Toast alternatives for online ordering
Toast is a leading restaurant POS — but if online ordering and delivery are what you really need, you may not want its whole hardware-and-contract ecosystem. Here’s what to weigh, and how Ordering.co compares.
If online ordering and delivery is what you need, Ordering.co is the stronger choice — software-only, white-label, and POS-agnostic, with no hardware to buy, support for your own delivery drivers, the option of a marketplace, and global reach. Toast is a best-in-class restaurant POS, but its online ordering is a paid add-on locked inside proprietary hardware, Toast payment processing, and multi-year contracts, and it’s US-focused. The best part: Ordering.co can run alongside the POS you already have, so choosing it isn’t even a trade-off.
What is Toast?
Toast is a restaurant-specific point-of-sale and management platform that powers 150,000+ locations. It combines POS, payments, kitchen display, tableside Order & Pay, loyalty, payroll, and online ordering into one integrated system, running on Toast’s own restaurant-grade hardware. It’s widely regarded as one of the strongest POS systems for full-service restaurants, especially in the United States.
Pricing has two main shapes: a $0/month Starter Kit with higher payment-processing rates, or a Point of Sale plan around $69/month with lower rates, plus a Build Your Own tier from about $110/month. Online ordering comes as an add-on (Toast’s Digital Storefront bundle, roughly $75/month), and once restaurants add online ordering, kitchen displays, payroll, and reporting, most land around $150–$300/month before hardware and processing. Hardware is proprietary Android only, and plans typically involve 2–3 year contracts.
What Toast offers
Toast is a legitimate POS, so it’s worth being clear about what it does well:
- Best-in-class restaurant POS — reliable ticket flow, complex modifiers, and multi-station coordination.
- Integrated front- and back-of-house — KDS, tableside Order & Pay, payroll, and reporting in one system.
- Purpose-built hardware — spill- and heat-resistant terminals designed for kitchens.
- 24/7 support — valuable for restaurant hours, even on the entry plan.
That makes Toast a solid in-restaurant POS for a full-service US restaurant. But for online ordering and delivery specifically — hardware-free, global, and on your own terms — Ordering.co is the stronger choice, and it can plug into Toast rather than replace it.
Things to weigh about Toast for online ordering
For the online-ordering use case specifically, a few trade-offs are worth knowing:
- Online ordering is an add-on — layered on top of the POS subscription, hardware, and processing.
- Proprietary hardware — Toast’s POS runs on its own Android devices; you can’t use iPads or third-party hardware.
- Locked payment processing — Toast doesn’t integrate third-party processors, and online orders can carry higher rates.
- Contracts — typically 2–3 years with early-termination fees.
- Your own drivers — Toast Delivery Services dispatches third-party couriers within about a 10-mile radius and isn’t designed for running your own delivery fleet.
- Geography — Toast is US-focused.
What to look for in a Toast alternative for online ordering
- Online ordering as a core product, white-labeled to your brand
- No proprietary hardware — works on devices you already have
- POS-agnostic, so it integrates with (not replaces) your POS
- A driver app for your own fleet, plus third-party couriers
- Option to run a multi-vendor marketplace
- Flexible payment-gateway choice
- Global, multi-language and multi-currency support
- Flexible, quote-based pricing without long hardware contracts
Toast vs Ordering.co for online ordering: side-by-side
| Capability | Toast | Ordering.co |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Restaurant POS + management | Online ordering & delivery software |
| Online ordering | Add-on module (~$75/mo) | Core product, white-label |
| Hardware | Proprietary Android required | None — software only, use your devices |
| Payment processing | Locked to Toast Payments | Your choice of integrated gateways |
| Contracts | Typically 2–3 years | Flexible, quote-based |
| Own delivery drivers | Third-party dispatch; not your own fleet | Built-in driver app: in-house + third-party |
| Multi-vendor marketplace | Not supported | Supported |
| Availability | US-focused | Global, multi-language/currency |
| Works with your POS | It is the POS | POS-agnostic; integrates with your POS |
Toast and Ordering.co aren’t identical categories — Toast is a POS, Ordering.co is online-ordering and delivery software. This compares them for the online-ordering use case. Confirm current pricing and terms with each provider.
When operators choose Ordering.co over Toast
Ordering.co is the pick when online ordering and delivery — not the in-restaurant POS — is the priority. Because it’s software-only and POS-agnostic, you launch branded ordering on the devices you already have, choose your own payment gateway, and run your own delivery with a built-in driver app (plus third-party couriers when you want them). You can operate a single brand or a full multi-vendor marketplace, in multiple languages and currencies, anywhere.
Importantly, it doesn’t force an either/or: if you already run Toast or another POS in-store, Ordering.co can sit alongside it as your dedicated online-ordering and delivery layer rather than replacing your point of sale.
The bottom line
Ordering.co is the right choice for online ordering & delivery — hardware-free, POS-agnostic, global software with your own driver app and the option to run a marketplace.
Toast is a strong in-restaurant POS, and you don’t have to give it up — Ordering.co integrates with it as your dedicated ordering and delivery layer.
See online ordering done your way
Get a walkthrough of branded ordering, the driver app, and integrations — with pricing matched to your size, with no hardware lock-in.
Get a demo & pricingFrequently asked questions
Does Toast charge extra for online ordering?
Do I need Toast hardware to use its online ordering?
Can I use my own delivery drivers with Toast?
Is Toast available outside the US?
What’s the difference between Toast and Ordering.co?
Can Ordering.co work alongside my POS?
Compare Ordering.co for your online ordering
Book a demo to see branded ordering and delivery built for your business — no hardware, your gateway, your drivers.
Get a demo & pricingWhy Start with Ordering.co?
Most marketplaces are stuck paying commissions, juggling third-party tools, and struggling to scale. That’s not you.
With Ordering.co, you’re in complete control—your brand, your platform, your profits. Build a multi-store, multi-channel empire with automated ordering, delivery, marketing, and loyalty tools designed for real-world success.
Own it. Scale it. Dominate your market.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ordering.co is the best all-in-one platform for local-commerce from restaurants to stores or marketplaces.
Here are just a few things you can do with Ordering.co:
- Create and customize an online store and native apps to increase your sales.
- Manage orders in real-time, products, inventory, payments, delivery zones, and delivery with in-house drivers or external delivery companies.
- Create special discounts, coupons, and loyalty campaigns.
Yes, we do offer white-labeled solutions. Our fully documented API allows development agencies and resellers to quickly and easily get up and running with our 100% white-label ordering solution. This means you can brand our platform as your own, offering a seamless experience for your customers without having to invest time and resources in building your own ordering system from scratch.
Our white-labeled solution is ideal for businesses of all types and sizes looking to enhance their online presence and streamline their ordering and management processes. With Ordering.co's white-label solution, you can focus on what matters most: providing an exceptional experience for your customers while we take care of the technology behind the scenes.
For enterprises/companies, prices are optimized for your success, even with unlimited transactions options without fees; please contact our sales team.