Restaurant Booking System Pricing Compared (2026)

Restaurant booking systems in 2026 range from free to custom-quoted enterprise plans, and the biggest cost difference is flat-fee versus per-cover pricing. Published prices are shown as verified. Vendors without public prices are marked “quote required” instead of assigned an estimate.

Restaurant booking system pricing at a glance (2026)

Platform	Pricing model	Entry price	Per-cover / commission	Free tier
Resos	Flat subscription	Free, then $47-149/mo regular price	None	Yes (25 bookings/mo)
Tablein	Flat subscription	From €67/mo (50 bookings)	None	No (trial only)
Zenchef	Flat subscription	€69/mo	None	Trial only
Resy	Flat subscription	$249/mo	None	No
ResDiary	Quote-based	Quote required	None on direct bookings	Trial only
Tock	Subscription + prepayment fee on two plans	$249-399/mo	3% on Essential, 2% on Premium prepayments	No
OpenTable	Subscription + per-cover	$149/mo	$0.25-$1.50/cover	No
TheFork	Subscription + commission	Quote required	Marketplace fee applies	Trial only
CoverManager	Quote-based	Quote required	Contract-dependent	Trial only
SevenRooms	Enterprise / custom	Quote required	None stated	No
Quandoo	Shutting down 2026	(historical ~€29 + fees)	Per-cover	Closing

Resy and Tock facts were verified August 11, 2026 against their official plan pages. Other figures retain the verification dates in their linked pricing breakdowns. Quote-based vendors are not estimated.

The two pricing models, and why it matters

Almost every cost difference above comes down to one choice:

Flat-fee (commission-free). You pay a fixed monthly subscription and keep every booking. Cost is predictable and does not rise with volume. Resos, Resy, Zenchef, Tablein, ResDiary, and SevenRooms work this way. The more covers you do, the better flat-fee looks.

Per-cover (marketplace). You pay a subscription plus a fee for every guest, usually higher for diners who come through the platform’s network. OpenTable, TheFork, and (until it closes) Quandoo work this way. The model can pay off only if the network brings genuinely new diners; otherwise the per-cover fee is overhead that grows as you get busier.

Resy and Tock now share four plans. Platform and Platform 360 use flat subscriptions. Essential and Premium add a 3% or 2% fee on prepayments, plus standard payment processing.

What you actually pay at 500 covers/month

The flat-vs-per-cover gap is clearest at volume. A restaurant doing 500 network-equivalent covers a month:

Platform	Monthly total	Annual
Resos (free tier to Unlimited)	$0-149	$0-1,788
Resy Platform	$249	$2,988
OpenTable Basic	~$899	~$10,788

At this volume a per-cover platform can cost 5-10x a flat-fee one for the same core reservation features. Model your own numbers with our cover fee calculator.

Which model fits your restaurant

Most independents and groups that drive their own bookings: a flat-fee, commission-free system is cheapest and most predictable. Start with the best commission-free booking systems.
Discovery-dependent venues in strong OpenTable/TheFork markets: a marketplace can be worth the per-cover fee if you can document it brings new covers.
Fine dining on tasting menus or ticketed events: Tock’s prepaid model suits you, fees and all.
Large multi-location groups needing advanced CRM: SevenRooms’ enterprise pricing may be justified.

The cheapest model, done right

Resos is flat-fee and commission-free with a permanent free tier. Regular paid US plans start at $47/month, with a temporary 50% discount for the first three months.

Try Resos free

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a restaurant booking system cost in 2026?

It ranges from free to custom-quoted enterprise pricing, depending on the model. Published flat-fee plans in this comparison run from Resos Free to $399 per month for the highest published Resy and Tock plans. Marketplace platforms can add per-cover fees on top of a subscription. Vendors without public prices are listed as quote required rather than estimated.

Which restaurant booking system is cheapest?

Resos is the cheapest with a permanent free tier for up to 25 bookings per month. Regular paid US plans start at $47 per month, with a temporary 50% discount for the first three months. For unlimited volume with no commission, Resos is $149 per month before temporary discounts.

Which booking systems have no per-cover fees?

Resos, Resy, Tock, Zenchef, Tablein, and SevenRooms state that they do not charge per-cover commission. Resy's and Tock's Essential and Premium plans instead add a 3% or 2% fee on prepayments. Marketplace-origin bookings can carry separate fees on platforms such as OpenTable and TheFork.

Is flat-fee or per-cover pricing better for restaurants?

Flat-fee pricing is cheaper and more predictable for restaurants that drive their own bookings, because the cost does not rise with volume. Per-cover (marketplace) pricing can be worth it only if the platform's network genuinely brings new diners you would not otherwise reach. The more covers you do, the more per-cover fees favor switching to a flat fee.

Which booking platforms are shutting down or changing?

Quandoo is shutting down: new bookings end September 30, 2026 and the platform closes December 31, 2026, so restaurants on it need to migrate. Zenchef is the merged entity of Zenchef, Formitable, and Resengo. Always confirm current pricing directly with each vendor, as plans and fees change.

Detailed pricing breakdowns

Per-platform pages with plans, fees, and worked examples: Also see our 2026 pricing transparency benchmark, which measures how many platforms publish a price at all.

OpenTable · Resy · Tock · SevenRooms · TheFork · ResDiary · Zenchef · Tablein · CoverManager · Quandoo

Sources

Resy plans and pricing (verified August 11, 2026)
Tock plans and pricing (verified August 11, 2026)
Other platforms use the official sources and verification dates in the linked pricing breakdowns. Quote-based vendors are not assigned estimated prices.