USA · Restaurants
Restaurant accounting software for US restaurants
Toast, Square, Clover and Lightspeed POS sync into a US Restaurant Association standard chart of accounts. Tip reporting, Form 8027, multi-state sales tax via Avalara, prime cost variance reports. Built for single locations and multi-unit groups.
What restaurants get out of the box
Toast / Square / Clover POS sync
Daily-sales journals push automatically — gross sales, sales tax, tips, comps, voids, payment methods. Bank deposit reconciliation closes in one click.
US sales tax (Avalara)
Multi-state US sales-tax computation per line, broken out by jurisdiction. Liability reports per state, filed through Avalara or exported.
Tip reporting + Form 8027
Per-employee tip tracking, 8% allocation if under-reported, IRS Form 8027 generation and e-file for large food-and-beverage establishments.
USRC chart of accounts
US Restaurant Association standard chart — food / beverage / labor categories your CPA expects. Aligns with NRA reporting.
Food + labor cost variance
Prime cost reports vs target benchmarks. Daily flash reports flag when food or labor trends over budget mid-week.
1099-NEC for contractors
Track payments to musicians, bookkeepers, cleaners, plumbers; generate 1099-NEC in January, e-file to IRS through our partner.
Multi-location group reporting
Unlimited locations, per-location P&L, consolidated group-level reporting, inter-location transfers from commissary.
Gift card liability tracking
Per-card outstanding balance, aggregate balance-sheet liability, state-by-state breakage rules computed automatically.
Where US restaurants typically struggle
POS deposits never tie to the bank
Toast/Square deposit lump sums net of fees and chargebacks. Daily-sales journal in HelloBooks records gross sales, processor fees, tips paid out, and the deposit. Bank feed match closes in one click instead of a 30-minute reconciliation per location per day.
Tip allocation is a year-end fire drill
Without per-shift tip tracking, the 8% allocation calc for Form 8027 turns into a manual spreadsheet hunt every January. HelloBooks tracks reported vs unreported tips per employee per shift, runs the 8% test continuously, and generates the 8027 from real data.
Food cost % is always known at month-end, never mid-week
Daily flash reports compare actual food cost to plan based on POS sales and supplier bills. The chef sees a green/yellow/red status per category at 9am every day. Wasteful supplier substitutions or portion drift get caught inside the week.
Multi-location groups can't see consolidated P&L without spreadsheets
Per-location P&L + consolidated group P&L live in the same workspace. Inter-location transfers (commissary kitchen → satellite stores) post automatically on both sides. Standard reports run at the location or group level.
The Free Plan for food trucks and small restaurants
A food truck or small restaurant can start on HelloBooks Free: supplier bills, payments, a live bank feed and a monthly P&L.
- Unlimited invoices, bills and quotes
- Unlimited email payment reminders
- 1 live bank feed through Plaid
- Unlimited manual bank and card accounts
- 2 users
- Free AI credits to get started
- AP/AR aging, P&L, balance sheet, cash flow
- iOS and Android app
Export, recurring invoices and multi-currency are paid. Free invoices carry a “Powered by HelloBooks” badge. Starter is $14.99/mo; Pro is $39.99/mo.
US restaurants — frequently asked
Open the books on your restaurant today
Free Plan, no credit card. POS integrations on every tier.
Start Free for restaurantsWorking with an accountant on HelloBooks
Free, vetted directory of independent firms. Every partnership tier is earned, never paid for — we verify credentials against the official registry before any profile goes live.