Toast vs. Square: Which POS is right for you?
Toast and Square both offer restaurants a versatile, cloud-based alternative to costly legacy POS systems. Read on to discover the key differences and schedule a demo to see Toast in action.
3 reasons restaurants should choose Toast
Deep restaurant features
Toast was built from the ground up with restaurants in mind.
Built for the rush
From phone support, comprehensive offline mode, to restaurant-grade hardware on all plans— Toast is there when you need it most.
Geared for growth
You won’t have to start a new POS search or rely on third-party platforms as your business grows.
Deep restaurant features
Restaurant-first roots
Toast was founded for restaurants and spent over a decade exclusively focused on food service. When you demo the POS, that level of focus shines through. No matter your style of service, it was designed with you in mind.
Built for the nuances of great service
From intuitive menus to detailed guest profiles, Toast focuses on the little things that make a big difference for the guest experience.
Essential restaurant-specific features
Even if you’re starting small, Toast makes sure you’re covered with features like splitting checks, preauthorizing cards, and course management (these are only available on Square’s Plus and Premium plans).
Restaurant-grade hardware
Unlike Square’s iPad-based options, Toast hardware is built specifically for the rigors of the kitchen. From spill-resistant terminals to drop-tested handhelds, it’s built with the intensity of food service in mind.
Support that runs on your schedule
Our phone support team is available seven days a week, from 7am to 12am ET. You'll need to be on Square's Premium plan to get support 7 days a week and on Square's Plus plan to get phone support beyond your first 90 days.
Greater offline mode coverage
If your Wi-Fi ever drops, Toast offline mode lets you keep taking orders and payments. It even extends to Toast’s Kitchen Display Systems so BOH keeps on flowing without having to fall back on paper tickets. Square’s offline mode doesn’t cover their KDS.
Everything you need, now and in the future
Whether you’re looking for your first POS or your next POS, Toast offers features for every stage, so you won't need to repeat the search as your business grows. You’ll have a complete ecosystem of integrated tools that minimizes the need to add more vendors (and complexity) to your business.
Predictable pricing that simplifies growth
With flat-rate pricing, no hidden fees, and options that allow for zero or minimal upfront costs, Toast can fit a wide range of budgets. Whether you’re starting small or operating multiple locations, there’s a flexible plan you can tailor to your needs.
Beyond basic reporting
Toast automatically translates rich reporting data from your POS, payment, and management tools to surface trends, identify menu items driving repeat visits, highlight top spenders, and more. Toast IQ AI assistant helps you not only find the opportunities hidden in your data, but also take action without leaving the chat.
Which restaurant types fit best with Toast vs. Square?
You'll currently find Toast in over 156,000² locations of all sizes and styles of service. Here’s a closer look at Toast’s strengths in quick service, full service, and multilocation models.
Quick service restaurants
POS gear that keeps the line moving
Toast Flex for Guest gives customers real-time visibility into their order to help ensure accuracy and speed up the process. Need to get through a rush? The Toast Go® 3 handheld offers a fast way to bust the line and send orders directly to the kitchen.
Convenient self-ordering options
From QR code ordering with Toast Mobile Order & Pay® to kiosks, Toast offers multiple ways to drive orders without the need for additional staff.
Simple, commission-free online ordering
With Toast’s online ordering integrations, you can send orders from DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub, and more directly to your POS, eliminating the need for extra tablets. Plus, you can use Toast Delivery Services to help drive revenue with commission-free, flat-fee online ordering and delivery.
Coursing that keeps service in sync
All Toast plans offer highly customizable course management, so you can properly pace meals and fire courses, or even modifiers, at exactly the right times. You have to be on Square’s Premium plan to access basic course management features.
Waitlist and reservations
Toast Tables, available as an added feature with POS, brings restaurant waitlist, reservations, and table management together with zero cover fees. Meanwhile, Square Appointments is designed for booking client services. Accessing restaurant-specific waitlist and reservations on Square would require integration with third-party reservation platforms, which is only available on Square's Premium plan and can increase vendor complexity.
Tools to elevate your hospitality
Toast displays guest details through digital chits at the moment of service so staff can personalize every interaction, no printed notes, or verbal handoffs necessary.
One place for easy menu management
Whether you want to tailor menus to specific locations or keep them consistent, Toast lets you control it all from one dashboard. Add or remove dishes from multiple menus, update prices, schedule changes ahead of time, and more, without repeating the same actions over and over.
Understand performance across locations
Toast allows you to view sales and product mix reports at the individual or group level so you can quickly spot high and low performers and make the right adjustments.
Everything you need to maintain consistency
From prep station configurations to void and discount rules, Toast multi-location management lets you centralize operational standards so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel with every new location. Easily copy and paste settings across locations in one workflow to make standardization easy and efficient.
Retail business? Toast has you covered, too.
Convenience
You make your store convenient for customers — Toast makes it convenient for you. From efficient mobile inventory to purchasing and receiving, operations is now less manual.
Learn More
Bottle Shop
Get real-time stock counts, offer smooth checkout options in-store and online, and even run a tasting room, all in one place.
Learn More
Grocery
Unify your store with a POS that can support retail, deli, and bakery items without switching systems.
Learn More
Butcher Shop
From tracking cuts, to selling prepared foods, to running your loyalty program, manage it all with Toast.
Learn moreWhy choose Toast over Square?
Restaurant-first design that’s built for food service
24/7/365 customer care with 7am-12am ET phone support on all plans
Integrated solutions that minimize vendors (and complexity)
Deep reporting insights to help you simplify growth
See how Toast stacks up
Get a demo personalized to your needs so you can make the right call for your restaurant.
How does Toast pricing compare to Square?
Both Toast and Square offer plans that cover a wide range of budgets. You can get started on either platform for as little as $0 per month in software costs, with options available for no or limited upfront hardware costs as well. Compare Toast pricing plans below to find the best fit for your restaurant.
Frequently Asked Questions
The upfront costs for Toast are hardware and implementation*, which vary depending on your specific hardware packages and installation needs. Toast has flexible payment options available, including payment as a percentage of your sales** or a fixed monthly payment using a third-party financing partner. These solutions are not just for restaurants with great credit; they have no interest or fees, and the Easy Pay option has a 100% approval rate and no credit check***.
Within the Starter Kit, Toast also offers the Pay-as-You-Go plan**** that reduces your upfront hardware and installation costs through an all-in-one platform rate.
Get a personalized look at Toast
Schedule a free demo with a Toast restaurant expert to explore how it fits your restaurant.
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