A comp (short for complimentary) is something you give away on purpose: a staff meal, a round for the owner’s guests, a replacement after a complaint. In Papaya a comp is a special kind of discount. It always takes 100% off, it always records why it was given, and it stays out of your sales figures.
Comp or promotion?
Every discount now has a Kind: Promotion or Comp. Your existing discounts are all promotions and keep working exactly as before.
Promotion | Comp | |
What it’s for | Selling at a lower price: happy hour, 10% off, buy 2 get 1 | Giving something away: staff meals, guests, service recovery |
Value | Any percentage or amount | Always 100% |
Who applies it | Staff, a discount code, or automatically | Staff only |
Reason | Not needed | Required |
Receipt | Normal receipt | Headed “Complimentary” when the whole bill is comped |
Day-end reports | Counted as a discount on the Revenue report | Listed on the Non-revenue report |
Set up a comp
Go to Settings → Discounts and click Add discount.
Choose Amount off order to comp a whole bill, or Amount off items to comp individual items.
Enter a name staff will recognise at the till, for example Owner’s guests or Staff drink.
Under Kind, choose Comp.
Choose a Reason (required for a comp).
Click Save.
When you choose Comp, some settings are locked so every comp is recorded the same way:
Method is always Merchant applied: staff apply a comp at the till, never a discount code or an automatic rule.
Value is fixed at 100%. For a partial staff discount, such as 50% off, set up a promotion instead.
Minimum order requirements are off: a comp has no purchase condition.
Combinations are all off for an order comp, because it covers the whole bill. Item comps can still be combined with other discounts.
Reasons
Reason | Use it for |
Staff meal | Food or drink given to staff on shift. |
Entertainment | Hosting guests, partners or VIPs at no charge. |
Service recovery | Making up for a service problem or a complaint. |
Marketing | Promotional giveaways, influencer and event meals. |
Tasting | Menu tastings, samples and recipe development. |
Training | Staff training and practice orders. |
Other | Anything not covered above; add the reason in the order note. |
The reason is printed on the receipt and groups comps on the Non-revenue report. Comps are an operational record for your reports, not an accounting or tax document.
Your discount list
The Kind column shows which discounts are comps, with their reason.
💡 Already using a 100% promotion for freebies, such as Entertainment 100% Discount? Set up a comp for it, then switch the old promotion off. Only discounts set up as comps stay out of your revenue.