The average check (or average spend per head) is the average amount each guest — or each table — leaves at the till. It’s one of the most immediate numbers for understanding what a cover is worth, and you get it by dividing total revenue by the number of guests (or parties) in a service.
Example: €4,000 at dinner across 100 covers gives an average check of €40 a head. Tracking it by service, day and daypart says far more than raw turnover: two nights with the same takings but a different check tell two different floor stories.
How to raise it without touching prices
Raising the average check doesn’t have to mean a more expensive menu. The healthiest levers are menu engineering (positioning and describing high-margin dishes), gentle upselling (an extra glass, dessert, coffee) and food-and-beverage pairing.
But the average check alone isn’t enough: a table that spends a lot but stays three hours can earn less, in RevPASH, than two faster ones. Always read it alongside turnover. Here are the metrics to track in 2026.
Frequently asked questions
- How do you calculate the average check?
- Divide a service's total revenue by the number of guests (or parties). Example: €4,000 across 100 covers is a €40 average check per head.
- Average check or RevPASH — which should I watch?
- Both. The average check tells you how much a guest spends; RevPASH tells you how much a seat earns over time. Together they stop you deciding on a single number.