How much does a self-service kiosk cost, and what does it include?

A kiosk doesn’t have one price. It has three: the hardware, the software that runs it and the installation. Most quotes you’ll get roll all three into a single figure, which is why two offers are so hard to compare. Here’s what goes into each one, and what to ask so you get the full number.

Why nobody gives you a price over the phone

Because the same word covers very different things. A 22-inch table-top unit that only takes cards and a double-sided outdoor kiosk with a cash unit inside are both “a kiosk”, and they have nothing in common in price or installation.

If you want a run-through of the formats first, it’s in what types of self-service kiosk are on the market.

The three parts of the price

1. The hardware

This is the part that varies most, and what drives it is specific:

The format. Table-top is the cheapest. Freestanding costs more. Wall-mounted sits in between and needs some building work. Outdoor is the most expensive, because it has to stand up to the weather and needs a much brighter screen.

Cash. Taking coins and notes means fitting a cash unit inside. It’s what pushes the price of a kiosk up the most, and it needs the most maintenance, because it jams, it has to be refilled and it has to be cashed up. Most venues start with card payments only.

The screen. Between 22 and 32 inches is standard. Size adds less to the price than people think. Brightness adds more, and it decides whether the kiosk can be used in direct sunlight.

Peripherals. A printer for the receipt, a contactless card reader, and a barcode scanner if you’re going to read vouchers or loyalty cards.

2. The software

This is the usual catch: hardware without software doesn’t sell anything, and the software is almost never included in the price of the hardware.

What you need to check is whether you pay per site or per terminal, what happens when you add a second kiosk in the same room, and whether updates are included.

Our plans and what each one includes are on our pricing page. Kiosks are an add-on, so the figure depends on your set-up and we give it in the demo, not on a web page.

3. Installation and what comes after

What almost never appears in the first quote:

Fixing it to the floor, which isn’t optional in a venue with children or lots of people moving around.
Power and network, wired if possible.
Setting up the menu, with its photos, modifiers and allergens.
Training your team, which takes a morning.
Support, and the right question here is what happens at two o’clock on a Saturday.

Buy or rent

Both options exist, and the choice is more about cash flow than technology.

Buying works out cheaper over three years and puts the hardware on your balance sheet. The risk is that the hardware gets old and it’s yours.

Renting or leasing turns the investment into a monthly cost, usually includes support and replacement, and is the sensible choice if you’re testing whether self-service suits you. It also makes sense for a seasonal venue.

If you’re not sure, rent the first one and buy the next ones once you know how many you need and where they go.

What makes the price stop mattering

A kiosk doesn’t pay for itself through what it costs, but through what it does. And there are two things to decide before you look at quotes, because they’re what drive the return:

Whether you really have a queue. A kiosk earns its keep where people gather. If there are never more than two people waiting at peak time, it will sit idle.

Whether your menu has things to combine. Extras, sizes, sides. That’s where the screen sells differently, and it’s explained in how much a self-ordering screen raises the average spend.

A cost almost nobody budgets for: accessibility

In Spain, since 28 June 2025, Law 11/2023 has included self-service terminals among the products that must be accessible. Terminals already in use before that date can stay until the end of their useful life, up to a maximum of ten years. Ones you buy now can’t.

In practice this affects the screen height, the contrast and the font size. And in the quote it raises one specific question: whether the manufacturer gives you the EU declaration of conformity. Asking for it before you sign costs nothing. Sorting it out afterwards doesn’t.

How we do it

Our self-service kiosks are built in-house and the app is native, so it keeps selling if the network goes down and syncs when it comes back. That takes a cost out of the equation that you don’t see until the day it happens.

And it’s where the average spend goes up: the kiosk offers the extra that nobody at the till has time to offer, and the customer chooses without a queue behind them. Up to 20% higher average spend.

You can go and see it working. Rodilla has kiosks in its busiest sites, such as Sol, with orders going straight to the kitchen display. Zeta Smash Burger, on Plaza de Chueca, uses the kiosk with a built-in card terminal and cross-selling suggestions, and cashes up once at the end of the day wherever the order came from. And at the Teatro Lope de Vega, where The Lion King is playing, the audience order and pay at the kiosk in the foyer instead of queuing at the bar.

The kiosk menu is the same digital menu you use in the dining room and on the QR code, so you don’t have to build it twice or keep it up to date in two places. And the orders land on the same kitchen display as everything else.

If you already have a POS, you don’t usually need to replace it: it connects. The list is on our integrations page.

Six questions to compare two quotes

Ask them by email, so the answers are in writing.

1. Does the price include the software, or is it extra? Per site or per terminal?
2. What happens if I add a second kiosk in the same venue?
3. Does it include installation, floor fixing and setting up the menu?
4. What support is there at two o’clock on a Saturday afternoon?
5. Does it keep taking payments if the internet goes down?
6. Will you give me the accessibility declaration of conformity?

With those six answers, two quotes that looked the same stop looking the same.

What paying more won’t fix

An expensive kiosk in the wrong spot gets used as little as a cheap one in the wrong spot. Placement matters more than the model, which is why it has its own article.

And if your kitchen turns out sixty dishes an hour, with a kiosk it turns out sixty. What changes is that nobody walks away because of the queue, not that more food comes out.

Shall we run the numbers for your venue?

In a 15-minute demo we look at your floor, your menu and your peak time, and work out how many kiosks make sense and which don’t. It’s the only way to give a figure that means something.

→ Book a 15-minute demo

And if you’d like to see first how others have set it up, have a look at our success stories.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a self-service kiosk cost?

It depends on three things that are quoted separately: the hardware, the software and the installation. The format and whether it takes cash are what move the figure most.

Why does taking cash make it so much more expensive?

Because it means fitting a cash unit inside the kiosk. As well as raising the price, it’s the part that needs the most maintenance.

Is the software included?

Hardly ever. Ask whether you pay per site or per terminal, and what happens when you add a second kiosk.

Is it better to buy or rent?

Buying works out better over three years. Renting makes sense for a trial, for seasonal venues and when you want support and replacement included.

How many kiosks do I need?

The rule of thumb is the queue at peak time: if more than four or five people regularly gather, one won’t be enough.

Does it have to meet accessibility rules?

In Spain, yes. Self-service terminals are covered by Law 11/2023, in force since 28 June 2025. Ask for the declaration of conformity before you buy.

What happens if the internet goes down?

It depends on how it’s built. Kiosks running a native app keep taking payments offline and sync when the connection comes back.

Where to start

→ Create my free account

→ Book a 15-minute demo

Sources

Mandatory accessibility of self-service terminals and deadlines (Spain): Law 11/2023 in the BOE.

Plans and what each one includes: Waitry pricing page.

Formats, components and how it works: Waitry product documentation.