Best Online Ordering App for Restaurants, Compared

A guest wants to order your food on their phone. You have three ways to let them. This guide helps you pick the best online ordering app for restaurants like yours, one location with a menu and a pickup counter. We compare the three options by what you control, not by brand names.

We are a small app and web studio in San Antonio. We sell one of the three options, so we say where it does not fit.

What is the best online ordering app for restaurants with one location?

The best fit is the one that matches how your guests already find you. There is no single winner.

Here are the three options.

• A delivery marketplace. Guests find you inside someone else's app. You are listed next to every other restaurant nearby.
• Ordering on your own website. Guests order from a page you control. They find it by search or through your link.
• Your own app. Guests install it and order from an icon on their phone. This works best for regulars.

We think a small restaurant often needs more than one. A marketplace brings new faces. Your own channel keeps the regulars.

Which app is best for online food delivery?

A delivery marketplace is the usual answer. It already has drivers and a crowd of hungry users.

We do not rank marketplaces here. Their fees change, and we cannot source a current number for you. Ask each one for its fee in writing, per order and per month.

Our own app does not deliver. Kin App Pro handles order ahead and pickup paid in the app. If delivery is your main need, a marketplace is the honest answer.

What is the cheapest way to order food online for my restaurant?

Cheapest depends on how many orders you take. A fixed monthly price gets cheaper per order as orders grow. A fee on each order grows with every sale.

Use this table to compare any option. Fill in the blanks by asking each vendor.

Question to ask	Marketplace	Your website	Your own app
Who owns the guest list?	Ask	Ask	Ask
Is there a fee on every order?	Ask	Ask	Ask
What is the monthly price?	Ask	Ask	Ask
Is there a setup fee?	Ask	Ask	Ask
Is there a minimum term?	Ask	Ask	Ask
Who fixes it when it breaks?	Ask	Ask	Ask

Our own numbers are public. Kin App Pro is $399 a month plus $3,500 setup, with a 12 month minimum. For a site alone, a Core website for your restaurant is $79 a month plus $149 setup. Our restaurant website price breakdown lists what is in it.

A worked example (illustrative, not a real client)

These are assumptions, not data. Say a cafe takes 100 pickup orders a month. Say the average order is $30. That is $3,000 in monthly sales.

Kin App Pro at $399 a month is about 13% of $3,000. If the same cafe took 200 orders, the same $399 would be about 7% of $6,000. The monthly price does not move with orders. You also pay the $3,500 setup once.

A fee on every order works the other way. It stays the same share at any volume. Your own cafe's numbers will differ. Run the sum with your real order count.

Should a restaurant have its own ordering app or use a delivery app?

Use a delivery app to be found. Use your own app to be remembered.

A guest on a marketplace is the marketplace's guest first. A guest who installed your app chose you by name. They can also get a loyalty card and push notices from you.

Kin App Pro covers one location. A second location, or staff tools, makes it a Custom App, from $25,000 plus $450 a month care. If you run several locations, price that path first.

Kin App, at $199 a month plus $1,500 setup, has no ordering or pickup. It has a menu, hours, directions and a loyalty card. Pick it only if you want regulars to come back and do not need to take orders in the app.

If loyalty is the main goal, read our loyalty programs compared first.

What does a restaurant ordering app need to have?

A small restaurant needs six things. Copy this checklist.

1. A menu guests can read in seconds.
2. Pickup times that match your real kitchen.
3. Payment inside the order.
4. Your hours and directions.
5. A way to tell guests about specials.
6. Someone who fixes it when it breaks.

Kin App Pro includes the first five. It covers the sixth through the monthly price: hosting, every iOS release, bug fixes and two edit requests a month.

One more point on any own-app route. Apple reviews each app before it is listed. Read Apple's App Store Review Guidelines or ask your builder how they handle it. Ours is covered in the plan.

Our demos are for a coffee shop, multi-store retail, collectibles, and gym and fitness. Payments, orders and stock in them are simulated. We built them as spec builds, not for a client.

Do I need a website as well as an ordering app?

Yes, in most cases. A guest who hears your name searches it first. They want your hours, address and menu before they install anything.

Both Kin App plans include a Core website. You do not buy it twice. If you want a bigger site, Premium is $249 a month plus $299 setup, or +$150 a month in place of the included Core site.

FAQ

Can I use a marketplace and my own app together? Yes. Many owners do. Use the marketplace for delivery and the app for pickup regulars.

Does Kin App Pro handle delivery? No. It handles order ahead and pickup paid in the app.

Can I start with a website and add an app later? Yes. Core has no app, so you can move up when regulars ask for one.

Next step

Fill in the table above for two vendors this week. Then see the Kin App Pro plan next to the others. If one location and pickup is your case, it is a fit. If not, we will tell you.