Basis of presentation (Policies)	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2020
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Basis of presentation	Basis of presentation The accompanying unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements ("financial statements") of PAR Technology Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”, “PAR”, "we", "us" or "our Company") have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) for interim financial statements and the instructions to Form 10-Q and Regulation S-X pertaining to interim financial statements as promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). In the opinion of management, the Company's financial statements include all normal and recurring adjustments necessary in order to make the financial statements not misleading and to provide a fair presentation of our financial results for the interim period included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (this “Quarterly Report”). Interim results are not necessarily indicative of results for the full year or any future periods. The information included in this Quarterly Report should be read in conjunction with the Company's audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on March 16, 2020 ("2019 Annual Report"). The preparation of the financial statements requires management of the Company to make a number of estimates and assumptions relating to the reported amount of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include revenue recognition, stock-based compensation, the recognition and measurement of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations at fair value, the carrying amount of property, plant and equipment including right-to-use assets and liabilities, identifiable intangible assets and goodwill, the measurement of liabilities and equity recognized for outstanding convertible notes, valuation allowances for receivables, inventories, and measurement of contingent consideration at fair value. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Segment Reporting	The Company operates in two distinct reporting segments, Restaurant/Retail and Government. The Company’s chief operating decision maker is the Company’s Chief Executive Officer. The Restaurant/Retail reporting segment provides point-of-sale (POS) software and hardware, back-office software, and integrated technical solutions to the restaurant and retail industries. The Government reporting segment provides intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions and mission systems support to the United States Department of Defense and other Federal agencies. In addition, the financial statements include corporate operations, which are comprised of enterprise-wide functional departments.
Reclassification	These reclassifications had no effect on previously reported total costs and operating expenses or net losses.
Use of Estimates	Use of Estimates Preparation of the financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Our estimates are subject to uncertainties associated with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic; the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to impact these estimates is uncertain and cannot be predicted, and there can be no assurance that the COVID-19 pandemic will not have a material and adverse effect on these estimates.
Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements and Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted	Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements In June 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-13, "Financial Instruments – Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments." ASU 2016-13 requires the measurement of all expected credit losses for financial assets held at the reporting date, based on historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts. In addition, ASU 2016-13 amends the accounting for credit losses on available-for-sale debt securities and purchased financial assets with credit deterioration. The Company adopted ASU 2016-13 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020. In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04, “Intangibles - Goodwill and Other (Topic 350) - Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment.” ASU 2017-04 eliminates Step 2 from the goodwill impairment test which requires entities to compute the implied fair value of goodwill. Under ASU 2017-04, an entity should perform its annual or interim goodwill impairment test by comparing the fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount. An entity should recognize an impairment charge for the amount by which the carrying amount exceeds the reporting unit’s fair value; however, the loss recognized should not exceed the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit. The Company adopted ASU 2017-04 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020. In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, “Disclosure Framework – Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurement.” ASU 2018-13 modifies the fair value measurement disclosures with the primary focus to improve effectiveness of disclosures in the notes to the financial statements that is most important to the users. ASU 2018-13 modifies the required disclosures related to the valuation techniques and inputs used, uncertainty in measurement, and changes in measurements applied. The Company adopted ASU 2018-13 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020. In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other (Topic 350) - Customer’s Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That Is a Service Contract.” ASU 2018-15 provides guidance on the measurement of costs for internal-use software during the design, development, and implementation stages for customers in a cloud hosting arrangement. ASU 2018-15 also requires the capitalized costs associated with the design, development and implementation of cloud hosted arrangements to be amortized over the term of the hosting arrangement. The Company adopted ASU 2018-15 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020. Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, "Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes", which is intended to simplify various requirements related to accounting for income taxes. ASU 2019-12 removes certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 and clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application. ASU 2019-12 is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact of this standard on its financial statements. In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-06, “Debt – Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging – Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40)”, which is intended to reduce the number of accounting models for convertible debt instruments and convertible preferred stock, and amend guidance for the derivatives scope exception for contracts in an entity’s own equity to reduce form-over-substance-based accounting conclusions. ASU 2020-06 is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2021, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact of this standard on its financial statements. With the exception of the new standards discussed above, there were no other recent accounting pronouncements or changes in accounting pronouncements during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 that are of significance or potential significance to the Company, as compared to the recent accounting pronouncements described in the 2019 Annual Report.

Basis of presentation (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

The accompanying unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements ("financial statements") of PAR Technology Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”, “PAR”, "we", "us" or "our Company") have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) for interim financial statements and the instructions to Form 10-Q and Regulation S-X pertaining to interim financial statements as promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). In the opinion of management, the Company's financial statements include all normal and recurring adjustments necessary in order to make the financial statements not misleading and to provide a fair presentation of our financial results for the interim period included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (this “Quarterly Report”). Interim results are not necessarily indicative of results for the full year or any future periods. The information included in this Quarterly Report should be read in conjunction with the Company's audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on March 16, 2020 ("2019 Annual Report").

The preparation of the financial statements requires management of the Company to make a number of estimates and assumptions relating to the reported amount of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include revenue recognition, stock-based compensation, the recognition and measurement of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations at fair value, the carrying amount of property, plant and equipment including right-to-use assets and liabilities, identifiable intangible assets and goodwill, the measurement of liabilities and equity recognized for outstanding convertible notes, valuation allowances for receivables, inventories, and measurement of contingent consideration at fair value. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Segment Reporting

The Company operates in two distinct reporting segments, Restaurant/Retail and Government. The Company’s chief operating decision maker is the Company’s Chief Executive Officer. The Restaurant/Retail reporting segment provides point-of-sale (POS) software and hardware, back-office software, and integrated technical solutions to the restaurant and retail industries. The Government reporting segment provides intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance solutions and mission systems support to the United States Department of Defense and other Federal agencies. In addition, the financial statements include corporate operations, which are comprised of enterprise-wide functional departments.

Reclassification

These reclassifications had no effect on previously reported total costs and operating expenses or net losses.

Use of Estimates

Preparation of the financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Our estimates are subject to uncertainties associated with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic; the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to impact these estimates is uncertain and cannot be predicted, and there can be no assurance that the COVID-19 pandemic will not have a material and adverse effect on these estimates.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements and Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In June 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-13, "Financial Instruments – Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments." ASU 2016-13 requires the measurement of all expected credit losses for financial assets held at the reporting date, based on historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts. In addition, ASU 2016-13 amends the accounting for credit losses on available-for-sale debt securities and purchased financial assets with credit deterioration. The Company adopted ASU 2016-13 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04, “Intangibles - Goodwill and Other (Topic 350) - Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment.” ASU 2017-04 eliminates Step 2 from the goodwill impairment test which requires entities to compute the implied fair value of goodwill. Under ASU 2017-04, an entity should perform its annual or interim goodwill impairment test by comparing the fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount. An entity should recognize an impairment charge for the amount by which the carrying amount exceeds the reporting unit’s fair value; however, the loss recognized should not exceed the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit. The Company adopted ASU 2017-04 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, “Disclosure Framework – Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurement.” ASU 2018-13 modifies the fair value measurement disclosures with the primary focus to improve effectiveness of disclosures in the notes to the financial statements that is most important to the users. ASU 2018-13 modifies the required disclosures related to the valuation techniques and inputs used, uncertainty in measurement, and changes in measurements applied. The Company adopted ASU 2018-13 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other (Topic 350) - Customer’s Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That Is a Service Contract.” ASU 2018-15 provides guidance on the measurement of costs for internal-use software during the design, development, and implementation stages for customers in a cloud hosting arrangement. ASU 2018-15 also requires the capitalized costs associated with the design, development and implementation of cloud hosted arrangements to be amortized over the term of the hosting arrangement. The Company adopted ASU 2018-15 effective January 1, 2020, and the application of the standard had no material impact on the Company's financial statements for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, "Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes", which is intended to simplify various requirements related to accounting for income taxes. ASU 2019-12 removes certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 and clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application. ASU 2019-12 is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact of this standard on its financial statements.

In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-06, “Debt – Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging – Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40)”, which is intended to reduce the number of accounting models for convertible debt instruments and convertible preferred stock, and amend guidance for the derivatives scope exception for contracts in an entity’s own equity to reduce form-over-substance-based accounting conclusions. ASU 2020-06 is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2021, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently assessing the impact of this standard on its financial statements.

With the exception of the new standards discussed above, there were no other recent accounting pronouncements or changes in accounting pronouncements during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 that are of significance or potential significance to the Company, as compared to the recent accounting pronouncements described in the 2019 Annual Report.