a specific loyalty architecture we build. Brand-level reporting and group-level reporting are both included.

How long does restaurant software take to launch?

Most restaurant software projects deliver in 12 to 14 weeks: scoping and design in the first two, a working version you can click through by week three, then build, POS integration, and staff testing before launch. Multi-location rollouts add time per site, which we map in the scoping call.

Can you build a kitchen display system that routes orders to the right station based on item type?

Yes. Kitchen display systems with order routing by station (grill, fryer, cold prep, pass) based on item type and modifier, priority indicators for timed courses, and a bump bar workflow for the pass are a product we build for restaurants managing kitchen complexity. Orders should route to the right place without a ticket printer and a runner.

Restaurant software development company

Custom software for independent restaurants, multi-location chains, and restaurant tech companies who need operational systems built around their specific format and service model.

Off-the-shelf restaurant platforms cover common workflows. We build what they can't: the loyalty mechanics, ordering logic, and kitchen integrations your operation actually requires.

POS systems with loyalty integration, table management, and multi-location support
Online ordering platforms with direct delivery and third-party aggregator integration
Custom loyalty and rewards programs that connect every channel: dine-in, takeaway, delivery
Kitchen display systems and order routing built for your kitchen's workflow

What you can count on

Retention

3+ years

Average client relationship across active accounts

First milestone

Week 1

A straight read on what to keep and what to rebuild

Pricing

Fixed price

Scope and cost agreed before work starts

Team

No handoffs

The senior engineers who scope the build also ship it

4.9

on Clutch

See our work

The problem

Sound familiar?

Running reservations in one tool, loyalty in another, and online orders in a third, with no shared customer view?
Losing repeat diners because your current system can't run a loyalty program that connects dine-in, takeaway, and delivery?

Short answer

RaftLabs builds custom restaurant software for independent restaurants, multi-location chains, and restaurant tech companies. We develop POS systems, online ordering platforms that eliminate third-party commissions, loyalty and rewards programs, kitchen display systems, table management tools, staff scheduling software, and delivery integration. Most projects ship in 12 to 14 weeks at a fixed price agreed before work starts.

Trusted by

loyalty platforms delivered across hospitality: 20+

commission on direct online orders: 0%

weeks from kickoff to launch: 12-14

price agreed before work starts: Fixed

Restaurant software built for how your operation actually runs

Off-the-shelf restaurant platforms handle standard table-service and fast-casual workflows. Multi-location chains with custom loyalty mechanics, ghost kitchens with complex order routing, and restaurant groups managing multiple brands under one loyalty program: these require software built around the actual operation.

We've shipped loyalty platforms, ordering systems, and kitchen management tools for food and hospitality businesses. We know the difference between software that demos well and software that survives a Friday dinner rush.

Problems we solve for restaurant businesses

01
Problem
Third-party aggregators taking 15-30% on every order
Solution
Every order you take through Uber Eats or DoorDash costs you 15-30% in commission. The aggregator owns the customer relationship. You pay the fee and lose the data. A branded direct ordering channel flips that: the same order comes through your platform, margin intact, and the customer stays yours.
02
Problem
Reservation and POS systems that don't talk to each other
Solution
When reservations live in one system and orders in another, your front-of-house team reconciles two views manually during service. Tables get double-booked, covers get miscounted, and the kitchen gets no advance warning of party size. A double-booked eight-top on a full night means a walkout or a comp, and the guest you turn away rarely rebooks. A connected system gives everyone one source of truth from booking to bill.
03
Problem
Loyalty program tracked on paper punch cards with no customer data
Solution
Paper stamp cards have no purchase history and no way to target a win-back offer at a diner who hasn't visited in 45 days. A digital loyalty program connected to your POS knows who your regulars are, what they order, and when they're drifting. That's the difference between waiting for people to come back and actually getting them back.
04
Problem
Kitchen display that doesn't match front-of-house ticket flow
Solution
Tickets printed at the pass don't match what the server entered. Courses fire in the wrong order. The expediter resolves conflicts verbally instead of reading a screen. Each service period, that gap costs you covers, comps, and staff stress. A KDS built for your station layout and course-fire logic closes it.

What we build

Point of sale systems
Custom POS built for your service format: table service, counter service, or hybrid. Table-level order management with split billing, course firing, and modifier handling. Payment processing with card, cash, and digital wallet support. Loyalty integration so points earn at every transaction. End-of-day reconciliation and till management. Offline mode for when connectivity drops. Hardware integration for your specific terminals and receipt printers.
Online ordering platforms
Direct online ordering that keeps the customer relationship in your hands, not a third-party aggregator's. Menu management with item availability by time of day, modifiers, upsell prompts, and real-time stock updates. Order routing to kitchen display or printer. Payment processing with saved cards for repeat customers. Loyalty points on every online order. Integration with Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Just Eat for aggregator-channel order management alongside your direct channel.
Loyalty and rewards programs
Custom loyalty programs that connect dine-in, takeaway, and delivery into a single points balance. Tier management with benefit escalation for your top diners. Campaign tools for bonus points on quiet nights, birthday rewards, and win-back offers for lapsed guests. Digital stamp cards for simpler visit-based programs. See our Loyalty Program Development page.
Table management and reservations
Reservation management with table assignment, cover count tracking, and guest arrival management. Waitlist handling with SMS notifications when a table is ready. Floor plan management with drag-and-drop table assignment for your specific venue layout. POS integration so front-of-house and kitchen always share the same view. No-show protection with deposit capture and cancellation policies. Multi-dining-area management for restaurants with bar, terrace, and private dining.
Kitchen display systems
Order routing from POS and online ordering to kitchen display screens. Station-level routing so starters, mains, and desserts go to the right preparation area. Order timing with course-fire controls so the kitchen knows when to start each course. Bump and recall functionality for kitchen confirmation and order review. Expediter display for pass management. Built for your kitchen's specific station layout and workflow, not a generic template.
Staff scheduling and inventory
Staff scheduling with shift management, availability tracking, and labor cost visibility against revenue. Rota publication with staff self-service for shift swaps and availability updates. Inventory management for food and beverage with par level alerts, purchase order management, and wastage tracking. According to Toast's 2024 restaurant industry research, individual restaurants lose up to $26,000 per year to food waste, and fragmentation between purchasing, inventory, and kitchen systems is a direct driver. Recipe costing with actual vs. theoretical food cost comparison. Supplier management with ordering integrated into your stock workflow. Reporting on labor cost and food cost percentage against target.

How we work with restaurant businesses

01
Discovery: map your operation and identify the build
We spend time with your floor staff, kitchen team, and management before writing a line of code. We map your order flow, POS setup, and the specific breakdown points that cost you revenue or margin. Discovery produces a fixed-scope document: exactly what we build, at what cost, and on what timeline.
02
Architecture: design for your kitchen and service model
Restaurant software fails when it's designed for generic workflows rather than your specific service format. We design the data model for your table structure, kitchen stations, loyalty mechanics, and multi-location setup. Architecture decisions made here determine whether the system holds up under peak service load or breaks.
03
Build: iterative delivery with your team in the loop
We build in two-week cycles with working software you can see and test at each stage. Front-of-house staff and kitchen managers review real workflows, not mockups, so problems surface before go-live rather than after. Integration with your existing POS, payment processor, and aggregators happens in this phase.
04
Go-live: launch with staff trained and support in place
We don't hand over a finished product and disappear. Go-live includes staff training for front-of-house and kitchen, a parallel-run period where your old system and new system run together, and direct support during the first service periods on the new platform.

Restaurant software by product

What clients say

What our restaurant and F&B clients say

Three-year average engagement. Founders and operators describing the work in their own words. No marketing varnish.

Grady Lakshmono

Indonesia

CoFounder, Gula (acquired by Runchise)

RaftLabs elevated my ideas and brought them to life when everything seemed impossible.

01 / 02

Proof

Case studies

Gula Builds a Centralized Platform for Food Order Management

16 weeks: To launch MVP version
$2500+: Generated during initial launch phase

Read case study

Restaurants See 10,000+ Orders Surge With Grubly App

$10K+: Transactions in first 15 days
$5K: Savings on food delivery commissions

Read case study

Frequently asked questions

: Off-the-shelf platforms handle standard workflows for table service and counter service restaurants well. Custom software is the right choice when your loyalty program mechanics are complex enough that platform plugins can't support them; when you're managing multiple brands or locations with shared loyalty and different menus; when your ordering or kitchen workflow doesn't fit the platform's assumptions; or when you're building a restaurant tech product to sell to other operators. The wrong answer is building custom when a standard platform configuration would work. Custom development carries ongoing maintenance cost that platforms absorb for you.
: Yes. An omnichannel loyalty program that connects dine-in POS transactions, direct online orders, and third-party delivery aggregator orders into a single points balance is a meaningful engineering project. The data model has to handle different transaction sources with different customer identification methods. We've built this pattern for hospitality and food service businesses. The aggregator integration is typically the complex part: Uber Eats and DoorDash don't share first-party customer data, so the loyalty earn mechanics for aggregator orders require a different approach than direct channels.
: Yes. Most restaurant software projects involve integrating with existing systems rather than replacing everything at once. We integrate with major restaurant POS systems, delivery aggregators (Uber Eats, DoorDash, Just Eat, Deliveroo), payment processors, and accounting systems. Integration complexity depends on what APIs the existing system exposes. We scope integrations during discovery because they're often the most time-consuming part of a restaurant software project.
: Multi-location restaurant software introduces complexity in menu management (shared menus vs. location-specific variations), loyalty (consistent points balance and tier status across locations), reporting (per-location and aggregate performance), kitchen routing (different kitchen layouts at different sites), and staff management. We design the data model for your specific multi-location structure during discovery. The right architecture for three locations is different from fifty. We've built both.

Related services

Restaurant services by area

01
Restaurant App Development
Mobile ordering, POS integration, loyalty, and KDS connectivity for restaurants and F&B groups.

Talk to us about your restaurant software project.

Tell us the operational challenge, POS, loyalty, ordering, or kitchen management. We'll tell you what we'd build and how.

Scope and cost agreed before work starts. No surprises. No obligation.
Working prototype within 3 weeks of kickoff.
Pay by milestone. You see progress before each invoice.
60-day post-launch warranty. Bug fixes, UI tweaks, and deployment support. No retainer.
All conversations are NDA-protected.

Stay on topic