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Get Started with Square for Restaurants

Ready to set up your own restaurant point of sale with Square? Get started >

Square for Restaurants is our built-from-scratch platform designed specifically for restaurants. Whether you have a full service or a grab and go, Square for Restaurants is built for your front of house, back of house and office.

Square for Restaurants and Square Register

To get started for the first time with Square for Restaurants Free on Square Register, simply sign in using your email address and password or create a Restaurant device code from your online Square Dashboard. Then, sign in by tapping Device Code in the top corner of the Register screen. Then you can start taking payments.

If this is your first time using the Square Register and you’ve already completed setup, make sure to check for an update by tapping Utilities > Settings > General > About Register > Software Update.

Note: You can check for an update right away by tapping Check for Update. Square Register also automatically checks for an update every hour.

If you’ve already been accepting payments on Square Register using Square Point of Sale, simply sign out of each device. Next, sign in using your email address and password, and select Square for Restaurants. You can also create a Restaurants device code from your online Square Dashboard to sign in, and start taking payments.

Create Menus

Next, you can create menus for each location and service – add drinks, appetizers, entrees, item categories and inventory levels.

Set Up Team Members

Create profiles for each team member at your restaurant.

Connect Hardware

Once you download the Square for Restaurants App and receive your hardware, you can start setting up your restaurant’s kitchen and server stations.

Table and Floor Management

After you’ve set up your Square for Restaurants account, you’re ready to start seating tables and accepting payments.

  • Build Your Floor Plan: Map out your restaurant and customize the Restaurants App by creating a floor plan.

  • Accept Payments with Square for Restaurants: Process payments using compatible phones or any other payments types, split bills, accept tips and finalize bills.

  • Bill Management : View bill actions – including how to move, assign or void bills from the Restaurants App.

  • Coursing with Square for Restaurants: Set up multiple courses and choose to hold or create item categories.

  • Seat Tracking: Set and edit cover counts from Square Terminal as well as add items to a specific seat during order entry. These settings can be adjusted from your Dashboard Device Settings. You can assign a cover count to a table and a seat position to specific items at that table from any Square for Restaurants device. If there are any changes to the number of guests at a table, you can easily edit the number of seats on the open bill.

End of Day and Reporting

With Square for Restaurants, you’ll have access to a suite of reporting tools.

  • Customize Your Closing Procedures: Customizing your closing procedures is the best way to ensure your team members complete all of the necessary steps before ending their shifts or closing the restaurant.

  • Square for Restaurants Reports: Access in-app and online reports for a detailed breakdown of items and team members’ sales.

  • End of Day Reports: Run team member shift, close of day and cash drawer reports to close your restaurant.

  • Tip Out Team Members: Tip out employees for card tips from an open cash drawer or calculate tip pooling.

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