Live waitlist for busy restaurants

Seat more guests.
Lose fewer walk‑aways.

A live waitlist and host screen for restaurants that already have the crowd. Guests join from anywhere and check in when they’re actually at the door. Your hosts see every party and every table, live.

Join the private beta Find a table
Free for restaurants No per-cover fees No app needed
$0during the private beta
0¢per cover, per booking, ever
3 tapsfor a guest to get in line
DFWbuilt in Dallas–Fort Worth
The problem

A clipboard can’t see your dining room.

On a busy night, the host stand runs on guesses. Quotes are rough, buzzers walk off, and a party that isn’t even here can hold a table for ten minutes.

✕A busy night today
  • “About 45 minutes.” A guess, so some guests wait longer than they were told and leave.
  • A crowd at the door. Guests hover by the stand because leaving means losing their spot.
  • Calling names into the lobby. No answer, so the table sits empty while the host decides.
  • A list on paper, a floor in your head. Nobody can see which tables are about to turn.
✓The same night on Waitlist
  • Quotes from your real tables. Worked out from how long parties that size actually stay.
  • Guests wait anywhere. Their phone shows their live spot and pings them when it’s time.
  • Only people who are here get seated. “I’m here” works only at your door; no-shows are skipped.
  • One live screen. The line and every table, color-coded, with the best table suggested.
How it works

Three taps to a table.

No pagers, no crowd at the host stand. Guests wait wherever they like and show up when it counts.

1

Join from anywhere

On the website or the app. Pick a party size, see the honest wait, and you’re in line.

2

Get pinged when it’s close

A heads-up to start heading over, then a ping the moment your table is ready.

3

Tap “I’m here” to claim it

It only works at the restaurant, so the table goes to the party that’s actually there.

For hosts

Everything the host stand needs, on one screen.

Runs in a browser on the tablet you already have. New hosts pick it up in a shift.

Every table, live

Colored by status, right next to the line. Tables turn amber at 45 minutes and red at 60, so you can see what’s about to open.

Drag to seat, best fit first

Waitlist suggests the right-sized open table, so big tables stay free for big parties.

“Table too small?”

A quick check before four people land at a two-top.

Walk-ins by text

Add a walk-in in seconds. They get their spot and updates by text, no app needed.

Reservations in the same line

Booked parties join the line at their time. One list, not two.

Running late? One tap

Guests ask for 5, 10 or 15 more minutes. You approve or decline in one tap.

Your lobby becomes the sign-up sheet

Any TV with a browser shows the line and who’s being seated. Guests scan the QR code to join.

Staff roles, locked down

Hosts run the floor, owners manage settings, and sign-in has a second step.

Check-in by location

Only seat people who are actually here.

Guests can only tap “I’m here” inside a small radius around your door. The moment they do, their row on your board flips to HERE.

  • No-shows are skipped automatically, so the next party moves up without a host chasing names.
  • Ghost parties never hold a table. Joining from across town doesn’t count as showing up.
  • Phone GPS off? A host can mark any party as here with one tap.
Wait quotes

Quotes from your real tables, not a guess.

Every quote looks at which tables fit the party, which are seated or being cleaned, and how long parties that size actually stay at your restaurant. It gets sharper every service.

  • A reason behind every number, so hosts can quote with confidence.
  • Updates as tables turn, and guests see the change on their phone.
For owners

Know your Friday before Friday.

Waitlist learns from every party you seat. The numbers come from your own service, not industry averages.

  • Busy map by day and hour, so you staff the right shifts.
  • Quote accuracy by party size. Are your 4-tops waiting longer than you tell them?
  • Walk-aways: how many guests leave the line, and whether it’s improving.
  • Every location from one login, each with its own line, tables and staff.
Do the math

What a busy night leaks.

Put in your own numbers. This is simple math on what you enter, not a promise of results.

Walks out the door each busy night$672
Each year$104,832
Table time held for no-shows, each week2.5 hours
Per-cover fees on Waitlist$0

Waitlist goes after both leaks: honest quotes and a live spot mean fewer guests give up, and check-in by location means no-shows get skipped instead of holding tables.

Illustrative only, based on the numbers you enter.

For guests

Free for guests. No app required.

Join from the website on any phone, or use the app for a few extras. Wait at the bar next door, not by the door.

  • Web or app. Same live spot, same honest wait.
  • Favorites for the places you go back to.
  • Wait-drop alerts. Hear when the line gets short.
  • Dietary needs go to the kitchen when you join.
Find a table
Why Waitlist

Built for the line, not for ads.

Paper can’t tell anyone the real wait. Listing apps are built to send you new diners. Waitlist is built to seat the ones you already have.

FeaturePaper listListing appsWaitlist
Guests can wait anywhere—Varies✓
Seats only parties who are here—Varies✓
Quotes from your actual tables—Varies✓
Line and tables on one screen—Varies✓
Best-fit table suggestions—Varies✓
No ads or paid rankings✓Often not✓
No per-cover fees✓Some charge✓
No reservation fees for guests✓Varies✓

A general comparison of approaches. Some platforms charge per cover; features differ from product to product.

Pricing

Free during the private beta. No per-cover fees, ever.

Private beta

Free

For one location, while we’re in beta. Guests are always free.

Join the private beta
  • Live line, tables and TV board
  • Location check-in and auto-skip
  • Guest website and app
  • Insights and house rules
  • Unlimited staff accounts
  • No ads, no paid rankings, no selling guest data

More than one location? Extra locations will be on a paid plan. Price to be announced before public launch, and still no per-cover fees.

Why we built it

For restaurants that already have the crowd.

The best-run chains quietly built their own waitlist technology: guests join from their phones, hosts quote from the real floor, and tables turn faster. Most independent and regional restaurants never got that. They got a clipboard, a pager box, or a listing app that’s really built to sell them ads.

Waitlist gives any busy restaurant the same kind of system. We don’t try to send you new customers or rank you against the place next door. We help you seat the ones already waiting, faster and more fairly, and we never charge per cover.

The Waitlist team · Dallas–Fort Worth
FAQ

Good to know.

I’m a guest. How do I use it?

Open Find a table, pick a restaurant that’s live on Waitlist, choose your party size and join the line. You’ll see your spot and wait time, and get a ping when your table is almost ready. It’s free for guests.

Do guests need the app?

No. Guests can join from the website on any phone, and hosts can add walk-ins who get updates by text. The app adds notifications, wait-drop alerts and saved favorites for regulars.

What if a guest’s GPS is off?

The host can mark any party as here with one tap. Location check-in keeps the line honest, but it never locks anyone out.

Is Waitlist a way to get more customers?

No, and that’s on purpose. Waitlist is for restaurants that already have more guests than tables at peak. We don’t sell ads or rank restaurants. We help you seat the demand you already have, faster and more reliably.

Do you charge per guest, per booking or per reservation?

No. The more guests who join your line through Waitlist, the better, and your bill doesn’t go up because of it. There are no reservation fees for restaurants or for guests.

What equipment do we need?

None beyond what you have. The host dashboard runs in a web browser on a tablet, laptop or phone. The TV board works on any screen with a browser.

How are the wait times calculated?

From your tables. Waitlist looks at which tables fit each party, which are seated or being cleaned, and how long parties of each size actually stay at your restaurant. The more you use it, the more accurate it gets.

Does it work with reservations?

Yes. Reservations join the same line at their time, so hosts manage one list instead of two.

What happens to guest information?

Guests share dietary needs only with the restaurant whose line they join. We don’t sell guest information or use it for advertising. See our privacy policy.

We have more than one location. Does that work?

Yes. Owners can run several locations from one login, each with its own line, tables and staff.

Your next rush is coming. Be ready.

We’re adding a few more restaurants to the private beta. Tell us about your busiest night and we’ll set you up.

Join the private beta Looking for a table? →