8 Best Restaurant Online Ordering Systems to Drive Sales in 2025

Picking the right online ordering system can greatly impact your sales. Having online ordering is more important than ever. In one of our recent surveys, 77% of guests said they’re ordering as much or more than they did last year.

Sixty-four percent of guests also say online ordering is the most important feature of a restaurant website. So, having a good system in place can really boost your sales and keep your customers happy.

I've helped thousands of restaurants, so I know many online ordering systems are available. They all have different prices, marketing tools and extras. And, as you know, this can make picking the right one tricky.

That experience also means I know a thing or two about online orders. In this guide, I’ll help you pick a system based on your own unique goals like loyalty programs, reduced fees or a streamlined website.

Online ordering systems overview

I've created a chart that quickly compares our favorite ordering systems. We've listed them by available features to help narrow down your choices:

One important thing to note in this chart is that onsite online ordering (OLO) means the platform doesn’t send your guests offsite to finish orders, which is crucial for your restaurant’s SEO. Google hates offsite ordering because it disrupts the user experience, and it almost always hurts your rankings.

1. Owner.com for increasing sales

Our top goal is to help your restaurant get more online orders with a great website and smart marketing.

If you’re already making good money with delivery apps, Owner.com can help you save on those app fees. We do this by encouraging customers to order straight from your website instead of using other apps.

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Along with helping you make more money on each order, we built our products to get more people who visit your website to place an order. Our online ordering system works as well as any third-party app. But, without the extra fees. It also gets 2 to 4 times more orders than the average restaurant website. And, your profit margins also benefit. 

How do we do it? We bake in high-value features to turn your website into a direct order machine. And, our latest data shows that 87% of guests say they’re more likely to reorder if you provide a great online experience.

Our website designs, custom mobile app and automated marketing all work together to:

• Help get more orders by showing popular items. Our tool makes it easy for customers to add them to their cart, so they’re more likely to complete their order.
• Increase the amount people spend. This is done by suggesting items that go well together. Also, it gives them extra recommendations at checkout to grow their cart and your profits.
• Save on commission fees by reducing what customers pay in fees, allowing you to keep more of your profit instead of paying high fees to third-party apps.

These strategies worked wonders for Timirie Shibley, owner of Doo-Dah Diner, who said:

“We’ve more than doubled our direct online sales since starting. I didn’t think having our own app would work, but our regulars love it and use it constantly.”

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Key features:

• Online ordering and delivery. Get more direct orders with features like item suggestions and pre-checkout recommendations. This can help increase order sizes.
• Sales-focused website builder. Create a website that attracts new customers through Google. This includes features like social proof and online ordering to boost new orders.
• Branded mobile app: Offer your own mobile app to turn new customers into regulars. We do this with loyalty points, special offers and easy ordering on the go.‍
• Automated marketing: Gather customer data, automatically send deals and run text and email campaigns. This helps keep customers coming back.

Real customer reviews for Owner.com

Restaurant owners like:

“Our customers are ordering and using online more and more. It's easy, and we have the opportunity to provide great promotions.”

Restaurant owners want to see:

“I think there are a few features that need to be added, but I think that's the beauty of this … they actually want my feedback on what to add and have already added things that we needed.”

2. Toast for POS users

Toast POS is a restaurant management system that extends its capabilities to a powerful online ordering system. 

If you already use its POS system and increasing online sales isn’t your main goal, Toast is a great choice. Especially if you’re already well-established with a large local fan base or you prioritize dine-in over takeout services. 

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‍Toast is an all-in-one solution that combines point of sale, online ordering and delivery management for a seamless experience that benefits your restaurant operators and customers.

Key features:

• Tableside ordering and checkout: Toast POS offers mobile ordering and payment processing at the table. However, payment processing is unavailable offline, which could limit your business if you experience unreliable internet connections.
• Online ordering and delivery: The system enables online orders and real-time delivery tracking for restaurants without their own delivery drivers. Access to online ordering requires a subscription to one of the larger paid plans.‍
• Analytics: From sales to labor and inventory, Toast offers restaurant owners notification updates to keep operations tightly managed so you stay on budget and well-stocked.

Real customer reviews for Toast

Online ordering isn’t Toast’s focus, and there aren’t a lot of customer reviews that specifically mention these features. Toast does integrate with other online ordering systems like Owner.com, so you can mix-and-match providers to find the perfect fit.

However, many owners seem to agree that the system is user friendly with a robust selection of additional features once it’s up and running, but set up and customer service support leave something to be desired. 

Restaurant owners like:

“The whole package is easy to use and provides a huge amount of valuable information. It also helps build sales with ordering and marketing options (some of which are at additional cost).”

Restaurant owners want to see:

“The initial installation required us to do a great deal of the set-up work, which required outside technical help. It also would have been nice to have someone present for an extra day or two to help with errors and changes. I am interested in rolling out Toast Order and Pay, but Toast can't locate a similar restaurant for me to model, which is causing delays in using this feature.”

3. BentoBox for upscale restaurants

BentoBox is a restaurant marketing platform that prioritizes design and aesthetics in their restaurant websites. I sometimes recommend this solution for upscale and dine-in restaurants if the owner’s top priority is great design.

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However, it doesn’t have all the marketing bells and whistles that more casual restaurants benefit from. Some BentoBox customers partner with other providers like Toast for their online ordering instead, so they still receive high-value features like loyalty programs and mobile apps to help increase their sales volume.

‍Key features:

• Simple integration: The online ordering experience extends the restaurant's brand, offering a consistent look and feel that matches the in-person dining experience. It's designed to be mobile-friendly, allowing customers to order conveniently from any device, and it centralizes orders through one unified URL for multi-location restaurants.
• Sales and inventory management: The platform allows for real-time inventory updates, lets guests know about item availability on your online menu and streamlines the checkout process with various payment options. Restaurants can also drive sales by creating promo codes and loyalty programs.‍
• Marketing automation: Comes with built-in marketing tools, including direct integrations with social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook, email marketing campaigns and feedback collection through SMS and email, all manageable through free social media templates.

Real customer reviews for BentoBox

Restaurant owners like:

“The websites look great, the content is easy to update, and when we have something to say, we're able to say it directly to our audience.”

Restaurant owners want to see:

“I don't think the navigation tools behind the scenes are particularly intuitive. I often feel like I'm digging around for the right box.”

4. Popmenu for dine-in concepts

Popmenu is another platform that gives you a lot of control over your online ordering process and digital presence, but its focus is on website design over conversion. 

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You can manage direct orders from initial customer interactions to the final sale, but you won’t get a mobile app, which is a key driver for sales and customer convenience today.

Key features:

• Direct engagement: Build your website for customers to place orders and keep your online ordering experience in-house.
• Efficiency and integration: Popmenu connects with existing POS systems and simplifies marketing with tools that sync with your online ordering page. It also offers analytics for smarter decision-making.‍
• Simplified operations: Easily create special menus for events and promotions, encouraging larger orders and repeat business.

Real customer reviews for Popmenu

Popmenu doesn’t have many online reviews available, so we can’t provide a breakdown by category (ease of use, value, etc.). Since there isn’t a lot of social proof available, we recommend a free trial before committing to the full product. 

Restaurant owners like:

“Great customer service, frequently adding new features to make our job easier, pretty user-friendly. Great website design. Etc.” - Popmenu

Restaurant owners want to see:

“On top of the high cost for Popmenu's platform, they will charge an additional $1 for every order placed on their online ordering platform. This $1 fee was not made clear to us during the sales pitch, and their suggestions were to eat the cost myself or pass it on to the customer.”

5. Square Online for current Square POS users

Many restaurant POS services have also built online ordering systems (like Toast), so you can keep more of your restaurant management services with one vendor. It’s super convenient for operations, and your team won’t have to learn multiple systems.

Square Online has great integrations and a mix of valuable online ordering features, including personalized recommendations to encourage reorders and mobile ordering pages that act as a personalized mobile app. 

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Square also integrates with Owner.com and other external products, so if you don’t love the Square Online system, you can keep the POS and find a new online ordering solution.

Key features:

• Online and in-person ordering: Square supports takeout, delivery and in-house QR orders for a consistent and convenient ordering experience for all customers.
• Social media orders: Customers can order from Instagram, Facebook and Google, so you can attract customers and encourage new orders with convenient online ordering that doesn’t bounce users from page to page. ‍
• Loyalty programs and marketing: Square Loyalty rewards repeat customers to promote regular visits and increase your sales, while Square Marketing uses email and text marketing to offer special discounts to customers and drive new sales.

Real customer reviews for Square Online

Restaurant owners like:

“The POS, mobile and website are a GREAT value for the cost. I also love that the software is continually improved upon to make the systems even more seamless.”

Restaurant owners want to see:

“At times, for me, it is really not user-friendly. Instructions on “how to” aren’t smooth and are complicated.”

6. ChowNow for increasing your customer reach

ChowNow is a full-service online ordering platform with delivery built-in and marketing services to keep customers coming back. You get all the good stuff, including a mobile app, automated email marketing and other tools beyond the online menu and ordering software itself (depending on your subscription). 

The ChowNow marketplace works like other delivery apps and allows users to browse restaurants near you available for ChowNow orders. 

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The service also automatically connects your menu to high-traffic sites like Google and Yelp to make ordering easier. See how ChowNow stacks up to Owner.com and other providers before committing to a contract.

Key features:

• ChowNow Marketplace: An app that promotes ChowNow partner restaurants on a local map to reach existing ChowNow customers—similar to browsing restaurants on Uber Eats. 
• Menu integration on valuable sites: Connect your digital menu to existing high-traffic sites like Google, Yelp and mobile map apps to reach more customers and increase sales. This includes automatic price changes to accommodate fees.‍
• Smart delivery: Offers a flexible delivery zone to adjust for high-traffic times, and smart delivery automatically chooses the highest-rated delivery provider and driver at no extra cost.

Real customer reviews for ChowNow

Restaurant owners like:

“The menu was easy to customize. It was easy to take items off the menu temporarily when we ran out of items. We liked getting orders via Google and we would not have gotten this business if we hadn't been using ChowNow.”

Restaurant owners want to see:

“Lack of updates. Lack of new features. The online portal has said ‘try our new dashboard’ coming soon for about 3 years. Still can not get basic sales reporting about items or categories. Customer service is a bit rough as well. Not all calls will end with your issue being resolved without having to talk to another person first.”

7. Menufy for new restaurants

If you’re new to the online ordering biz, Menufy offers a free online ordering solution so you can try out the software before committing to a contract or recurring cost. Though, it’s not exactly fee-free. 

Instead of paying a monthly cost or order commission, your customers are charged $1.75 per order. You’re also responsible for a 2.75% + $0.30 processing charge for online payments and a 12.5% service fee if you opt into the premium food delivery add-on. 

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While you can technically get around the fees with in-store payments and takeout-only ordering, you’re better off finding a commission-free alternative. 

Still, this system allows your customers to place pickup and delivery orders directly from your website, as well as the Menufy site and mobile app.

You can compare our features with Menufy here.

Key features:

• Easy integration: Menufy is designed to work with your existing site, which reduces setup time.
• Custom restaurant website: Menufy can help you build a custom restaurant website. However, the website design is simple, with a single ‘order now’ button leading to a different platform. They don’t offer a branded mobile ordering app for your restaurant.‍
• Repeat business: Menufy offers a loyal program called Tasty Rewards and has a text and email marketing platform.

Real customer reviews for Menufy

Menufy doesn’t currently have any third-party ratings from Capterra or similar sites. Instead, check out some user comments from web sources below. 

Restaurant owners like:

“We have enjoyed everything about partnering with Menufy. We spend so much less time answering the phone. Our customers love the convenience of being able to order and pay online, and especially the option of being able to have food delivered!” - Menufy

Restaurant owners want to see:

“Menufy.com ripped me off! I placed an order online for a meal at a restaurant new to me. Menufy.com charged me $41.97 (plus sales tax and "service charge") for what would have cost only $25.50 (plus tax) had I ordered directly from the restaurant.” - Better Business Bureau 

8. Uber Eats, Doordash and Grubhub Storefronts for getting discovered

Many restaurants already have accounts with Uber Eats, Doordash and other third-party delivery apps. These are super convenient because your customers have the apps on their phones, and each platform has a marketplace to highlight restaurants they partner with. 

But did you know they have direct online ordering services, too?

Uber Direct, DoorDash Storefront and Grubhub Direct all provide custom online ordering sites connected to their delivery network so you get the best of both worlds—easy online ordering and a custom branded experience that builds your reputation.

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These are zero-commission services, so the companies (theoretically) won’t take as much of your profits as their apps do. But, they still need to make money, so they charge:

• Monthly flat-rate fees
• Per-order charges
• Payment processing fees
• Service and delivery charges for your customers 

So, third-party direct orders can be more expensive (especially for customers) than using the app in the first place. 

You also miss out on a lot of the marketing features that other online ordering systems provide built-in or as an add-on service. Unlike alternatives, DoorDash and Uber Eats customers are responsible for building and maintaining their primary website and marketing.

Key features:

• Convenient customer access: Your customers are already on these platforms, so it’s an easy way to help customers find you and boost online orders while also promoting your brand with a custom storefront.
• Built-in driver network: Third-party apps provide their own drivers, so you don’t have to worry about in-house hiring. That said, most other online ordering platforms partner with these networks, so you don’t have to hire anyway. ‍
• 24/7 customer service: Because these apps are so large and widespread, they have robust customer support available 24/7 through chat, phone and email. There’s also a wealth of resources to support your restaurant’s account.

Real customer reviews for third-party apps

Restaurant owners like:

“The most impactful thing is being able to expand our company and reach more customers whenever they need their smoothie fix.”  - for DoorDash

Restaurant owners want to see:

“Their app is slow to respond to commands, which becomes a big disadvantage when working at the counter of a busy restaurant - you need those fractional bits of time to attend to other priorities.GrubHub seemed to ignore the time we told their app that we could have an order ready to be picked up. We tell them it'll take a half hour, but the driver arrives in 10 minutes.” - for Grubhub

“Having to navigate through the Merchant Portal to find pertinent information.” - for DoorDash

Which system is right for your restaurant?

It’s important to choose the best online ordering partner based on your restaurant’s goals. 

For most owners, direct takeout and delivery orders are a must, but many of these providers also pack impressive features and add-ons into their subscriptions to support your sales goals and other restaurant needs. 

Here’s a recap of why I like each service:

• Owner.com specializes in conversion-focused websites and marketing features to increase your online sales. 
• Toast and Square are ideal for restaurants that already use their POS solutions.
• BentoBox and Popmenu offer custom website designs that are great for dine-in restaurants, with BentoBox leaning into upscale designs. 
• ChowNow is an all-in-one alternative that includes access to a user marketplace to expand your reach to new customers. 
• Menufy and Cloudwaitress are pretty basic and best suited for restaurants new to online ordering. 
• Direct storefronts with third-party apps allow you to tap into each platform’s existing customer base without third-party commissions (though they still get expensive). 

Drive more sales with online ordering

If increasing direct online ordering is your top priority, get a demo of Owner.com to see how we work with restaurant owners to increase their direct online orders.

Direct online ordering can significantly increase your profit from takeout and delivery orders with zero commission fees and sales-focused features, like automated marketing and loyalty programs, to increase order volume and ticket sizes. 

Choosing the best online ordering system for your restaurant is a big decision, and I recommend you get demos with several platforms to figure out the best fit.

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