Our verdict: 3.1 out of 5, strong for restaurants, weaker on the paperwork
Toast scores 3.1 out of 5. It is purpose-built restaurant software with round-the-clock phone support and an option to open without paying for hardware. It loses points on an agreement that renews itself every year, an early termination fee, a broad reserve clause, and prices that are partly quote-only.
Toast is not a card processor itself. It describes itself as a payment facilitator that partners with processors [1], which means Toast signs you up, underwrites your account and handles your statements and support. Its agreement covers the software, the hardware and the payments together, so you cannot keep Toast's POS and price out the card processing elsewhere [1].
The two or three things that decide it: how long you will stay, whether your sales are high enough for the 2.49% path, and whether you can live with the renewal and exit terms.
Pros
- Pay-as-you-go needs no upfront payment for the basic kit, and you own the hardware [2].
- Toast Care support by phone or web messaging, 24/7/365 [1].
- Offline mode keeps taking cards when the internet drops [1].
- Deposits normally land 1 to 2 business days after settlement starts [4].
Cons
- Auto-renews for one-year periods unless you give 30 days' notice [3].
- Early exit costs the remaining software fees, or $150 a month left on pay-as-you-go [3].
- Toast may require a reserve for any reason in its sole reasonable discretion [4].
- Toast can change card rates during the term on 30 days' notice [3].
Toast pricing and fees
Toast's two published rates are 3.09% per card sale on pay-as-you-go and 2.49% on traditional pricing, where you buy the hardware and pay monthly for software [2]. Toast says the 3.09% covers all costs except shipping and taxes [2]. Here is the schedule as far as Toast publishes it.
| Item | Pay-as-you-go | Traditional |
|---|---|---|
| In-person card rate | 3.09% [2] | 2.49% [2] |
| Per-sale cents fee | Not published | Not published |
| Typed-in, online ordering, ACH | Not published | Not published |
| Basic hardware | No upfront cost for the Starter Kit [2] | Bought up front; prices by quote [2] |
| Software | No monthly fee for basic POS [2] | Point of Sale plan from $69 a month [1] |
| POS and payroll bundle | $69 a month + $9 per employee [1] | $69 a month + $9 per employee [1] |
| Extra devices | Additional charges apply [1] | Additional charges apply [1] |
| Instant payout, chargeback, international | Not published | Not published |
Our reference business takes $30,000 a month in 1,200 in-person card sales of $25. On pay-as-you-go that is $30,000 × 3.09% = $927 a month, or 3.09%. On traditional pricing it is $30,000 × 2.49% = $747 plus the $69 software start price, so $816 a month, or 2.72% [1][2]. The traditional figure leaves out the hardware you buy up front, because Toast prices it by quote, and neither row adds a per-sale fee, because none is published.
Where the two paths cross: the 0.6-point gap pays for $69 of software at $11,500 a month in card sales. Below that, pay-as-you-go costs less each month; above it, traditional wins, before you add the hardware cost spread over the months you plan to use it. Toast offers 0% interest financing on hardware and setup by application [1]. Our Toast fees page works the same math at $10,000 and $75,000.
Contract, cancellation and hardware
Toast has a real contract. Its merchant agreement runs for the initial term written in your order form, then renews by itself for successive one-year periods unless either side gives at least 30 days' written notice before the term ends [3].
You may end the agreement early, but the agreement then charges an early termination fee: the software subscription fees left for the rest of the term, or, on pay-as-you-go, $150 multiplied by the months remaining [3]. Here is what that formula produces:
| Months left in the term | Pay-as-you-go ($150 a month) | Traditional at $69 a month software |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | $900 | $414 |
| 12 | $1,800 | $828 |
| 24 | $3,600 | $1,656 |
- Software fees stay fixed during the initial term, but Toast can change card processing rates and other non-software fees at any time on 30 days' written notice [3]. The agreement lets you object in writing before a change takes effect [3]; read that section with your order form.
- Hardware is yours. Toast says the Starter Kit is not leased or rented and is owned by the purchaser on either plan [2].
- But it only runs Toast. Toast's services may only be used on approved Toast hardware [1], so leaving usually means a new system.
- Put the renewal date in your calendar 60 days ahead. Missing the 30-day window starts another year [3].
Holds, reserves and account terminations
Toast's payment processing terms give it wide room. At any time, Toast may temporarily suspend or delay payments, set aside a reserve, or require you to keep funds in your bank account, and it may require a reserve for any reason in its sole reasonable discretion, sized as it reasonably decides [4]. With pending chargebacks it may delay payouts, and it may withhold the amount of a likely chargeback until the dispute resolves [4].
Day to day, Toast says deposits normally appear 1 to 2 business days after settlement starts. You start settlement in the system, or ask Toast to start it automatically at 4:30 a.m. ET for the prior day [4].
The review record is milder than the clause. Of 54 organic reviews in our sample, one described a hold on the account it could not resolve and one said Toast cancelled the account a day after going live [5]. That is 3.7 per 100. Another owner mentioned payouts delayed by a week. The more common complaint was the contract: at least three described a two-year term or an early termination fee.
- Ask your Toast rep to write the initial term length, renewal date and early termination fee on your order form.
- Start settlement daily, or turn on automatic settlement, so tips and sales do not sit unbatched [4].
- Warn Toast before a large catering or event order, and keep delivery proof for disputes.
- Keep a cash cushion of a few days of sales in case a payout is delayed.
Support and customer evidence
Toast's support is its strongest point. Toast Care is included in every software subscription at no added cost and is open 24/7/365 by phone or web messaging [1]. Toast lists a customer care number, (617) 682-0225, on its pricing page [1].
| Measure | Result |
|---|---|
| TrustScore shown | 2.6 out of 5, from 1,501 reviews |
| Five-star share shown | 54% |
| Reviews in our sample | 60 (53 unprompted, 1 redirected, 6 verified) |
| Invited (verified) share in sample | 10% |
| Organic average in sample | 2.1 stars (113 stars over 54 reviews) |
| Hold or closure mentions | 2 of 54 |
| Could not reach help | 6 of 54 |
Recent organic reviews split sharply: a cluster of five-star owners who like the system, and a larger group of one-star reviews about sales promises, billing after cancelling and contract terms. The 54% five-star share on the profile sits well above the 2.1-star organic average we found, so we discount it.
Alternatives to Toast
- Square (our processing service, BatchOut, earns money on Square sign-ups): restaurant plans you can cancel anytime; see Square vs Toast.
- Clover: full-service restaurant bundles at 2.3% + 10¢, with hardware you can buy outright.
- Heartland: a processor worth a written quote if you have several locations, since Toast's list prices are single-location only [1].
- Helcim: interchange-plus pricing for a restaurant whose guests pay with debit often.
Toast lists integrated surcharging among its features [1]. If you plan to add a card surcharge in New Jersey, read our NJ surcharge law page first.
BatchOut is our own processing service. If we show it as an option for your restaurant, we label it as ours. For restaurant-specific rates, see restaurant card processing.