2021 POS Software Trends Report: Accelerating Innovation

If you’re looking for an extremely efficient way of describing the rapid evolution of restaurant technology in recent years, we suggest starting with three words: “point-of-sale.”

There was a time not too long ago when point-of-sale meant, quite literally, a place at which customers made a purchase. Fast forward to 2021, and that place can now be found in the cloud, on mobile devices, browser-based applications, voice-activated platforms—and whatever may be right around the corner (and you know it's coming).

A year ago, when HT published its 2020 POS Software Trends Report: Unlocking Agility, restaurant operators and solution providers were pushing POS software toward digital and online like never before, seeking to deliver convenience and efficiency to customers whether in the dining room or off-premises. The pandemic and economic downturn of the past year only accelerated that trend, of course, as restaurants scrambled to pivot to off-prem and meet customer demand for contactless transactions and efficiency, while ensuring as much ROI as possible.

Over the past few weeks, we polled restaurant operators to learn their top priorities for POS software investments and implementations in 2021, and we solicited new product information from top restaurant tech vendors. Bearing in mind that budgets and margins are tighter than ever, the results are enlightening, and even inspiring.

Read on for Hospitality Technology’s 2021 POS Software Trends Report: Accelerating Innovation.