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Offer Dual Pricing with Ease: How Cash Discounting Works in NX POS

Updated

Offer Dual Pricing with Ease: How Cash Discounting Works in NX POS 💵✨

Giving your guests flexible payment options while saving on credit card processing fees is a win-win for any venue! With the Cash Discount feature in NX Restaurant POS, you can seamlessly implement dual pricing—offering a built-in percentage discount to guests who pay with cash while charging standard menu rates for card payments. 🚀
 
This guide breaks down how Cash Discounting works on your register, what your guests see, how it pairs with cash rounding, and how to answer questions on the floor!

 

What is Cash Discounting? 🤔

Cash Discounting (sometimes referred to as "dual pricing") allows venues to offer a lower total price to guests who pay with cash.
  • Menu Prices are Card Prices: Every item price listed on your POS menu and check represents the full credit/debit card price.
  • Automatic Cash Savings: When a guest pays in cash, the system automatically applies a venue-configured percentage discount (typically between 3% and 4%) off their total bill.
  • Selective Application: Cash discounts apply only to cash payments. Card transactions, gift cards, and house accounts are always charged the full, listed menu price.
  • Area-Based Rules: Cash discounting rules are enabled and managed per Area (e.g., Dine-In vs. Takeout) by store managers or administrators in NX Portal.
 

What the Guest Sees at Checkout 🛒

When a cashier opens the checkout screen, the POS clearly displays two totals for the check:
Payment Method Total Shown on Screen 💡
Credit / Card Price Full menu check total
Cash Price Total balance minus the percentage cash discount

Example Walkthrough 📐

  • Check Total (Card Price): $22.93
  • Venue Cash Discount: 4%
  • Calculated Cash Price: $22.93 − 4% = $22.01
When the guest pays $22.01 in cash, the check is settled in full! The 4% discount is listed clearly as a separate line item on their printed receipt, and the balance settles to $0.00.

 

Paying the Quoted Cash Price Covers the Whole Check 🎯

If a guest hands over the exact cash price shown on the screen or receipt, the POS automatically recognizes that amount as paying the balance in full—even though the dollar figure is lower than the credit total! The check closes out correctly to zero with no extra steps required by the cashier.
 

⚠️ Partial Cash Payments: If a guest makes a partial payment (paying only part of their bill in cash or splitting tender between cash and card), the discount is automatically calculated on only the cash portion tendered.

 

Combining Cash Discounting with Cash Rounding 🪙

Some venues also use Cash Rounding to round cash totals to the nearest nickel or dime so drawers don't need to stock pennies. When both Cash Discounting and Cash Rounding are enabled, NX POS handles the math in a strict 3-step order:
  1. Start with the True Total:
    Calculate the full, exact check total (items, tax, fees).
  2. Apply the Cash Discount:
    Apply your venue's cash discount percentage to the full total.
  3. Apply Cash Rounding:
    Round the discounted amount to your venue's set rounding increment.

Worked Example 📊

  • Check Total: $30.71
  • Cash Discount: 3.4%
  • Rounding Increment: Nearest nickel (5¢)
  1. Calculate Discount: $30.71 − 3.4% = $29.67.
  2. Apply Rounding: $29.67 rounded to the nearest nickel = $29.65.
  3. Final Result: $29.65 is the exact cash price displayed on the guest receipt and expected by the cash drawer!

 

Cash Discount vs. Credit Surcharge: What's the Difference? ⚖️

Cash Discounts and Credit Surcharges are two different ways to offer dual pricing, and a venue uses one or the other:
  • 🟢 Cash Discount: Listed menu prices represent the higher (card) price, and cash buyers receive a percentage discount off that price at checkout.
  • 🔵 Credit Surcharge: Listed menu prices represent the lower (cash) price, and credit card buyers have a processing fee added on top at checkout.

💬 Guest Communication Tip: If a guest asks "Why is cash cheaper than the price on the menu?", you are running a Cash Discount program! Point to their receipt line item showing their cash savings.

 

⚙️ Configuring Cash Discounting

Learn about configuring Cash Discounting and other Fee Mitigation options here: Take Control of Processing Costs: How to Configure Credit Card Fee Mitigation

 

Troubleshooting & Resolving Guest Disputes 🔍

If a guest has questions about their check total, follow these quick troubleshooting steps:
  1. Confirm the Payment Method: Verify whether the guest paid with cash. Card, gift card, and house account tenders always pay the full listed menu price.
  2. Verify Against the Receipt Quote: Compare the cash collected against the printed cash price on the receipt. If they match, the check is correctly paid in full!
  3. Account for Cash Rounding: If your store also uses cash rounding, expect the final cash price to differ by no more than half of your rounding increment (e.g., up to 2.5¢ for nickel rounding).
  4. Unresolved Balance? If the collected cash amount doesn't match either quote and the check remains open or overpaid, note the Check ID, Printed Cash Price, and Amount Tendered, and escalate the ticket to support.

Need Additional Support? 💬

If you need help adjusting your venue's Cash Discount rules or Area settings in NX Portal, reach out to NX Restaurant Support anytime! 🌟
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