Apicbase vs Fourth

Apicbase is a cloud back-of-house platform for large multi-site foodservice businesses. Fourth is a cloud suite for restaurant and hospitality operators covering workforce management, inventory and purchasing, payroll and HR, and analytics. Both are listed under Multi-Unit & Enterprise Restaurant Operations. They differ in audience, countries covered and integrations.

Key differences

  • audience

    Audience differs between the profiles. Listed by one product alone: Apicbase: Multi-unit restaurant groups; Fourth: Multi-location restaurant operators.

  • countries covered

    On geography, Apicbase names 5 countries and Fourth names 4 countries. 2 countries appear in every list.

  • integrations

    The integration lists differ. Apicbase names 21 integrations and Fourth names 25 integrations. 4 partners appear in every list.

  • security and compliance

    The security and compliance details they list differ. Apicbase: GDPR, SOC 2 Type 2; Fourth: ISO 9001.

  • company background

    Apicbase is based in Antwerp, Belgium and Fourth in Austin, United States.

Side by side

Apicbase vs Fourth: side-by-side comparison from published vendor information
FieldApicbaseFourth
What it isApicbase is a cloud back-of-house platform for large multi-site foodservice businesses.Fourth is a cloud suite for restaurant and hospitality operators covering workforce management, inventory and purchasing, payroll and HR, and analytics.
Best forMulti-unit restaurant groups; Hotel chains and hotel F&B; Central kitchens and caterers; Ghost kitchen and meal-kit operatorsMulti-location restaurant operators; Enterprise and quick-service chains; Hotels, bars and retail; Operators wanting workforce and inventory in one vendor
Pricing modelQuote onlyQuote only
Starting priceNot publishedNot published
Free planNot publishedNot published
Free trialNot publishedNot published
ContractNot publishedSet by the order form (initial term not stated in the terms)
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, iOS, Android
CountriesBelgium, Germany, Netherlands, United Kingdom, United StatesAustralia, Canada, United Kingdom, United States
LanguagesNot publishedNot published
Number of integrations2125
CertificationsGDPR, SOC 2 Type 2ISO 9001
Security practicesEncryption in transit and at rest, daily backups, Hosted on AWS, SSO, multi-factor authentication and role-based permissionsCloud hosting in US, EMEA and APAC data centres built to Tier 3 standards with zero-trust network design, Data processing agreement published
Founded2017Not published
HeadquartersAntwerp, BelgiumAustin, United States
OwnerNot publishedMarlin Equity Partners (majority owner as of the 2019 acquisition; Insight Partners minority)
Last reviewed29 September 202629 September 2026

Integrations

Named by both

  • Revel
  • Sysco US
  • Toast
  • US Foods

Named only by Apicbase

  • Aloha Cloud by NCR Voyix
  • Bidfood UK
  • Brakes
  • Clover
  • Deliverect
  • Epos Now
  • Foodics
  • Goodtill
  • Gordon Food Service
  • Lightspeed
  • Makro Netherlands
  • Oracle Micros
and 5 more
  • Sligro
  • Square
  • Transgourmet Germany
  • Vectron
  • Vita Mojo

Named only by Fourth

  • Aloha (NCR)
  • BlueCats
  • CareerBuilder
  • Cooper-Atkins
  • Digital Dining
  • Focus
  • HungerRush
  • Indeed
  • ITD Food Safety
  • Oracle Micros 3700
  • Monster
  • PAR POS (formerly Brink)
and 9 more
  • POSitouch
  • QU
  • Restaurant Manager
  • Oracle Simphony
  • Snagajob
  • Squirrel
  • Lightspeed U Series (formerly Upserve)
  • Xenial IRIS
  • Xpient

Which to choose

Apicbase

Choose Apicbase if your business matches one of the audiences it is listed for: Multi-unit restaurant groups; Hotel chains and hotel F&B; Central kitchens and caterers.

Less suited to: Single-site or very small businesses. The entry Growth plan is described as starting from 5 outlets, and the vendor positions the product for large and enterprise food businesses.

Fourth

Choose Fourth if you fit its listed audience: Multi-location restaurant operators; Enterprise and quick-service chains; Hotels, bars and retail.

What we could not confirm

Apicbase

  • Any price or per-outlet fee (quote only)
  • Contract length and renewal terms
  • Free trial or free plan
  • Official list of countries where it is sold and supported
  • Interface languages of the product (site is in English, Dutch, French, German)
  • Employee count and registration number
  • Funding after the 2021 Series A
  • Names of the 9 financial and accounting integrations (none found on the vendor's site)
  • Names of the native mobile apps in the app stores

Fourth

  • Any price; conditions of the free year of HotSchedules promotion
  • Legal entity name and registration (several Fourth companies appear in the terms)
  • Current ownership (the latest ownership event stated is the 2019 Marlin acquisition)
  • Initial contract term and minimum length
  • Interface languages and the full list of countries served
  • Fourth iQ app platforms and availability dates
  • Employee count
  • Accounting integrations
  • Customer counts differ between pages (120,000 locations on the homepage; 15,000 customers across 100,000 sites on the about page)

Sources

Facts on this page come from the pages below. Prices and features change, so confirm with each vendor before you buy.

Apicbase, reviewed 29 September 2026

  1. Homepage: positioning, modules, AI, security summaryhttps://get.apicbase.com
  2. Plans, add-onshttps://get.apicbase.com/pricing-plans/
  3. Company: Belgium headquartershttps://get.apicbase.com/about/
  4. Offices in Antwerp and New Yorkhttps://get.apicbase.com/contact/
  5. Customer segments and exampleshttps://get.apicbase.com/customers/
  6. Case studies and countrieshttps://get.apicbase.com/cases/
  7. Security, SOC 2, apps, APIhttps://get.apicbase.com/trust-security-compliance/
  8. Allergen, HACCP, traceabilityhttps://get.apicbase.com/food-safety-and-compliance/
  9. Production planninghttps://get.apicbase.com/production-planning/
  10. Internal orderinghttps://get.apicbase.com/internal-ordering/
  11. Menu planninghttps://get.apicbase.com/menu-planning/
  12. Demand forecastinghttps://get.apicbase.com/demand-forecasting-software-restaurant/
  13. Carbon trackinghttps://get.apicbase.com/carbon-footprint-tracking-software/
  14. MCP / AI assistantshttps://get.apicbase.com/mcp/
  15. Mobile counting app, offlinehttps://get.apicbase.com/mobile-counting/
  16. POS integration directoryhttps://partners.apicbase.com/integrations/pos
  17. Supplier integration directoryhttps://partners.apicbase.com/integrations/suppliers
  18. Page discoveryhttps://get.apicbase.com/sitemap_index.xml
  19. Series A, founders, founding year, early customershttps://tech.eu/2021/05/19/antwerp-based-hospitality-tech-apicbase-cooks-up-e4-million-in-series-a-round/

Fourth, reviewed 29 September 2026

  1. Homepage: positioning, 120,000 locations claimhttps://www.fourth.com/
  2. Company overview, customer claimshttps://www.fourth.com/company/about
  3. Offices and support numbershttps://www.fourth.com/company/contact
  4. HotSchedules features, apps, promotionhttps://www.fourth.com/product/hotschedules
  5. MacromatiXhttps://www.fourth.com/product/macromatix
  6. Workforce management featureshttps://www.fourth.com/solution/workforce-management-software
  7. Inventory featureshttps://www.fourth.com/solution/inventory-management
  8. Fourth iQ and named customershttps://www.fourth.com/solution/ai-intro
  9. Integration partnershttps://www.fourth.com/partner/integrations
  10. Renewal, fee changes, Fuego serviceshttps://www.fourth.com/legal/general-terms-and-conditions
  11. Hosting and securityhttps://www.fourth.com/legal/fourth-hosting-data-security
  12. Press releases: ISO 9001https://www.fourth.com/company/press-room
  13. 2019 acquisition, founding year, officeshttps://www.marlinequity.com/news/marlin-completes-the-acquisition-of-hotschedules-and-fourth/
  14. Data processing agreement (listed in sitemap)https://www.fourth.com/legal/data-processing-agreement
  15. System requirements page (listed in sitemap, not read)https://www.fourth.com/legal/minimum-system-requirements-for-all-systems