SpotOn
SpotOn is a San Francisco-based cloud-based restaurant management platform providing POS, payment processing, online ordering, labor management, marketing automation, and AI-powered profit analysis to independent restaurants, small businesses, and mid-market hospitality operators across the United States.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What SpotOn does
SpotOn is a private, San Francisco-headquartered software and payments company founded in 2017 that builds a cloud-based, integrated restaurant management platform. The platform combines point-of-sale, payment processing, online ordering, kitchen display systems, labor management (Teamwork), marketing automation, reservations and waitlist, loyalty and gift cards, and AI-powered profitability analysis (Profit Assist/Profit AI) into a single stack with an offline-first architecture. SpotOn also sells proprietary restaurant-grade hardware (handhelds, terminals, KDS devices) and offers SpotOn Capital for merchant loans, with the enterprise venue segment served through the 2021 Appetize acquisition. Customer-facing assets include the white-labeled GoTo Place ordering app, the SpotOn Employee app, and direct integrations with DoorDash, Uber Eats, Deliverect, Fresh KDS, and MarginEdge.
The company serves independent restaurants, bars, breweries, cafes, and quick-service concepts across the United States, with a growing mid-market and enterprise footprint. Go-to-market is sales-led, combining field sales with dedicated Hospitality Specialists and Restaurant Success Managers for personalized demos, onboarding, and ongoing support, plus an inside sales motion and self-serve website channel for SMBs. Distribution is reinforced by event sponsorships (Guy Fieri's Flavortown Tailgate), a content marketing engine (the "Heart & Hustle" blog), and strong review platform presence (ranked #1 restaurant POS on G2 for six consecutive quarters).
SpotOn's revenue is generated primarily through transaction fees on payment processing (card-present rates of 2.45%-2.79% plus $0.15-$0.20 per transaction depending on plan), supplemented by monthly POS software subscriptions ($0-$55/station/month tiered pricing), hardware sales, add-on module subscriptions, and interest income from SpotOn Capital loans. SpotOn Transact, LLC operates as a registered ISO/partner of US banks (Merrick Bank, Wells Fargo). The company has raised approximately $725 million cumulatively across eight funding rounds since 2017, reaching a $3.6 billion valuation at the May 2022 Series F led by Dragoneer Investment Group, with prior Series D and E rounds led by Andreessen Horowitz. Notable investors also include 01 Advisors, DST Global, Franklin Templeton, Mubadala, Coatue, Wellington Management, and G Squared.
SpotOn firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SpotOn
- Legal name
- SpotOn Transact, LLC
- Website
- https://spoton.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- SpotOn is a San Francisco-based cloud-based restaurant management platform providing POS, payment processing, online ordering, labor management, marketing automation, and AI-powered profit analysis to independent restaurants, small businesses, and mid-market hospitality operators across the United States.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SpotOn industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Restaurant POS and Management Software
- NAICS
- Full-Service Restaurants (722511), Limited-Service Restaurants (722513), Restaurants and Other Eating Places (72251)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- POS, SoftPOS & In-Person Acceptance Infrastructure (FSAGABAO)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- POS Payment Software & Middleware (Terminal OS, Apps, Device Management) (FSAMADAC), Restaurant Reservations & Dining Booking Platforms (BPAMAIAK), Restaurant/Table Reservation & Booking Engines (THALADAH)
Keywords
Where SpotOn is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
SpotOn business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Payment Processing: SpotOn earns transaction fees (percentage + flat fee) on every card payment processed through its POS terminals. Rates vary by plan: Card-present transactions range from 2.45%+2.79% plus $0.15-$0.20 per transaction, with higher rates for keyed transactions. This is the primary revenue driver.
- POS Software Subscriptions: Monthly software subscription fees for POS station access, KDS add-ons ($20/month/station), and bundled packages (Core Bundle). The All-In plan has no monthly POS software fee; POS Essentials is $55/month/station.
- Hardware Sales: Sale of proprietary restaurant-grade POS hardware including countertop terminals, handheld devices, kitchen display systems, customer-facing displays, and kiosks. Hardware costs are additional: KDS device ~$500/device, installation $100.
- Add-On Products and Integrations: Revenue from optional add-ons including online ordering management, marketing automation, loyalty programs, gift cards, reservations/waitlist, tip management, earned wage access (DayCheck with Visa Direct), profitability analysis (Profit AI), and professional services for implementation.
- Capital Loans: SpotOn Capital provides loans to restaurant operators, generating interest income. The company has extended capital loans to help restaurants sustain operations and fund growth.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | Monthly | All-In Plan — $0/month POS software, higher processing fees |
| Hybrid | Monthly | POS Essentials — $55/month/station, lower processing fees |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Multi-year contract | Build Your Own — Custom pricing for multi-unit/enterprise |
| Subscription | Monthly | KDS Add-On — $20/month per station |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels8 records
SpotOn product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SpotOn provides a cloud-based, integrated restaurant management and payment processing platform for independent and multi-unit restaurants, bars, breweries, cafes, and select small businesses. Its core offering combines proprietary POS hardware, point-of-sale software, payment processing, commission-free online ordering, labor management, marketing automation, loyalty, and AI-powered profitability analysis, sold as a modular suite with payment processing as the primary revenue driver.
Product overview
SpotOn offers a unified cloud-based restaurant management platform with a modular architecture. The core platform is SpotOn Restaurant POS, which integrates with add-on modules including online ordering (SpotOn Order), labor management (SpotOn Teamwork), AI-powered financial analysis (Profit Assist, Profit AI), reservation/waitlist management, marketing automation, loyalty programs, gift cards, and kitchen display systems (SpotOn KDS). Hardware offerings include SpotOn Handhelds and SpotOn Terminal. The platform also includes SpotOn Capital for merchant loans, and acquired brands Appetize (enterprise commerce) and Dolce (labor management). All components share data through the POS, enabling seamless operations from front-of-house to back-of-house. Small business POS solutions are offered separately for retail and service businesses beyond restaurants.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- SpotOn Restaurant POS Cloud-based point-of-sale system designed for restaurants, featuring offline mode, real-time reporting, tableside ordering and payments via handheld devices, and seamless integration with kitchen display, online ordering, labor, and marketing modules. Sold to independent and multi-unit restaurant operators in the United States.
- SpotOn Order (Commission-Free Online Ordering) Commission-free first-party online ordering platform that connects directly to SpotOn POS, providing menu management, order pacing, delivery integrations, guest data capture, and a white-labelled GoTo Place ordering app without per-order marketplace fees. Targeted at restaurants seeking an alternative to third-party delivery commissions.
- SpotOn Teamwork (Labor Management) All-in-one labor management solution combining drag-and-drop scheduling, tip management and tip access, labor budget alerts, and one-click payroll push, synced directly to SpotOn POS. Built on the Dolce acquisition, sold to restaurant operators to manage scheduling, compliance, and tip distribution in one place.
- SpotOn Profit Assist (Automated Cost Analysis)
- SpotOn Reservations and Waitlist
- SpotOn Marketing
- SpotOn KDS (Kitchen Display System)
- SpotOn Handhelds
- SpotOn Loyalty
- SpotOn Gift Cards
- SpotOn Capital
- SpotOn Terminal
- SpotOn QR Pay and Review
- SpotOn Websites
- SpotOn Employee App
- SpotOn DayCheck (Visa Direct Tip Payouts) Tip management solution with Visa Direct integration enabling fast, near-real-time payouts of tips directly to employees' bank accounts for improved cash flow access. Sold to restaurant operators as part of the labor and tip management suite.
- SpotOn Profit AI AI-powered profit recommendation engine that delivers proactive, actionable profit recommendations within the SpotOn dashboard, surfacing cost-leak analysis and optimization opportunities while keeping operational decisions with the restaurant operator.
- Appetize (Enterprise Commerce Platform) Digital and mobile commerce platform acquired in September 2021 that provides enterprise businesses, including sports venues, stadiums, and large-scale events, with high-volume POS, mobile ordering, and payment capabilities. Sold as part of SpotOn's enterprise offering.
Quantifiable outcome
- 50% faster ticket times at The Mudpuppy restaurant
- +9 more outcomes
Companies that use SpotOn
Customer profileNamed customers17 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
SpotOn technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration7 records
AI capability5 records
Feature12 records
SpotOn partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- PopmenucoreSpotOn formed a strategic partnership with Popmenu, a restaurant marketing technology provider, to create a direct integration connecting Popmenu's digital marketing, ordering, and reputation management tools with SpotOn's point-of-sale and unified commerce system. The integration aims to reduce operational friction, help restaurants capture more orders, streamline payments, and provide a more connected experience from online engagement to in-store transactions. Both companies claim the partnership will help restaurants drive revenue growth and improve guest relationships.
- Guy Fieri's Flavortown TailgateminorSpotOn served as the title sponsor of Guy Fieri's Flavortown Tailgate, a high-energy food-forward fan festival during Super Bowl weekend in the San Francisco Bay Area. The sponsorship showcased SpotOn's POS and restaurant management tools designed to help independent restaurants handle game-day volume spikes, automate peak-demand operations, and convert high-traffic events into long-term customer loyalty.
- DolcecoreSpotOn acquired Dolce, a labor management services provider specializing in scheduling and automated tip distribution. This acquisition expanded SpotOn's labor management capabilities within its Teamwork platform, adding scheduling and tip distribution automation directly to its integrated restaurant management suite.
- AppetizecoreSpotOn raised $300 million in Series E funding specifically to acquire Appetize, a digital and mobile commerce platform focused on enterprise businesses. The acquisition was expected to close by mid-September 2021 and was intended to expand SpotOn's technology offerings and address a broader range of business sizes, from small shops to major venues.
- DoorDash, Uber Eats, DeliverectcoreSpotOn maintains deep direct integrations with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Deliverect that route all third-party delivery orders directly into SpotOn's POS and KDS in a unified flow. This eliminates the need for separate tablets and manual order re-entry, keeping the restaurant's front-of-house and back-of-house on the same page regardless of order source.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
SpotOn competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- NCR Voyix (NCR Aloha): Large enterprise restaurant tech provider (Aloha POS) serving chains and large operators. Competes with SpotOn's Appetize-enabled enterprise and large-venue offering rather than SpotOn's SMB core.
- Block (Square): Public fintech with a broad SMB payments and POS suite that includes Square for Restaurants. While not restaurant-specialized, Square competes directly with SpotOn for independent restaurant payment volume and software subscriptions.
- Clover (Fiserv): Fiserv-owned SMB POS and payments platform distributed via banks and ISOs. Clover competes with SpotOn's Terminal product and SMB retail/payments offering, especially in non-restaurant SMB verticals.
Direct peers
- Toast: Public restaurant-focused POS and payments platform. Toast is SpotOn's closest direct competitor, targeting the same independent and multi-unit restaurant operators with an integrated cloud POS, payment processing, online ordering, and payroll platform.
- Lightspeed Restaurant: Public vertical POS provider with a dedicated restaurant module covering POS, online ordering, reservations, and payments. Targets similar independent and mid-market restaurant operators as SpotOn.
- OpenTable: Restaurant reservation, table management, and guest-experience platform owned by Booking Holdings. Overlaps with SpotOn's reservations module and serves similar independent and chain restaurants.
- Olo: Public restaurant-focused digital ordering and delivery SaaS provider. Olo competes with SpotOn Order and SpotOn's third-party delivery integrations at chain and large multi-unit restaurants.
- ChowNow: Commission-free online ordering platform for independent restaurants. ChowNow competes directly with SpotOn's commission-free online ordering positioning and target customer base.
- PAR Technology: Public provider of restaurant POS (PAR Brink, PixelPoint) and back-office software. PAR is a long-standing restaurant-tech competitor with comparable enterprise and chain restaurant focus.
Emerging players
- Resy (American Express): Restaurant reservation and guest-experience platform owned by American Express. Resy overlaps with SpotOn's Reservations & Waitlist module and competes for the same restaurant front-of-house workflows.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
SpotOn social profiles
Digital presenceSpotOn financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SpotOn leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
SpotOn subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
SpotOn funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors11 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SpotOn M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A5 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SpotOn
What does SpotOn do?
SpotOn provides a cloud-based, integrated restaurant management and payment processing platform for independent and multi-unit restaurants, bars, breweries, cafes, and select small businesses. Its core offering combines proprietary POS hardware, point-of-sale software, payment processing, commission-free online ordering, labor management, marketing automation, loyalty, and AI-powered profitability analysis, sold as a modular suite with payment processing as the primary revenue driver.
Is SpotOn a public or private company?
SpotOn is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was SpotOn founded?
SpotOn was founded in 2017. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is SpotOn based?
SpotOn is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does SpotOn make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Payment Processing is the primary driver. The others are POS Software Subscriptions, hardware Sales, add-On Products and Integrations and capital Loans.
Who are SpotOn's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are NCR Voyix (NCR Aloha), Block (Square) and Clover (Fiserv). Direct peers are Toast, Lightspeed Restaurant, OpenTable, Olo, ChowNow and PAR Technology. Resy (American Express) is listed as an emerging player.
Does SpotOn have an API?
Yes. SpotOn exposes a public API. Developer documentation is at www.spoton.com/developer-center.
What industry is SpotOn in?
SpotOn's product category is Restaurant POS and Management Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGABAO, POS, SoftPOS & In-Person Acceptance Infrastructure, with a secondary code of FSAMADAC, POS Payment Software & Middleware (Terminal OS, Apps, Device Management). Its NAICS code is 722511 and its SIC code is 5812.