A Guide to Kitchen Display System for Lightspeed POS
Introduction: Why This Matters
Most restaurants bleed money in the kitchen without even realising it. Orders pile up. Tickets get lost. Food takes too long. Customers complain. Staff get stressed.
The mistake? Relying on paper tickets or “we’ve always done it this way.”
If you’re running Lightspeed POS, you’ve already got a strong foundation on the front end. The question is: how do you get the back of house to keep pace?
That’s where a Kitchen Display System (KDS) comes in. Think of it as the nervous system of your kitchen. Orders come in from every source - dine-in, takeaway, delivery apps - and the KDS routes them intelligently to the right station, at the right time.
The result? Less chaos. More throughput. And customers that keep coming back because you deliver food faster, hotter, and more consistently.
What a KDS Actually Does
Let’s cut the jargon. A KDS is just a screen in the kitchen that shows orders. But the value isn’t the screen. It’s the workflow it enforces.
Here’s what it changes:
No paper chits – Nothing falls off a rail. Nothing smudges. Every order is digital.
Real-time sync – As soon as the server punches in or a customer orders online, the kitchen sees it. Zero delay.
Station-level routing – Burgers go to the grill. Fries go to the fryer. Drinks go to the bar. No one shouts across the room.
Timers and colours – Orders turn red when they’ve been sitting too long. Chefs know what’s urgent without guessing.
Reporting – You finally see where bottlenecks happen. Prep times, bump times, staff performance.
It’s not about technology. It’s about removing human error and forcing efficiency.
Why Lightspeed POS Users Need This
Lightspeed POS is one of the strongest hospitality platforms worldwide. But on its own, it’s a sales tool. It records transactions.
A POS doesn’t run your kitchen.
Without a KDS, you’re stuck:
Printing tickets - chaos.
Staff shouting - mistakes.
No visibility - wasted time.
By integrating a KDS with Lightspeed, you unlock:
Seamless FOH - BOH communication.
Consistency across locations if you’re a chain.
Flexibility to grow without scaling chaos.
This isn’t optional. If you want to run more than one location or deal with high-volume service, a KDS is mandatory.
The Lightspeed KDS: Built-In and Native
Lightspeed actually ships its own KDS product. It’s iOS-based, runs on iPads, and integrates directly into Lightspeed POS.
The big advantage: native integration. No middleware, no third-party bridge. Orders flow straight in.
Here’s what you get:
Receipt Mode
Each order shows as a tile. You see table number, order contents, and elapsed time. As food is cooked and bumped, the ticket moves across.
Reporting
Because it’s tied to Lightspeed, you get visibility on kitchen performance inside the same ecosystem.
Where the Native KDS Falls Short
It’s not perfect. If you’ve got a more complex setup, you’ll hit limitations:
iOS-only - if you prefer Android or cheaper screens, tough luck.
Limited customisation - filtering, layouts and logics are basic.
Add-on pricing - not included in your POS subscription.
For a single café or casual dining spot, it’s fine. But if you’re running a busy takeaway, delivery-first kitchen, or multi-site group - you’ll quickly outgrow it.
Fresh KDS: The Third-Party Alternative
Fresh KDS is a go-to partner integration for Lightspeed. It plugs in cleanly and brings more flexibility.
Why choose Fresh KDS?
Runs on iOS and Android - cheaper hardware options.
Drag-and-drop tickets - manually hold, rearrange, prioritise.
Label printing - vital if you’re in takeaway/delivery.
Better than native. But still limited.
RocketBox: The Smarter Alternative
Here’s the truth: Lightspeed’s built-in KDS is basic. Fresh KDS adds some features but doesn’t fundamentally change how your kitchen runs.
RocketBox is different. It’s built for high-volume, delivery-first restaurants - the exact segment that suffers most when kitchens get overwhelmed. Plus it integrates seamlessly with your Lightspeed POS.
What RocketBox Adds on Top
AI-Powered Order Management - Orders are sorted and prioritised automatically based on prep time, delivery driver ETA, and service type.
Advanced Multi-Station Routing - Burgers to grill, fries to fryer, sides to prep station - automatically. With the ability to balance workloads between multiple kitchens.
Batch Production Screen - Instead of staff manually counting patties, RocketBox groups items into production “sets” (e.g. 12 cheeseburgers across 6 orders).
Driver & Order Sync - RocketBox doesn’t just show orders. It syncs them with driver arrival times so food isn’t sitting on the pass going cold.
AI Auto-Batching - Smart logic that decides how to batch orders at peak times for maximum throughput.
Multi-Channel Integration - Orders from Deliveroo, Uber Eats, Just Eat, and in-house all show in one place.
Multi-Language Support - Staff see the system in their native language.
RocketBox turns a KDS from a passive display into an active orchestration layer for your kitchen.
Which One Should You Use?
If you’re a café or small casual spot, Lightspeed’s native KDS might do. If you’re mid-volume, Fresh KDS gives you some extra flexibility.
But if you’re serious about speed, accuracy, and scaling delivery-first operations - RocketBox is the play.
What You Gain with RocketBox
Let’s talk outcomes.
Order accuracy - virtually eliminates missing items.
Prep speed - 20–40% faster because of batching logic.
Driver alignment - food hits the pass exactly when a driver arrives.
Staff stress - drops massively. No one is juggling chits or yelling.
Consistency across sites - kitchens run the same way everywhere.
The ROI isn’t just fast. It compounds. RocketBox doesn’t just digitise paper - it re-engineers the workflow.
The Real Play: Scaling with RocketBox
If you want one site to run smoother, any KDS will help. If you want to scale 5, 10, 50 locations - RocketBox is the only option that gives you:
Standardised processes across every kitchen.
Advanced reporting that shows bottlenecks by site or by station.
Driver and channel sync to unify your delivery operation.
This is how brands expand without collapsing under their own weight.
Results RocketBox customers have seen? 40% fewer complaints. Order prep time decreased by 15%. Driver wait times reduced by 63%. Deliveroo rating increased.
That’s the difference between a “digital ticket screen” and a true AI-powered KDS.
Advanced Play: RocketBox + Lightspeed + Delivery Channels
Here’s the bulletproof stack:
Lightspeed POS - records transactions.
RocketBox KDS - orchestrates the kitchen with AI.
Delivery apps - Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat feed straight in.
One hub. One workflow. Every channel, every station, every driver aligned.
Conclusion
If you’re running Lightspeed POS without a KDS, you’re leaving money, speed, and sanity on the table.
Lightspeed’s built-in KDS is fine for small sites.
Fresh KDS adds features but doesn’t fix the fundamentals.
RocketBox re-engineers the kitchen for speed, accuracy, and scale.
The question isn’t “Should I get a KDS?”
The question is “Do I want a screen that shows orders, or a system that transforms how my kitchen works?”
That’s the RocketBox difference.