Toast is built for restaurants and does a lot. It runs only on its own hardware and usually comes with a two to three year agreement. Here is how it compares with Denali, and where Toast is the better fit.
| Denali POS | Toast | |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly cost | Three plans, one monthly price. Tell us about your business and we send your price the same day. | Starter Kit: $0, for one location with one or two terminals. Point of Sale plan: from $69 a month. Bigger setups are quoted. Online ordering and some other tools cost extra.1 |
| Card fees in person | Keep your own card processor and terminal, or use a Stripe reader on your own Stripe account: Stripe charges 2.7% + 5¢ a sale. Your quote lists everything Denali charges.7 | 2.49% + 15¢ when you buy the hardware up front. 3.09% to 3.69% + 15¢ on pay-as-you-go.1 |
| Whose card fee is lower: Stripe's or Toast's | Stripe's fee is lower than Toast's 2.49% + 15¢ on sales under about $48, and lower than Toast's pay-as-you-go rates on every sale.17 | Toast's 2.49% + 15¢ is lower on sales over about $48. |
| Devices | Runs in the web browser on the tablet, phone or touchscreen computer you already have: iPad, Android or Windows. Nothing to install. | Toast's own Android devices only, not iPad. Toast Go 3 handheld: $599. Toast Tap card reader: $149. Starter kits: $1,113 to $1,454.1 |
| Card processing | Yours to choose. Your Stripe account is your own, and it stays with you if you leave. | Toast processes every card. Its devices work only with Toast payments.1 |
| Contract | Month to month, with no multi-year contract. Cancel any time by email; it ends with the month you paid for. A $49.99 fee applies only if you cancel in your first year. | Usually two to three years. It renews by itself for a year at a time unless you give 30 days' written notice. Leaving early can mean a termination fee.123 |
| No internet | Keeps selling. Every sale is saved on the device first and never counted twice. Cash works, and so does your own card terminal if it has its own connection. A Stripe reader needs the internet: Denali can't take cards offline yet. | Cash and cards work offline. Toast advises getting back online within three days, preferably within 24 hours, and the restaurant pays for cards that are declined, expire or are disputed. Gift cards, loyalty, online ordering and menu changes don't work offline.45 |
| Spanish | Every register runs in English or Spanish, and each register picks its own. The website and the sign-up are in Spanish too. | English, Spanish, French or Simplified Chinese, chosen on each device: the POS, the kitchen screen and Toast Go. Menu items aren't translated.6 |
| Support | By email, and Report a problem right from the register. Every register checks in every minute. No phone support. | Phone support every day from 7 a.m. to midnight Eastern, on every plan, and chat around the clock.1 |
Each one is good at different things. Here is when each makes more sense.
Send your menu any way you have it: a spreadsheet, a PDF or a photo. Denali's menu import reads it, and you check every item and price before anything is saved. If you have an agreement, check when it ends and how much notice it needs first.
We read every source on October 16, 2026. Prices and terms change, and some depend on the plan or on who sells it. If something here is out of date, email sales@denali-operations.com and we'll fix it.
Tell us about your business and we'll send your price the same day.
