I'll admit something that used to keep me up at night - staring at three different revenue numbers and having no clue which one was real. Your POS shows €15,000, accounting claims €14,200, and your handwritten notes total €15,300. So which system do you trust?
Why systems show different figures
The culprit is usually timing mismatches and conflicting definitions. Your POS records the moment you swipe the card, your bank logs when funds actually hit your account, and accounting captures when you manually input the data.
💡 Example:
Friday night 11:30 PM - you process a table for €180. Where does this appear?
- POS system: Friday (transaction time)
- Bank: Monday (card payment processing)
- Accounting: Wednesday (when you enter it)
Result: three different weeks in three systems
The 5 most common causes
- Timing mismatches: what gets logged versus what actually happened
- VAT treatment: some systems include it, others strip it out
- Refunds and comps: handled differently across platforms
- Gratuities: counted as revenue in some places, ignored in others
- Manual adjustments: entered in just one system
⚠️ Watch out:
Double-check you're comparing identical date ranges and VAT settings. A 9% VAT discrepancy can explain your entire headache.
The detective method: step by step investigation
Approach this like solving a puzzle. You'll methodically track down each variance, starting with the biggest gaps first.
💡 Example investigation:
POS system shows €12,000, accounting shows €11,000 for week 15:
- Difference: €1,000 (8.3%)
- Check 1: VAT? €12,000 / 1.09 = €11,009 - Bingo!
- Conclusion: POS system incl. VAT, accounting excl. VAT
Solution: from now on compare both excl. VAT
Which system is the leading one?
From years of working in professional kitchens, this depends entirely on your specific goal:
- Daily operations: POS system (live data, immediate updates)
- Tax compliance: accounting software (auditable, official)
- Cash management: bank statements (actual available funds)
- Recipe costing: POS system (tied to actual orders)
💡 Practical tip:
Many entrepreneurs use this rule:
- Manage daily based on POS figures
- Check against bank weekly
- Reconcile with accounting monthly
This prevents minor variances from snowballing into major problems.
One system as your 'single source of truth'
The ultimate fix: consolidate everything into one platform. No more juggling multiple data sources or second-guessing your numbers.
Tools like KitchenNmbrs combine food costing, recipe management, and daily reporting in one dashboard. You'll finally know your figures are consistent and calculated identically every time.
How do you resolve figure discrepancies? (step by step)
Gather all figures in one place
Write down the revenue according to each system for exactly the same period. Watch out: use the same start and end date, and check whether it's incl. or excl. VAT.
Calculate the difference and look for patterns
Subtract the figures from each other and calculate the percentage difference. Is it about 9%? Then it's VAT. Is it a round amount? Then it could be tips or discounts.
Check the biggest differences first
Start with the largest difference and work your way down. Often one cause explains 80% of the problem. Only after that's solved do you look at smaller differences.
Make agreements for the future
Determine which system is leading for which purpose. Agree on how often you check and at what difference you take action (for example, when there's more than 2% deviation).
✨ Pro tip
Run a 72-hour reconciliation check every Tuesday: compare your weekend POS totals against Monday's bank deposits. If the gap exceeds €200 or grows week-over-week, you've got a systematic leak to plug.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
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Frequently asked questions
What difference between systems is still normal?
Up to 2-3% variance is typical due to timing lag and rounding differences. Above 5% means you need to dig deeper. Anything over 10% signals a serious systematic issue.
What if my accountant has different figures than I do?
Ask them to walk through their methodology - they might use booking dates instead of transaction dates, or handle VAT differently. Establish which approach you'll both follow going forward.
Can I prevent systems from showing different figures?
You can't eliminate discrepancies entirely, but you can minimize them by standardizing on one primary system, setting clear date and VAT protocols, and running weekly spot checks. Small gaps are inevitable; large ones are preventable.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
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