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Future POS Review

POS Systems

Fans of the TV show Bar Rescue might be familiar with Future POS, a system designed for restaurants and the hospitality industry. The system is scalable, working as well in a multi-station stadium as in a single-terminal quick service restaurant.

Even better, the system works with almost any credit card processor for maximum flexibility.

With features specifically designed for the needs of the food service industry, Future POS can help streamline order taking, inventory management, and other crucial day-to-day functions in a food business.

Let’s take a look at Future POS reviews and features to see if it’s right for your business.  

Future POS Features

The point of sale system has a wide range of features – the company breaks up a feature list into categories, knowing that different features will appeal to different business types. For the purposes of this profile, we’ll list all of the features, split into general features that apply to all business and more specific features. For the specific features, we’ll also designate which category Future POS feels the feature is best suited for.

First, the features that apply to all business types:

Customizable Menus and Modifiers

The menu system is customizable, allowing you to tailor the layout, buttons, and set modifier options. If customers have special requests for their orders, you can enter it quickly and easily with the item modifiers.

Reporting and Business Management

The Future POS “Remote Control” app lets you access reports and business data from anywhere with an internet connection. You can use a smartphone or tablet to send messages to staff through the point of sale system, update prices, view current sales or labor reports, and more.

Digital Signage

Included with your Future POS system is the Digital Signage tool. You’ll be able to display ads, menus, specials, upcoming events, live video feeds, and more. You can even choose to charge other local businesses to display their ads. Future POS offers this short video about the Digital Signage option:

A digital signage editing tool makes creating and managing your digital marketing easy.

Credit Card Processing

Great news for business owners: Future POS works with virtually any credit card processor. The freedom to choose your own processor means you can find a low cost solution that fits your needs and not get locked into a contract with an overpriced processor.

The credit card processing company that you choose will be the one to set your pricing to accept credit cards. For assistance with credit card processing quotes, try CardFellow’s free quote request tool to see pricing from many companies at once.

Features by Business TypeFuture POS supported businesses

Now that we’ve covered some of the main features that apply to all businesses, let’s take a look at features that will benefit specific business types. 

Future POS breaks down the features by business type, including coffee shops, fast food/quick serve, pizza and delivery businesses, bars/nightclubs, sit-down restaurants, and stadiums or entertainment venues. The key to the right shows the icons that we’ll use to designate the business type Future POs thinks can benefit from that specific feature.

Note that just because some business types aren’t listed with a particular feature doesn’t mean that you can’t use that feature if it makes sense for your business. Unless otherwise noted, all features come standard with Future POS. However, for some features (such as kitchen video displays) you may need to purchase compatible hardware in order to use the feature.

Kitchen Display System kitchen display

For sending orders to the kitchen, you can use the Future POS Kitchen video and eliminate paper waste. The color displays help with order accuracy and fulfillment and are beneficial for all types of businesses that send orders to a kitchen. Tablet kitchen displays are available through hardware vendor partners.

Driver’s License/ID Verification ID

Future POS offers a license verification system so your staff won’t have to do the math on birthdate. You’ll swipe the license, and the system will show the customer’s name, age, and other information, allowing at-a-glance knowledge of whether the customer is legally old enough to drink or enter a club.

Ingredient Tracking ingredients

Ingredient-level tracking – including for different types of coffee and tea – helps with inventory management so that you’re never out of your most popular items.

Loyalty Programs loyalty

Rewarding loyal customers is a great way to encourage even more business. With Future POS, you can offer and track loyalty programs such as “Buy X, get 1 free” deals.

Delivery Management 

Future POS offers integration with caller ID, maps for delivery routes, and driver dispatch to keep track of orders out for delivery. Additionally, you can set delivery zones and customize pricing for various zones.

Check Splitting and Transferring 

When customers want to split the check between multiple payments, you can do it easily from the home screen on Future POS systems. You can also transfer checks between tablets or combine multiple tables’ checks into one.

Drink Management ID verification

Several convenient features for bars and pubs come standard with Future POS. The “repeat round” option lets your bartender ring in another round of a prior order with one touch. A handy drink recipe book provides information on how to make a drink and includes details like what type of glass the drink should be served in, or if a garnish is needed.

Handheld Device Capabilities Handheld options

For any environment where speed is important, handheld devices for staff can keep customer orders moving. Future POS integrates with handheld devices to allow orders to be taken at the table, at seats in a stadium, or anywhere else that’s convenient. Pricing can be updated at any time, and changes will show immediately.

Related Article: How Tips Left on a Credit Card Affect Your Restaurant.


Partners

Future POS partners with many related companies to offer additional services.

Future POS partners

Current partners include LevelUp customer loyalty, Digital Pour liquor management, and multiple POS hardware providers such as Star Micronics, Honeywell, Bluestar, POS Portal, and more.

Alternatives

Future POS isn’t the only option for your hospitality business. If you’re still researching options, or think that Future POS might not have the features you want, be sure to check our extensive directory for full reviews of other systems, including those specifically designed for food and beverage businesses.

Check out the equipment directory here: POS Systems for Restaurants.


Costs

Future POS doesn’t publish pricing, and a sales rep would not provide information about costs when we contacted the company directly. We’ll continue to inquire about pricing for use of the POS software, and will update this review as more information becomes available. 

Product Features

Universal

POS Systems

  • Mobile device management
  • Tableside Ordering
  • Tableside Payment Processing
  • Patron Online Food Ordering
  • Gift cards and customer loyalty tracking
  • Marketing metrics
  • Inventory management
  • Sales reports
  • Employee tracking & management
  • Payroll metrics
  • Quickbooks data export
  • PayPal acceptance
  • Integrated CRM (customer relationship management)
  • Windows-based system

  • iPad-Based System
  • Android-Based System
  • Bar Code Scanners
  • Card Readers
  • Cash Drawers
  • Receipt Printers
  • Customer Displays
  • Kitchen Printers & Monitors
  • Checkout Scales
  • Portable Receipt Printers

Future POS Q&A


Future POS Reviews ( 9)

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from David Montanez, on Nov 20, 2019

I worked with this POS system for almost 10 years. Always tried to keep up with technology. They cannot. And I expended a lot of money believing their sales speech. They never keep up, their systems where just as bad as their service. Horrible! Don't get stuck in the past. Newer, faster, friendlier, and cheaper systems are there. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH FUTURE POS. Trust me.

from erb pascal, on May 17, 2019

Please GOD use any other POS system. The software is so very hard to use and the customer support is horrible. Stay away from Shift4 and FuturePOS

from Taco Time, on May 06, 2019

5 stars all the way! We were able to fully customize our system to fit our needs! Awesome POS

from Jeffrey, on Feb 23, 2019

Kansas City, MO. We had a Micros e7 for 14 years and needed to upgrade for PCI compliance. Our manager looked at a few. He liked Future POS and Todd (think of Kurt Russell in “Used Cars”). We signed an agreement and wanted to pay up front. All of it. Our manager had signed a lease and we tried to get out of it. No way, they said. So this piece of crap ended up costing another $9000. Then, it came. The programmer sucked and just sat around making my employees refill his tea all day. What was really bad was the equipment itself. It tended to crash at horrible times. Not much help with the programmer. He would get to it when he wanted. Usually the next day. The wireless tablet is still awful after a year and a half. Usually has to be reset every other day. We also had to buy a new EMV reader after 13 months. No help, there!! And, we still cannot preauthorize American Express. After a year and a half!!! And, when I called to ask how to bring up MGMT discounts to look at things fully comped? They had no clue. Still don’t. Wow, there went that inventory. We also weigh our bottles everyday and do inventory daily. The reports are hard as hell to work with. What took me ten minutes with Micros e7, now takes over an hour. The only saving grace is the new programmer that came along. Brandon. I feel bad for him, as he seems to be the only one that knows anything. He should get out while he can. We are opening another restaurant and have decided to go with Toast. Waaayyy less expensive and I’ll let you know if it is easier. So far, HMS, has been a dream to work with. If Toast is as good as I think it will be, you are more than welcome to come pick up Future POS’ piece of s*** for free. It will be in the dumpster or by the curb. Aw, forget it. I’ll destroy it. I wouldn’t even want my worst enemy to deal with this thing...

from Whitney, on Dec 30, 2018

Future is literally the worst POS that I have ever used. I was switching my restaurant over from Harbortouch (what I originally considered the worst and who has since purchased Future, which makes perfect sense), but Future is even more difficult to use. It also crashes constantly, like on a Friday night while customers are trying to pay their bills. I watched it literally erase an employee's hours last week, right in front of me. You would be better off going analog than paying Future. Plus, they wrap you up in a 5 year contract (you'll pay over $600/month for ancient equipment that is broken) and tech support in non-existent. We've had them in our restaurant for a year and still don't have the customer loyalty cards or any gift cards that we were promised. I know that it sounds tempting because they prey on desperate small business owners, but you have to trust me when I say that this will kill your business. Don't walk, run towards a different system!

from Jacob, on Sep 11, 2018

Very difficult to learn the back of the system to add in your own information. The back end reports were terrible from what I was used to, with no real time data. I was told that you would have remote access to the back end of the house, but that was a lie. You can remote into the back of the house but you have to be on the same network, which makes it pointless. The sales director said the guy who told me that didn't know so it wasn't his fault. So he inadvertently lied to get me to sign on and when I found out it doesn't do what he said it was my fault and can't get out of contract. I travel a lot so this feature was very important to me which I told Doug in our conversations. The system is also supposed to work offline if you lost internet connection, but it didn't for me. In the few times we used it, it crashed twice and lost the open checks on the computer. This made us lose hundreds if not over a thousand dollars in sales because employees had to revert to old system and go off memory and provide discounts because of the wait. This may be a good system but they definitely have some issues. Although I will never use them I am stuck paying them for the remainder of the contract even though I have barely used the system. Demand a free trail for a couple months if you try this!

from Jay , on Jan 23, 2018

Tried switching processors because of extreme gouging only to find they penalize you with one time $1500 and ongoing $100 per month! For what??

from Patrick, on Dec 24, 2017

We've been using Future POS for a little over 3 yrs at our start up bar & grill. While none of my employees, nor myself, had ever used or heard of it before, I'm definitely happy with the system. Besides a few minor hiccups, the only extended time it was down was due to an external modem issue, so IMO it's robust (knock wood). It's simple to use, all my staff picked up on it quick. While it does have a bit of a steep learning curve for modifying it when we change menu items, specials etc, the curve is short. There are a lot of options and features that honestly, I don't take advantage of it, but there is one that sold me on it. It has a dedicated loyalty program, with magnetic swipe cards, that lets you reward repeat guests. While I only use it as a 10% in house credit when a guest spends a hundred dollars over time, it is VERY popular with my regulars. Support is decent, hardware has been solid (knock wood again). Would buy again and recommend! Patrick

from CardFellow, on Feb 14, 2017

Choice of processor, choice of equipment, plenty of features. Great for restaurants, bars, cafes, and other food service businesses.

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