Lightspeed vs Square vs Toast for Restaurants
Lightspeed, Square and Toast compared on what each publishes: plans, kitchen screens, kiosks and card fees, checked October 2026, with gaps stated.
Updated 4 min read
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Key takeaways
- Square starts free and prices kitchen screens and kiosks per device; Lightspeed prices by number of tills and includes more on higher plans.
- Toast is best known in the United States, and its own pages did not open for us in October 2026, so its UK facts here are limited and marked.
- None of the three lets you ignore card processing: ask for your rate in writing.
- A restaurant of five tills and a kiosk will compare very differently from a one till cafe, so use your own device list.
In short: Square wins on a free start and published card rates, Lightspeed on depth for restaurants that grow, and Toast on its United States strength, though we could not read its pages. Facts below were checked on each vendor's page in October 2026 where it opened.
Quick comparison
| Square for Restaurants | Lightspeed Restaurant | Toast (UK) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | Free, no monthly fee; Plus £69 a month per location (Square) | Basic €89 a month with one register (Lightspeed) | Shown in search as "from £80" and "£150 per month"; VAT not confirmed (Toast UK) |
| Kitchen display | From £15 per device a month (pricing) | Add on on Basic; included as a licence option on Core and Pro | Check the vendor's page |
| Kiosk | £35 per device a month | Add on on every plan, price not shown | Check the vendor's page |
| QR ordering | Not on its restaurants page | Add on on Basic; included on Core and Pro | Check the vendor's page |
| Card rates | 1.75% UK cards in person, 1.4% plus 25p online | Not stated ("Default" or "Custom") | Check the vendor's page |
| Extra tills | Hardware sold separately, Register £699 plus VAT | Extra registers €49 each | Extra devices charged, per its compare page |
| Contract | Not stated on the page we read | Not stated on its pricing page | Check the vendor's page |
Prices as of October 2026, excluding VAT unless stated.
Square for Restaurants
Square's strengths are the free plan, published card rates and its own hardware range. Its restaurants page lists a table plan, coursing and live reporting on Plus, online ordering for collection and delivery with no monthly fees or commissions, and a kitchen display. The weakness for a bigger venue is that add ons are charged per device, and payments are tied to Square. Square's general pricing page shows Plus from £29, which differs from the £69 on its restaurants page, so ask which applies to you.
Lightspeed Restaurant
Lightspeed prices by plan and by the number of registers: Basic includes one, Core two and Pro three, each extra at €49. Core and Pro include QR ordering, and a kitchen display as a licence option. Payment rates are "Default" on Basic and "Custom" on the others, and the page shows euros while its FAQ mentions pounds. It is a good candidate if you want a deeper system and expect to grow into the higher plans.
Toast
Toast is a large platform in the United States, with UK pages for single locations. Its site returned an access error to our tools, so we cannot say more than the prices that appeared in search results. Treat the figures above as unconfirmed. If Toast is on your shortlist, ask for a written UK quote with hardware, payment rates and the contract term. Our Toast comparison shows the same limits.
Which one for which restaurant
- A single till cafe or a start up: Square's free plan and published rates are hard to beat.
- A two or three till restaurant that wants stock control and QR ordering: price Lightspeed Core against Square with the add ons you need.
- A group or a US style table service operation: get a Toast quote and compare totals.
Where DineHarbor fits
DineHarbor is a fourth option for owners who want a flat price: Starter £69, Growth £129 and Unlimited £219 a month per location, with kitchen screens, waiter phones, online ordering and QR table ordering included. It connects to your own card provider, does not sell hardware and does not take delivery app orders. See the Square and Lightspeed comparisons.
A fair test
Our guide to what a restaurant POS costs has the full sum, and the best POS systems for UK restaurants lists more options.
Questions and answers
Which is cheaper, Lightspeed or Square?
Square has a free plan, so it is cheaper at the very start. Lightspeed lists Basic at €89 a month with one register. Totals depend on devices, add ons and card volume.
Is Toast available in the UK?
Toast has UK pages including London, according to what we could see. Its site blocked our tools, so check Toast's page for details.
Which has a kitchen display?
Square lists it from £15 per device a month. Lightspeed includes it from Core as a licence option and sells it as an add on on Basic. Toast's terms were not confirmed.
Do any of them charge commission on online orders?
Square says its online ordering has no monthly fees or commissions. Lightspeed's page did not state a commission. Check Toast's own page.
See it in DineHarbor
About the author
Editorial team
The DineHarbor team writes this blog for restaurant owners and managers. Every article is checked against the product before it is published, so what we describe is what the software does.
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