Toast is a combined point-of-sale and online ordering system, and its $0 starter software plan is a real, genuine offer. What that headline number leaves out is hardware, payment processing, and the software tiers most full-service restaurants actually need once a single terminal stops being enough.
What Toast Actually Offers
Toast is built around POS hardware and software first, with online ordering layered on top, aimed at restaurants that want one system running both the front counter and the website.
- Point-of-sale hardware and software, sold and supported directly by Toast
- Online ordering integrated with the same menu and reporting as in-store sales
- Software tiers: Starter at $0/mo, Essentials at $69+/mo, Growth at $165+/mo
- Reporting, staff management, and kitchen display options depending on tier
What Toast Actually Costs
The $0 Starter software plan is real, but it isn't the number most restaurants end up paying. Online orders process at 3.50% plus 15 cents, noticeably higher than standard card-present rates, and real operators report all-in monthly costs, hardware, software tier, and processing combined, landing between roughly $300 and $700 a month for a small cafe, and $1,000 to $2,000 or more for a full-service restaurant.
Toast frames direct online orders as commission-free, and in the sense that there's no separate marketplace percentage on top of processing, that's accurate. It's a different claim from the setup being free, since hardware and a software tier are still real recurring costs for most restaurants.
| Cost Line | Rate or Price |
|---|---|
| Starter software | $0/mo |
| Essentials software | $69+/mo |
| Growth software | $165+/mo |
| Online order processing | 3.50% + 15 cents per order |
| Reported all-in monthly cost | $300 to $2,000+/mo depending on size |
What AUANI Offers Instead
AUANI starts at $0 a month with no setup fee and no hardware requirement. The Free tier carries a 10% marketplace fee and includes:
- Pickup, dine-in, and real courier delivery through Uber
- A punch-card loyalty program and an exportable guest list
- POS sync, rather than requiring a full POS replacement
- Reviews tied only to verified completed orders
The Monthly plan is $300 a month, drops the marketplace fee to 5%, and adds a fully hosted website, a 0% direct ordering widget, the full Google visibility suite, and menu analytics. Add a second location and the whole account's marketplace fee drops to 3%.
Side by Side
| Feature | Toast | AUANI |
|---|---|---|
| Starter software cost | $0/mo (hardware and processing extra) | $0/mo (no hardware required) |
| Online order processing rate | 3.50% + 15 cents | Standard processing, no added markup |
| Marketplace or discovery fee | None built in | 10% Free, 5% Monthly, 3% at 2+ locations |
| Reported real-world monthly cost | $300 to $2,000+/mo | $0/mo Free, $300/mo Monthly |
| Requires new POS hardware | Yes, typically | No, syncs with existing POS |
A Worked Example
A full-service restaurant on Toast's Growth plan at $165 a month, with two terminals and a kitchen display purchased as hardware, plus the 3.50% and 15 cent online processing rate on $10,000 a month in digital orders, lands around $165 in software, roughly $365 in online processing, and a hardware cost amortized over its useful life, before in-person processing on the rest of the day's sales is even added. Reported real-world totals in that range, $300 to $2,000 or more depending on size, reflect exactly this stacking of separate cost lines.
The same restaurant on AUANI's Free tier pays $0 a month in software with no hardware purchase required, since AUANI syncs with the POS already in place rather than replacing it. A 10% marketplace fee applies only to discovery orders coming through AUANI's own channel, and moving to the Monthly tier at $300 a month adds a hosted website and the 0% direct ordering widget without introducing a new online processing markup on top of standard rates.
An Honest Case for Choosing Toast Anyway
A restaurant that wants a single, deeply integrated system running its POS, kitchen display, staff scheduling, and online ordering all under one roof has real reasons to consider Toast, since that level of hardware integration is genuinely Toast's strength. AUANI doesn't replace a restaurant's POS; it syncs with one already in place.
A restaurant opening a brand-new location with no existing POS to work around has less reason to weigh the cost of switching systems, since there's nothing to migrate away from, which is exactly the scenario where an all-in-one hardware and software vendor like Toast tends to make the most operational sense.
Best For
Toast suits a restaurant ready to replace its POS hardware entirely and wants one vendor handling the whole stack. AUANI suits a restaurant that wants to keep its existing POS, test online ordering for free first, and pay a flat, published monthly cost once it moves to a paid tier, rather than an all-in bill assembled from several separate cost lines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Toast's $0 plan actually free to run?
The software tier can be $0, but hardware and payment processing are separate real costs, and most operators report a meaningfully higher all-in monthly total.
Does AUANI require new POS hardware?
No, AUANI syncs with an existing POS rather than requiring a hardware replacement.
Why is Toast's online processing rate higher than standard?
Toast's 3.50% plus 15 cent online rate is higher than many standard processors, reportedly to cover the integrated software and support around it.
Does AUANI charge a separate online processing markup?
No, AUANI does not add a markup on top of standard payment processing for online orders.
What is the cheapest way to start on AUANI?
The Free tier, at $0 a month with a 10% marketplace fee and no setup fee.
Is Toast hardware required to use its online ordering?
Toast's online ordering is built to run on its own POS system, so most restaurants adopting it also take on Toast hardware rather than keeping an existing setup.
For the full picture against every platform in this series, see the master fee comparison table. For the full picture beyond fees, see the Restaurant & Bar online ordering guide.