ChowNow vs Toast for restaurants: what each costs, what you need first and who each one fits

ChowNow is a standalone online ordering service: a monthly plan, a setup fee and a card rate of 2.95% + 29¢, with no commission on orders from your own page [1]. Toast online ordering is an add-on to the Toast POS: about $75 a month and a reported 3.5% + 15¢ on online cards, with no commission either [2]. On a $30 order the card fee is about $1.18 on ChowNow and $1.20 on Toast, so the real difference is the monthly bill and whether you have, or want, Toast's POS at all.

If you only need a menu page with a pickup order form and no monthly plan, you can build a free menu site with pickup ordering from a photo of your menu. Below: the one question that decides this, both price lists, a month at three sizes, delivery, contracts, and who each fits.

The first question: do you run Toast as your POS?

Toast online ordering is built into Toast's point of sale. Toast's own material and competitor comparisons both say you need the Toast POS to use it [2] [3]. ChowNow works as its own service and, according to ChowNow, connects to a number of POS systems [1].

• You already run Toast: the question is only whether the add-on costs less than ChowNow. It usually does, because you are not paying for a second system.
• You run Square, Clover, Lightspeed or paper tickets: Toast ordering is not a choice unless you change your whole POS. That is a hardware and contract decision, not an ordering decision. Our Toast pricing guide shows what it costs to start: a $69 a month software plan on the Point of Sale tier and a countertop terminal at roughly $800 to $1,200 [4].
• You have no POS yet: compare the whole stack, not the ordering page. Our Toast vs Clover and Toast vs Square guides do that.

ChowNow pricing in one table

The sources we found disagree on ChowNow's monthly numbers, so use them as a range and ask for a written quote. Our ChowNow pricing guide has the detail.

Toast online ordering pricing in one table

Our Toast online ordering guide goes through each line. Rates depend on the deal you sign, so treat any figure here as a starting point for your quote.

A month at three sizes, same orders on each

We worked a month at a $30 average ticket and 150, 300 and 600 online orders. ChowNow is shown on the Hub plan ($119) and the Pro plan ($199) with annual pricing, card at 2.95% + 29¢. Toast is the $75 add-on with card at 3.5% + 15¢. Both skip the POS bill, which you pay either way if you already use Toast.

The sums at 300 orders: ChowNow card is 2.95% of $9,000 ($265.50) plus 300 × 29¢ ($87), so $352.50; Toast card is 3.5% of $9,000 ($315) plus 300 × 15¢ ($45), so $360. The card rates land within a few dollars of each other. The gap is the plan: $75 for Toast's add-on against $119 to $199 for ChowNow, before the setup fee.

What the table says

For a restaurant already on Toast, the add-on is cheaper by roughly $40 to $120 a month at these volumes, plus no setup fee. That is a modest gap on $9,000 of sales. The bigger costs sit elsewhere: the POS, the hardware and the contract. If you do not run Toast, the table does not matter, because you cannot get the cheaper side without buying the rest.

Delivery: who brings the food

Neither one is a marketplace that finds you new diners. Toast has its own delivery services with a per-trip fee; our Toast ordering guide reports delivery from $6.99 a trip [2]. ChowNow's own blog says it connects diners with restaurants but the restaurant fulfils delivery, and one older source says it does not supply couriers [5]. That source is from 2020, so ask what delivery support exists today and what it costs.

If you want a marketplace for reach, that is a different tool, and it comes with a commission: 15% to 30% on delivery at DoorDash, as in our DoorDash commission guide. The usual advice is to keep the app for discovery and move repeat customers to your own link.

Contracts and fees to ask about

1. Term. Annual or month to month, and what cancelling early costs. ChowNow's listed prices are lower on an annual plan; Toast ordering sits inside a POS agreement.
2. Setup fee. ChowNow's reported $119 to $499 one-time fee: is it waived on annual?
3. Card rate. Is it fixed, and can it change? On Toast, does the online rate differ if you did not buy hardware upfront?
4. Customer data. Can you export emails and order history if you leave?
5. Your own domain. Does the ordering page live on your site, or on theirs?
6. Support. When can you reach a person on a Friday night?

Features people compare, and what they cost you in practice

Vendor comparison pages list branded apps, loyalty, email marketing and menu syncing. Check three things that affect the bill rather than the brochure. First, does menu editing happen in one place? Toast's ordering reads the same menu as the POS, so a 86'd item disappears from the page. With ChowNow you either connect your POS or update two places. Second, do tickets print in the kitchen without someone watching a tablet? Third, does the page load fast on a phone with a bad signal? Open the demo on your own phone before you sign.

Who each one fits

Toast fits a restaurant already on Toast, or one ready to move its whole operation to it. Ordering is then a small line on a bill you were paying anyway, and orders land in the kitchen with no extra screen.

ChowNow fits a restaurant on another POS or none, that wants a branded page and an app and is happy to pay $119 to $300 a month for it. It also suits owners who want a single vendor to call about online orders.

Neither fits a restaurant with under 100 online orders a month and a short menu. A plan of $119 on $3,000 of sales is about 4% before the card fee. A free pickup page that charges only the card fee costs less; see our commission-free online ordering guide, and compare other flat-fee options in Menufy pricing.

How to test before you commit

1. Count how many orders you take by phone, walk-in and app now, and the average ticket.
2. Fill the table above with your own numbers.
3. Ask each vendor for a written quote with the term and the card rate.
4. Pick the shorter term, run it for 60 days and compare the orders to your count.

Frequently asked questions

Is ChowNow cheaper than Toast?

Not usually, if you already use Toast: the add-on is about $75 a month against $119 or more for ChowNow, and card rates are close. If you do not use Toast, the comparison does not apply.

Can I use Toast online ordering without the Toast POS?

The sources we read say no: it is part of the POS [2] [3].

Does ChowNow charge commission?

Not on orders placed on your own ChowNow page: you pay the plan and the card rate [1].

What card rate does each charge?

ChowNow reports 2.95% + 29¢ [1]. Toast online cards are reported at 3.5% + 15¢ when you bought hardware upfront [2]. Confirm in writing.

Which is better for delivery?

Neither brings new customers. Toast offers delivery by trip; ChowNow leaves fulfilment to you. For reach, a marketplace is the tool, with its commission.

Is there a cheaper way to take pickup orders?

Yes: a menu page with pickup ordering and no monthly plan. You can build yours free from a photo of your menu, and more answers are in all our guides.

Sources

1. The Best Alternatives to Toast for Restaurant Online Ordering (2026), ChowNow (self-published; 2.95% + 29¢, no commission on direct orders).
2. Our Toast online ordering guide (3.5% + 15¢, about $75 a month, delivery from $6.99), with its own sources.
3. ChowNow vs Toast, Sauce (vendor; Toast ordering needs the Toast POS).
4. Our ChowNow pricing and Toast pricing guides, with their sources.
5. ChowNow vs DoorDash, Sauce, and other comparison sites as shown in search results Nov 11, 2026 (plans $229 to $449; no couriers, 2020 source).

Prices change and most comparison pages are written by a rival. Confirm with each vendor in writing.