Clover vs Toast: the published prices, the 36 months, and who each one is for
One posts its card rate and holds you for 36 months. The other posts its software price and renews a year at a time. Decide which trade you would rather make, then read the paperwork.
Clover publishes both numbers: full service bundles at $179 to $354 per month on 36 month terms, and 2.3% plus 10 cents for cards tapped, swiped or inserted. Toast publishes $0 and $69 plans but no card rate. Clover suits owners wanting a published rate and owned hardware. Toast suits groups needing payroll and inventory in one platform.
| Clover | Toast | |
|---|---|---|
| Software and hardware | Full service bundles at $179, $239 or $354 per month for 36 months | $0 Starter Kit or $69 per month, first terminal only |
| Buy outright instead | $1,799, $2,548 or $4,447 plus $89.95 to $129.85 per month | From $0 on the first device, or a 180 day Easy Pay lease |
| Card present rate | 2.3% + $0.10 | Not published |
| Keyed in rate | 3.5% + $0.10 | Not published |
| Contract | Subscriptions non cancelable, terms vary by seller | Renews for one year terms, 30 days notice |
| Hardware | Clover devices, sold by Clover and thousands of banks | Approved Toast hardware only |
What does Clover cost if you buy it on Clover.com?
Clover publishes full service bundles at $179, $239 and $354 per month across 36 months. Buy the same systems outright and they run $1,799, $2,548 and $4,447, plus monthly software.
Quick service starts lower, at $135, $185 and $245 per month. Clover states plainly that those prices exist only on Clover.com. Remember that line, because thousands of banks sell Clover too.
And Toast?
Toast publishes a $0 Starter Kit for one location with up to two terminals, and a $69 monthly plan. The price covers your first terminal. Toast says so itself.
No card processing rate appears anywhere. The pricing chart says flat rate processing and stops there, so the line that will dominate your monthly bill shows up only inside a quote.
The contract gap is the part that bites
Clover states subscriptions are non cancelable and ineligible for refunds. An agreement can be broken during a buyout or an upgrade, and it can be paid off early. When the term ends, you buy the equipment or send it back.
Toast publishes an automatic rollover into successive one year periods, stoppable with 30 days written notice. Neither company is doing anything shady here. You are choosing between two very different commitments.
A real person calls you back within two hours, Monday to Saturday, 8am to 7pm Central.
Does it matter who sells you the Clover?
Enormously. Clover says contract terms and termination fees vary by provider, and that Citi, PNC, Wells Fargo and three thousand other institutions sell Clover. Same device on the counter. Completely different paperwork in the drawer.
So compare the merchant agreement, not the hardware. Then ask what your rate does after the first year, and get the answer written down before you sign.
So which restaurant should buy which?
Toast is the deeper platform once you are growing. Payroll, scheduling, inventory costing and multi location reporting sit on one contract, and stitching that together from separate vendors is a real chore.
Clover fits an independent who wants a rate in print, modular hardware and the option to own it. Judd Alsup puts both quotes on the table in front of an Arkansas owner and lets the numbers argue.
Where each one wins
Choose this one when
- You want a rate you can read today. Clover lists 2.3% plus 10 cents on its own site.
- You would rather own the hardware outright than rent it for three years.
- You need one device on one counter, and a full platform rollout is overkill.
Choose the other when
- You need payroll, scheduling, inventory costing and multi location analytics on one contract. Clover will not get you there. Buy Toast.
- You want the renewal rule in print. Toast states one year renewals and a 30 day notice window in writing.
- You want one company answerable for the whole system. Clover terms shift across thousands of resellers, and the buck stops with whoever sold you yours.
- You run a high volume full service room. Toast handhelds and kitchen displays are proven at that scale.
Clover: the weak spots we raise before anyone signs
We sell Clover in Arkansas. An owner deserves this list before the contract comes out of the folder.
What works
- Clover publishes its card present rate: 2.3% plus 10 cents.
- You can buy the hardware outright instead of paying monthly for three years.
- The hardware is modular, so a small counter can start with a single device.
What does not
- Clover states subscriptions are non cancelable and ineligible for refunds. Read that twice.
- Across 36 months, the bundles cost more than buying the same system outright.
- Terms and termination fees depend on whoever sold you the Clover, not on Clover.
- The Clover.com price is not the price every bank reseller will quote you.
- On payroll, inventory costing and multi location reporting, Clover trails Toast. Not by a little.
Questions restaurant owners ask
Is Clover cheaper than Toast?
On software alone Toast looks cheaper, at $0 or $69 monthly against Clover bundles from $135. On processing, Clover publishes 2.3% plus 10 cents and Toast publishes nothing, so nobody can finish the comparison until Toast puts a rate in writing for your restaurant.
Can I cancel a Clover subscription?
Clover states that subscriptions are non cancelable and ineligible for refunds. The agreement can be broken during a buyout or an upgrade, and a subscription can be paid off at any time. Terms and termination fees vary by the provider that sold it to you.
Does Clover cost the same everywhere?
No. Clover says the prices shown are only available on Clover.com, and that Citi, PNC, Wells Fargo and more than three thousand other financial institutions also sell Clover in the United States on their own terms. Compare the agreement, not just the device.
What is the Toast processing rate?
Toast does not publish one. The pricing page lists flat rate processing as a feature with no percentage next to it, and the hardware page notes only that software and processing fees apply. Ask for the qualified rate, the per item fee and every monthly line item in writing.
Vendor pricing and tax rates change without notice. Confirm current figures with the vendor, the city or your accountant before you rely on them. Not tax, legal or accounting advice.
Every number on this page traces to a primary source
- Clover full service restaurant systems: Starter $179 per month for 36 months or $1,799 plus $89.95 per month; Standard $239 per month for 36 months or $2,548 plus $109.90 per month; Advanced $354 per month for 36 months or $4,447 plus $129.85 per month. Transaction fees 2.3% + $0.10 for cards tapped, swiped or inserted and 3.5% + $0.10 for card information typed in. Prices shown are only available on Clover.comclover.com / restaurant
- Clover quick service restaurant systems: Starter $135 per month for 36 months or $849 plus $89.95 per month; Standard $185 per month for 36 months or $1,899 plus $89.95 per month; Advanced $245 per month for 36 months or $2,648 plus $109.90 per month, with the same 2.3% + $0.10 and 3.5% + $0.10 transaction feesclover.com / quick service restaurant
- Clover states subscriptions are non cancelable and ineligible for refunds but can be paid off at any time or broken during a buyout or upgrade; at the end of the term you may purchase or return the equipment; contract terms and any termination fees vary by service provider, including Citi, PNC, Wells Fargo and more than 3,000 other financial institution partners that sell Clover in the USclover.com / pricing
- Toast Starter Kit $0 per month for one location with up to two terminals; Point of Sale plan $69 per month; Build Your Own custom pricing. Footnotes state pricing includes the first hardware terminal subscription, additional charges apply for subsequent devices, and pricing applies to new customers and single locations only. Toast services may only be used on approved Toast hardware. Page last updated July 8, 2026pos.toasttab.com / pricing
- Toast hardware starting at $0, which applies to first device hardware only, with software and processing fees additional. Page last updated July 16, 2026pos.toasttab.com / hardware
- Toast Easy Pay is a 180 day hardware lease with no interest or fees, collecting 0.75% of card sales daily from live Toast customers and 1.75% from customers not yet live, with an option to purchase the hardware at the end of the term. Page last updated July 16, 2026pos.toasttab.com / pricing payment options
- A Toast POS contract renews automatically for successive one year periods, and choosing not to renew requires at least 30 days written notice before the end of the current termsupport.toasttab.com