Why Restaurants Use Thermal Printers
Thermal printers are the standard for restaurant billing because they are fast (a full receipt in under 2 seconds), silent, and need no ink or toner — they print by heating special paper. Running cost is just the paper roll (₹30–50 per roll). They handle two jobs in a restaurant:
- Customer bills at the counter — with your logo, prices, and GST breakdown
- Kitchen Order Tickets (KOTs) in the kitchen — items, variants, add-ons, and cooking notes
58mm vs 80mm: Which Should You Buy?
| 58mm Printer | 80mm Printer | |
|---|---|---|
| Paper width | 58mm (~32 characters/line) | 80mm (~48 characters/line) |
| Price in India | ₹2,000–5,000 | ₹6,000–12,000 |
| Best for | Small counters, tea/juice shops, kiosks | Restaurants, cloud kitchens, busy counters |
| Auto paper cutter | Usually manual tear | Usually automatic |
| Readability in kitchen | OK for short items | Best — bigger text, fewer line wraps |
| Long item names & add-ons | Wrap across lines | Fit comfortably |
Our recommendation: if you run a restaurant or cloud kitchen, buy 80mm. The extra few thousand rupees buys you tickets your cooks can read from an arm's length during a rush. Buy 58mm only if you're a small counter with short menus. Tezzu supports both widths — you pick the paper size in settings and receipts are formatted automatically.
What Is ESC/POS? (And Why It Matters)
ESC/POS is the command language almost every thermal receipt printer understands — Epson created it, and brands like TVS, Rugtek, Posiflex, iMin, and hundreds of generic models follow it. If a printer says "ESC/POS compatible" (virtually all receipt printers sold in India do), it works with Tezzu. Tezzu also supports ZPL for label printers.
ESC/POS is what lets software print bold, double-height text for KOT items, cut the paper automatically after each ticket, open the cash drawer, and sound a buzzer for new orders.
Popular Thermal Printers in India (2026)
- TVS RP-3230 — 80mm, auto-cutter, workhorse of Indian restaurants (~₹9,000)
- Epson TM-T82 — 80mm, extremely reliable, wide service network (~₹11,000)
- Rugtek RP-80 — 80mm, budget-friendly (~₹6,500)
- Everycom EC-58 — 58mm, entry-level (~₹2,500)
Connectivity: USB is the most reliable for a fixed counter. LAN/Ethernet lets a kitchen printer sit away from the billing computer. Bluetooth suits tablets and phones.
Setting Up Bill + KOT Printing with Tezzu
Tezzu's dashboard has a dedicated Hardware section for printing:
- Bill printer: choose the printer, paper width, and what appears on the bill — logo, shop name, address, GSTIN, CGST/SGST or flat tax, custom header/footer text.
- KOT printer: choose a (separate) kitchen printer, 58/80mm width, and turn on auto-print on order confirm and the sound alarm.
- Extras: open the cash drawer on print, print combined bills for dine-in tables, and auto-print bills when orders are confirmed.
The key difference from standalone billing software: Tezzu is also your ordering channel. Orders from WhatsApp and your free online store page print automatically — nobody re-types anything.
GST on Thermal Bills
Tezzu supports three tax modes on printed bills:
- GSTIN mode — prints your GSTIN with CGST + SGST percentages, tax-inclusive or exclusive pricing
- Flat tax — a single custom tax label and percentage
- No tax — for unregistered small businesses
Frequently Asked Questions
Do thermal printers need ink?
No. They print on heat-sensitive paper. Your only consumable is the paper roll.
Can I connect two printers — one for bills, one for KOT?
Yes. Tezzu lets you assign separate printers for bills and KOTs, each with its own paper width and settings.
Will my existing printer work?
If it's an ESC/POS receipt printer (58mm or 80mm) — which covers nearly every receipt printer sold in India — yes.
Does the printer work with WhatsApp orders?
Yes. With Tezzu, WhatsApp orders and online store orders trigger KOT and bill printing automatically, the same as counter orders.