Toast vs Clover for restaurants: what each costs, what the contract says and who each one fits
Toast is built only for restaurants and sold directly by Toast, with a plan from $0 to about $69 a month per terminal and a card rate near 2.49% + 15¢. Clover is a general point-of-sale system sold through banks and resellers, with restaurant plans quoted from $79 to $189 a month and a card rate near 2.3% + 10¢ [1] [2]. At low volume Clover's rate is lower; at any volume Toast's restaurant tools are deeper; and the contract is where the two differ most. Every figure here is a third-party report, so confirm it on a written quote.
If what you really want is to take pickup orders from your own menu page without buying either system, you can build a free menu site with pickup ordering from a photo of your menu. Below: the plans side by side, the hardware, a month worked at three sizes, online orders, contracts, and how to pick.
Toast vs Clover at a glance
| Toast | Clover | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Restaurants only | Many kinds of business, with restaurant plans |
| Software fee | $0 (Starter Kit) or about $69 per terminal | $79, $149 or $189 a month; one report lists $135 on a 36-month term |
| In-person card rate | About 2.49% + 15¢ on the paid plan; 3.09% to 3.69% + 15¢ on Starter Kit | About 2.3% + 10¢ |
| Online or keyed-in rate | About 3.5% + 15¢ or more | About 3.5% + 10¢ |
| Who sells it | Toast, directly | Banks, payment companies and resellers |
| Contract | Reports range from one to three years | Depends on the reseller |
| Hardware | Toast's own devices, bought or paid over time | Clover's own devices, bought or leased |
The numbers come from our Toast pricing and Clover POS pricing guides, which cite UpMenu, business.com and review sites [1] [2] [3]. Neither company publishes its full processing rates on one page, and Clover says its pricing and termination fees vary across its partners [3]. That is the first thing to keep in mind: a Toast quote is a Toast quote, but a Clover quote is one reseller's quote.
What is the difference between Toast and Clover for a restaurant?
Toast started as a restaurant system. Its tools for tables, courses, modifiers, kitchen screens, online ordering and delivery integrations are made for a place that cooks and serves food, and Toast says its customers always buy from Toast, not from a reseller [3]. Clover started as a flexible payment terminal for any shop and added restaurant features through plans and an app market. You can run a very good restaurant on either, but Toast asks you to commit to one company's way of doing things, while Clover lets you shop the same hardware among sellers.
A practical way to see the difference: ask each for the same thing, such as "split a check three ways, fire the second course and send a modifier to the kitchen screen". On Toast that is a core feature. On Clover it depends on the plan and the apps you add, each of which can be a separate monthly charge.
Monthly software fees compared
Toast's cheapest door is the Starter Kit at $0 a month, which trades the fee for a higher card rate, about a point more per sale. The paid Point of Sale plan is reported at $69 a month per terminal, with one source saying Toast's own page now reads "as low as $79" [1]. Custom quotes apply to groups.
Clover's restaurant plans are reported at $79 (Starter), $149 (Standard) and $189 (Advanced) per location, and the higher plans buy features, not a lower card rate [2]. One comparison lists a $135 restaurant plan on a 36-month term, and Clover's virtual terminal from $14.95 a month, which is not a restaurant setup at all [3]. If you see "from $14.95", ask what it leaves out.
Add-ons on both sides are billed monthly. Loyalty, marketing, scheduling and an online-ordering app each run from about $10 to $70 on Clover, and Toast's reported add-ons run from about $30 to $100 a month each [1] [2]. Three add-ons can cost as much as a plan upgrade, so count the ones you will use on day one.
Card processing: the real running cost
For most small restaurants the card rate is the biggest line. At about 2.3% + 10¢ in person, Clover is cheaper per sale than Toast at about 2.49% + 15¢. On a $25 average ticket the gap is small, 2.3% of $25 plus 10¢ is 67.5¢, and 2.49% of $25 plus 15¢ is 77.25¢, about 10¢ a sale. But a thousand sales a month makes that about $97, which is more than the difference in software fees between the plans.
The fixed part of the rate matters most when the ticket is small. A $10 coffee pays 33¢ on Clover and 39.9¢ on Toast. A $60 dinner for two pays $1.48 on Clover and $1.64 on Toast. The percentage gap barely moves; the fixed 5¢ is a bigger share of a small ticket.
A month at three sizes, side by side
We worked a month of in-person card sales at a $25 average ticket, so the fixed per-sale fee applies to 400, 1,000 and 2,400 sales. We used Toast's $69 paid plan and Clover's $79 Starter plan, and left hardware, add-ons and online orders out.
| Monthly card sales | Toast total | Clover total | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| $10,000 (400 sales) | $378 | $349 | Clover $29 cheaper |
| $25,000 (1,000 sales) | $842 | $754 | Clover about $88 cheaper |
| $60,000 (2,400 sales) | $1,923 | $1,699 | Clover $224 cheaper |
The sums: for Toast at $25,000, 2.49% is $622.50, plus 1,000 × 15¢ is $150, plus $69, which is $841.50. For Clover, 2.3% is $575, plus $100, plus $79, which is $754. On Clover's $149 Standard plan the $25,000 month is $824, still under Toast's. Toast's Starter Kit at 3.09% would cost $772.50 + $150 = $922.50 before any monthly fee.
What the table does not show
The table is the card-and-software bill only. It leaves out the things people buy Toast for: tools that save labour, such as table management, a kitchen display, fewer rung-in mistakes and built-in online ordering. If those save an hour of a manager's time a day, they can outweigh a $90 gap. It also leaves out Clover's reseller risk: a rate quoted as "2.3%" can be a headline that sits on top of other fees. Compare the statement of a similar restaurant, not the sales page.
Hardware: what you buy on each
- Toast: a countertop terminal about $799 to $1,199, a handheld about $409 to $699, a kitchen display about $599 to $1,199, a receipt printer $200 to $350 [1].
- Clover: Flex handheld $499 to $699, Mini $699 to $899, Station Solo $1,399 to $1,799, Station Duo $1,599 to $1,899, printer $200 to $350, kitchen display $300 to $900 [2].
A counter with one terminal, a printer and a kitchen screen is about $1,600 to $2,750 on Toast (sum of the low and high figures above) and about $1,950 to $2,400 on Clover with a Station Duo, a printer and a drawer. Both sell hardware over time as well as outright. One review says Toast's pay-as-you-go hardware adds 0.50% to processing, which on $25,000 a month is $125 [3]. Whichever you choose, ask what it costs to replace a dead unit on a busy Saturday.
Switching later is where the two differ. One 2026 comparison says Toast's proprietary hardware makes leaving painful, while Clover's hardware can sometimes stay with you when you change processors [3]. Ask a Clover rep whether the device is locked to that reseller; sometimes it is.
Contracts and getting out
Sources disagree on Toast's term: one to three years, a two-year commitment, "multi-year with early termination fees" [3]. Clover is described as more flexible, but its terms depend on who sells it, and the 36-month figure above shows a long term is possible. The questions are the same for both:
- How many months, and what does the early termination fee cost in dollars?
- Does the contract renew on its own, and how much notice ends it?
- Is the card rate fixed for the term, or can it change?
- What happens to the hardware if you leave: yours, leased, or returned?
- Can you export your menu, items and customer data in a usable file?
Get the answers on paper. A rep's promise on the phone does not bind the contract, and a long term plus a rate that can rise is how a "cheap" system gets expensive.
Online ordering on Toast and Clover
Both treat online payments as riskier than a card in your reader, so both charge more: about 3.5% + 15¢ on Toast and 3.5% + 10¢ on Clover. On a $30 pickup order that is $1.20 on Toast and $1.15 on Clover. Neither takes a commission the way a delivery app does, but each charges extra for the ordering product: Toast sells online ordering as an add-on, and Clover's ordering apps cost about $20 to $50 a month [1] [2]. Our guides Toast online ordering and Clover online ordering for restaurants work through each, and commission-free online ordering compares the cheaper ways to take orders without a POS at all.
Who Toast fits, and who Clover fits
Toast fits a full-service or busy counter restaurant that wants one company to run the POS, kitchen screens, online ordering and delivery integrations, and that can sign a longer term. It fits groups that will use its reports and its staff tools.
Clover fits a small café, bakery, food truck or counter place that wants a lower in-person rate, a simple setup and a chance to shop sellers, provided the owner gets a fixed rate and a short contract in writing.
Neither fits well when the real need is a menu page and pickup orders. A phone-based option such as Square may cost less to start, and our Toast vs Square guide has that sum. If the issue is the Toast bill itself, Toast alternatives for restaurants lists what else to price.
How to choose in four steps
- Write down last month's card sales and sale count. Divide for your average ticket.
- Ask both for a written quote with the software fee, in-person and online rates, hardware, term and termination fee.
- Do the month's sum with your numbers, using the method in the table above. Add hardware spread over 36 months.
- Price the work it saves. If a feature saves a manager an hour a day, say what an hour costs you, and put it on the right side of the sum.
If the two totals are within about $50 a month, choose on the contract and on which staff will actually use. If one is $200 lower, the contract is the only thing that should stop you taking it.
Frequently asked questions
Is Toast or Clover cheaper for a restaurant?
On the reported in-person rates Clover is cheaper per sale (about 2.3% + 10¢ against 2.49% + 15¢). Toast can still cost less overall when its tools replace other subscriptions. Compare written quotes.
Does Toast have a contract and Clover not?
Toast reports range from one to three years. Clover's depends on the reseller, and some restaurant plans are quoted on 36 months [3]. Ask both.
Can I use my own card processor with Clover?
Often yes, which is a reason owners pick it, but the reseller's terms decide. Toast processes payments itself.
Which has better online ordering?
Toast's is built into its restaurant system; Clover's is an add-on app. Both charge a higher online card rate.
Do I need either to take online orders?
No. A menu site that takes pickup orders needs no POS. You can build yours free from a photo of your menu, and more answers are in all our guides.
Choosing between the two smaller systems? Square vs Clover for restaurants works the same months.
Sources
- Toast vs. Clover: Honest POS Comparison, Pricing & Features, UpMenu, as shown in search results Nov 11, 2026 (a rival of both; plan, rate and hardware figures).
- Clover vs Toast, business.com, as shown in search results Nov 11, 2026 (card rates).
- Toast vs Clover, Tech.co; Toast vs Clover, Fit Small Business; and Toast's own comparison page, as shown in search results Nov 11, 2026 (contracts, $135 plan, reseller terms, hardware).
Prices change and resellers differ. Confirm on toasttab.com, clover.com and your own written quote.