7 Best Café POS Systems in the UK in 2026 — A Fresh Guide
Running a café in the UK in 2026 means dealing with fast-moving queues, picky drink customisations, loyalty schemes, contactless payments, and stock that seems to disappear faster than you can reorder it. In the middle of all that, your POS system isn’t just a till — it’s the operational core of your café.
In this guide, I’ve pulled together current UK market info, real café-focused tools, and recent hospitality tech trends to highlight the 7 best café POS systems in the UK for 2026. You’ll also find what a café POS actually does, what it costs, and how to decide which system fits your style of service.
What Is a Café POS System?
A café POS system is the mix of software and hardware you use to run the front counter and much of the back office. It typically helps you:
- Take and customise drinks and food orders (like a latte with oat milk and an extra shot).
- Process chip & PIN, contactless, and mobile wallet payments.
- Manage basic tables or queues if you offer sit-in.
- Track stock such as beans, milk, syrups, and pastries.
- Generate sales and staff performance reports.
- Support loyalty, online ordering, and delivery if you offer them.
In cafés, speed is everything: people want their coffee in hand before the line behind them gets impatient, so your POS needs to be fast, clear, and reliable under pressure.
Why Café POS Systems Matter in 2026
Modern café POS systems are less about “ringing things through” and more about running the entire customer journey. They shape:
- How quickly queues move.
- How accurate custom drink orders are.
- How easy it is to run loyalty or rewards.
- How much training new staff need.
- How well you control profit, waste, and stock.
Across UK hospitality, there’s steady investment in tools like cloud POS, contactless payments, and QR or mobile ordering, especially in cafés and quick-service venues. The message is clear: the right POS can be a genuine competitive edge, not just an overhead.
What to Look for in a Café POS System
Before comparing names and logos, get clear on which features matter day to day behind your counter.
- Speed and simplicity
Your team should be able to learn the basics in a single shift and fly through the morning rush without tapping through endless menus. - Integrated payments
Look for seamless chip & PIN, contactless, Apple Pay, and Google Pay, ideally through an integrated provider so payments and receipts sync automatically. - Easy order customisation
Modifiers like extra shots, alternative milks, different sizes, and syrups should be quick to add and clearly visible on the ticket or screen. - Cloud plus offline support
Cloud systems make it easy to check sales and change menus remotely, but offline mode is crucial so you can keep serving when the Wi‑Fi drops. - Online and QR ordering options
As takeaway, click-and-collect, and QR ordering keep growing, a POS with online ordering built in — rather than bolted on through multiple third-party apps — can make a real difference to daily operations. When online orders flow directly into the same system used at the counter, staff don’t have to juggle tablets, re-enter orders, or double-check tickets during busy periods. - Reports and analytics
Useful reports show your peak hours, bestsellers, dead stock, and how each product or time slot contributes to your bottom line.
Café POS Costs in the UK
Understanding costs upfront helps you avoid surprises once you sign a contract.
Software fees (per month)
- Basic systems: roughly free to £49 per month for a single till.
- Mid‑range café systems: about £49–£100 per month with more features and add-ons.
- Advanced or multi‑location setups: £100+ per month, sometimes per location or register.
Hardware
Typical one‑off hardware costs:
- Tablet or terminal: around £300–£700.
- Receipt printer: about £150–£300.
- Stands, cash drawers, and small accessories: £30–£150.
- Optional kitchen or barista display screens: £400+.
All in, many cafés end up investing anywhere from a few hundred pounds to £1,500+ in hardware, depending on how many devices they need.
Payment processing fees are an ongoing cost, often in the region of around 1.3–1.7% per in‑person card transaction, sometimes plus a small fixed fee, which can matter with low-ticket items like coffee.
7 Best Café POS Systems in the UK (2026)
These systems are all actively used in UK cafés and coffee shops, each with slightly different strengths.
1. Square for Cafés
Square is a go‑to for many independent cafés because it’s easy to set up, runs on iPads and Square hardware, and doesn’t always require a fixed monthly software fee. Integrated payments, simple reporting, and a clean interface make it friendly for new staff and pop‑up setups alike.
- Best for: Small to medium cafés, pop‑ups, and budget‑conscious operators that want to get started quickly.
2. POSApt
POSApt is a UK‑focused POS platform that stands out on value, especially for cafés and small hospitality venues. It allows you to use your own Android devices, keeping hardware costs lower, with subscription pricing in the lower range of the market for full café functionality.
- Best for: Independent cafés and coffee shops that want a modern system without expensive proprietary hardware.
3. Lightspeed Café POS
Lightspeed is well known in UK hospitality and is often recommended for busier cafés that need strong reporting and multi‑terminal setups. It supports table layouts, stock tracking, online ordering integrations, loyalty, and powerful analytics from a cloud back office.
- Best for: High‑volume cafés and venues planning to grow or add locations.
4. Epos Now
Epos Now is a UK‑based provider with a long track record in cafés, bars, and restaurants. It runs on iPads, Android tablets, PCs, and dedicated terminals, giving you flexibility in how you build your counter setup, and offers hardware bundles that can work out cost‑effective for a full till station.
- Best for: Cafés wanting hardware choice, UK‑based support, and the option to expand with add‑ons.
5. SumUp Point of Sale
SumUp’s POS, built on the former Goodtill platform, is popular with small cafés that want something straightforward and affordable. Core software starts around the lower end of the market, with optional modules like kitchen displays or advanced loyalty you can add as you grow. Its fixed card rates can be attractive if you process lots of small transactions.
- Best for: Smaller independent cafés that prioritise low ongoing costs and simple operation.
6. Revolut POS
Revolut POS ties together front‑of‑house POS features with Revolut’s business banking tools. Busy cafés can benefit from smooth card payments, simple menu management, and fast access to funds within the same ecosystem. The interface is deliberately minimal, which suits quick‑service environments.
- Best for: Tech‑forward cafés and operators who want POS and banking tightly integrated.
7. PayPal POS
PayPal’s POS solution runs on smartphones, tablets, and compatible devices, offering simple order entry and payments without café‑specific bells and whistles. It can be started with little or no upfront software cost, making it attractive for very small setups and coffee carts.
- Best for: Very small cafés, kiosks, or coffee carts just starting out and needing something basic but trusted.
Quick View: Who Each POS Suits
| POS System | Best Suited To | Typical Software Cost Range* |
| Square | Small–medium cafés, pop‑ups, new operators | Free–around £69/month depending on plan |
| POSApt | Independent cafés wanting low hardware costs | Around £29+/month for core use |
| Lightspeed | Busy, growing cafés, multi‑site venues | From about £69+/month per register |
| Epos Now | Cafés wanting UK support and bundles | From about £50+/month software |
| SumUp POS | Smaller cafés on tight budgets | From about £49+/month per till |
| Revolut POS | Tech‑savvy cafés, banking integration | Often tied to Revolut Business plans |
| PayPal POS | Coffee carts and micro‑cafés | Free entry, pay via transaction fees |
*All figures approximate and may exclude VAT or add‑ons.
How to Choose the Best Café POS for Your Business
To avoid getting dazzled by feature lists, start with your café’s reality and work backwards to the tech.
- Define your needs
Think about how many tills you need, your peak times, whether you offer table service or mainly takeaway, and how important loyalty or marketing tools are to you. - Map your budget
Add together monthly software, expected card fees, and the hardware you’ll need now and in a year’s time. A slightly higher software fee can be worth it if it saves time or reduces mistakes every day. - Consider training and staff turnover
Pick a system that new baristas can pick up quickly, with clear screens, one‑tap modifiers, and logical menu layouts. This matters more than niche features you rarely use. - Check UK‑specific essentials
Make sure the system handles UK VAT correctly, integrates with major UK payment providers, and has reliable support in UK time zones. Offline capability is important if your connection is patchy.
Final Thoughts
Choosing a café POS in 2026 is a strategic decision that touches almost every part of your daily operation, from how fast you serve flat whites to how clearly you see your margins. Whether you lean towards budget‑friendly tools like SumUp and PayPal, value‑driven options like POSApt, or feature‑rich systems like Lightspeed and Epos Now, there’s a platform that can match your style of café.
The key is to understand your service model, your busiest moments, and your growth plans — then pick the system that helps you serve customers better today while leaving room for tomorrow’s changes.
