Cost Guide

How Much Does It Cost to Build a Restaurant Ordering System?

A custom restaurant ordering system — menu management, real-time order flow, kitchen display, and payment — runs €4,500–15,000 with a senior developer. Agencies charge €25,000–70,000. Third-party delivery apps take 20–30% per order; a custom system pays for itself within months for most restaurants.

Last updated: April 2026

Cost comparison
Agency

€25k€70k

EUR typical range

Timeline: 822 weeks

Senior Freelancer

€8k€27k

EUR typical range

Timeline: 514 weeks

Senior quality · Balkans ratesDusko Licanin

€5k€15k

EUR typical range

Timeline: 410 weeks

What's included in base scope
  • 01Customer-facing menu and ordering UI (web or QR code)
  • 02Real-time order dashboard for kitchen staff
  • 03Stripe or card payment processing
  • 04Order history and basic sales reporting
  • 05Menu management admin panel
What drives the cost
  • Real-time order management — sub-second delivery from customer checkout to kitchen display
  • Menu complexity — modifiers, combos, time-of-day availability, and allergen flags
  • Table or QR flow — dine-in QR codes, table assignment, and split billing
  • Printer and KDS integration — connecting to thermal receipt printers or kitchen display systems
What's not in base scope
  • Delivery logistics and driver management
  • Loyalty or rewards programme
  • Reservation system (separate scope)
  • Multi-branch centralised management
Related
Common questions

How much does it cost to build a Restaurant Ordering System?

A Restaurant Ordering System costs €5k€15k with a senior solo developer. Agencies typically quote €25k€70k for equivalent scope. The gap is overhead, not quality.

How long does it take to build a Restaurant Ordering System?

A Restaurant Ordering System takes 410 weeks with a senior solo developer using AI-augmented workflows. Agency timelines run longer due to discovery phases, hand-offs, and approval gates.

What is included in a Restaurant Ordering System build?

  • Customer-facing menu and ordering UI (web or QR code)
  • Real-time order dashboard for kitchen staff
  • Stripe or card payment processing
  • Order history and basic sales reporting

What factors drive Restaurant Ordering System development cost?

  • 01Real-time order management — sub-second delivery from customer checkout to kitchen display
  • 02Menu complexity — modifiers, combos, time-of-day availability, and allergen flags
  • 03Table or QR flow — dine-in QR codes, table assignment, and split billing
Working with Dusko

Pizzeria Bestek — live at pizzeriabestek.com — is a full ordering system I built with real-time Supabase subscriptions, Stripe payments, and a kitchen dashboard. The exact stack I'd use again.