Choosing between Toast and Upserve for your business? Both are popular restaurant solutions, but they serve different needs. Toast starts at $0/month (Starter kit) to $165+/month and is Restaurant-focused POS and management platform, while Upserve starts at $89/month and is Restaurant POS with offline mode and comprehensive analytics.. This comprehensive comparison will help you decide which POS system is the right fit for your operation.
Quick Comparison: Toast vs Upserve
| Feature | Toast | Upserve |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Restaurant | Restaurant |
| Starting Price | $0/month (Starter kit) to $165+/month | $89/month |
| Rating | 4.5/5 | 4.3/5 |
| Target Business | Small Business | Small Business |
| Pricing Model | Subscription | Subscription |
| Free Trial | Yes | Yes |
| Free Version | Yes | No |
| Best For | Full-service restaurants, quick-service restaurants, bars, and cafes | Restaurants, bars, and cafes wanting comprehensive analytics |
Toast Overview
Toast is a restaurant-specific point-of-sale and management system built exclusively for the food service industry. It offers hardware and software solutions for dine-in, takeout, and delivery operations.
Toast is offered by Toast, Inc. (founded 2012) based in Boston, MA. The system focuses on Full-service restaurants, Quick service, Bars, Cafes, Food trucks.
Key Features:
- Tableside ordering
- Kitchen display system
- Online ordering
- Delivery management
- Menu management
- Payroll integration
Upserve Overview
Upserve, now Lightspeed Restaurant U-Series, is a restaurant POS offering offline mode, employee management, and real-time insights. Consolidates menu performance, staff productivity, and customer behavior data into one platform.
Upserve is offered by Lightspeed Commerce (founded 2009) based in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. The system focuses on Restaurants, Bars, Cafes, Bakeries.
Key Features:
- Order management
- Payment processing
- Inventory management
- Staff management
- Customer loyalty
- Analytics/reporting
Feature Comparison
Toast Features:
- Tableside ordering
- Kitchen display system
- Online ordering
- Delivery management
- Menu management
Upserve Features:
- Order management
- Payment processing
- Inventory management
- Staff management
- Customer loyalty
When comparing features, Toast stands out with Restaurant-specific features, while Upserve differentiates itself with Offline mode for outages. Your choice should depend on which features align better with your specific business requirements.
Pricing Comparison
| Pricing Aspect | Toast | Upserve |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $0/month (Starter kit) to $165+/month | $89/month |
| Pricing Model | Subscription | Subscription |
| Price Range | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| Free Trial | Available | Available |
| Free Version | Yes | No |
Toast offers a free version, which is great for testing or small operations. Consider the total cost of ownership including hardware, processing fees, and add-on modules when making your decision.
Pros and Cons
Toast
Pros:
- Built specifically for restaurants
- Robust reporting
- Excellent kitchen management
- Strong online ordering
- Good hardware durability
Cons:
- 2-year contracts typical
- Can be expensive with add-ons
- Limited to restaurant industry
Upserve
Pros:
- Easy setup
- 24-hour phone support
- Offline mode
- Real-time insights
- Employee success tracking
Cons:
- System crashes reported
- Learning curve for customization
- Customer service issues
Who Should Choose Toast?
Toast is ideal for Full-service restaurants, quick-service restaurants, bars, and cafes. The system is particularly well-suited for Full-service restaurants, Quick service, Bars, Cafes, Food trucks.
However, Toast may not be the best fit for Non-restaurant businesses.
Who Should Choose Upserve?
Upserve is ideal for Restaurants, bars, and cafes wanting comprehensive analytics. The system is particularly well-suited for Restaurants, Bars, Cafes, Bakeries.
However, Upserve may not be the best fit for Retail businesses, those needing simple basic POS.
Our Recommendation
Both Toast and Upserve are solid POS solutions, but they excel in different areas. Choose Toast if you’re Full-service restaurants, quick-service restaurants, bars, and cafes. Choose Upserve if you’re Restaurants, bars, and cafes wanting comprehensive analytics. Toast has a higher user rating (4.5 vs 4.3). Also, choose Toast if you want to start with a free version. We recommend trying demos or free trials of both systems before making your final decision.