6 Best Restaurant Inventory Management Software 2021

The restaurant industry is a booming business with people all over the world eating out at restaurants more often. The food delivery industry has also taken off, making it even busier for restaurateurs to manage their inventories and avoid inventory shortages. Here are six of the best software applications that will help restaurateurs be more productive in 2021 and beyond.

The “restaurant inventory management software free” is an important tool for restaurants. It allows the restaurant to track their inventory and manage it from one place. There are many different types of restaurant inventory management software, but these 6 are the best in 2020.

Computer applications for foodservice organizations with complete commercial kitchens are known as restaurant inventory management software systems. Ingredient stock levels, purchase orders, recipes, and menu expenses may all be managed using these systems. The top restaurant inventory management software solutions cost $50 to $150 per month and sync with or are incorporated into POS systems.

The finest restaurant inventory management software, according to our research, is:

• MarketMan is the best inventory management software for restaurants.
• Lightspeed’s Upserve has the best built-in restaurant POS inventory management system.
• For high-volume restaurants, Revel Systems is a software development company that specializes on offers the best built-in restaurant POS inventory.
• CrunchTime is ideal for businesses who need to keep their labor and inventory expenditures under control.
• Yellow Dog is a fictional character. is the best restaurant inventory software for many locations.
• Toast: For small restaurants that want a user-friendly POS-hosted system, this is the best option.

How We Tested Inventory Management Software for Restaurants

We examined hundreds of popular food inventory software programs using the following criteria: simplicity of use, pricing, stock monitoring, and vendor management. Personal reviews of each program from our retail and restaurant professionals were also taken into account.

MarketMan is the finest restaurant inventory management software based on the aforementioned criteria. According to our inventory software rating methodology, MarketMan achieved the highest overall grade (4.68 out of 5). MarketMan is also one of the top software programs we personally suggest based on our own experience testing inventory software and working in and with restaurants who handle inventory on a daily basis.

Please see the tabs below for a complete list of our assessment criteria:

30%

Features of Advanced Inventory

15% of the overall score

First, we checked to see whether each program had a free plan, a free trial, or a plan choice that costs less than $100 per month. After that, we searched for plans with limitless user logins, product listings, and vendor transactions. Finally, systems with installation costs under $150 and POS connectivity get extra marks since they are more user-friendly for small eateries.

30% of the overall score

We searched for inventory services that were critical, such as supply levels that were in real-time sync with sales. We also sought for inventory monitoring sheets that could be customized to fit the layouts of your warehouses. The greatest grades went to software that completely interfaces with restaurant POS systems, is cloud-based, and offers thorough reporting.

30% of the overall score

We searched for inventory software that could support automated restaurant operations by allowing physical counts through barcode scanning and direct vendor ordering via electronic data exchange (EDI).

15% of the overall score

We emphasized systems that provide 24/7 customer assistance since restaurants usually measure inventory early in the mornings, late at night, or otherwise outside of normal business hours. Any solutions that provide one-on-one installation assistance or training received excellent rankings as well.

10% of the overall score

Finally, we looked at any notable software features as well as if the system provides outstanding overall value for its pricing. We also looked at how well-liked each system is among restaurant owners. Then, based on our own experience engaging with the program and the company’s customer service, we assigned scores.

*Percentages based on total score

MarketMan

The Best Overall Inventory Management Software for Restaurants

PROS

• POS and accounting connections that are robust
• Scanning invoices makes receiving orders a breeze.
• Memberships are available on a month-to-month or yearly basis.

CONS

• Orders placed through the app are sent by email.
• You or the MarketMan staff must manually input received invoices.

Total Points

4.68

OUT OF

5

MarketMan is a cloud-based inventory and vendor management system created with restaurants in mind. Physical counting, budgeting, buying, order optimization, food costs, and vendor management are among the services available. This system only goes as far as EDI with suppliers. Instead, it offers simplified ordering by email, with MarketMan’s staff providing administrative help to handle accepted bills.

MarketMan had the best rating (4.68 out of 5) among the restaurant inventory management software we evaluated. It achieved top grades for its general and sophisticated inventory management capabilities, as well as a favorable pricing rating.

Pricing by MarketMan

Operator, Professional, and Ultimate are the three price categories offered by MarketMan. For restaurants that merely require accounts payable automation, the system enables basic invoice scanning at volume-based costs.

A professional account manager and one-on-one training sessions are included in all subscriptions. MarketMan may be used on Windows and Mac PCs as well as Android and iOS mobile devices since it is cloud-based.

MarketMan is available on a variety of platforms, including iOS and Android smartphones.

Highlights of MarketMan

MarketMan offers the greatest functionality for a clear, reasonable pricing. No food inventory software is inexpensive. You may personalize your count sheets to match your storage locations for “shelf-to-sheet” precision, and you can execute an unbelievable amount of operations on your smartphone.

The following are some of MarketMan’s notable features:

• MarketMan inventory features may be accessed from any computer or internet-connected mobile device, allowing you to make orders or count inventory immediately from your smartphone.
• Delegate duties: You may grant particular access levels to workers via the MarketMan dashboard, allowing more people to help with significant activities like weekly physical counts. To count different stock regions, enlist the help of bartenders, line cooks, waiters, and managers. If any figures look to be incorrect, the program will alert them, and if they ignore the instructions, you will get an email, allowing you to keep track of your stock directly.
• MarketMan will reduce your stock levels in real time when things are sold, thanks to the POS connectivity. When things run out, you may set up unique notifications to send through email or text message.
• MarketMan software transmits your orders straight to sales staff through email using the in-app ordering feature. You may even demand that all new orders be cc’d to the owner, executive chef, or general manager. You may manually enter invoices or use your smartphone to scan real invoices, and the MarketMan staff will enter them within 24 hours.
• MarketMan has a cookbook function that allows you to gather all of your restaurant’s recipes into one easy-to-navigate book. MarketMan takes care of the formatting when you add the ingredients, portion amounts, directions, and photos. Cookbooks may be accessed through computers, phones, and internet-connected tablets, or paper versions can be printed. The cookbook is a great way to maintain uniformity across various sites.

Lightspeed’s Upserve

Best POS for Restaurants With Inventory and Vendor Management

PROS

• Inventory management at the point of sale is fully integrated.
• Multiple orders are placed at the same time using one-click ordering.
• When suppliers receive orders, order tracking notifies you.

CONS

• The cost of a basic point-of-sale system is high.
• There is no EDI supplier relationship.

Total Points

4.43

OUT OF

5

Using the built-in inventory features in your point of sale (POS) system is a smart method to keep your restaurant software expenses down. Lightspeed’s Upserve POS inventory software has the greatest automation of any built-in POS inventory software we’ve seen. Small to medium restaurants that wish to automate administrative duties like buying and receiving supplies would benefit from Upserve’s POS and inventory management services.

On our restaurant inventory management criterion, Upserve received a 4.43 out of 5 grade. It received high marks for simplicity of use and comprehensive inventory features. Upserve’s great success was aided by a well-functioning underlying POS. If the system interacted with suppliers using EDI and was significantly less costly, it may have received a better grade.

Lightspeed Pricing by Upserve

The inventory features provided by Upserve are only accessible as part of the Upserve POS system. The basic POS costs $59 per month, but inventory management needs the higher-priced Pro subscription, which costs $199 per month plus $50 per terminal. Upserve additionally uses pre-configured tablets and mobile devices provided by Upserve, which adds to the system’s cost.

Upserve’s membership packages all come with Upserve’s 24/7 customer service and a searchable online knowledge base. The underlying point-of-sale system is routinely one of our top restaurant point-of-sale recommendations.

Upserve allows you to receive supplies and make physical counts by scanning barcodes.

Lightspeed’s Upserve Standout Features

Upserve combines a high-performing, restaurant-specific POS with intelligent automation to substantially save the time spent ordering and tracking restaurant supplies. Upserve’s inventory software, when utilized to its maximum potential, may save you hours of administrative work.

The following are some of Upserve’s outstanding features:

• One-click reordering: Upserve depletes your on-hand inventory count as you sell things throughout the day. Upserve delivers low stock notifications and produces proposed purchases from your vendors when supplies run out. In your Upserve back office dashboard, you may examine these orders and then submit them all with a single click.
• Smartphone scanning: To receive and count inventory items, download the Upserve Inventory App from the App Store or Google Play and turn your smartphone camera into a barcode scanner.
• Order notifications are color-coded in your inventory dashboard so you can know when a vendor order has been filed, received by the vendor, delivered, and finished at a glance. As suppliers view and read your order emails and SMS messages, you’ll watch your order status alter in real time.
• Offline functionality: We all know the walk-in refrigerator has no internet connection. To facilitate inventory counts on mobile devices, Upserve makes use of the POS system’s powerful offline features. When you lose internet access, the system maintains updated item amounts in the local cache of your mobile device. A simple reload when you recover internet connectivity syncs your modifications with the cloud. When the “Changes Saved” banner displays at the top of the screen, you know your data has been updated.
• Because Upserve’s inventory software interfaces directly with the POS, the reporting tools are quite thorough. You may see dynamic food cost and use information, as well as menu optimization reports that highlight high-priced, slow-selling menu items that weigh down your menu.

Revel Systems

High-volume restaurants need the best restaurant POS with built-in inventory.

PROS

• You may assign work using user permissions that can be customized.
• Internal supply transfers are supported.
• Detailed reporting

CONS

• A three-year membership is required for POS.
• A larger system is required for small eateries.

Total Points

4.34

OUT OF

5

In the realm of restaurant POS, Revel Systems is a pioneer. This was the first iPad-based cloud POS system for restaurants, and it still manages to cram a lot of functionality into a small box. It constantly ranks among the top POS systems for small companies on our list.

Because of its large size, the system is best suited for high-volume restaurants. Multi-location restaurants with built-in POS inventory may simply use Revel Systems.

On our inventory software rating system, Revel Systems received a 4.34 out of 5 grade. The simplicity of use and general and sophisticated inventory management capabilities of this program received high marks. Revel Systems might have gotten a better grade with shorter contract periods and a free trial.

Pricing for Revel Systems

Revel Systems’ inventory capabilities, like Upserve’s, are only accessible as part of the larger Revel POS package. Revel Systems, unlike Upserve, provides inventory management as part of the standard POS subscription. Revel POS costs $99 per month, which is a little much for a cloud-based POS but reasonable for restaurant inventory software. You’ll also have to pay $674 as a one-time implementation cost. A unique quotation from the Revel sales team is required to get a clear view of your expenditures.

Employee access to inventory operations may be customized using Revel Systems.

Highlights of Revel Systems

Revel’s user permissions are the most advanced of any POS-hosted inventory management software. There is no better inventory monitoring system for bars and restaurants that depend on several teams for physical counts or issue with staff theft and breakage.

The following are some of Revel’s notable features:

• Permissions that may be customized: Revel Systems allows users to customize their permissions. Individual users may be given access to certain tasks such as inventory counting without having access to all reports or administrative capabilities. As a result, you may provide bartenders weekly liquor counts and line cooks weekly dry products counts without jeopardizing overall data security.
• To prevent your team from copying and pasting outdated numbers, you may select to hide the “anticipated count” field on inventory counting spreadsheets. This feature is also useful for preventing numbers from being fudged to conceal theft or damage.
• Make orders in-app: In the Revel system’s management dashboard, you may create POs and send them straight to suppliers. The PO interface in Revel is significantly less automated than in Upserve; you may produce POs from low stock notifications in Revel, but the system does not do it automatically. Receiving a PO in Revel’s back-office interface, like Upserve, lets you to change your on-hand amounts when new goods arrive.
• Creating actual count sheets that represent the arrangement of your restaurant’s storage rooms is possible with Revel Systems. To speed up your physical inventory counts, you may drag and drop listed goods into the same order they appear on your shelves.
• Stocktake, a smartphone counting software by Revel, enables your team to take physical inventory counts on iPhones. Assign specialized count sheets to any trustworthy employee and divide your restaurant into discrete, easily tallied parts. You may see counts in progress through the Management Console, so you know when you can start month-end or other accounting operations.

CrunchTime

Best for Keeping Labor and Inventory Costs Under Control

PROS

• Popular restaurant POS and accounting software are among the 1,000+ connectors.
• To create nutritional information for recipes, it syncs with the USDA nutritional database.
• Scheduling and labor cost management are also available.

CONS

• Pricing based on your specifications
• A larger system is required for small eateries.

Total Points

4.31

OUT OF

5

CrunchTime has provided purpose-built restaurant inventory and labor management software to restaurants since 1995. CrunchTime’s software designers and customer service representatives have all worked in the restaurant sector, so you’ll never waste time describing your problems or procedures. This strong software excels at automating procedures, and it’s a great match for medium to big restaurants looking to keep labor and food expenses under control.

On our restaurant inventory management software ranking system, CrunchTime received a 4.31 out of 5 grade. CrunchTime received great grades for general and complex inventory operations, but its total cost and absence of a free trial kept it from earning better.

Pricing in a Hurry

CrunchTime does not make its price information available to the public. CrunchTime must be contacted for a tailored quotation by interested restaurant owners. CrunchTime, like the other products on this list, is based on the software as a service (SaaS) concept. You buy the ability to run the program on your existing hardware. The program is cloud-based, and it works on both Windows and Mac PCs, as well as Android and iOS mobile devices.

All of your stats are at your fingertips with Crunchtime’s Impact reporting tool.

Highlights of CrunchTime

CrunchTime has a number of useful tools that demonstrate the company’s restaurant expertise. CrunchTime is a full-spectrum cost-control solution because to its mix of labor cost monitoring and inventory management technologies. Smart automation touches make time-consuming administrative activities much easier to do. The total system, however, may be more machine than a small restaurant need. You’ll probably be pleased with inventory software that’s incorporated into your POS if you don’t have a workforce of 40 or are managing many sites.

The following are some of CrunchTime’s outstanding features:

• Detailed analytics: You can monitor which data you view by customizing your CrunchTime dashboard and notifications. Using POS connectivity, you can measure profit and loss in real time, allowing you to make important business choices before they have an effect on your bottom line.
• CrunchTime! Impact: On any mobile device, this associated mobile reporting app displays up to 50 Key Performance Indicator (KPI) data. From a single dashboard, you can establish custom alerts and examine data from numerous locations. Impact is compatible with Android and iOS smartphones, as well as Apple Watches.
• Physical inventory count on mobile devices: By connecting onto the CrunchTime site, your team may count inventory on any Wi-Fi-enabled device. You may also perform physical inventory counts by downloading the Counter app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
• Task-specific applications: Custom-designed smartphone apps for each section of your restaurant will help you increase efficiency. The Line Check software from CrunchTime assists your culinary crew in performing quality control inspections. Kitchen Sync creates precise prep lists and syncs them with your inventory so you can keep track of what you’re cooking. Through the TeamWorx software, you can add staff scheduling and team communications to your CrunchTime system.
• Order automation and forecasting: Your CrunchTime system may recommend orders based on your par levels or previous use. The system will also anticipate future demands based on your real sales data. Detailed projections inform your kitchen crew how much food to prepare in order to meet predicted traffic levels, avoiding waste and spoiling.

Yellow Dog

The Best Inventory Management Software for Multi-Location Restaurants

PROS

• Internal movement of raw materials or prepared foods is simple.
• Email reports that are sent automatically
• For proper bar management, integrates with liquor pour control systems.

CONS

• Only a bespoke quotation is available for pricing.
• Customer service is not available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Total Points

4.09

OUT OF

5

Yellow Dog’s inventory management software is comparable to MarketMan and CrunchTime in that it is a stand-alone inventory management system. Yellow Dog’s unique features make it ideal for multi-location restaurant administration, particularly for food truck fleets and large-scale catering enterprises that use a central commissary kitchen. It’d also be an excellent solution for inventory monitoring in high-volume ghost and cloud kitchen groups.

On our restaurant inventory software criterion, Yellow Dog received a 4.09 out of 5 rating. It received points for having a large number of basic and complex inventory monitoring capabilities, but it received zero points for pricing and customer service hours. Yellow Dog has rich online training materials, but its live customer care personnel is not accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Pricing for Yellow Dogs

Yellow Dog’s inventory management software, like CrunchTime, is only accessible via a bespoke quotation. The system is app- and browser-based, with counting applications available for iOS and Android devices. Task-specific gear for barcode printing, barcode scanning, and portable inventory counting is also available from Yellow Dog.

Yellow Dog’s inventory dashboard is accessible through task-specific mobile devices.

Characteristics of the Yellow Dog

Yellow Dog gives you the ability to generate precise barcode labels with ingredient listings depending on the recipes in your business. This is a great way to make and sell grab-and-go goods at your restaurant’s storefront. On a broader scale, however, this functionality allows commissary kitchens to make bulk goods for food truck fleets, ghost kitchens, and catering businesses, while also tracking each item as it passes through the production chain.

The following are some of Yellow Dog’s notable features:

• Connect with suppliers using EDI: Yellow Dog Inventory uses EDI to connect with the majority of prominent restaurant suppliers. This connection downloads and inserts your vendor invoices to your inventory system automatically. Set up invoices to be handled automatically or to need permission from a manager before they are posted. Any new goods will be added to your Yellow Dog system automatically. It will also send you an email to notify you of any price changes.
• Rugged hardware: For mobile inventory counting, you don’t have to depend on cellphones. Yellow Dog produces inventory counting gadgets that are as simple to use as smartphones but are significantly safer (and drop resistant).
• Design templates for an infinite number of barcode label types are supported by Yellow Dog’s barcode printing technology. From ingredients and pricing to nutrition information, expiry date, and visuals, you decide what information to add. To expedite inventory counting, print comprehensive sales labels for grab-and-go products or shelf labels for your storerooms.
• Yellow Dog interacts with practically every well-known restaurant POS system as well as prominent accounting software. Bars that deal with overbearing bartenders can discover plenty of bar-specific pour-tracking plugins.
• Support for commissary kitchens: If you deliver preparing food to various locations from a central kitchen (often referred to as a commissary kitchen), you have special product tracking requirements. Internal transfers of prepared commodities, such as fresh juice blends, are possible with Yellow Dog, and they reduce your commissary inventory depending on the linked components. The completed, ready item, on the other hand, will be billed internally to the receiving site.
• You may construct custom reports to monitor granular operational parameters and have them automatically sent to you. You may schedule saved reports to automatically email your owners and managers on a defined schedule to keep everyone on the same page.

Toast

The Most User-Friendly Point-of-Sale System for Small Restaurants

PROS

• Toast POS has a built-in barcode scanner.
• Detailed reporting
• Extremely simple to use

CONS

• Upserve is less automatic.
• There is no direct contact with suppliers.

Total Points

4.04

OUT OF

5

Toast is perhaps the most widely usable point-of-sale system for any style of restaurant. The built-in inventory features scored highly since this user-friendly POS system is always evolving to meet a changing restaurant environment. Toast’s inventory services are a great match for small and medium restaurants looking for a built-in POS system because of its simplicity of use and low cost.

Toast received a 4.04 out of 5 rating in our review, with excellent ratings for simplicity of use and overall inventory management capabilities. Toast also outperformed the others on this list in terms of cost. It has lost some progress in terms of automation, required the most frequent administrative attention of all of the applications on our list, and does not directly interface with or facilitate in-app emailing to restaurant suppliers.

Pricing for Toast

Starter, Essentials, and Growth are the three price categories for Toast’s restaurant POS software. The Starter membership costs $69 per month and is the most affordable option. Previously, inventory management was available in all Toast membership levels. Toast does, on occasion, provide special price packages that do not contain inventory tools. Toast POS works with Toast-supplied terminals and tablets as well. These are available for purchase via Toast at custom-quoted pricing.

Toast displays inventory information in simple graphs and charts.

Characteristics of Toast

The reporting features have a lot of data to compare since Toast inventory is embedded into the Toast POS. You may quickly generate thorough statistics that demonstrate how much each dish and ingredient contributes to your bottom line. Sales and food expenses are shown in dynamic graphs so you can examine the worth of your existing inventory or underperforming menu items at a glance. If you have any queries or difficulties, Toast’s customer service staff is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The following are some of Toast’s outstanding features:

• Toast is one of the most user-friendly restaurant POS systems available; workers and management can master the system in only a few hours. This simplicity of use goes a long way when it comes to time-consuming administrative duties like inventory management. Toast also comes with 24/7 customer service and a library of searchable online training materials.
• Integration with your POS: The finest restaurant inventory management software interfaces with your POS. There will be no communication issues or unanticipated difficulties with inventory loaded into your POS. You also don’t have to pay the extra costs of third-party software.
• Reports that are simple to read: Toast’s reporting module is simple to use and comprehensive. You may either keep to high-level statistics that show total sales and food prices, or you can go into finer data like how much the cost of a certain component has changed over time.
• Simple invoice import: Most merchants will provide you a.csv invoice, which you can import into your Toast inventory module. This function allows you to keep track of your supplier costs, ensuring that your menu is priced economically.

Conclusion

Restaurant inventory management software is available as a stand-alone system or as part of a POS system. MarketMan, our overall champion, will, nevertheless, find a home at restaurants of all sorts. MarketMan is a full-featured and cheap cloud-based restaurant inventory management platform for independent businesses. All of the capabilities are included in a user-friendly, browser-based system that can be accessed from any web browser. To book a demo, go to MarketMan.

Go to MarketMan’s website.

The “hospitality inventory management software” is a type of software that helps restaurants in keeping track of their inventory. There are many different types of inventory management software out there, but these 6 are the best ones to use for your business.

Related Tags

• restaurant inventory management excel
• restaurant management software
• best free restaurant inventory app
• ingredient management software
• food inventory management system pdf