Toast vs. Square vs. Clover POS: Which Is Right for Your Business?

When we pitted Toast vs. Square vs. Clover against each other, we found that Square POS is the best POS system for small businesses overall, because of its affordable and free pricing options, dual Android and iPad functionality, and its surprisingly wide selection of sales and business growth capabilities.

It was a close call, though. Our research and extensive user testing found that Toast is the better option for established, full-service restaurants due to its excellent hardware options and competitive hospitality features like tip-sharing and cost controls, as long as they’re happy to use an Android system.

Clover POS isn’t out of the race, either. Its software is easier to use than Square POS and Toast, making it a reliable option for retail and food businesses alike. What’s more, our research found it’s an especially strong fit for larger retail stores that would benefit from low card processing fees.

Read on to learn more about the individual strengths and sticking points of all three, and to find out which one is the most likely to meet your business’s specific needs.

In this guide:

• Which POS is best for you?
• Toast Review
• Square Review
• Clover Review
• Toast vs Square vs Clover Costs
• Best Hardware Options
• Best Software
• Best Usability
• Toast vs. Square vs. Clover POS Alternatives
• How Did We Compare Square vs Clover vs Toast?
• The Verdict: Why Square Is Best

Toast vs Square vs Clover: Which POS Is Best at a Glance?

• Free plans: Square and Toast both offer free POS plans, making them more cost-effective systems than Clover for smaller businesses.
• User experience: Clover offers the best user experience out of any POS system we tested, giving it a leg up over Square and Clover for POS beginners.
• Transaction fees: Clover offers lower transaction fees than Square and Toast, so if your business manages high volumes of sales, the system will be a better value in the long term.
• POS app: Square’s excellent POS app and hardware accessories make it the natural option for sellers after a simple iPad hardware setup, while Toast’s Android POS rules it out from being used by these users.
• Hardware and software packages: Clover’s POS app, Clover Go, also works on Android and Apple devices, but Clover’s combined hardware and software packages make it better suited to businesses building a setup from scratch.
• Advanced capabilities: Unlike Square, Clover, and Toast, both offer advanced hospitality features like ingredient-level inventory tracking and cost-management software, making them more capable systems for busy, full-service restaurants.
• Customer support: Clover and Square both offer support via a 24/7 live chatbot, while Toast POS customers have to resolve queries by email or telephone.

Take a look at how these POS options compare to each other in the table below, or read on for more in-depth coverage of each and how they match up against each other.

Toast POS Review

• Best POS for food businesses
• Price: Free (with transaction fees)

Toast is a well-respected POS option for any sized business. As you may be able to guess, Toast is one of the best restaurant POS systems and provides great features on that front, including real-time table updates and industry-oriented templates that can help your business grow.

Our research found that Toast is pretty strong across the board. For one, it’s incredibly easy to use, which is a trait any business owner should be striving for when it comes to choosing new software for their business. It provides robust reporting tools, so your business can understand exactly what you’re doing right and, more importantly, learn from what you’re doing wrong.

Our user tester team also commented on Toast’s vast capabilities – specifically the system’s ability to keep “staff in check” and “costings in line”, while improving communication lines between the front and back of house with its seamless kitchen display system (KDS).

According to our testers, these features were easy to locate, too, thanks to the platform’s intuitive search tool, which helped them find tools quickly.

Due to Toast’s excellent functionality, useful backend, and multi-location features, we believe it’ll be better suited to larger food businesses than more stripped-back systems like Square POS.

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
• iOS users

Toast lets single-location businesses get started without paying monthly fees with its Starter Kit plan, too. The plan also throws in hardware bundles for free, making Toast an extremely good value system for venues that want to keep start-up costs low. Toast’s transaction fees are higher than Clover’s and Square though, which means that costs might add up in the long run.

Toast gave me real-time table management updates straight from the POS. Source: Tech.co user testing

Toast has its shortcomings, though. First off, it is only compatible with Android, which may prove a deterrent for business owners who swear by iOS. On top of that, it doesn’t offer a 24/7 customer service chatbot like Square and Clover, which could be off-putting to busy food businesses that need round-the-clock support.

Learn more about the system’s features and limitations in our Toast POS review

If you like Toast, you might also like…

• Square, if you run a smaller cafe or food business and don’t require tons of advanced features
• TouchBistro, if you’re after a feature-rich iPad-based restaurant POS system

Square POS Review

• Best for small businesses aiming to expand
• Price: Free (with transaction fees)

There’s no doubt about it, Square POS is one of the best options out there for businesses of all shapes and sizes. The sleek, stylish hardware has become synonymous with progressive businesses, and the Square card reader single-handedly revolutionized the POS experience of small businesses.

With this in mind, it’s no surprise that it currently holds the largest POS market share in the US.

Most suitable for:

• Vendors that want to start selling without upfront costs
• Single-location businesses like food trucks, cafes, or retail pop-ups
• Businesses that want to integrate their online store

Less suitable for:

• Large restaurants that want ingredient-tracking features
• Businesses that need a training mode for new employees
• Businesses are after ultra-low card processing fees

I could browse hundreds of third-party integrations through Square POS’s app marketplace. Source: Tech.co’s user testing

During our latest round of research, Square POS came out on top as the best system on the market. Not only does it offer excellent hardware, but its software is feature-rich, its pricing is very generous for small businesses, and in terms of usability, it stands head and shoulders above the rest.

Square offers rock-solid inventory and analytics in-house, as well as a huge selection of third-party POS integrations, which help to extend its use even further. And, perhaps the best part of Square POS is that you can get started for free, with no monthly cost at all.

Yes, there are transaction fees, but if you’re on a budget, Square is easily your best option to get started without costing too much.

The Square POS uses clearly marked fields and a drag-and-drop editor to help guide users through item creation. Source: Tech.co user testing

Square POS isn’t perfect, of course. The transaction fees are a bit high for non-card transactions, but the free monthly cost should largely outweigh that.

Additionally, some essential features, like 24/7 support, advanced reporting, and account management, are relegated to the more expensive plans, so the extra charge might be necessary. Still, the prices are pretty affordable, so you won’t be in too much financial strife if you upgrade.

While Square was generally quite easy to use, it would be ideal for smaller businesses with simple operations. This is because the software performed slightly worse for intuitiveness in our user testing, with some testers finding the platform a “bit clunky”, specifically when it came to adding multiple items to an order.

As a result, larger, more established businesses may be better off going for a system with a smoother user experience and a larger selection of hospitality-focused capabilities, like either Toast or Clover.

Learn more about the popular POS in our Square POS review.

If you like Square, you might also like…

• Clover, if you’re after slightly more advanced features like ingredient-level stock tracking
• Zettle By PayPal. The POS also has a generous free plan and is ideal for businesses that want a simple tablet-based setup

Clover POS Review

• Best for established retailers and restaurants
• Price from: $14.95 per month (virtual terminal)  

Clover POS is unique in the POS space in that it’s aimed at providing offline functionality to businesses that are already well-established in the online space. It offers a variety of POS hardware as well as helpful POS software to make ordering, in-person and online, easier for everyone involved.

Learn about the ins and outs in our Clover POS review.

Most suitable for:

• Larger retailers and full-service restaurants
• Sellers after low transaction fees
• Users who prioritize intuitive software

Less suitable for:

• Businesses with pre-existing hardware
• Sellers wanting to offer low or free start-up costs
• Businesses that sell online, as well as in-store

During our latest round of user testing, Clover came in second place behind Square in the small business POS stakes. As previously mentioned, its hardware is exceptional, with every component that you’d expect from a POS terminal, including a barcode scanner, a receipt printer, and customer display options that are all super easy to use.

As far as features are concerned, our research shows that Clover offers all the basics, like inventory and order management, item modifiers and variants, and a robust app market to add third-party integrations. You’ll also get a suite of customer engagement features, which can really help businesses with getting new and returning customers in the door.

Unfortunately, many of these features are not included in the base monthly price, so you’ll likely have to pay a bit extra to get that going.

The Clover Customers page offers options to customize data. Source: Tech.co user testing

All in all, our team of software testers was really impressed with how intuitive Clover was to use. They noted its ease of use and straightforwardness, especially when compared to other platforms.

Back office tasks such as creating categories, products, and modifiers were all seamless, while frontend tasks were intuitive and efficient. Our team noted how the solution would suit a fast-paced restaurant.

The system was specifically praised for how easy it was to assign items to orders and to separate bills by guests. However, while Clover is much easier to use than systems like Square, it takes a while to set up an account, so users should be aware of this before moving forward with the solution.

Clover pricing starts at $14.95 per month for its Professional and Home & field services plans; however, it doesn’t come with software. Software and hardware packages start from $60 per month.

The added cost for features is only one of a few downfalls. The inventory management and marketing tool just doesn’t pass muster, particularly compared to the likes of Square POS. It does offer some solid restaurant-specific features – including menu modification, counter-side ordering, and control coursing – but if that’s not what you’re here for, we’d recommend looking elsewhere.

See how the system compares to Toast head-to-head in our Clover vs Toast review

If you like Clover, you might also like…

• Shopify, if you’re a fan of Clover’s streamlined user experience, but want to sell online as well as in person
• Square, if you’re a smaller retail store or restaurant that wants to avoid hefty start-up fees

Toast vs Square vs Clover: Which Is the Cheapest?

Square POS is definitely the most affordable POS out of these three options, as its starter plan comes in at zero dollars per month, and its transaction rates are lower than Toast’s. Toast, on the other hand, offers a wider selection of free hardware options, so it will be a better value for food and drinks venues after something slightly more elevated than an iPad setup.

Conversely, while Clover lets professional service businesses get started for $14.95 per month, its entry price for personal service businesses and retailers is $84.95 per month, and $89.95 per month for food businesses. Therefore, the POS can’t compete with Square and Toast when it comes to affordability. Take a look at the pricing breakdowns of each option below.

However, Clover POS’s transaction fees, which range from 2.3% + 10¢ to 3.5% + 10¢, are lower than those charged by Toast and Square. So, if you manage a medium to large store or food business and sell in high volumes, it’s likely you’ll end up saving more with Clover overall.

Looking for a keen grasp on POS prices? Learn more about how much POS systems cost here.

How much does Toast POS cost?

Toast has lowered its price since our last round of testing in 2022. Toast now lets users get started with its Starter Kit for free, with hardware bundles and POS software included. If you’re managing more than one location, want to opt for flat-rate card processing fees, or want to augment your plan with integrations, Toast’s Point of Sale plan starts from $69 per month.

Toast also lets you build your own custom set-up with its Build Your Own plan, so you only need to pay for the features you’ll use. See how the POS provider’s tiers weigh up in our comparison table:

How much does Square POS cost?

We’ve mentioned it once, and we’ll say it again: Square POS pricing starting price starts at 100% free, along with some transaction fees. That’s right, you won’t have to pay any monthly fees at all; the only thing you’ll pay is a percentage of each transaction, which is common for paid options as well.

While that’s obviously an attractive offer, Square POS also offers paid plans that ramp up the features a bit. With two $60 per month plans, for retail and restaurants respectively, you’ll get 24/7 support, improved reporting and inventory features, and live sales information.

These are notably more affordable than Toast’s $100+ per month plans and offer more than Clover’s more affordable options.

There’s also a bespoke plan for larger businesses, and that adds custom pricing across the platform, which can be very helpful when you’re trying to manage an enterprise organization.

How much does Clover POS cost?

We’ll be the first to point out that Clover’s price point is definitely steeper than most of its rivals. While its plans start from $14.95 per month for its Professional and Home & field services starter plans, retail and restaurants will need to fork out much more to get started on the POS. 

Clover’s retail plans range from $16 to $240 per month, with card-present transaction fees costing an extra 2.3 + 10¢ to 2.6% + 10¢ on top, depending on your chosen plan.

Clover also offers six different plans for restaurants, three for quick-service businesses and three for full-service dining businesses. These packages cost anywhere from $135 to $354 per month, with card-present sales costing an extra 2.3% + 10¢ on top.

However, unlike many POS packages, most of Clover’s plans do include software and hardware options – all of which we’ve listed below. This saves businesses the need to invest in pricey hardware as well, somewhat helping to justify the provider’s higher price tag.

Check out our Clover POS pricing guide to learn more about how much the system could cost your business.

Best For Hardware: Clover

Hardware is one of the biggest considerations for a business owner looking for their new POS system, and it must be said, there aren’t many who do it better than Clover. The provider offers truly top-of-the-line POS hardware and accessories that seamlessly connect to create a great user experience.

Clover POS handheld device with built-in receipt printer. Source: Tech.co

Clover specializes in POS software and hardware combined packages, with its retail plans starting from $16 per month and its restaurant plans starting from $135 per month. However, if you want to buy hardware separately, you’re able to do this too.

To give you a benchmark of Clover’s hardware prices, its card reader, Clover Go, matches Square’s price of $49, and its all-in-one POS terminal costs $1,799 upfront, plus a $44.95 per month fee for its software plan.

Square’s hardware

Square offers a great range of affordable POS hardware. It lets businesses get started with its Magastripe card reader for absolutely free, and it also lets businesses purchase standalone POS accessories or hardware packages.

Square’s hardware costs will depend on your business’s needs, but the provider’s contactless card readers start from $49 per unit, and its cheapest register, the Square Register, costs $799.

Toast’s hardware

Like Square, Toast will let you get started for free with its Starter Kit, which offers up to two terminals and is perfect for a single location. After that, its hardware is definitely on the expensive side, with a self-serve kiosk terminal fetching $1,034 + $90 per month.

Best Software: Clover POS

Our research and testing found that businesses can unlock more capabilities with Clover. Clover excels when it comes to industry-specific features, offering stronger retail-focused features than Square and a wider selection of hospitality capabilities than Toast and Square.

Specifically, Clover lets servers see the live status of each table and assign wait staff to tables directly through the POS. Clover also lets you make extremely accurate floor plans and edit the size, shape, and color of tables through the POS’s front end.

This gives Clover’s table management tools an advantage over Toast’s and Square’s, as you can’t customize floor plans by color with either system, and you’re only able to make changes via their back-ends.

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

Clover offers excellent customer loyalty features in-house, too, including birthday rewards and customizable perks. In comparison, you’ll need to pay extra to unlock these features with Square.

This doesn’t mean that Toast and Square are lacking, though. Square, Toast, and Clover all offer the basics, too, like online ordering, delivery, inventory, analytics, customer feedback, and advanced payment methods.

What’s more, Square POS’s app market is the most expansive and provides businesses with an extensive selection of third-party integrations, so they can truly branch out and create the POS system that their business requires.

Toast offers lots of restaurant features that Square and Clover lack, too, like free email marketing tools, in-house reservation features, and cost-management software to help businesses price their products competitively. For these reasons, we recommend Toast for larger food and drink venues with more complex, bespoke needs.

I could browse hundreds of third-party integrations through Square POS’s app marketplace. Source: Tech.co’s user testing

Best Usability: Square

There’s only one winner when it comes to usability – Square. The company is famed for its attention to the user experience, and clearly this approach is paying dividends. Our researchers were full of praise for Square’s usability, with one referring to an “intuitive interface.”

They noted that setting up the backend was slightly easier than the frontend, and despite lacking a dedicated training mode, the provider more than atones with some excellent help and support options.

Clover, by contrast, just doesn’t command the same positive user experience. While the platform is far from bad, it doesn’t have a particularly customizable interface, so if you’re not happy with the default configuration, you’re out of luck.

What’s more, some of our users struggled with bulk uploading of items and applying discounts, expressing frustration that these functions weren’t located in logical places.

Meanwhile, Toast offers a perfectly good user experience, with easy setup, a user-friendly interface, and a shallow learning curve for first-time users. Outages have been cited as a concern from users in the past, but these don’t appear to be an issue for most users now.

Toast vs. Square vs. Clover POS Alternatives

While Toast is the best POS option in most cases, and Clover and Toast are both respectable options depending on your needs, there are plenty of other options out there that might be a better fit. Take a look at some of the comparisons below to see how other POS providers could help you improve your business.

How Did We Compare Square vs Clover vs Toast?