Restaurant point of sale systems in Fayetteville
Fayetteville is the Arkansas city where a beer and a cocktail on the same tab are taxed differently.
Fayetteville restaurants charge 11.75% on prepared food. Spirits carry an additional 5% supplemental beverage tax, reaching 16.75%, and that supplemental tax explicitly excludes wine, beer and malt beverages under 5% alcohol by weight. That means three tax groups on one ticket, and a point of sale with a single liquor category will get it wrong.
“We are not mosquitoes. You will not be swatting us away. But we are not disappearing after the install either.”
What do Fayetteville restaurants charge in tax?
Prepared food reaches 11.75%, made up of a 9.75% combined sales tax base plus the 2% hotel, motel and restaurant tax. Spirits carry a further 5% supplemental beverage tax, reaching 16.75%.
The exclusion is the part that catches systems out. Wine, beer and malt beverages under 5% alcohol by weight are excluded from the supplemental tax, so they sit at the prepared food rate of 11.75% while a cocktail beside them sits at 16.75%.
Why does this break a normal POS setup?
Because most systems ship with one alcohol category. Put every drink in it and either your beer is overtaxed or your spirits are undertaxed, on every tab, every night.
The fix is three tax groups and item level assignment, not category level. Category assignments drift as menus change and seasonal drinks come and go. Item level assignment survives a menu update.
It matters most on Dickson Street, where the bar volume is concentrated and a mixed tab of beer and cocktails is the normal case rather than the exception.
Fayetteville, Springdale and the county line
Northwest Arkansas runs together on a map but not on a tax return. Fayetteville and Springdale are separate cities, and the Washington and Benton county line runs through the region.
If you operate in more than one Northwest Arkansas city, each location needs its own tax configuration. We set them up separately rather than cloning, and we check the rate for each address before the menu is built.
Beer and wine under 5% alcohol by weight stay at the 11.75% food rate.
Questions restaurant owners ask
What is the restaurant tax rate in Fayetteville?
Prepared food is 11.75%, which is a 9.75% combined sales tax base plus the 2% hotel, motel and restaurant tax. Spirits add a 5% supplemental beverage tax to reach 16.75%. Wine, beer and malt beverages under 5% alcohol by weight are excluded from that supplemental tax.
Is beer really taxed differently from cocktails here?
Yes. Fayetteville's supplemental beverage tax explicitly excludes wine, beer and malt beverages under 5% alcohol by weight, so those stay at the prepared food rate while spirits carry the extra 5%. Your POS needs separate tax groups to handle a tab containing both.
Do you cover Springdale, Rogers and Bentonville?
Yes, and each is configured separately. Northwest Arkansas cities have their own rates and the county line runs through the region, so a configuration copied from one location to another is a reliable way to get the next one wrong.
Vendor pricing and tax rates change without notice. Confirm current figures with the vendor, the city or your accountant before you rely on them. Not tax, legal or accounting advice.
Every number on this page traces to a primary source
- Fayetteville HMR and supplemental beverage tax rates and exclusionsfayetteville-ar.gov / Sales Tax
- Arkansas state sales and use tax ratedfa.arkansas.gov / sales use tax