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If you’re stuck between Toast vs Clover for your point-of-sale (POS) system needs, our research shows that Clover is better than Toast. While both offer an excellent restaurant toolkit and business management features, Clover offers a more complete and professional range of hardware and accessories for an intuitive experience on both the front and back end.
Toast does remain a top restaurant POS system overall, especially for businesses with complex inventories. The POS offers a great free plan, along with the best inventory management tools of any system we’ve reviewed, thanks to its stock alerts and cost management features. On top of that, it’s incredibly easy to get started, with an intuitive step-by-step tutorial to guide you through the process.
We’ve poured hundreds of hours into researching and user-testing these leading POS systems, to make it easier for you to choose between the two. Read on to learn about how Clover and Toast match up against each other on features, value offerings, ease of use, and pricing. Or, if it’s quick quotes you’re after, answer a couple of simple questions using our free POS comparison tool and receive tailored pricing estimates based on the unique needs of your business.
| Best Restaurant POS for: Tech.co's verdict to help you identify the most suitable choice for your restaurant | Price from The typical lowest starting price. The lowest price available for your business will depend on your needs. | Transaction fees from The lowest possible fee that will be incurred with each transaction. | Key benefits | Drawbacks | Get started | ||
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| Professional hardware | Complex restaurant operations | ||||||
| $0 + $14.95 (virtual terminal) | Free (but transaction fees apply) | ||||||
| 2.3% +10 cents | 2.49% + 15¢ | ||||||
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| Compare Prices | Compare Prices |
Why Should You Trust Us?
The Tech.co team pours hundreds of hours into researching the best POS systems because it’s the only way to ensure we’re providing our readers with the most accurate, up-to-date information possible.
We’ve spoken to daily POS users working in restaurants, retail and more, and have tested out more than 20 point-of-sale platforms ourselves, paying close attention to everything from the quality and feel of the hardware to how easy the software is to use, to help you make a clear decision for your business needs.
Head over to our methodology section to learn more about our product review process, which is one of the reasons more than one million users consult our articles every month.
Toast vs Clover: Comparison Overview
There are some notable similarities between Toast and Clover, as well as some important differences that will help you make your decision. Here are some key facts about Toast and Clover before we get started:
- Toast POS is Android exclusive, while Clover is compatible with Android and iOS devices.
- Clover offers both a retail and restaurant-specific POS, while Toast is reserved for food and drink businesses only.
- Toast offers a free plan and Clover only offers a 90-day software-only free trial.
- Clover’s extensive CRM program is included in the package while it’s only available as an add-on with Toast.
- Toast and Clover both have excellent stock management features, but Toast is better for businesses with large or complex inventories.
- Toast provides stronger help and support tools, but neither POS system offers 24/7 support or live chat options.
- Clover offers the best hardware solutions in our research, while Toast provides solid options, as well.
Toast overview
- Best for restaurants with large or complex inventories
- Price from: $69 per month
- Free plan: Yes
Here’s a quick look at what Toast offers, including screenshots, pros, cons, and pricing information:
Pros
- Great for Android users with built-in interface
- Strong menu customization for your team
- Support for tableside ordering and payment
Cons
- Doesn't work on iOS devices
- No integrated payment processors
- Limited help & support offered
- Point of sale plan with prices starting from $69/month
- Three restaurant plans with prices starting from $110/month
- Hardware package costs $799 plus $499 installation
- Free Pay-as-you-go plan available
- Transaction fee: 2.99% + $0.15
For more information about this provider, check our Toast POS review here.
Most suitable for:
- Full-service restaurants with complex operations
- Businesses that onboard regularly
- Restaurants or bars with large inventories
Less suitable for:
- Small businesses with simple inventories
- Users who rely heavily on customer support
- Users with iOS hardware
Clover overview
- Best for professional restaurant hardware
- Price from: $105 per month
- Free plan: No
Here’s a quick look at what Clover offers, including screenshots, pros, cons, and pricing information:
Pros
- Great for companies that started online but need a physical presence
- Good range of hardware options
- 90-day free trial (software-only)
Cons
- Need pre-existing website unlike Shopify, for example
- Additional features cost extra and can become expensive
- No inter-store transactions
- Cheapest plan: $0/month + $14.95 (professional services)
- Cheapest Retail plan: $13/month
- Cheapest Restaurant plan: $105/month
- Transaction rates from 2.3% + 10¢
To learn more about this POS system and its different pricing tiers, read our Clover pricing review.
Most suitable for:
- Businesses that want industry-leading hardware
- Medium to large establishments
- Businesses serious about retaining customers
Less suitable for:
- Small businesses or pop-up vendors
- Businesses that want to avoid expensive upfront costs
- Businesses that require tip-sharing tools
Clover Pricing vs Toast Pricing
If you’re looking for a good value POS system, we’d recommend checking out Toast. With a generous free starter package and affordably priced plans, Toast is a comfortable option for those on a budget. Comparatively, Clover is quite intimidating, with high-priced monthly plans and expensive hardware options to boot.
Clover offers six different plans for restaurants, with prices ranging from $105 to $330 per month. In contrast, Toast offers two paid restaurant plans and its prices start at $69 per month with custom enterprise options are available, too.
Clover only offers combined hardware and software packages, which somewhat justifies its higher price tag. What’s more, Clover’s transaction rates are slightly more affordable. Its card-present transactions cost between 2.6% 10¢ to 2.3% + 10¢, compared with Toast’s pricier rates that range from 2.99% + 15¢ to 3.5% + $0.15.
However, unlike Clover, Toast’s Pay-as-you-go Starter Kit lets businesses get started for free, making it one of the most cost-effective POS systems we’ve reviewed.
Which provider has the best free plan?
Unlike Clover, which lacks a free version, Toast offers a generous free plan, letting businesses get started on the POS without shelling out monthly fees. Toast’s free Starter Kit offers every feature vendors need to get off the ground as well, from order and table management and reporting to round-the-clock customer support.
Alternatively, if you’re intent on trying out Clover’s software before you buy, you can trial the virtual terminal for up to 90 days. You won’t be able to integrate hardware, but all software features will be available, including sales.
As surging inflation rates continue to squeeze food and drink businesses across the US, free POS plans have never been more attractive. However, it’s important to point out that free options do tend to lack advanced capabilities that you may require as your business grows. Free plans typically charge steeper transaction rates than paid packages, often making them a pricier alternative in the long run.
Clover pricing
Check out the table below to see all the available Clover pricing options for restaurants.
| Plan | Price | Best for | Transaction fees | Benefits | |
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| Quick Service Starter | Quick Service Standard | Quick Service Advanced | Full Service Starter | Full Service Standard | Full Service Advanced |
| $105 per month for 36 months | $145 per month for 36 months | $205 per month for 36 months | $165 per month for 36 months | $225 per month for 36 months | $330 per month for 36 months |
| Food trucks and pop-ups | Small counter service food businesses | Counter service restaurants | Small full-service restaurants | Tableside service restaurants | Mid-size to large full service restaurants |
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Toast pricing
Check out the table below to see all the available Toast pricing options for restaurants.
| Plan | Price | Best for | Transaction fees | Benefits | |
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| Starter Kit | Point of Sale | Build Your Own | |||
| $69 per month | Bespoke | ||||
| Small, single location food vendors, and mobile sellers | Established food and beverage businesses | Large or complex food and beverage establishments | |||
| 2.99% + $0.15 | 3.5% + $0.15 | 3.5% + $0.15 | |||
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Toast vs Clover: Head-to-Head
Now that you know the basics about Toast vs Clover, including how they match up on pricing, let’s get a bit more granular to find out which POS is right for your business. Below, we’ll compare the two on features, hardware, and help and support, so you can make the right decision for your team.
Best for Business Features: Clover
Clover and Toast both offer an excellent selection of restaurant facings features. In fact, we found that Toast has the best restaurant features in our research, with advanced reservation tools to control flow and view reports.
Clover is quite respectable for restaurants too, though. Perhaps the biggest boon for Clover is that its POS can perform backend operations directly on the device, rather than having to go to a back office, which is the case with Toast.
Toast makes it easy to add employees, but you’ll have to do it in the back office, rather than on the terminal itself. Source: Tech.co testing
For inventory management, we found that both Clover and Toast offer respectable systems, with built-in functionality, bulk loading features, and profit management tools. Still, Clover takes the edge, because it offers low and no stock alerts, while Toast is missing that feature.
We found that another big plus for Clover is that it works with all operating systems, namely iOS and Android. Toast, on the other hand, only offers an Android app, so if you’re more of an Apple fan, Clover is a no-brainer on this one.
It’s also worth noting that Clover also offers a range of retail features, while Toast is exclusive for restaurants. As a result, Clover is a top pick for those running multiple businesses, or who just want one of the best retail POS systems.
I could edit the shape and size of tables using Clover’s table floor plan features. I was impressed with how easy it was to customize the floor plan. Source: Tech.co user testing
Toast definitely has an edge on Clover when it comes to tip management, though. Most notably, the POS allows users to automatically share tips between employees, and it provides tipping/gratuity reports, so you can keep track of all the income of the business. Toast’s menu management capabilities are advanced too, with its new menu builder offering users a streamlined way to create and edit menus in a couple of taps.
Toast Takeout & Delivery features let me manage online orders and edit my menu in real-time. Source: Tech.co user testing
Toast is also a lot better when it comes to reservations and waitlists. Clover doesn’t offer any built-in functionality, requiring third-party integrations to take them. Even then, Toast still offers far more functionality, allowing you to post on Google, Yelp, OpenTable, and Resy, some of the biggest names in the industry.
As you can see, there is a lot of give and take when it comes to Clover vs Toast, which is why understanding exactly what you need in a POS system is vital to making the right decision.
Clover reporting tools helped us track everything from sales to average ticket size. Source: Tech.co testing
Best for Help and Support: Toast
We did find that Clover is the best POS between these two options, but our research found that Toast actually has the edge when it comes to help and support. It’s close, though, as both offer the standard means of getting in touch, like phone and live chat, as well as a knowledge center and video tutorials.
However, Toast doesn’t offer email support, and Clover doesn’t offer forum functionality, so we’ll call it a draw. We found that neither could be reached via social media.
Toast’ POS’s resource center has a wide range of help articles to help you resolve queries. Source: Tech.co
The spot where Toast was able to establish itself as the winner for help and support is that it offers a comprehensive training mode on its devices. It allows you to simulate workflows and payment processing, so you can get a feel for the system before you’re in the thick of a rush.
If your business requires a dedicated training mode, it might also be worth considering Epos Now, as the POS offers one of the best capabilities of the kind on the market.
Best for Hardware: Clover
Clover and Toast are two of our highest-rated POS providers when it comes to hardware, offering a range of devices that are equipped for different tasks. Still, Clover was able to jump ahead thanks to the advanced features built in to its terminals.
More specifically, Clover POS hardware offers built-in fingerprint-scanning technology that can substantially speed up the login process for your staff. On top of that, POS terminals from Clover offer haptic feedback, so you can be sure that every tap has registered to avoid mistakes.
Those worried about their internet connection are in luck as well. Toast and Clover both offer an offline mode that can process transactions. Clover’s is a bit better, though, as it will automatically process card payments when back online and allows you to limit transaction size in offline mode.
Easiest System to Use: Clover
While Clover and Toast both are pretty easy to get started on, when we tested out both of the systems we found Clover’s software to be more intuitive and easy to navigate. Specifically, our testers were really impressed with how easy it was to assign items to different orders, and separate orders by guests. One tester praised its software for being “so easy and so simple”, even though the initial set-up process took a little bit longer than expected.
Clover POS let me track business performance in real-time easily with its advanced reports. Source: Tech.co’s user testing
Our testing team was a fan of Toast’s clean, modern design, and one member in particular appreciated how “intuitive” the search bar was, and how much it improved the functionality of the system. Conversely, some testers found they had to rely on the tool, as the POS software wasn’t as well signposted as systems like Clover.
“The search tool was phenomenal. It really was so intuitive, it really picked up things.” – A member of Tech.co’s testing team
All in all, it’s a pretty close call when it comes to Clover and Toast’s user experience, but Clover narrowly wins this round because it provides a slightly lower learning curve for people getting started with POS systems for the first time.
How Do Toast & Clover Compare With the Competition?
Clover and Toast both secured top spots during our extensive research into POS systems for restaurants. The only options we found that offer more complete solutions are Square, Lightspeed, and Epos Now, providing better help and support and competitive pricing.
To learn more about how Toast and Clover stack up against their competition, read our guide to the best restaurant POS systems, or take a look at their top alternatives below:
| Best Restaurant POS for: Tech.co's verdict to help you identify the most suitable choice for your restaurant | Price from The typical lowest starting price. The lowest price available for your business will depend on your needs. | iPad app Is there a version of the software made specifically for iPad use? | Android app Is there a version of the software made specifically for Android tablet use? | 24/7 support | Hardware packages | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FEATURED PROVIDER  | BEST VALUE FOR MONEY  |  |  | | | ||
| Epos Now | Clover POS | ||||||
| Best help and support center | Cafes and pop-up vendors | Retaining loyal customers | Managing complex inventory | Professional hardware | Complex restaurant operations | ||
| Free (but transaction fees apply) | $39 per month | Free (but transaction fees apply) | |||||
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| Sells $899 starter kit that includes iPad, cash drawer, printer, portable card reader. | Options include: Contactless reader ($49), Portable terminal ($299), Square terminal and stand ($799) | Offers kits for iPads, MacOS devices, Windows PCs but all are $POA. | Offers a wide selection of hardware from handheld tablets to industry-specific terminals | Sells a range of proprietary hardware devices from handheld tableside tablets to full POS terminals. | Offers a full hardware suite for $799 but custom pricing is available on more expensive software tiers |
We take our impartial research and analysis seriously, so you can have complete confidence that we're giving you the clearest, most useful recommendations. After identifying the most relevant, popular POS platforms on the market, we put them through their paces with hands-on testing to better understand their strengths and weaknesses.
In total, we put 16 POS systems to the test, with a vigorous research and testing methodology. We carried out 40 user testing sessions, which amounted to 720 hours of testing in total. In these sessions, participants were asked to carry out tasks on POS software and describe their user journey, to help us understand what it's like to use the systems first-hand. In addition to first-hand testing, we developed a detailed methodology that focuses on six categories of investigation, including criteria like software features and help and support centers.
These categories were broken down into a further 41 subcategories, so we were able to drill down further into certain topics, to make our insights as granular and useful as possible. Here’s an overview of our main testing categories for POS systems:
- Software features: The capabilities provided by the POS product. Includes general features like ordering and payment functionality, as well as industry-specific tools like KSU uploads, and inventory-level stock tracking KDS software.
- Hardware: The quality of a POS’s hardware selection. The presence of an own-brand terminal, as well as hardware accessories like kitchen display systems, receipt printers, and barcode scanners.
- Pricing: The cost associated with acquiring and using the POS system, such as the initial purchase cost, transaction fees, licensing fees, subscription plans, and any additional charges or ongoing costs.
- Ease of use: We test out the software to gauge how intuitive and easy to navigate it is. We also consider how easy the software is to navigate, and whether any errors took place during testing.
- Help & Support: The assistance and resources available to users when they encounter issues or need guidance while using the POS system, including documentation, tutorials, or knowledge bases.
- Customer satisfaction: The aggregate score from customer review sites like Trustpilot and TrustRadius, to understand how POS providers are viewed by their own customer bases.
When it comes to calculating a product's final score, not all testing areas are weighted evenly, as we know some aspects matter more to our readers than others, For example, we’ll prioritize certain industry-specific features for specific reviews, like an offline mode when reviewing POS systems for food trucks, or kitchen display systems (KDS) when reviewing restaurant POS systems.
At Tech.co, we have a number of full-time in-house researchers who re-run this testing process regularly to ensure our results remain reflective of the present day.
Verdict: Which POS System Is Better?
If you’re in the market for a new point-of-sale system, our research suggests Clover is the better option. The POS system is suitable for hospitality and retail businesses and also offers the best hardware options we’ve researched. However, with an entry price of $105 per month for restaurants — and no free plan in sight — Clover is slightly less ideal for smaller vendors with tighter budgets.
On the other hand, Toast has an excellent suite of restaurant features, and its generous free plan makes it a great option for plenty of restaurants, cafes, and bistros. Plus, the paid plans are ideal for established restaurants with complex inventory needs, thanks to stock alerts and cost management tools. Its incompatibility with iOS software will exclude it from many customers though, so it’s worth noting this before moving forward with the system.
However, Toast and Clover aren’t the only promising restaurant point-of-sale systems on the market. If you’re looking to narrow down your search, use our free comparison tool to receive tailored quotes from the biggest names in the POS business. It only takes a couple of minutes, and it helps you take the guesswork out of POS pricing.