5-Out vs Foodcast

5-Out is a web-based restaurant forecasting and automation platform founded in 2013. It uses machine learning to forecast sales from historical sales and guest patterns, day-part trends, menu mix, weather, local events, and operational data. Forecasts are available hourly, daily, and weekly. The platform turns forecasts into automated prep lists, predictive Smart Pars, purchasing recommendations, inventory and recipe management, labor forecasting, and food-cost visibility. Restaurant operations tools include labor schedules and budgets, food budgets, purchase and prep lists, Smart Actions, forecasts, and custom reporting. Managers can adjust prep amounts, labor guidance, and purchasing recommendations for local events or promotions. 5-Out lists integrations including PAR Brink, Harri, MarketMan, Aloha, Square, Toast, 7shifts, SevenRooms, Craftable, MarginEdge, Micros, Restaurant365, Simphony, Tripleseat, and xtraCHEF. It supports restaurants from one location to 500 and connects to restaurant tools without manual setup or data entry. Pricing is on request, with a listed plan at $100 a month per location.

Foodcast is web-based software for restaurant sales forecasting, intended to help manage stock and staffing. It turns city events into expected covers and analyzes 24 months of sales history for seasonal and weekly patterns. Foodcast says it compares forecasts with actual sales daily and adjusts predictions in real time for weather, local events, holidays, and strikes; the site claims 95% forecast accuracy. Listed tools include proactive weather alerts, a local events calendar, and staffing recommendations based on customer flow. It automatically syncs historical sales data from a connected POS, and plans deliver forecasts by newsletter. Named POS integrations include Lightspeed, L'Addition, SumUp, Zelty, Innovorder, Jalia, Clyo Systems, MyPOS, PI Electronique, and Cashpad. Basic costs €49 a month, Pro €69 a month, and Enterprise €99 a month; the first month is free on each listed plan. Basic and Pro have capacity and seat limits and exclude multi-site management and API integration, both included with Enterprise. Per-service, per-dish, and per-channel forecasts and staffing recommendations are marked as coming soon.