Square vs. Toast: Which one serves you better?
Whether it’s your first or fiftieth restaurant, you’ve seen enough POS systems to think they’re all the same. And the costs? Processing rates are just part of the picture. Let’s compare two plans to anticipate total costs before you start or switch.
Try Square for free¹
Talk with the Square team
¹Toast has no option to get started without an implementation specialist.
Tired of surprises? Rates going up? Look beyond subscription costs.
Let’s say you run a growing or expanding restaurant and need cost-effective software that can keep up with the complexity of your business with reasonable processing rates and affordable hardware.
100,000+ restaurants count on Square.
Earn 36% more revenue using Square Websites.
Based on comparison of Square operators during the six months prior versus the six months after their first Square Websites transaction in 2023.
Train new staff in less than an hour.
Plus, get 24/7 support on most plans.
Loyalty program customers spend 53% more.
Based on a 2022 comparison of average spending data between Square Loyalty users and non-users.
Discover the Square difference.
Beautifully designed restaurant workflows
Integrated payments with automatic customer profiles
No long-term contracts required2
Choose Square if you:
- Value fair and transparent, easy-to-understand pricing
- Value flexibility and choice; you choose how and when to get started and how much virtual or in-person support you need
- Want the peace of mind of knowing a team of experts maintains PCI compliance on your behalf
- Appreciate intuitive design that’s easy to learn and enjoyable to use and makes you look like a pro to your customers from day one
- Prefer a flat fee across all credit cards versus worrying about how card mix and average ticket size impacts your rates
- Prefer your tech partner to handle chargebacks and payment issues so you don’t have to deal with disputes by yourself
Get up to $5,000 in free Square hardware.
Pick the software plan for you.
Square Free
$0/mo.
per location
- processing fees
Square Free processing fees
Tap, dip, or swipe: 2.6% + 15¢ per transaction
Online: 3.3% + 30¢ per transaction
This plan is best for businesses just starting out that only need the essentials of daily service, or have small teams with one location.
What you get:
- Square POS software
- Chat and email support
- Phone support from 6am–6pm PT M–F for the first 90 days
Phone support starts at account creation. Subscribe to Square Plus or Square Premium for continued access to phone support.
Square Plus
Recommended
$49/mo.
per location
- processing fees
Square Plus processing fees
Tap, dip, or swipe: 2.5% + 15¢ per transaction
Online: 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction
This plan is ideal for growing businesses that have up to five locations and take orders through multiple channels.
What you get:
- Square POS software
- Marketing, loyalty, and staff management
- Chat and email support
- Phone support from 6am–6pm PT M–F
- $30/mo. per device for the Square KDS app
- $50/mo. per device for the Square Kiosk app
Square Premium
$149/mo.
per location
- processing fees
Square Premium processing fees
Tap, dip, or swipe: 2.4% + 15¢ per transaction
Online: 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction
This plan is ideal for growing businesses with more than five locations that need the most advanced restaurant tools to continue expansion.
What you get:
- Square POS software
- Every feature from Square
- 24/7 phone support
- Lowest processing fees
- 0% gift card load fees
- $20/mo. per device for the Square KDS app
- $30/mo. per device for the Square Kiosk app
With Square, the choice is yours.
2To be eligible for this promotion, your business must be new to Square and must process more than $750,000 in annual sales. Value of actual hardware received by eligible sellers may vary. Valid for Square customers located in the U.S. only with a U.S. bank account. Square reserves the right to modify, revoke, or cancel the offer at any time.