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Restaurants · head to head

Lightspeed Restaurant vs MarginEdge

Lightspeed Restaurant logo

Lightspeed Restaurant

Restaurants

One restaurant POS to power it all

From
$69/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
MarginEdge logo

MarginEdge

Restaurants

Restaurant back office for invoice processing, food cost and inventory tracking

From
$350/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

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; MarginEdge no free trial or freemium option available, requiring full commitment upfront at $350 per month minimum
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lightspeed Restaurant and MarginEdge actually diverge.

Attributes where Lightspeed Restaurant and MarginEdge differ
AttributeLightspeed RestaurantMarginEdge
Starting price$69/month$350/monthly
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb
Founded2005Unknown

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Restaurants).

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
  • Menu management
  • Staff management
  • Delivery integration
  • Advanced reporting
  • Uber Eats
  • DoorDash

Only in MarginEdge

Nothing recorded that Lightspeed Restaurant does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Lightspeed Restaurant

  • Point of Salenot MarginEdge
  • Order Managementnot MarginEdge
  • Inventory Controlnot MarginEdge
  • Staff Schedulingnot MarginEdge

MarginEdge

  • Restaurant management and financial trackingnot Lightspeed Restaurant
  • Food cost control and inventory management for restaurantsnot Lightspeed Restaurant

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

MarginEdge

  • No free trial or freemium option available, requiring full commitment upfront at $350 per month minimum
  • High monthly per-location cost makes adoption expensive for multi-unit restaurant groups
  • Additional Toast API integration requires extra $50 per month per location, increasing total cost

Pricing, plan by plan

Lightspeed Restaurant

$69/month
  • Starter$69/month
    • Customizable POS
    • Menu manager
    • Floor plans
  • Essential$189/month
    • All Starter features
    • Lightspeed AI
    • Tempo service pacing
  • Premium$399/month
    • All Essential features
    • Advanced inventory management
    • Raw API access

MarginEdge

$350/monthly
  • MarginEdge$350/monthly
    • Unlimited invoice processing
    • Unlimited bill payments for U.S. locations
    • Unlimited email support
  • MarginEdge + Freepour$500/monthly
    • All MarginEdge features
    • Smart scale technology for liquor inventory management
    • Freepour adds $150 per month to base subscription

Which should you pick?

Choose Lightspeed Restaurant if

  • You need floor plan management.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want tableside ordering.
Lightspeed Restaurant review

Choose MarginEdge if

Nothing in the data separates MarginEdge from Lightspeed Restaurant on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

MarginEdge review

Questions people ask

Is Lightspeed Restaurant or MarginEdge better?
Neither clearly leads. Lightspeed Restaurant starts at $69/month and MarginEdge at $350/monthly, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lightspeed Restaurant or MarginEdge?
Lightspeed Restaurant starts at $69/month and MarginEdge at $350/monthly.
Does Lightspeed Restaurant or MarginEdge run on more platforms?
Lightspeed Restaurant runs on Web, Ios, Android. MarginEdge runs on Web.
What is Lightspeed Restaurant best used for?
Lightspeed Restaurant is most often used for point of sale, order management, inventory control, staff scheduling. Of those, point of sale and order management are not what MarginEdge is typically brought in for.
What can Lightspeed Restaurant do that MarginEdge cannot?
Lightspeed Restaurant covers Floor plan management, Tableside ordering, Menu management, Staff management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Lightspeed Restaurant: How much does Lightspeed Restaurant POS cost?

Pricing starts at $69 per month for the Starter plan, $189 for Essential, and $399 for Premium. Enterprise plans require custom quotes.

Source
MarginEdge: What is the pricing structure and billing frequency for MarginEdge?

MarginEdge costs $350 per month per location with monthly or annual billing. Annual billing includes a 10 percent discount resulting in $420 annual savings. No long-term contracts are required and customers may cancel anytime.

Source
Lightspeed Restaurant: What does the Kitchen Display System cost?

Kitchen Display System screens cost $30 per month and are available to add on any plan.

Source
MarginEdge: How much does the Freepour add-on cost and what does it include?

The Freepour bundle adds $150 per month to the base subscription, making the total $500 per month per location. It includes smart scale technology for automated liquor inventory management. Annual billing saves $600 per year when bundled with Freepour.

Source
Lightspeed Restaurant: What's included in the Premium plan?

The Premium plan at $399 per month includes advanced inventory management, raw API access, full multi-location support, and revenue center customization for hotels.

Source
MarginEdge: Are there any additional fees beyond the monthly subscription?

Yes, if you use the Toast API or Toast Restaurant Management Suite, there is an additional $50 per month per location charge. Discounts are available for multi-unit restaurant groups and accounting firms through custom pricing.

Source
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