Square vs Toast
Square is a generalist: a free plan, published rates and tools for shops, stalls and cafes, with restaurant features on paid plans. Toast is built for restaurants, from table management to payroll, and requires its own hardware and processing. Table-service restaurants lean towards Toast; new or mixed businesses, and those in Japan, France or Spain, lean towards Square.
Vendors can pay for visibility on this site; it never changes what we say about a product. How that works.
Choose Square ifyou want to start selling immediately on free software with no contract, your business is not purely a restaurant, or you operate in a country Toast does not serve.
Choose Toast ifyou run a restaurant and want table and order management, tip handling, kitchen display, payroll and online ordering from one restaurant-only supplier, accepting that hardware and processing come bundled.
Square and Toast side by side
| Square | Toast | |
|---|---|---|
| Our point of sale rank | #6 of 12 | #8 of 12 |
| Established in | United States | United States |
| Pricing | Free plan; Plus $49 and Premium $149 per location per month, published; processing per transaction | Starter Kit from $0/month; Point of Sale from $69/month, published; processing extra, rate not listed |
| List price, 30 September 2026 | Square Free $0/mo; Square Plus $49/mo per location; in-person processing from 2.6% + 15¢ (US pricing page) | Starter Kit from $0/month; Point of Sale from $69/month, first terminal included; processing charged separately (US pricing page) |
| Free tier | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Self-hostable | — | — |
| Built for | A new business that wants to be selling tomorrow | A restaurant that wants everything built for restaurants |
| Not for | A high-volume retailer optimising card fees | A general retailer, or anyone outside the five countries Toast serves |
Both are reviewed in full in our point of sale ranking: Square and Toast.
Where they differ
Square 3 · Toast 1 · open 0- 01
Restaurant depth
Toast assumes a restaurant throughout: table and order management, tip handling, a kitchen display and restaurant reporting, plus add-ons for payroll, tips management, scheduling, invoice automation and recipe costing. Square for Restaurants now offers coursing, table and seat management, split checks and a kitchen display app, but the display app is unavailable on the free plan. For a kitchen-led operation, Toast still goes deeper.
Edge: Toast
- 02
Cost structure
Square's free plan costs nothing per month, Plus is $49 per location, and the in-person rate of 2.6% plus 15 cents on the free plan is printed on the pricing page. Toast lists a Starter Kit from $0 a month and Point of Sale from $69 a month, further devices extra, and calls processing a flat rate without printing it. Square is easier to predict.
Edge: Square
- 03
Freedom to switch processor or hardware
Toast is explicit: you must use its processing services, no other processor can run alongside it, and its software may only be used on approved Toast hardware. Square also processes its own payments, but states there are no locked-in contracts and that plans can be cancelled or switched at any time, with hardware from $59. Neither is open, yet leaving Square costs much less.
Edge: Square
- 04
Where and for whom it works
Toast's support documentation covers restaurants in the United States, Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom. Square accepts card payments in the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and Spain, and serves retail and appointment businesses as well as food. Its weak point is account freezes on unusual volume. For breadth of use, Square is the more widely applicable product.
Edge: Square
When neither fits
A restaurant or bar that wants table ordering without hardware lock-in fits neither; Storekit offers QR ordering and payments on hardware you may already own. A UK bar needing a full till cheaply could consider Epos Now, whose software covers hospitality and retail, contract terms permitting.
Square or Toast: questions
4 answersIs Toast or Square better for a restaurant?
For a restaurant wanting one supplier for everything, Toast: table and order management, tip handling, kitchen display, online ordering, payroll and food-cost tools.
Square offers coursing, table management and a kitchen display app on its paid plans, starts free, has no contract and is not tied to one trade, which suits cafes and counter service.
Can I use Toast outside the United States instead of Square?
In some countries. Toast publishes support articles for restaurants in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the United Kingdom as well as the United States.
Square lists card acceptance in the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and Spain, so in Japan, France and Spain only Square is an option.
How do Square and Toast pricing differ?
Square has a free plan, Plus at $49 a month per location and Premium at $149, with in-person rates from 2.6% plus 15 cents.
Toast lists a Starter Kit from $0 a month and Point of Sale from $69 a month, with flat-rate processing on top. Compare the annual total at your turnover.
Can I use my own card processor or tablets with Toast?
No. Toast's billing FAQ says you must use its processing services and that no other processor can run with Toast, and its pricing page says the software may only be used on approved Toast hardware.
Budget for Toast terminals and Toast processing together when comparing it with Square.
Sources
Checked 30 September 2026- Square pricing page (US): Square plan prices, processing rates, contract terms and kitchen display app availability.
- Square for Restaurants page: Square for Restaurants coursing, table management and split checks.
- Square help: international availability: the eight countries where Square accepts card payments.
- Toast pricing page: Toast plan prices, add-on suites and the approved-hardware requirement.
- Toast support: card processing and billing FAQ: Toast requiring its own processing services.
- Toast support: card payments in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the UK: Toast serving restaurants in Australia, Canada, Ireland and the UK.