When does the business day end?
How the business-day cut-off and the location's time zone decide which day a late sale counts towards, and how they affect reports and order numbers.
On this page
A bar that closes at 02:00 doesn't want half of Saturday night counted as Sunday. The business-day cut-off solves this: sales before the cut-off hour count toward the previous day. Each location has its own cut-off and its own time zone.
Where to set it
- Go to Settings › Locations and open the location.
- Open More options.
- Set Business day ends at (from 00:00 to 08:00; new locations start at 04:00) and check the Time zone.
- Choose Save.
You need the Manage locations permission to change it.
How a sale gets its day
An order gets its business day when it is opened, using the location's time zone and cut-off. With a cut-off of 04:00:
| Order opened | Counts toward |
|---|---|
| Friday 23:30 | Friday |
| Saturday 01:45 | Friday |
| Saturday 04:00 | Saturday |
The order keeps that day even if it is paid later. A table opened at 23:30 and paid at 00:30 stays on the day it was opened.
What follows the business day
- Reports: Sales, Products and Staff reports, and the period you pick, count business days. See Sales reports.
- Order numbers: with Restart order numbers at 1 every day on under Settings › Orders & receipts, numbering starts again at 1 when a new business day begins, not at midnight. See Service charge and order numbers.
- Card reader restart: card readers restart once a day during a two-hour window that starts at the cut-off hour, so they don't restart during service.
What doesn't follow it
- The till: closing the till is up to you. Nothing closes or counts the drawer automatically at the cut-off, and a till that stays open past it keeps the same cash session. See Close the till.
- The VAT report: it counts calendar days and months, by when orders were closed, in your time zone. A sale closed at 01:00 on 1 March is in the March VAT report, even when it counts toward 28 February in the sales report. See VAT report.
Common questions
What cut-off should I choose?
Pick an hour after your latest closing time and before anyone starts the next day. Most venues that close before midnight can leave it at 04:00.
What happens to past sales if I change it?
Nothing. Existing orders keep the business day they were given. Only orders opened after the change use the new cut-off. Change it on a quiet day, ideally after closing, to avoid one odd day in your reports.
What does the time zone change?
Business days, reports and order numbering are worked out in the location's time zone, not the time zone of the device or the person looking at the report. The business also has a default Time zone under Settings › General; a location's own time zone takes priority for that location. See Language, currency and time zone.
Do all locations need the same cut-off?
No. Each order carries the business day of its own location, so a report for all locations adds them up correctly even when the cut-offs or time zones differ.