Square for Retail vs Toast
Side-by-side from the Top 11 rankings of The 11 Best POS Systems for Retail and The 11 Best Restaurant POS Systems. Last verified June 17, 2026.
The short answer
Toast ranks higher on Top 11 (#1 vs #3) for Retail store owners choosing a point-of-sale system / Restaurant owners choosing POS + kitchen management. The most complete, purpose-built POS platform for nearly any restaurant type.
At a glance
| Square for Retail | Toast | |
|---|---|---|
| Top 11 rank | #3 / The 11 Best POS Systems for Retail | #1 / The 11 Best Restaurant POS Systems |
| Score (out of 9.4) | 8.8 | 9.3 |
| Best for | Best for small businesses | All-in-one restaurant platform |
| Pricing | $ ($0 to $60/mo) | $$ ($69 to $300+/mo) |
| HQ | San Francisco, USA | Boston, USA |
| Founded | 2009 | 2011 |
Square for Retail
The top choice for new retailers due to its powerful free plan and simple setup.
squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/retailMethodology and scoring weights live at /methodology. No vendor pays for placement — see about.