Square vs Clover vs Toast: POS Systems Compared for Restaurants and Retail (2026)

A point-of-sale system is the most used piece of software in a restaurant or shop. It takes every order and every payment, and it decides how fast the line moves on a Friday night. Square, Clover and Toast are the three POS systems US restaurants and retailers compare most, and their pricing models could not be more different: monthly software plans with low-cost hardware, 36-month device subscriptions, or a restaurant platform priced by quote. This guide compares them on the prices and rates each one publishes, all checked on the official pricing pages on November 13, 2026, with the real cost over three years.

What a Restaurant or Retail POS Has to Do Well

• Take orders fast: at the counter, at the table on a handheld, by QR code and online, all landing in the same system.
• Take every kind of payment: tap, chip, swipe, mobile wallets, split bills and tips.
• Keep running offline: a POS that stops when the internet drops loses sales.
• Connect the kitchen: tickets or kitchen display screens, coursing and order timing.
• Manage menus and stock: items, modifiers, sold-out flags and inventory.
• Run the team: logins, permissions, shifts, tips and payroll.
• Bring guests back: loyalty, gift cards, email marketing and online ordering without high commissions.

The PURIST Fit Score: How We Compare Them

Scores are PURIST's editorial judgment based on the official pages listed at the end of the article. No vendor paid for its position.

The Comparison Table

For a full-service restaurant with several locations, Toast's restaurant depth outweighs its less transparent pricing and it would rank first. For a retailer who wants the lowest card rate and a complete hardware bundle in one payment plan, Clover moves ahead of Toast.

Square Pricing in Detail

Square sells three plans, each priced per location, with no long-term contract: "Cancel or switch anytime."

Plus and Premium include a 30-day free trial. Businesses processing over $250,000 a year can ask about custom pricing. Every plan includes end-to-end encrypted payments, fraud prevention, next-day transfers and offline payments, which are processed when the device reconnects and declined if it does not reconnect within 24 hours.

Restaurant add-ons are priced per device: the Square KDS kitchen display app costs $30 a month per device on Plus and $20 on Premium, and Square Kiosk costs $99 a month per device.

Square hardware, as listed on its hardware page:

Other fees: keyed-in payments cost 3.5% + 15¢, international cards add 1.5%, instant transfers cost 1.95%, and Square lists chargebacks and dispute management among the things it does not charge for. Square Payroll starts at $35 a month plus $6 per person paid.

Clover Pricing in Detail

Clover sells complete systems by business type, with software, devices and accessories bundled. Each system can be paid as a 36-month subscription or bought up front with a lower monthly software fee. Clover notes that the prices shown are only available on Clover.com.

Full-service restaurant systems

All three run the Restaurant Growth software plan with table mapping, open tabs, bill splitting, QR-code order and pay, no-fee online ordering, third-party menu integrations and shift management. Tableside ordering is included from Standard. One detail matters: on the Starter system, tapping cards and mobile wallets is listed as not included. Contactless works on the Flex handheld (Standard) and on the Flex and Station Duo (Advanced).

Retail systems

The retail Standard and Advanced systems add inventory, item variants, an online store, shipping labels at $0.25 each, loyalty, gift cards and promotions.

Clover processing rates

Clover lists 24/7/365 support and in-person or phone help from its business consultants. Its pricing FAQ covers subscription terms, termination fees and what happens at the end of a subscription, so read those answers before signing.

Toast Pricing in Detail

Toast is built for restaurants first, with a retail edition. Its pricing page lists three ways to start:

Toast describes processing as "simple, flat rate" with real-time fraud monitoring, but the pricing page does not publish the rate itself. Its FAQ explains that "the upfront costs for Toast are hardware and implementation," with 0% financing available by application, and that a Pay-as-You-Go option within the Starter package reduces upfront costs "through an all-in-one platform rate."

Three points to know before you choose Toast:

• Hardware must be Toast-approved. The FAQ states that Toast's services "may only be used on approved Toast hardware."
• Toast is a payment facilitator. It partners with processors to provide card processing, so payments run through Toast.
• Support is included. Toast Care is included "in every software subscription at no additional cost," 24/7/365 by phone or web messaging.

Toast's add-on suites are where it stands out for restaurants: Digital Storefront for commission-free online ordering, delivery and a Toast website; a Marketing Suite with email, loyalty and gift cards; Team Management with scheduling and tips; Payroll; xtraCHEF for invoice automation, recipe costing and inventory; and Restaurant Management Pro for multi-location management and an analytics API. Offline mode keeps orders, tickets, receipts and card payments running during an internet outage.

What It Costs Over Three Years

Using only published prices, for one location over 36 months (processing excluded):

Square is the cheapest way in by a wide margin. Clover's bundles include more hardware in the price, and buying up front saves about $1,400 to $1,500 over three years compared with the subscription. Toast's software starts low, but the total depends on hardware and implementation quotes.

Processing on $30,000 a month in card sales

For a restaurant with an average ticket of $30 (1,000 card payments a month):

At this volume, Clover's lower rate saves about $140 a month in processing compared with Square Free, which covers a large part of its monthly software fee. That is why higher-volume restaurants often look past Square's lower entry price.

Feature Comparison

POS by POS

Square

Square is the most flexible and the cheapest to start. A cafe can open with a $59 reader on the free plan, then add a Register, kitchen displays and a paid plan as it grows. There is no long-term contract, chargebacks cost nothing, and the same account handles online orders, invoices, bookings, payroll and banking.

Strengths:

• Free plan, paid plans at $49 or $149 per location, no contract.
• Low-cost hardware you can buy outright.
• No chargeback fees and next-day transfers.

Limits:

• Card rates of 2.4% to 2.6% + 15¢ cost more than Clover's 2.3% + 10¢ at high volume.
• Kitchen display and kiosk apps are paid monthly per device.
• Coursing and seat management for full-service dining require the Premium plan.

Best for: cafes, quick-service restaurants, food trucks, bakeries, retail shops and service businesses.

Clover

Clover suits owners who want a complete, ready-to-run system in one price. Each bundle includes the devices, the software plan and the accessories, and the published in-person rate of 2.3% + 10¢ is the lowest of the three. Buying the hardware up front cuts the three-year cost compared with the 36-month subscription.

Strengths:

• Lowest published in-person rate: 2.3% + 10¢.
• Complete hardware bundles for restaurants and retail.
• No-fee online ordering and QR order and pay on restaurant systems.

Limits:

• The 36-month subscription is a long commitment; read the subscription and termination answers in the FAQ.
• Contactless payments are not included on the restaurant Starter system.
• Higher monthly cost than Square for small businesses.

Best for: established restaurants and retailers with steady card volume who prefer a bundled system.

Toast

Toast is the deepest restaurant platform of the three. Mobile order and pay, catering and events, commission-free online ordering, delivery, payroll and tips, recipe costing and multi-location management all live in one system built for restaurants, with 24/7 support included.

Strengths:

• The most complete restaurant feature set.
• $0 Starter Kit for small single-location restaurants.
• Offline mode and 24/7/365 support included.

Limits:

• Processing rate not published; you get it in a quote.
• Toast-approved hardware only.
• Most of the platform's value sits in add-on suites priced by quote.

Best for: full-service restaurants, bars, multi-location groups and restaurants that want payroll, inventory and marketing in the same system.

Which POS Fits Which Business

• Coffee shop or food truck: Square Free with a Reader or Terminal.
• Quick-service restaurant with a kitchen screen: Square Plus with the KDS app, or Toast Point of Sale.
• Full-service restaurant with servers and handhelds: Toast, or Clover full-service Standard.
• Restaurant group with several locations: Toast with Restaurant Management Pro.
• Small retail shop: Square Free, or Clover retail Basic at $16 a month.
• Retailer with inventory and an online store: Square Plus or Clover retail Standard.

How to Choose in Five Steps

1. 1 Add up your card volume and average ticket. At high volume, a lower rate outweighs a higher software fee.
2. 2 List your must-have features: handhelds, kitchen displays, online ordering, loyalty, payroll.
3. 3 Ask for a written quote that includes hardware, installation, processing rate and contract length.
4. 4 Read the contract terms: length, termination fees and who owns the hardware.
5. 5 Test offline mode and support during the trial or demo, before a busy service.

Automations Around Your POS

A POS records sales; the work around it still takes hours. These are workflows we build with n8n for restaurants and shops:

1. 1 Review requests: a thank-you message with a review link after each order paid by card.
2. 2 Daily sales report: sales, tips, refunds and top items sent to the owner each night.
3. 3 Low-stock alerts: when an item drops under its threshold, the supplier order is drafted.
4. 4 Online order routing: orders from delivery apps and your website land in one queue.
5. 5 Accounting sync: daily sales and fees recorded in QuickBooks or Xero.

See our guide to restaurant automation and our Stripe vs Square vs PayPal comparison for online payments.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Square or Clover better for a small business?

Square is better for most small businesses starting out: a free plan, hardware from $59 and no long-term contract. Clover suits businesses with steady card volume, because its in-person rate of 2.3% + 10¢ is lower than Square's 2.4% to 2.6% + 15¢, and its bundles include all the hardware.

Is Toast better than Square for restaurants?

For full-service and multi-location restaurants, Toast offers deeper restaurant tools, including mobile order and pay, payroll, recipe costing and multi-location management. For cafes, food trucks and quick-service restaurants, Square is cheaper to start and has no contract.

How much does Toast cost per month?

Toast's Starter Kit starts at $0 a month for single-location restaurants with up to two terminals, Point of Sale starts at $69 a month, and Build Your Own is priced by quote. A payroll bundle for new restaurants costs $69 a month plus $9 per employee a month. Hardware, implementation and the processing rate are quoted separately.

What are Clover's processing fees?

Clover lists 2.3% + 10¢ for cards tapped, swiped or inserted on its restaurant systems and retail Standard and Advanced systems, 2.6% + 10¢ on the retail Basic system, and 3.5% + 10¢ for card details typed in.

Does Square charge monthly fees?

Not on Square Free. Square Plus costs $49 a month per location and Square Premium $149 a month per location. Some restaurant apps, such as the kitchen display app and Kiosk, are charged per device.

Can I use my own hardware with Toast?

No. Toast's FAQ says its services may only be used on approved Toast hardware.

Which POS works offline?

Square and Toast both describe offline payments. Square processes offline payments when the device reconnects and declines them if it does not reconnect within 24 hours. Toast's offline mode lets you keep placing orders, printing tickets and taking card payments until the connection returns.

Sources and Method

Prices, plans, rates and terms were checked on the official pages on November 13, 2026: squareup.com/us/en/pricing, squareup.com/us/en/hardware, Square's restaurant pricing page and fee support articles; clover.com/pricing, clover.com/pricing/restaurant and clover.com/pricing/retail; and pos.toasttab.com/pricing. Three-year costs use published prices only and exclude taxes, installation and processing unless stated. Where a vendor does not publish a figure, such as Toast's processing rate, the tables say so rather than estimate. Fit Scores are PURIST's editorial judgment. Confirm current prices and contract terms with each vendor before you sign.