Compare POS Systems & Payment Processors
Side-by-side comparisons built on verified vendor pricing and worked cost math at real volumes — written by a local merchant-services provider whose honest bias is that above a certain volume, none of the big-name systems is the cheapest answer.
Quick Answer
Square fits counter-led businesses under ~$20K/month, Stripe fits online-first businesses, Toast fits full-service restaurants, and Clover fits established merchants who want the lowest published rate with portable hardware. Above roughly $15–30K/month in card volume, a traditional merchant account on interchange-plus pricing usually beats all of them — every guide below shows that math.
Toast vs Clover vs Square
The 3-way restaurant POS decision, settled by service model and volume. Verified 2026 rates, cost math at $15K/$40K/$90K a month, hardware lock-in, and the fourth option.
Read the comparisonComparisonStripe vs Square
Different species: payments infrastructure vs POS ecosystem. Channel-based verdicts, the $100 ticket crossover, post-Oct-2025 rates, and payfac hold risk.
Read the comparisonComparisonClover vs Toast
The full-service restaurant deep-dive: 14-row comparison, published hardware pricing, worked cost math at $30K and $80K a month, verdict by operator type.
Read the comparisonComparisonSquare vs Traditional Merchant Account
The structural trade-off underneath every other comparison: flat-rate payfac convenience vs an underwritten interchange-plus merchant account.
Read the comparisonComparisons show the published rates. Your statement shows the real one.
Upload a monthly statement from any processor to see your true effective rate and flagged junk fees, or model your volume in the fee calculator. Free, no signup.