How to Choose a POS System for Your Restaurant in Pakistan

Most restaurant owners in Pakistan start with a register, a pad of kachi parchi and a cash drawer. That works for a while. Then the place gets busy, a second waiter joins, takeaway orders start coming in on the phone, and suddenly nobody is sure whether table 6 paid for the extra naan.

That is usually the moment people start searching for restaurant POS software. The problem is that every vendor says their system is the best, and the demos all look the same. This guide is meant to help you cut through that. It explains what a POS does, the main types you will see in Pakistan, what they really cost, and the questions to ask before you hand over any money.

We make a restaurant POS ourselves, so we have a point of view. We have tried to keep this guide useful even if you end up choosing someone else.

What is a restaurant POS?

People also call it restaurant billing software, a billing machine or simply "the system". The name matters less than what it does. At minimum, a POS system for restaurants in Pakistan should let you:

• Take an order against a table, a takeaway token or a delivery.
• Send that order to the kitchen as a kitchen order ticket (KOT), so the cook works from the same order the customer gave.
• Produce an accurate bill with discounts, service charges and modifiers (extra raita, less spicy, no onion) already included.
• Record how the customer paid: cash, card, JazzCash, Easypaisa or bank transfer.
• Give you a closing report at the end of the day that matches what is in the galla.

Do I need a POS system for my restaurant?

Not every place needs one on day one. A small chai point with five items and one person at the counter can run fine on a notebook and a calculator for a long time.

You probably do need one when any of these start happening:

• You have more than one person taking orders, and orders get lost or cooked twice.
• Your cash count at night rarely matches what you think you sold.
• Customers pay in different ways and you cannot tell how much came in on JazzCash versus cash.
• You are not always at the restaurant and want to know what happened without calling the manager.
• Busy periods like the Ramadan iftar rush, Friday nights or wedding season leave the kitchen confused about which order is whose.
• You have opened, or are planning, a second branch.

If two or more of those sound familiar, the time you lose to mistakes is probably costing more than a basic system would. If you want to see where billing errors typically creep in, our guide on how to reduce billing mistakes in a café or restaurant goes through them one by one.

Phone-based POS vs PC-based POS vs cash register: which fits you?

In Pakistan you will mostly come across three kinds of setup. Each one has a place. The right choice depends on the size of your restaurant, your budget and how much you want to depend on a single machine at the counter.

A phone-based POS makes the most sense for most small and mid-sized restaurants because the expensive part, the device, is already in everyone's pocket. A PC-based setup can still be a good fit if you have a large fixed counter and someone to look after the computer. A manual register is cheap, but it gives you almost no protection against mistakes or missing cash.

How to choose a restaurant POS in Pakistan: a 10-point checklist

Take this list into every demo. If a vendor cannot answer a point clearly, write that down too.

1. It works without internet. Internet drops are normal, especially during load-shedding when routers go off. Ask the vendor to switch off Wi-Fi in the demo and take an order. It should keep billing and sync later.
2. It runs on hardware you can actually replace. If a special terminal breaks, how long until you get another one? With an Android-based system, any phone from the market can step in.
3. Waiters can take orders at the table. Walking back to the counter for every order slows service. Check that waiters can use their own phones and that each has a separate login.
4. Kitchen tickets are clear. The KOT should show the table, items, quantities and modifiers in large text. Ask whether it prints on Bluetooth or network thermal printers and whether a screen can be used instead.
5. Modifiers are easy. "Half karahi, less oil, extra green chilli" should take a few taps, not a typed note the cook has to decode.
6. Bills can be split, merged and moved. Groups, families and office lunches all ask for this. Ask the vendor to split one table's bill three ways in front of you.
7. Voids and discounts are controlled. Look for staff PINs, owner approval for voids and large discounts, and a record of who did what.
8. Every payment method is tracked separately. Cash, card, JazzCash, Easypaisa and bank transfer should each have their own total, so your closing report matches the galla and your wallet statements.
9. Reports reach you, not just the counter. A nightly closing summary on WhatsApp, low-stock alerts and an Excel export save you from standing over the counter every night.
10. Language, support and pricing are clear. Can your staff use it in Urdu? Who do you call at 10 pm on a Saturday? Is the price written down, including what happens when you add phones or a branch?

How much does a restaurant POS cost in Pakistan?

There is no single price, because you are really paying for two things: the hardware and the software. Vendors package these very differently, so it helps to compare them separately.

Hardware

With a PC-based system, hardware is usually the biggest cost: a computer or all-in-one terminal, a receipt printer, a cash drawer, and often a UPS so the counter survives load-shedding. Extra tablets for waiters add more.

With a phone-based system, you can often start with phones you already have. The main purchase is a thermal printer for receipts and kitchen tickets, and many restaurants add a second one for the kitchen. An old phone or a spare TV can work as a kitchen screen instead of a printer. Prices for printers and phones change often, so get a current quote from a local supplier rather than trusting a number in an old blog post.

Software

Software is sold in two main ways. Some vendors charge a one-time licence fee, sometimes with a yearly maintenance charge on top. Others charge a monthly or yearly subscription that includes updates and support. A subscription spreads the cost out and usually means you get fixes and new features without paying again. A one-time licence can look cheaper over many years, but ask what happens when you need an update or the person who installed it is no longer around.

For reference, here is how Egalla prices its restaurant POS system. You can see the full details on our restaurant POS prices page.

Paying yearly works out to roughly two months free, and every paid plan comes with a 14-day free trial, so you can run it through a real weekend before deciding.

Costs people forget

• Paper rolls for thermal printers. They are cheap, but you go through them quickly in a busy month.
• Installation or training charges, if the vendor sends someone.
• Fees for adding a device, a user or a branch later.
• Annual maintenance or support contracts on one-time licences.
• The cost of downtime. A system that stops when the internet or power goes off can cost more in lost orders than the software itself.

Do I need POS tax integration with FBR, PRA, SRB or KPRA?

This is one of the most common questions we hear, and the honest answer is: it depends on where you are, what kind of restaurant you run and the rules in force at the time. Federal and provincial tax authorities in Pakistan have their own requirements for some restaurants, and those requirements change.

Before you buy any system, check directly with the authority that covers your business:

• The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for federal sales tax and income tax matters.
• The Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) if you operate in Punjab.
• The Sindh Revenue Board (SRB) if you operate in Sindh.
• The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Revenue Authority (KPRA) if you operate in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
• The Balochistan Revenue Authority if you operate in Balochistan.

Your tax adviser or accountant is the best person to confirm whether your restaurant needs an integrated invoicing system. Once you know, ask every POS vendor a direct question: "Do you support the integration my authority requires for my business, yes or no?" Get the answer in writing. This guide does not give tax advice, and you should not rely on any salesperson's general statement either.

What should I ask in a POS demo?

Beyond the checklist, these questions tend to reveal how a system and its company behave once you are a paying customer:

• What happens to my data if I stop paying? Can I export my sales to Excel first?
• If a waiter's phone is lost or stolen, can I block that login straight away?
• How do I see sales from home? Do I need to open an app, or does a report come to me?
• How long does setup take for a menu of about 80 items?
• Can I try it for two weeks in my own restaurant, with my own menu, before paying?
• Who answers support, in which language, and at what times?

If you would like to ask us these questions, you can book a free demo and we will walk through them with your own menu.

Common mistakes when buying restaurant billing software

• Buying for features you will never use. A long feature list looks impressive, but if your staff only use five buttons, those five need to be fast and clear.
• Skipping the busy-hour test. A system that is fine at 3 pm can fall apart at 9 pm on a Saturday. Use your trial over a weekend.
• Not involving the staff. The waiters and the cashier will use it far more than you. Let them try it before you decide.
• Ignoring power and internet. If your area has regular load-shedding, a system that needs a desktop PC and a constant connection will keep you on the generator.
• Not asking about tax requirements. Check with your authority first, as explained above, so you do not have to switch systems later.

Where Egalla fits

Egalla is a phone-based restaurant POS built for how restaurants in Pakistan actually run. It works on any Android phone, so waiters take table orders on their own phones and kitchen tickets print on Bluetooth or network thermal printers. A spare phone or TV can work as a kitchen screen.

It handles modifiers, split, merge and transfer bills, and takeaway token numbers. Each waiter has their own account, voids are tracked, and staff PINs mean voids and big discounts need owner approval. Cash, card, JazzCash, Easypaisa and bank transfer are tracked separately. Customers can get receipts on WhatsApp, and you get a closing report on WhatsApp every night.

It keeps working offline and syncs when the internet comes back, works in Urdu and English, and gives you low-stock alerts, daily reports and Excel export. It is not the only good option, but if the checklist above matches what you need, it is worth a 14-day trial.