Quick Summary
Custom Built vs. Buy Readymade. What to choose for my restaurant? This is the booming question among the majority of restaurant owners. You might be one of them, too. In this blog post, you will read the point-to-point comparison between the two with all aspects. Plus, you will also uncover the 3 questions that you should know and ask yourself when you are about to decide to go with restaurant management software to automate your restaurant operations.
For restaurants considering implementing online ordering software for their restaurant, one of the first big decisions is whether to build a customized software in-house or go with an off-the-shelf, readymade white-label restaurant software.
Both options have their pros and cons that must be carefully weighed for your specific business.
In this post, we’ll compare both of them to help you save time and determine the best choice for your restaurant.
Readymade vs. custom-built restaurant management software
I know you're trying to decide whether to build your own online ordering software for restaurant or buy a readymade solution. Let's compare some key factors:
| Aspects | Custom built | Readymade |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront Cost | You'll need deep pockets. Be ready to put down around $150K+ and wait for months before your system is usable.
Note: Not ideal for quick returns. | Pretty reasonable startup fees. Gets you up and running in weeks. No long wait for your investment to pay off! |
| Ongoing Costs | Once it's built, you've gotta maintain it. That drains the budget from operations and service. | Vendor keeps their food delivery system optimized so you can stay focused on your restaurant, not tech! |
| Features | Your team builds what you can afford. Probably won't match your specific restaurant's needs. | Packed with next-level features to deliver a great customer experience and meet all your ordering and delivery needs! |
| Integration | You can connect it to other systems, but changes in the future might require more custom work. | Works seamlessly with your existing system (i.e., POS, accounting, inventory, etc.). |
| Support | Your IT folks will try their best, but custom restaurant software development might not be their specialty. | Get experts dedicated to supporting restaurant platforms when you need them! |
| Updates | Relying on your staff to keep up with the latest innovations is tough. | Continuous enhancement of software and features. |
| Testing | Lots of time and energy are spent hunting for bugs in homemade code. | Rigorous tests are carried out to ensure the software is rock solid for you from day one. |
| Security | You're fully responsible for locking down your custom system, but vendors do it for a living. | Leverage pros who stay fully up-to-date on security and compliance stuff for you! |
| Scalability | You'll need to grow your IT staff to grow your restaurant management software. | Cloud setup seamlessly handles your growth behind the scenes, with no effort on your end! |
| Time to Deploy | Frankly, you'll be waiting over a year for the completion of your custom restaurant software development. | A few weeks and you're taking orders with a full-fledged, effectively working software. |
And there you have it - a detailed comparison of building vs buying readymade online delivery software for restaurants. It's a lot to think about!
Now, let’s look at the top 3 questions you should ask yourself to decide whether to handle delivery in-house or hand it over to an experienced partner who’s built for the job.
Read More: A step-by-step guide to setting up online ordering for restaurants in 2025
Top 3 considerations for comparison
Here are the 3 most crucial questions to consider before choosing which method is the best for your restaurant: Custom-built development or Readymade Restaurant Management Software.
Can your operations wait while you build custom software?
If the adoption of a technology solution is going to solve your restaurant's problems or drive more revenue, is it a great idea to put it on hold by custom-developing the software?
When you can get the software delivered quickly. A software that is easy to use, power-packed with advanced capabilities, stable, and offers full support from day one. Also, such software is backed by years of rigorous testing and refinement based on customer feedback.
With in-house food delivery software development, it could take more than a year to achieve even 20% of the functionality of the proven solutions. And features for food delivery software would be limited by your budget and developers' skills.
So, the choice is yours, whether you want to start delighting your customers straight away by subscribing to a state-of-the-art restaurant management software tailored to your needs. Or you want to keep your operations in trouble by taking the risk of custom-developing that might just deliver a fraction of the value.
If yes, then know more about the tailored tech built by experts!
What’s better: An expensive developer who doesn’t get you, or a partner who’s done it for years?
As a restaurant, spending a hefty amount on custom restaurant software development can take a toll on your budget. Your budget has to be spread across many operational needs, like:
- Culinary
- Real estate
- Marketing
- Training and more
That is why partnering with a restaurant management software provider gives you access to their entire team of experts.
This way, you can leverage the depth of a specialist team. They can also bring in their added capabilities and experience that can prove to be of tremendous value to your business.
Also Read: Why your restaurant business needs an on-demand food delivery system
Should you divert your focus from your core business?
As Jeff Bezos, the former CEO of Amazon, says, "We do the heavy lifting so you can focus on what matters."
As a restaurant, your heavy lifting should be to build a memorable and authentic experience for your customers, and not to focus on building custom software.
Your partial attention could jeopardize the operations of your restaurant. The tech that aims to improve every aspect of your restaurant must not become a distraction. It's already extremely demanding to craft great food, service, and atmosphere.
Partnering with a restaurant management software provider allows you to stay laser-focused on delighting your customers. This way, you focus on delivering great service to your customers, and your software provider can focus on building, optimizing, and supporting software tailored for your restaurant.
Conclusion
Unless you are willing to take risks and wait for at least more than a year to use the software, custom development might not be for you. Instead, you can go for a readymade restaurant management software that is built by industry-specific experts, tailored to your business needs.
But, even when choosing a readymade solution, be sure to thoroughly evaluate costs, features, and vendors. Seek demos and conduct a cost-benefit analysis of building vs buying. With the right information and priorities, you can choose the right restaurant management software for your restaurant's success.
See for yourself how effectively a readymade restaurant management software works
