ResDiary alternatives for UK restaurants
ResDiary is a capable, established system, so venues that leave it usually do so over cost shape rather than capability: pricing is quote-only, the annual contract needs 90 days' notice, payments carry a 1.2% surcharge (3% on gift vouchers), and SMS, events, pre-orders and vouchers are each billed as add-ons. Here is what else is out there.
Who publishes this: NomNom, one of the systems listed below. We have put ourselves in the same grid as everyone else rather than at the flattering end of a rigged table, and where a competitor does something better than us we have left that in.
The alternatives at a glance
| System | Headline price | Per-cover commission | Contract | Diner marketplace |
| NomNom | £29.99 a month, everything included | No | None — rolling monthly | No |
| OpenTable | Quote only in the UK | Yes — a fee on every cover booked through its network | 12 months, auto-renewing (estimated) | Yes — one of the largest |
| SevenRooms | Quote only | No | Annual | No |
| TheFork | Quote only | Yes — on marketplace covers only | Not stated | Yes — one of the largest in Europe |
| Sugarvine | £75 + VAT a month (or £799 + VAT a year) | No | 12 months | Yes — the Sugarvine dining guide |
| resOS | Free up to 25 bookings a month, then roughly £38–£105 a month | No | Rolling monthly | No |
What you would be leaving
Established, operations-led and group-friendly, built around table management, yield rules and floor flow. Genuinely commission-free on bookings, but the price is quote-only, payments carry a surcharge, and several capabilities other systems bundle (SMS, pre-orders, events, vouchers) are paid add-ons.
The options in detail
NomNom
One plan, one published price, everything in: commission-free booking on your own branded page, Stripe deposits and card holds, SMS reminders, an allergy-aware guest database, gift vouchers, multiple venues and unlimited devices. No contract, no setup fee, 14-day free trial. The honest gap is discovery: there is no diner marketplace.
NomNom vs ResDiary, side by side
OpenTable
The big marketplace name, with genuine discovery reach. The model is a subscription plus a fee for every cover that arrives through OpenTable itself; bookings you take on your own site are not charged per cover. The UK site shows "Contact us for pricing" on both its Core and Pro plans, so there is no published pound figure.
OpenTable vs ResDiary, side by side
SevenRooms
Closer to a guest CRM than a booking widget: automated tagging, rich guest profiles, targeted marketing, loyalty and feedback loops. No marketplace and no per-cover fee, but it is enterprise-priced, quote-only and on an annual contract, and it is aimed at upscale groups and multi-site operators rather than a single independent site.
SevenRooms vs ResDiary, side by side
TheFork
Europe's big diner marketplace, now being acquired by American Express. The subscription is quote-only and marketplace covers carry a commission; bookings through your own website or widget are commission-free.
Sugarvine
A UK flat-fee system that bundles a listing on the Sugarvine consumer dining guide. Commission-free on a 12-month contract; it notes a 1.5% handling fee on Stripe deposits.
resOS
Transparent and self-serve, with a real free tier and every feature included on each paid tier except SMS. Priced in euros and dollars, so the pound figure moves with exchange rates.
So which should you pick?
If you need ResDiary's depth — complex yield rules, a long EPOS integration list, several sites — the honest answer is that most of the cheaper options will not match it, and SevenRooms is the main step up rather than sideways. If you are a single site using a fraction of it and paying for add-ons you barely touch, a flat all-inclusive fee is usually the better shape.
Try NomNom free for 14 days
No card, no setup fee and no sales call — and your existing bookings and guest history can be imported so you are not starting from an empty diary. See how it works.
Common questions
What is the best alternative to ResDiary?
For comparable operations depth, SevenRooms is the main step across, though it is enterprise-priced and CRM-led rather than floor-led. For a simpler, cheaper flat fee the options are Sugarvine (£75 + VAT), resOS (free tier, then volume-based) and NomNom (£29.99). OpenTable and TheFork add a marketplace but charge per cover.
How much notice do I have to give ResDiary?
ResDiary contracts default to annual with 90 days' notice, so check your renewal date before committing to a move — it is the longest notice period of the systems on this page.
Is ResDiary actually commission-free?
On bookings, yes — there is no per-cover fee. It does add 1.2% on deposits and payments and 3% on gift vouchers, and SMS, events, pre-orders and vouchers are separately billed add-ons, so the effective monthly cost is usually above the headline quote.
Keep reading
- All booking system comparisons
- Restaurant booking system pricing compared (seven systems)
- Switching booking system without the stress
Prices and features were accurate to the best of our knowledge on 11 August 2026, summarised from each vendor's own published information and from third-party trackers. Where a vendor does not publish pricing we say so rather than quoting an estimate as though it were a list price. Booking system pricing changes often — always confirm the current figure with the vendor before you sign anything.