Filter Orders by Category with Square KDS

Before you begin

Filtering orders by category on your kitchen display system (KDS) helps you route items and orders to specified KDS screens, increasing your team’s efficiency to prep orders faster with the relevant order information available for each kitchen station.

Filter by item categories

To use your account default item categories for filtering:

1. Log in to your Square Dashboard and go to Items & orders > Items.

2. Click Categories > Create category to enter category information your items.

3. Click Add items to assign items to the category. Click Save.

4. From your KDS, choose which categories you want to route to the KDS screen.

Filter by kitchen categories

Part 1: Enable kitchen categories

1. From your Square Dashboard go to Settings > Device management.

2. Click Kitchen settings > Kitchen routing.

3. Toggle on Use kitchen routing categories on KDS.

   • Note: This feature is only available on Android KDS and will not work on iOS KDS.

4. If you have not created kitchen categories, click Create new categories and assign items to your new kitchen category. You can revisit Kitchen routing settings at any time to rename or delete a kitchen routing category.

Part 2: Choose which categories will route to the KDS screen

1. On your Square KDS, go to Settings > Routing > Item & Categories.

2. Confirm you see the list of kitchen categories (if not visible, go back and check the Kitchen routing page on your Square Dashboard).

Next steps

Learn how to optimise order filtering from one of these Support Centre articles:

• Filter Orders by Dining Option with Square KDS

• Route orders to the kitchen with Square KDS and Square for Restaurants

• Troubleshoot missing orders with Square KDS