Toast
FreemiumAll-in-one restaurant POS and management platform with ordering, payments, kitchen display, online ordering, delivery, payroll, and marketing tools.
What does this tool do?
Toast is an enterprise-grade point-of-sale (POS) system purpose-built for restaurants, quick-service establishments, and food delivery operations. The platform consolidates front-of-house ordering, back-of-house kitchen operations, payment processing, and customer-facing delivery into a single ecosystem. Rather than piecing together separate vendors, restaurants get integrated kitchen display systems (KDS) that sync directly with order management, reducing ticket times and kitchen errors. The payment processing is embedded rather than bolted-on, which typically means better reconciliation and lower processing friction. Toast also bundles scheduling, labor management, and basic marketing automation—features restaurant operators would otherwise need to license separately. However, it's positioned as a full-stack solution for mid-to-large establishments, not a lightweight alternative for tiny operations.
AI analysis from Feb 23, 2026
Key Features
- Integrated point-of-sale with dine-in, takeout, and delivery order management from single interface
- Kitchen display system (KDS) with order routing and prep time tracking
- Embedded payment processing with support for multiple tender types and third-party delivery platforms
- Labor scheduling, time-clock tracking, and payroll integration
- Online ordering with branded web/mobile storefront
- Third-party delivery platform integration (DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub)
- Inventory and menu management with multi-location sync
Use Cases
- 1Multi-location restaurant chains needing centralized ordering, inventory, and labor management across dozens of locations
- 2Quick-service restaurants (QSR) optimizing kitchen throughput with integrated KDS and order routing
- 3Full-service restaurants managing dine-in, takeout, and delivery orders from a single POS terminal
- 4Ghost kitchens and delivery-only concepts consolidating third-party delivery platform integrations
- 5Restaurants launching their own delivery operations without third-party platform dependency
- 6Restaurant operators seeking integrated payroll and scheduling to reduce administrative overhead
Pros & Cons
Advantages
- Integrated kitchen display system (KDS) that directly syncs with orders eliminates manual ticket printing and reduces kitchen chaos
- Built-in payment processing with native credit card handling typically results in better margins than third-party payment gateway fees
- Multi-location support with centralized reporting and menu management lets regional operators run consistent operations across units
- Includes labor scheduling and payroll in the base platform, reducing need for separate vendors like Toast + Deputy + ADP
Limitations
- Vendor lock-in: moving away from Toast requires migrating payment processing, customer data, and historical records to a new system—this is expensive and disruptive
- High upfront setup costs and mandatory hardware (Toast terminals, kitchen displays, payment devices) make it prohibitive for small operators or pop-ups
- Steep learning curve for restaurant staff; complex feature set means more time spent on training vs. immediate productivity
- Pricing is opaque and contract-based rather than transparent, making it hard to compare costs before committing
Pricing Details
Pricing details not publicly available. Toast uses contract-based, quote-driven pricing that varies by location count, hardware requirements, monthly transaction volume, and included modules. No transparent per-seat or monthly subscription pricing is listed on the website.
Who is this for?
Multi-unit restaurant operators, QSR chains, full-service restaurants, and ghost kitchens with revenue of $500K+ annually. Best suited for teams large enough to justify training and support costs. Not recommended for single-location mom-and-pop shops or food trucks with tight budgets.