iTab POS vs Katalyst POS vs Lightspeed Restaurant
iTab is a cloud point-of-sale system for restaurants, with a separate retail edition, run from New York and Honolulu. Katalyst OS is an iPad-based restaurant point of sale that bundles payments, kitchen display, online ordering, catering, reservations and waitlist, gift cards and loyalty, self-order kiosks, a branded app builder and reporting in one platform. Lightspeed Restaurant is a cloud point of sale for restaurants, bars, cafes and hotel restaurants, run mainly on iPads. All three are listed under Restaurant POS. Where the profiles show a difference, it is in price, audience and platforms.
Key differences
price
iTab POS publishes a starting price of USD 65 per month for the first POS licence. Katalyst POS and Lightspeed Restaurant do not publish a starting price.
audience
The audiences they list differ. Listed for one product only, for example: iTab POS: Multi-location restaurants and franchises; Katalyst POS: Restaurants running catering; Lightspeed Restaurant: Hotel restaurants.
platforms
They do not run on the same platforms. iTab POS: Web, Android; Katalyst POS: Web, iOS; Lightspeed Restaurant: iOS.
countries covered
On geography, iTab POS names 1 country, Katalyst POS names 1 country and Lightspeed Restaurant names 12 countries. 1 country appears in every list.
integrations
On integrations, iTab POS names 14 integrations, Katalyst POS names 4 integrations and Lightspeed Restaurant names 19 integrations. No partner appears in every list.
security and compliance
The security and compliance details they list differ. iTab POS: PCI compliant; Katalyst POS: PCI DSS; Lightspeed Restaurant: PCI compliant.
company background
Headquarters: iTab POS, New York, United States; Katalyst POS, United States; Lightspeed Restaurant, Montreal, Canada.
Side by side
| Field | iTab POS | Katalyst POS | Lightspeed Restaurant |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | iTab is a cloud point-of-sale system for restaurants, with a separate retail edition, run from New York and Honolulu. | Katalyst OS is an iPad-based restaurant point of sale that bundles payments, kitchen display, online ordering, catering, reservations and waitlist, gift cards and loyalty, self-order kiosks, a branded app builder and reporting in one platform. | Lightspeed Restaurant is a cloud point of sale for restaurants, bars, cafes and hotel restaurants, run mainly on iPads. |
| Best for | Single-location restaurants; Multi-location restaurants and franchises; Quick-service, bars, bubble tea and coffee shops | Multi-location restaurant groups; Restaurants running catering; Full-service and fine dining with reservations; Quick-service and fast-casual | Single-location restaurants; Multi-location restaurant groups; Hotel restaurants; Bars, cafes, breweries and fine dining |
| Pricing model | Subscription per POS licence | Quote only | Subscription (tiered plans) plus quote-based Enterprise |
| Starting price | USD 65 per month for the first POS licence | Not published | Not published |
| Free plan | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Free trial | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Contract | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Platforms | Web, Android | Web, iOS | iOS |
| Countries | United States | United States | Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico and 6 more |
| Languages | Not published | English, Spanish | Dutch, English, French, German, Norwegian, Spanish |
| Number of integrations | 14 | 4 | 19 |
| Certifications | PCI compliant | PCI DSS | PCI compliant |
| Security practices | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Founded | Not published | 2015 | Not published |
| Headquarters | New York, United States | United States | Montreal, Canada |
| Owner | Not published | Not published | Not published |
| Last reviewed | 29 September 2026 | 29 September 2026 | 29 September 2026 |
Integrations
No partner appears in every list.
Named only by iTab POS
- ADP
- Chowly
- Deliverect
- Grubhub
- Oracle NetSuite
- Sage Intacct
- Zoho Books
Named only by Katalyst POS
Every partner Katalyst POS names is also named by another product here.
Named only by Lightspeed Restaurant
- 7shifts
- Cloudbeds
- Craftable
- Fresh
- Lightspeed Delivery by Deliverect
- MarginEdge
- MarketMan
- MEWS
- OpenTable
- Oracle Opera Cloud Hospitality
- Otter
- Planday
and 2 moreshow fewer
- Resy
- Seven Rooms
Which to choose
iTab POS
Choose iTab POS if you fit its listed audience: Single-location restaurants; Multi-location restaurants and franchises; Quick-service, bars, bubble tea and coffee shops.
Katalyst POS
Choose Katalyst POS if you fit its listed audience: Multi-location restaurant groups; Restaurants running catering; Full-service and fine dining with reservations.
Weaker fit: Restaurants that want to keep an existing POS. The vendor says Flex POS is not compatible with legacy POS systems and replaces them.
Lightspeed Restaurant
Choose Lightspeed Restaurant if you fit its listed audience: Single-location restaurants; Multi-location restaurant groups; Hotel restaurants.
What we could not confirm
iTab POS
- Contract minimum term and renewal
- Payment processing rates
- Legal entity and founding year
- Named customers
- Team size and funding
Katalyst POS
- Any software or hardware price, processing markup, or contract term (the vendor's site has no pricing page)
- Named integrations beyond delivery partners (accounting and e-commerce are unnamed)
- Named customers (the vendor shows logos without names)
- Headquarters city, legal entity, team size and funding
- Security certifications beyond a PCI statement
Lightspeed Restaurant
- Billing period of the Starter, Essential and Premium prices, and which features each plan includes (the comparison ticks are not in the page text)
- Contract length and cancellation terms
- Payment processing rates
- Full integration list for L Series and U Series editions
- Legal entity, founding year, funding and employee count
- Security certifications beyond PCI compliance
- Whether an Android or web POS client exists
Go further
Sources
Facts on this page come from the pages below. Prices and features change, so confirm with each vendor before you buy.
iTab POS, reviewed 29 September 2026
- Home pagehttps://www.itabpos.com/
- Plans, licence and add-on priceshttps://www.itabpos.com/pricing/
- Platform overview and featureshttps://www.itabpos.com/itab-overview/
- Optional modules and integrationshttps://www.itabpos.com/itab-optional-modules-integrations-for-restaurants/
- Payment processinghttps://www.itabpos.com/payment-processing/
- Hardwarehttps://www.itabpos.com/hardware/
- Support termshttps://www.itabpos.com/tech-support/
- Implementation serviceshttps://www.itabpos.com/itab-pos-implementation-services/
Katalyst POS, reviewed 29 September 2026
- Homepage and product listhttps://www.katalystos.com/
- POS, iPad, support, legacy compatibilityhttps://www.katalystos.com/flex-pos
- Catering featureshttps://www.katalystos.com/catering-management-system
- Payments and PCIhttps://www.katalystos.com/katalyst-payments
- KDS featureshttps://www.katalystos.com/kitchen-display-system
- Online ordering and deliveryhttps://www.katalystos.com/online-ordering-system
- Reservationshttps://www.katalystos.com/native-reservation
- Gift cards and loyaltyhttps://www.katalystos.com/gift-card-loyalty
- Kiosk, hardware, languageshttps://www.katalystos.com/self-order-kiosk
- App builderhttps://www.katalystos.com/restaurant-app-builder
- Reportinghttps://www.katalystos.com/analytics-and-reporting
- Founding storyhttps://www.katalystos.com/about
- Leadershiphttps://www.katalystos.com/meet-our-team
- Coverage by statehttps://www.katalystos.com/locations
- Contact and FAQhttps://www.katalystos.com/contact
Lightspeed Restaurant, reviewed 29 September 2026
- Product overview, FAQhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/
- Plans and priceshttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/pricing/
- Feature listhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/features/
- Hardwarehttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/hardware/
- Editions and country selectorhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/integrations/
- Partner marketplace listhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant-k-series/integrations/
- Multi-locationhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/multilocation-restaurant-pos/
- Paymentshttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/payments/
- Inventoryhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/inventory/
- Deliveryhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/delivery/
- Accountinghttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/accounting/
- Workforce and payrollhttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/payroll/
- Reservationshttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/reservations/
- Support and traininghttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/pos/restaurant/support-onboarding/
- Headquarters, scalehttps://www.lightspeedhq.com/about/