Comparison

bavoli vs Square for Restaurants

bavoli gives you reservations, online ordering, guest CRM, and AI phone answering in one platform. Square is a great POS, but you still need a separate reservation system.

How much could you save?

Compare the total cost of Square for Restaurants plus a separate reservation system vs bavoli, which includes everything.

300 orders/month
505001,000

Square Plus + reservation tool

$357

per month

bavoli

$20

per month

Starter plan

Annual savings

$4,038

per year

Based on Square for Restaurants Plus plan ($60/mo) plus estimated reservation tool cost as of August 2026.

At a glance

FeaturebavoliSquare
Monthly priceStarts at $20/mo$0-$60/mo (+ processing fees)
Processing fees$0 to restaurant (customer pays $1)2.6% + $0.10 per transaction
Data ownershipYou own 100% of your dataFull ownership on paid plans
Setup time5 minutes1-2 weeks (POS installation)
Reservation systemBuilt in, every planNot included, separate tool needed
Free planYes, 50 reservations/monthYes (POS only, no reservations)
Pricing

Pricing comparison

Square charges monthly fees plus processing fees on every transaction. bavoli charges a flat monthly rate with $0 per-order fees to the restaurant. Customers pay a small order fee.

Square for Restaurants
POS-first platform with processing fees on every transaction
Free plan$0/mo
Plus plan$49/mo
Premium plan$149/mo
Processing fee2.6% + $0.15
bavoli
Recommended
Full restaurant platform, flat pricing
Free plan$0/mo
Starter$20/mo
Professional plan$50/mo
Customer order fee$1/order
True cost of Square for Restaurants
Square looks affordable until you factor in processing fees and the missing reservation system.

Square Free

Monthly fee: $0/mo

Processing: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction

No reservation system included. Limited features.

$0/mo + processing fees

Processing fees only

Square Plus

Monthly fee: $60/mo

Processing: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction

Still no reservation system. You need a separate tool.

$60/mo + processing fees

$720/year + processing fees

bavoli Professional

Reservations, ordering, guest CRM, and AI phone answering. All included.

$50/mo

$600/year ($0/order to restaurant)

bavoli replaces the reservation system Square does not include. Customers pay a small order fee and the restaurant keeps 100% of menu prices.

Pricing based on publicly available rates at squareup.com as of August 2026.

Feature-by-feature comparison

See exactly how bavoli and Square for Restaurants compare across every feature.

FeaturebavoliSquare
Online Ordering
Online ordering
Pro+
Commission-free orders
Direct customer relationship
Menu management
Pickup orders
Delivery orders
Coming soon
Reservations
Online booking widget
White-label widget
Pro+
SMS confirmations
Email confirmations
No-show protection
Starter+
Card hold / deposits
Starter+
Guest Management
Guest CRM
Full data ownership
Guest tags & preferences
Starter+
Marketing automation
Starter+
Export guest data anytime
Operations
Floor plan management
Waitlist management
Analytics & reporting
POS integration
Coming soon
Multi-location support
Coming soon
AI & Automation
AI phone answering
Pro+
Automated reminders
Guest reactivation emails
Starter+
International SMS
Pro+
Digital menus
Pricing & Terms
No per-cover fees
No processing fees
Month-to-month billing
Free plan available
Transparent pricing

Why restaurants choose bavoli over Square for Restaurants

Square is a great POS. But if you need reservations, guest CRM, and online ordering in one place, bavoli does it all.

Reservations built in
Square does not include a reservation system. You need a separate tool for that. bavoli includes reservations, waitlist, and guest CRM in every plan.
AI phone answering included
bavoli includes an AI phone agent that answers calls, takes reservations, and handles common questions. No extra cost on Pro. Square does not offer this.
No processing fees on reservations
Square charges 2.6% + $0.10 on every transaction. bavoli charges a flat monthly rate for reservations with no per-transaction fees.
5-minute setup
No hardware to install. No POS system to configure. Sign up, set up your floor plan, and start taking reservations in minutes.
Full data ownership
bavoli gives you full access to your guest data, order history, and analytics. Export anytime. Your data is never locked in a POS ecosystem.
Built for independent restaurants
Square serves every type of business. bavoli is designed from the ground up specifically for independent restaurants that need reservations, ordering, and guest management.

The bottom line

Independent restaurants choose bavoli over Square for Restaurants for three simple reasons.

1

Platform for everything

Reservations, ordering, guest CRM, digital menus, and AI phone answering. All in one subscription.

100%

Your guest data

Full data ownership and export on every plan. Your guest data is never locked behind a POS ecosystem.

0

Contracts required

compare.square.bottomLine.contractsDesc

Looking for a Square for Restaurants alternative?

Square for Restaurants is a strong POS with built-in online ordering, but it does not include reservation management, a waitlist, or an AI phone agent. If your restaurant takes reservations, you need a separate platform on top of Square, which means paying for two systems and managing data across both.

bavoli is a full restaurant platform that includes online ordering, reservations, waitlist management, digital menus, a guest CRM, and an AI phone agent in one subscription starting at $50 per month. Customers pay a small order fee and the restaurant keeps 100% of menu prices. No POS hardware required.

If you use Square for payments and want a dedicated platform for everything else, bavoli works alongside any POS. You get one place for reservations, orders, and guest management without the complexity of stitching multiple tools together.

Still weighing options? Compare the best OpenTable alternatives for 2026, ranked with honest pros, cons, and exact pricing.

Switch to bavoli — import your data in minutes

Sign up for bavoli, set up your menu and floor plan, and start taking reservations and orders today. No POS required.

No credit card required. Free plan available forever.