What’s the Best POS System for Food Truck Vendors in 2024?

According to our thorough research and first-hand testing, Square is the best POS system for food trucks because of its iPad-friendly set-up, capable hospitality toolkit, and a free plan that lets mobile vendors sell without paying monthly fees. Its reliable 24/7 help center can provide a lifeline to vendors needing to resolve queries on the road too.

If your food truck is using a POS for the first time, or you require slightly more advanced capabilities, we’d recommend using Clover. The user-friendly system offers useful tools like QR payments, as well as a dedicated Quick Service package to help vendors serve faster – but its plans will set you back further than free systems like Square and SumUp.

We’ve tested and studied the best restaurant POS systems, keeping the food truck industry’s unique needs in mind, and identified the best on the market. We’ve listed all the pros, cons, and prices you need to help you make a decision — and we can even get your business a custom-fitted quote to get you the best deal once you do.

In this guide: 

• What Are the Best POS Systems for Food Trucks?
• How to Choose a POS System
• How We Evaluated Food Truck POS Systems
• Verdict: Which Food Truck POS Should You Choose?
• Frequently Asked Questions

What Are the Best POS Systems for Food Trucks?

Food truck service is usually a fast-paced affair – small teams of employees must take orders and collect payments quickly and efficiently to avoid causing long queues. If you own a food truck, you’ll need a speedy and reliable POS system that can help you keep a close eye on your stock levels while also providing a variety of different ways to take payments.

This sort of system will leave you with more time to focus on the most important thing: the quality of the food you’re serving. We’ve crunched the data to figure out which POS systems have the best features and pricing to support a food truck’s needs. Here’s our definitive list.

1. Square – Best food truck POS overall
2. Clover – Best for POS beginners
3. SumUp – Best for sales insights
4. Epos Now – Best for food truck chains
5. Zettle by PayPal – Best for budget-conscious food trucks

1. Square

• Best food truck POS overall
• Pricing from: Free (but transaction fees apply)

If you want a reliable way to manage orders and take payments while keeping costs low, using Square POS is a no-brainer. There’s a reason you see Square everywhere: The system is user-friendly, feature-rich, and lets you get started for absolutely free.

Free users can get selling with Square’s free card reader, and the provider’s hardware options – including its POS terminal and iPad stand Square Stand – lend themself perfectly to on-the-go sellers like food trucks too. If you sign up for its paid, you can also access 24/7 support to help you resolve issues on the go. Due to the unpredictability that comes with switching locations regularly, this selling point is pretty major.

Square POS features

If the price and round-the-clock support options aren’t enough for you, Square’s restaurant features may win you over. You’ll get easy menu management thanks to custom layouts and item grouping, which will help your food truck highlight top sellers

Other top features include a built-in self-serve QR code order functionality, offline mode, flexible payment processing that covers all major methods, and great kitchen management tools including prep time tracking and customer ticket timers. There’s an offline mode, too, all of which helps Square earn our recommendation as the best mobile POS system.

In fact, second to Toast, Square is the best POS for restaurants overall, due to its surprisingly capable feature offering and slick hardware.

Square’s simple interface made it easy for me to log customer orders quickly. Source: Tech.co user testing

Plus, you’ll have access to features you don’t need, including table management and integrations for pickup or delivery. These may prove useful if your food truck scales up into a permanent location.

If you can do without a POS terminal, Square’s tablet and smartphone app is user-friendly and responsive. It’s clearly popular with its users too, as it received an impressive score of 4.8/5 on the App Store (tying with our runner-up Clover). The provider’s new second-generation Square Stand for iPads is capable of working offline too, and can function without power by using the iPad’s battery. This will be an asset to food trucks that aren’t consistently connected to power.

Square’s app does lack advanced capabilities like granular stock tracking, however. So if your food truck product inventory is complex it may be worth opting for its Restaurant package ($69 per month), or POS alternatives like Clover or Epos Now, instead.

You can read more about the software in our full Square POS review.

Square’s POS Terminal lets you take payments and print receipts on the go. Source: Tech.co testing

Square’s interface has a lot of negative space and isn’t cluttered with features unlike rivals like Epos Now. As a result, Square’s learning curve is pretty low, which will be especially useful to food truck owners who are new to POS software. When we tested Square out, we were impressed with how easy it was to manage simple tasks like adding orders and editing table layouts. However, when it came to slightly more complex tasks like splitting payments, figuring it out wasn’t as easy as it was with alternatives like Clover.

We found some processes, like ringing up large orders, were slightly clunky with Square too. While this shouldn’t be an issue for the majority of food trucks, if your venture manages complex operations and serves high quantities of customers, you may be frustrated with these limitations.

Square POS pricing

Square’s transaction fees are a little higher than Zettle’s, on average. Here’s what you’ll pay:

• 2.6% + 10 cents of each card-based sale
• 3.5% + 15 cents for each keyed-in transaction
• 2.9% + 30 cents for online sales

Square also offers a premium plan for food businesses for $69 per month. For the extra price, you’ll benefit from additional features including advanced discounts, cash management, and the ability to open checks. You also get extra kitchen display features, including real-time order updates and ticket routing.

Learn more about how the provider could cost you in our Square POS pricing review.

Is Square POS right for your food truck?

Due to Square’s generous free plan, the provider will be an excellent option for new food truck owners who may have limited startup budgets. The provider’s fuss-free interface will also suit food trucks with relatively simple operations.

However, if you serve a high volume of customers, and are committed to minimizing wait times, we’d recommend Clover POS instead as we found its software was more intuitive and easy to get started on.

2. Clover

• Best for POS beginners
• Pricing from: $13 per month

Clover offers lots of excellent hospitality features, has a low learning curve, and delivers a consistently high customer experience, which is why we think its the best option for food trucks using a POS system for the first time.

The provider’s Quick Service package is specifically designed for businesses like food trucks too, with several useful ordering tools like omnichannel menu management, QR-code ordering, and item and order-level discounts all included.

Clover POS features

Clover delivers on the basics, with inventory and order management, custom item variants, offline mode, a selection of third-party integrations. Its low learning curve and intuitive software make it a great choice for food trucks using POS software for the first time, and its different plans allow businesses to select a package that suits their needs.

Clover reporting tools helped us track everything from sales to average ticket size. Source: Tech.co testing

Clover also has some of the best customer loyalty features in the game. Its in-house customer relationship management (CRM) system lets businesses customize offers, easily add customer information, and communicate with buyers directly. You don’t have to pay extra for these useful capabilities either – like you would need to for alternatives like Square and SumUp – making Clover a competitive choice for businesses looking to secure a loyal base without spending a ton.

Learn more about how our best food truck POS systems compare in our Square vs Clover comparison guide.

The Clover Customers page offers options to customize data. Source: Tech.co testing

Considering Clover’s stacked suite of features, one of our favorite things about the POS was how easy it was to use. After testing Clover out, our user testing team was really impressed with how intuitive its software was. They commented on the platform’s warmth and supportiveness and particularly enjoyed how easy it was to log orders quickly and analyze performance data.

However, they did mention that Clover’s set-up wasn’t as quick as rivals like Square, as the process took them a “bit of time”.

Clover POS pricing

While Clover’s professional services packages start from $14.95 per month, its entry-level food business package is $105 per month for a hardware and software bundle. This entry price isn’t super affordable for smaller vendors like food trucks, and lots of useful tools, like line busting, are reserved for even pricier tiers.

Clover does offer a smartphone and tablet app, Clover Go, for $199 up-front for its payments-only package, or $199 plus $14.95 per month for additional ordering and operational features.

Clover Go is the best POS app for iPads we’ve tested, due to its seamless payment integrations and excellent user experience. It does lack basic reporting features though, making it less suitable for food trucks focused on growing their business.

Clover was found to offer the best hardware options in our research, and its touchscreen terminal and iPad stand are ideal for food trucks. Source: Tech.co testing

Is Clover right for your food truck?

Clover will be a safe bet for food trucks managing high order volumes, due to its efficient order processing and payment handling capabilities. The provider will be a great option to vendors using POS software for the first time too, as it’s the most user-friendly system we tested.

Clover’s start-up fees are on the pricier side, however, so if you’re just starting out and are looking for rock bottom prices we’d recommend using Square or Zettle By PayPal instead.

3. SumUp

• Best POS for sales insights
• Pricing from: Free (but transaction fees apply)

SumUp is another POS system that lets you get started without any monthly costs. It offers a wide range of useful capabilities, like multi-location sales tracking, employee management, and item discounts. Similarly to Clover, the system has a particularly user-friendly backend, enabling servers to log through orders without delays.

SumUp POS features

SumUp’s smartphone and tablet app, SumUp: Payments and POS, makes it a safe bet for food trucks getting started with a more basic set up. The app lets you take payments, transfer the money to your bank account, and even track your sales data with useful reports. With POS app’s like Clover lacking basic reporting tools, this gives SumUp a leg up over the competition for food trucks serious about scaling their business.

It’s easy to carry out advanced functions on SumUps ordering screen, like splitting payments and adding modifiers. Source: Tech.co user testing

SumUp also has a reliable support centre that offers customers help through a variety of channels, including a live chatbot. However, for all of SumUp strengths, it wasn’t able to appear any higher on this list because it lacks a reliable offline mode – making it ill-suited to food trucks without a stable internet connection.

In terms of functionality, we found its back end to be really intuitive when we tested it out. One user tester praised it for being “really responsive” and “really easy to navigate”, particularly when it came to getting started and adding products. However, the feedback wasn’t all positive. Another tester criticized SumUp’s front end for looking dated and commented on poor syncretization with the back end.

Like Square, these issues shouldn’t be a deal-breaker for scaled-back operations. But if your food truck is established or expanding, SumUp’s shortcomings could slow down processes.

While SumUp lets you start selling for free, it charges 2.% + 10c per sale, which is the same as Square but slightly more than Zettle By PayPal. For what you get, we think this is still a very good deal, especially if you aren’t earning enough to cover monthly overheads.

SumUp EPOS card reader. Source: Tech.co

SumUp POS pricing

SumUp’s transaction fees are similar to Square. The POS charges you:

• 2.6% + 10 cents of each card-based sale
• 3.5% + 15 cents for each keyed-in transaction and online sales
• 2.9% + 15 cents for invoice payments

Is SumUp right for your food truck?

The POS system’s low price, impressive functionality, and streamlined mobile app will make it a reliable option for a wide range of food trucks. However, SumUps advanced reporting features, which let you measure a wide range of metrics, make the POS an especially great choice for businesses seriously increasing their sales volume.

Alternatively, if it’s ultra-low transaction fees you want, we’d recommend using Zettle By PayPal instead of SumUp. However, you’d have to make do without useful sales and reporting options, as Zettle by PayPal doesn’t offer these capabilities.

Check out our complete SumUp POS review for more information.

4. Epos Now

• Best for food truck chains
• Pricing from: $39 per terminal, per month

Epos Now is a retail and restaurant POS system with a decent toolkit and a level of customer satisfaction that rivals Square, which is why we think it’s a great option for mobile sellers like food trucks.

Epos Now POS features

Whether you’re after more of a modest iPad setup, or something a bit more capable, Epos Now’s flexible hardware offering will be able to meet your needs. What’s more, Epos Now offers multi-location management tools and several advanced restaurant features including rounding discounts and flexible payment options. This makes the POS system makes a cost-effective choice for a large or growing fleet of food trucks too.

The Epos Now countertop terminal offers solid functionality. Source: Tech.co’s user testing

Epos Now POS pricing

Price plans for Epos Now’s restaurant package start at $299 up-front, making the provider a good option for food trucks that want to minimize their monthly overheads. However, we understand not all food trucks have the privilege of covering the cost in one lump sum. So if you want to split the fee up into monthly payments you can also opt to pay $39 per month.

Epos Now lets you add tables to the floor plan and edit their size, shape, length and width. Source: Tech co user testing

Is Epos Now right for your food truck?

We also wouldn’t recommend EposNow for POS beginners, as our team of user testers didn’t find its software as easy to get the grips of as providers like Clover and Square. For any other mobile vendors, Epos Now’s flexible hardware options and feature-rich plans make it worth looking into, especially if you manage a fleet of trucks.

5. Zettle by PayPal

• Best for budget-conscious food trucks
• Pricing from: Free (but transaction fees apply)

From securing locations and obtaining permits to meeting customer demands, running a food truck requires you to wear many hats. Fortunately, Zettle by PayPal makes logging orders and taking payments as simple as possible, freeing up time for you or another member of staff to focus on other duties.

Zettle By PayPal features

When we tested Zettle, we found that the POS isn’t as feature-rich as many competitors, with the platform lacking floor planning and table service tools. However, Zettle does include some advanced capabilities like robust data tracking and employee management. What’s more, Zettle’s stripped-back feature set may be a setback for full-scale restaurants, it actually makes the POS more suitable for food truck owners who can do without tools like sales forecasting or delivery options.

While Zettle’s iPad ordering interface is clean and easy to navigate, the platform does lack some advanced features. Source: Tech.co user testing

Just like Square, Zettle achieved has a knowledge center and offers live support via email, phone, and chat. Other top features include no user limits, solid stock tracking tools, low-stock alerts, bulk menu updates, and more. Not bad for a free solution!

“It’s simple, it’s basic. It can keep track of your inventory, but I’m not too sure to what scale and how much information comes from it, so I think the reporting side is probably limited as well.” – A member of Tech.co’s testing team

Zettle POS’s user experience is undeniably slick. When we tested it out, we commended the POS for its modern front end, and how most features were able to be accessed from the system’s central ’till screen’. While Zettle’s simple interface and functionality may not be able to meet the needs of established hospitality businesses, it positions it well for most food trucks – especially if they’re managing relatively simple operations.

Zettle By PayPal pricing

While food trucks tend to have higher profit margins than restaurants, demand can vary tremendously — making it wise for owners to keep overheads as low as possible. If it’s a budget POS you’re after, Zettle takes the crown. Zettle’s one plan comes with no monthly fee and the transaction fees undercut Square POS’s similar pricing. Here’s what you’ll pay:

• 2.29% + 9 cents for each card-based sale
• 3.49% + 9 cents for each manual card entry transaction
• 2.29% + 9 cents for every QR transaction

Zettle sells card reading hardware as well: The first costs $29, though each additional reader will be $79. Food truck managers will appreciate the service’s payment processing, as it takes all major debit and credit cards, plus Apple, Android, and Google Pay.

Is Zettle right for your food truck?

Zettle’s free plan and competitive transaction fees make it a great option for new food trucks with smaller budgets.

Downsides include limited add-ons, a lack of loyalty and CRM tools, and no training mode option, as well as no offline mode, a potential concern for highly mobile food trucks. These drawbacks will make the POS unsuitable for food trucks that are regularly on-the-go, and vendors that are serious about expanding their customer base.

Read our full Zettle review for more information.

How to Choose a POS System

While the food truck industry is booming, mobile catering brings unique challenges, from high order volumes to storage limitations. Because of this, business owners need to opt for a POS system that saves time and maximizes efficiency, without bogging down vendors with unnecessary features.

Every business’s POS system needs will vary, so don’t take the one-size-fits-all approach. Instead, start with your business size, your budget, and any unique or essential features you need. For further research, read through our guide to POS system costs, to make sure that you know what price ranges to expect.

There are some important things to look out for when whittling down the options, though. Aside from the basics like stock tracking and marketing, here are a few factors you should bear in mind when you’re searching for a food truck POS:

• Remote menu updates — You’ll need to change orders or deals at any time. To make sure you’re able to do this on the road, it’s sensible to choose a system that offers remote update options. This will also be a huge asset to food truck fleets, as it lets managers update the menus on all of their trucks at the same time.
• Robust payment processing — You’ll need to accept cash, card, tips, refunds, and more. Finding a POS system with solid mobile payment options is important too, to make the buying experience as convenient as possible for your customers.
• Little upfront investment — Everyone wants to save money, and food trucks are no exception. However, if paying a slightly larger upfront fee will help you reduce costs in the future, it’s best to not rule it out completely.
• Flexibility — A business that’s always on the move needs software that’s easy to use. On top of this, you should make sure the POS offers portable hardware option that’s easy to transport when you’re on the road.

All the top POS systems we’ve reviewed for food trucks offer these core abilities. Read on to learn more about what dictates our product rankings.

How Did We Rank the Best POS Systems For Food Trucks?

We take our impartial research and analysis seriously, so you can have complete confidence that we’re giving you the clearest, most useful recommendations.

After conducting an initial exploration to identify the most relevant, popular, and established Point of Sale (POS) platforms on the market, we put them through their paces with hands-on testing to see their real strengths and weaknesses. Specifically, we grade them against six main criteria: hardware, software, help & support, customer satisfaction, pricing, and usability. 

We also consider factors that matter more to food truck owners, including the portability of hardware, quick service features, offline mode, and the presence and quality of smartphone and tablet apps. After we’ve made sure all bases have been covered, we give each POS system a score out of five in every research category, as well as an overall score, before using these scores to determine their final ranking order.

After hundreds of hours, our process is complete – and we hope our results will help you find the best solution for your business.

Learn more about our research.

Frequently Asked Questions