OpenTable vs SevenRooms: marketplace reach or guest data?

These two sit at the expensive end of the market and answer opposite questions. OpenTable sells reach: a large diner marketplace that brings you people who have never heard of you, charged per cover. SevenRooms sells retention: a guest-data platform that helps you keep the people you already have, with no marketplace and no per-cover fee. Neither publishes a price.

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.

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.

So which should you choose?

If you need to fill covers you cannot fill yourself, OpenTable is the one with the audience, and the per-cover fee is the price of that audience. If your tables are already full and the problem is turning first-time diners into regulars, SevenRooms is built for exactly that. The catch either way is that this is a two-sales-call decision: neither will tell you what it costs without talking to you, and both expect an annual commitment.

Full disclosure: we make a third option

This comparison is published by NomNom, a UK restaurant booking system, so you should know we have a horse in this race. We have kept our own product out of the grid above because the question you asked was about OpenTable and SevenRooms. For completeness: NomNom is £29.99 a month, everything included, with no per-cover fee, no contract and a 14-day free trial, and unlike both systems above we publish that price. We do not run a diner marketplace.

See what NomNom does, or read the full seven-way pricing comparison.

Common questions

Which is better, OpenTable or SevenRooms?

They solve different problems, so it depends on which one you have. OpenTable is better if you need new diners: its marketplace is one of the largest and it charges per cover for that reach. SevenRooms is better if you already fill your tables and want to turn those guests into regulars, with a CRM, tagging and automated marketing. Neither publishes pricing and both expect an annual commitment.

Is SevenRooms trustworthy?

SevenRooms is an established hospitality platform used by upscale groups and large operators internationally, so it is a real and well-supported product rather than a risk in itself. The common complaints are commercial rather than technical: quote-only pricing, annual contracts, and a feature set that is more than a single independent site can realistically use. Read the contract terms, and ask what happens to your guest data if you leave.

Do OpenTable and SevenRooms both charge commission?

No. OpenTable charges a fee for every cover booked through its own website, app or affiliate network, though not for bookings taken on your own site. SevenRooms charges no per-cover fee at all — it is a subscription, and it runs no marketplace.

Keep reading

• All booking system comparisons
• Restaurant booking system pricing compared (seven systems)
• Commission-free restaurant booking systems in the UK
• 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.