Free plans compared from vendors’ own pages, checked 19 October 2026
Free table booking system for restaurantsWhat you honestly get for nothing, and what “free” can hide
A free table booking system is a sensible way to start taking bookings online without a sales call or a contract. It is also a phrase that covers very different deals. This page sets out exactly what the free Eightish plan includes and leaves out, what the other free and nearly free options say on their own pricing pages, and the questions that tell them apart.
What you get free on Eightish
Eightish has one free plan, called Walk-In. It is a working diary for one restaurant, not a trial, and there is no clock on it.
Included on the free plan
Your own booking page, and an embed for your website. Up to 50 online bookings a month, counted over a rolling 30 days. The full availability engine, which handles turn times, pacing and table combinations. The live floor plan host stand, with walk-ins and an offline mode for when the signal drops. Phone bookings and walk-ins you enter yourself, unlimited and never counted. 30 days of reports.
Not included, said plainly
Autopilot, which watches the book, spots the quiet slots and texts the past guests most likely to come back, is on the paid plans. So are deposits and the full Guest Graph. Your booking page carries a small “bookings by eightish” line. A card is taken at signup and checked, and it is only charged if you go past the free allowance. And Eightish is not a marketplace, so it will not send you diners who have never heard of you.
If you go past 50 online bookings, nothing switches off. You are warned at 40, the booking page keeps taking bookings, and bookings past 50 are charged at a small published rate with a monthly ceiling. The ceiling is set so that staying free can never cost more than moving up a plan. Every figure is on the pricing page, and there is no per-cover fee or commission on any plan.
Free and nearly free table booking systems, from their own pages
We read each vendor’s own pricing page on 19 October 2026 and wrote down only what it says. Where a page did not say something, we have left it out rather than guess.
| System | Free plan? | What the vendor says about limits and fees |
|---|---|---|
| Eightish | Yes, Walk-In | One restaurant, 50 online bookings a month. Phone bookings and walk-ins never counted. No per-cover fee or commission. |
| resOS | Yes, €0 a month | 25 bookings a month, add-ons not available. Says it never charges per booking, per cover or any commission. SMS is €0.10 a message, on paid plans. |
| Eat App | Yes, $0 a month | Limited to 100 guests a month, SMS not available on the free tier, bookings commission-free. Priced in US dollars. |
| simpleERB | Free trial, not a free plan | Start with 250 covers free, then paid plans from £21 a month. Says there are no per-booking fees and no per-cover commission. 10 free SMS, then £40 per 1,000. |
| Tablein | No free plan listed | Flexible plan at £49 with 50 bookings included, then €0.50 per booking. Says it charges per reservation, never commission. |
| ResDiary | No | Plans from £109 a month for 150 bookings, a £99 set-up fee, zero commission. SMS is a £10 a month add-on plus fees. |
| TheFork Manager | No | Plans on request. Bookings from your website and social are included and commission-free; bookings through TheFork, Tripadvisor and partners carry a fee based on a percentage of your average bill per guest. |
| OpenTable (UK) | No | Core and Pro, both priced on request. Cover fees on diners who find you through OpenTable’s network; your own website, phone and walk-in bookings are free. Standard one-year contract. |
| Access Collins Evo | No | From £149 a month per site, 0% commission. |
| SevenRooms | No | Prices on request. |
Sources, all read on 19 October 2026: resOS, Eat App, simpleERB, Tablein, ResDiary, TheFork Manager, OpenTable, Access Collins and SevenRooms. Prices as shown by each vendor, which may exclude VAT. Vendors change their pricing without notice, so check before you sign. Corrections welcome: hello@eightish.co.uk.
What “free” usually hides
None of these is a trick. They are how the business model pays for itself, and every one is worth knowing before you put a booking button on your website.
A cap, and what happens at it
Free plans cap something: bookings, covers or guests. The cap matters less than what happens when you hit it. Does the booking page stop, does it start charging, or does it ask you to upgrade? Find out before a busy weekend finds out for you.
Text messages sold separately
Confirmations by text are what most diners expect, and they cost the vendor money to send. Several systems leave SMS off the free tier or charge per message, as the table above shows. Ask what a month of texts would cost at your volume.
Commission on marketplace bookings
Some systems are free or cheap on the software and earn on the diners they send you, through a cover fee or a share of the bill. That can be fair if those really are new guests. It is worth knowing which of your bookings it applies to.
A trial dressed as a plan
“Start free” can mean free forever or free for a while. Look for the words free plan, free forever or no time limit, and check whether a card is taken at signup and when it would be charged.
How to choose a free table booking system
Five questions settle most of it. Ask them of any system on your list, including ours.
| Question | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| What is capped: bookings, covers or guests? | A cap of 50 bookings and a cap of 100 guests are very different for a room that does a lot of tables of six. |
| Are phone bookings and walk-ins counted? | If the cap only applies to online bookings, a restaurant that still takes most bookings by phone can stay free for a long time. |
| What happens past the cap? | You want a booking page that keeps working, a charge you can predict, and a ceiling on it. |
| Are text confirmations included? | If not, price them at your real volume before comparing headline fees. |
| What does the paid plan cost when you outgrow free? | Free is the start of the relationship. The plan you move to is the one you will actually live with, so read that price too. |
If you are also weighing up the big names, Eightish vs OpenTable, Eightish vs ResDiary and Eightish vs Collins cover each one in more depth, and our guide to UK restaurant booking systems covers the wider field.
Free table booking systems: common questions
Is there a free table booking system for restaurants?
Yes, a few, and they are not all free in the same way. Eightish has a free plan, Walk-In, for one restaurant and up to 50 online bookings a month. resOS has a free plan capped at 25 bookings a month. Eat App has a free tier limited to 100 guests a month, priced in US dollars. Others offer a free trial rather than a free plan, which is a different thing.
What is the catch with a free restaurant booking system?
Usually one of four things: a cap on bookings or guests, text messages that cost extra, commission on bookings that come through a marketplace, or a free trial that turns into a bill. None of these is wrong. The point is to know which one you are signing up to before the first busy Saturday.
Do free booking systems charge commission?
The ones with free plans that we checked say they do not. resOS says it never charges per booking, per cover or any commission, and Eat App says its bookings are commission-free. Commission or cover fees are more typical of marketplaces: TheFork Manager charges a fee based on a percentage of the average bill for bookings that come through TheFork, Tripadvisor and partners, and OpenTable charges cover fees on diners who find you through its network.
Is Eightish really free?
The Walk-In plan is free forever, with no clock on it, for one restaurant and up to 50 online bookings a month. Phone bookings and walk-ins you enter yourself are never counted. A card is taken at signup and checked, and it is only charged if you go past the free allowance. Autopilot and the full Guest Graph are on the paid plans.
What happens if I go past 50 bookings on the free plan?
Nothing changes that night. Eightish warns you at 40, and the booking page keeps taking bookings. Past 50, online bookings are charged at a small published rate with a monthly ceiling, so staying on the free plan can never cost more than moving up would. Every figure is on the pricing page.
Are phone bookings counted on a free plan?
On Eightish, no: the limit is on bookings taken through your Eightish booking page or embed, and phone bookings and walk-ins you enter by hand are unlimited. Other systems count differently, by bookings, covers or guests, so check which one a free plan is capping.
Try it on a real service, for nothing.
The Walk-In plan is free forever for one restaurant. Set it up tonight and judge it on Friday.