In 2023, restaurateurs have a lot of options for point-of-sale providers. Legacy companies such as Micros continue to shrink their reach for SMB restaurants. Now, restaurant owners are looking for cloud point-of-sale that allow them to access sales anytime, anywhere on any device. Give a quick search and you will see how daunting of a task making this choice can be for restaurants. One of the most trending picks: Toast. How does Toast stack up to POS Philly’s choice for point-of-sale, SpotOn? Here’s 13 reasons why SpotOn makes restaurants happier compared to Toast POS.

Functionality

1. Reports – Accessing data to make actionable decisions is important for every restaurant. SpotOn has over 90+ in-depth reports. Toast only has roughly 20.

2. Navigation – Speed and navigation is vital for any point-of-sale. Less touches on a front-of-house can mean more sales for busy bars and restaurant. SpotOn has a much more navigable FOH screen compared to Toast.

3. Screen Customization – Want screen customization? Get it with SpotOn. Our screens and menu modifier flow is highly customizable. Toast has limited customization.

4. Speed Screen Division – Again, restaurants need speed if they have busy environment. SpotOn provides that by being able to split speed screens evenly. Toast cannot perform this function.

Now, let’s review price and cost differences for relevant point-of-sale add-on’s and features.

Cost Differences

5. Multi-Unit Menu Bulk Editor – Enterprise businesses need to have the ability to publish menu changes to all their locations. SpotOn does not charge anything for multi-unit menu bulk editing software. Toast charges $100.00 per month.

6. Online Ordering – Restaurants save big when they utilize their own online ordering platform through the point-of-sale. SpotOn’s online ordering is $45.00 per month. Toast is $75.00 per month.

7. QR Code Ordering – Reduce hardware, increase order accuracy, and speed up service with QR Code in-store ordering. It’s all included with SpotOn. Toast charges $69.00 per month.

8. QR Code Transaction Cost – There’s always a catch when it comes to software costs. With Toast, QR Code transactions can cost up to 50 additional basis points per month. SpotOn doesn’t have a catch since our transactions are zero additional basis points per month.

9. Gift Cards – Gift cards are great tool for advertising and bringing in new customers. SpotOn’s gift card program is included. Toast, on the other hand, is $50.00 per month.

10. Marketing – Reaching out to customers with customized marketing is now more common in point-of-sale software now compared to 10 years ago. SpotOn’s seamless marketing add-on is $25.00 per month. Toast? You guessed it. Toast’s marketing software is more expensive at $75.00 per month.

That covers major feature and add-on cost differences. How about transitioning to SpotOn or Toast? What are the major hurdles new Toast users have to deal with compared to SpotOn ones? Great question, here are three of them.

Transitioning to POS

11. Local Support – SpotOn is locally supported by POS Philly based out of Voorhees, NJ. Plus, our team works closely with the SpotOn support and development team. Customers that call POS Philly are assisted by our local helpdesk. Toast, comparatively, does not have local support. Their help desk is out of the region and was drastically downsized in 2020.

12. Live Day Installations – At POS Philly, we don’t want to send you your equipment in a box and say ‘good luck’. We provide in-person installations at every restaurant, no matter the installation size or scope. Toast has a cut off at 4 terminals. Have 4 terminals or less? Expect remote install support from them.

13. Contracts – Most importantly – contracts! Toast has a long-term binding contract with industry high liquidated damage fees for cancellations. With SpotOn, customers have no contract. Our agreement is month-to-month with no long term commitment. That’s a winner for our customers.

Have Toast but want a better point-of-sale solution? Get SpotOn. Contact POS Philly today to get your free consultation and save big. Our team is here to help you. It’s easy to sign up for SpotOn. Find out now by reaching out.