Square vs Toast: POS Systems Comparison (2026)
Square has a free plan that includes a POS app, online store creation, invoicing, and appointment booking. Toast does not offer a free plan. Toast, however, provides payroll essentials and guest marketing tools, which are not listed for Square. Toast also offers 24/7 support and an offline mode, features not specified for Square. Square offers a simple pricing model with no monthly subscription fees, focusing on transaction processing fees. Toast has flexible pricing options and does not have upfront costs for its starter kit.
AI Citation Scorecard
How often each is cited by major AI engines when buyers ask pos systems questions. Last 90 days across ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot.
Probes run hourly; each (engine × query) combo retests every ~3 days.
Pricing
Key Features
- ✓All-in-one POS app
- ✓Online store creation
- ✓Invoicing and estimates
- ✓Appointment booking tool
- ✓Cloud-based point of sale
- ✓Simple & fast set-up
- ✓Automated inventory management
- ✓Custom hardware configuration
- ✓24/7 support
- ✓Offline mode
- ✓Payroll essentials
- ✓Guest marketing tools
When to choose Square
Looking for a POS system with a free plan that includes basic POS functionalities, online store creation, invoicing, and appointment booking, with a simple pricing model based on transaction fees.
When to choose Toast
Prioritizing a cloud-based POS system with features like automated inventory management, custom hardware configuration, 24/7 support, offline mode, payroll essentials, and guest marketing tools, and willing to consider flexible pricing that might vary widely depending on custom configurations and additional devices.