Software · head to head
Lightspeed Restaurant vs Toast POS
Lightspeed Restaurant
Software
One restaurant POS to power it all
- From
- $69/month
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Lightspeed Restaurant starts at $69 a month for Starter, rising to $189 for Essential and $399 for Premium; Toast POS free tier limited to one or two terminals
- They diverge on capability: Lightspeed Restaurant covers Floor plan management, Toast POS covers Cloud POS.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Lightspeed Restaurant and Toast POS actually diverge.
| Attribute | Lightspeed Restaurant | Toast POS |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $69/month | On request |
| Founded | 2005 | 2011 |
Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), platforms (Web, Ios, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Lightspeed Restaurant
- Floor plan management
- Tableside ordering
- Staff management
- Delivery integration
- Advanced reporting
- Skip the Dishes
Only in Toast POS
- Cloud POS
- Real-time reporting
- Inventory tracking
- Employee management
- Online ordering
- Grubhub
Both cover
- Menu management
- Uber Eats
- DoorDash
- QuickBooks
- Xero
- Web support
- Ios support
- Android support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Lightspeed Restaurant
- Point of Sale
- Order Management
- Inventory Control
- Staff Scheduling
Toast POS
- Point of Sale
- Order Management
- Inventory Control
- Staff Scheduling
Both are used for point of sale, order management, inventory control, staff scheduling, on those jobs the choice comes down to price and fit rather than capability.
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Lightspeed Restaurant
- Starts at $69 a month for Starter, rising to $189 for Essential and $399 for Premium
- The kitchen display system is charged separately at $30 per screen per month
- Lightspeed Reservations, reservation integrations and Lightspeed Tasks are add-ons on every tier below Enterprise rather than included features
- Integrated payments are fixed to a default configuration on Starter, with custom configuration only from Essential upwards
- Card processing rates and hardware costs are not published, and the vendor notes prices vary by business and industry
Toast POS
- Free tier limited to one or two terminals
- Setup fees and hardware requirements for paid plans
- Mobile ordering requires additional configuration
- Reporting and analytics features limited on entry-level plans
Pricing, plan by plan
Lightspeed Restaurant
$69/month- Starter$69/month
- POS
- Menu management
- Payments
- Essential$189/month
- Online ordering
- Delivery
- Advanced reporting
- Premium$399/month
- Multiple locations
- API access
Toast POS
On request- Starter KitFree
- Cloud-based POS
- Order management
- Reporting
- Point of Sale$69/month
- Menu management
- Reporting & analytics
- 24/7 support
- Build Your Own$165/month
- Online ordering
- Delivery
- Marketing
Which should you pick?
Choose Lightspeed Restaurant if
- You need floor plan management.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want tableside ordering.
Choose Toast POS if
- You need cloud pos.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android.
- You also want real-time reporting.
Questions people ask
- Is Lightspeed Restaurant or Toast POS better?
- Neither clearly leads. Lightspeed Restaurant starts at $69/month and Toast POS at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Lightspeed Restaurant or Toast POS?
- Lightspeed Restaurant starts at $69/month and Toast POS at On request.
- Does Lightspeed Restaurant or Toast POS run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, Ios, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- What is Lightspeed Restaurant best used for?
- Lightspeed Restaurant is most often used for point of sale, order management, inventory control, staff scheduling.
- What can Lightspeed Restaurant do that Toast POS cannot?
- Lightspeed Restaurant covers Floor plan management, Tableside ordering, Staff management, Delivery integration. Toast POS covers Cloud POS, Real-time reporting, Inventory tracking, Employee management. Both handle Menu management, Uber Eats, DoorDash, QuickBooks.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Toast POS: Does Toast POS have a free tier?
Yes. Toast's Starter Kit is free and designed for small restaurants with one or two terminals. It includes cloud-based POS, payment processing, order and table management, real-time reporting, and 24/7 customer support.
SourceToast POS: What integrations does Toast POS support?
Toast integrates with payment processors, online ordering platforms, delivery services, accounting software, and customer data platforms for comprehensive restaurant operations management.
Source