Heartland Restaurant vs. Toast: A comparison of point of sale features and functionality
As a restaurant owner, you’ve got a lot on your plate. And we don’t just mean today’s special.
From staffing and marketing to crafting menus and running the back office, how do you find the time to do it all?
(No, seriously — we’re always trying to figure that out!)
Then there’s choosing the right technology for your business. Bet no one prepared you for how long that task can take. With so many options for restaurant point of sale systems on the market, the buying process can feel as overwhelming as a line out the door when you’re two servers down and just had to 86 your most popular dish.
We want to make the research and decision process a little easier. So, we’ve broken down some key similarities and differences between two popular small business point of sale systems: Heartland Point of Sale (POS) and Toast.
First thing to note: These are two robust solutions packed with features. We know if we tried to cover them all, we’d lose you along the way (no offense taken). Our goal is to give you an overview of what we see as the most important features a restaurant POS system should offer, so for more information on either, be sure to visit these providers' websites.
Whether you’re a brand new eatery or are reevaluating your current systems, we hope you’ll walk away from this guide on your way to finding a solution that helps you run your business — instead of running you ragged. Now, read on to learn about:
Heartland vs. Toast
Heartland Restaurant vs. Toast: Payment processing
Similarities
As of 9/24/2024, both providers offer integrated payment processing with options for flat-rate pricing and interchange plus pricing.
While rates may vary, the most important thing to keep in mind is your right to fair and transparent pricing. At the time of publication, Heartland has enshrined that commitment into a formal Merchant Bill of Rights, which says you deserve the right to the best rate structure for your business type and processing habits.
At the time of publishing, Toast states on their website they are not a payment card processor, but are a payment facilitator that partners with processors to offer credit card processing services.
Differences
Beyond just payment processing, both Heartland and Toast have a selection of tools to extend the scope of their point of sale solutions. The difference? Heartland offers more of these tools right out of the box, where Toast offers them at an additional cost and as a separate integration. Features like online ordering and loyalty programs are included with Heartland Restaurant POS. But we’ll talk more about this shortly.
Heartland Restaurant vs. Toast: Features and functionality
Restaurant management
Similarities
As of the publication date, both Heartland and Toast restaurant point of sales offer real-time front- and back-of-house restaurant management features including menu, guest, employee (with permissions), tip and tax management, plus graphical table layout and reporting.
Differences
Though both products boast similar features, the difference lies in which plan you’ll find them. As of 9/24/2024, you’ll have access to all of the above restaurant management features included with Heartland. If you need tip management or advanced employee management as a Toast user, you’ll need an add-on app.
Additionally, the ability to manage multiple locations is native to Heartland’s Complete plan. But per pos.toasttab.com, if you’re a Toast POS user with two or more locations and want to manage them (and specifically their menus) all from a single point of truth, you’ll need to add on Multi-Location Management — a separate add-on Toast product.
Online ordering and delivery
60% of American consumers reach for takeout or delivery at least once a week. With customers spending 35% more per transaction when ordering online, an online ordering platform is no longer a nice-to-have, but instead a critical piece of your POS system.
Similarities
Both providers have proprietary online ordering solutions and the option to use third-party delivery integrations. Both providers offer 75+ integrations, including delivery services like DoorDash and Uber Eats, order management and business management solutions. With online ordering, you can create a hosted ecommerce website, set delivery zones and create different dine-in/carryout/delivery menus.
Differences
With Heartland, online ordering is included at no extra cost. As of 9/24/2024, Toast customers who want to offer guests this convenience must add on Toast Online Ordering or Toast Online Ordering Pro. Or, they can add on the Digital Storefront Suite, which includes online ordering, Toast Delivery Services and Local by Toast, their online ordering app.
QR code ordering
Similarities
After 2020, the demand for contactless dining soared. Toast and Heartland have kept up, both offering merchants their own scan-to-order and scan-to-pay features. How does that work? Restaurants that enable the technology invite their customers to order and/or pay for their meals by scanning a QR code with their own iPhone or other smartphone. This may streamline the dining process, reduce kitchen errors and allow you to serve more people with less staff. It’s a win-win for all parties.
Differences
Again, the key difference is not so much in the functionality, but the availability. As of 9/24/2024, Toast Mobile Order and Pay™ is an add-on product; scan-to-order and scan-to-pay features are built into Heartland plans.
Mobile guest app
Similarities
As of the publication date, Heartland and Toast each offer their customers the option of a mobile guest app, helping you get in front of more hungry eyes, drive more revenue and enhance the customer experience. Diners can use it to find nearby restaurants, place takeout or delivery orders, and collect and check loyalty program points.
Differences
Any Heartland Restaurant customer can list their business on the app and turn on online ordering, regardless of plan. The Toast Take Out mobile ordering app (also called Local by Toast) is part of Toast’s Digital Storefront Suite add-ons, or customers can add it on à la carte.
Heartland Restaurant vs. Toast: Hardware
Similarities
Heartland and Toast POS each have user-friendly, on-premise and mobile POS hardware options.
Countertop
Heartland Restaurant’s countertop solution, as well as Toast’s (known as Toast Flex), is a touchscreen device that flips to the customer for tipping, signature capture and digital receipts.
Guest self-service
Both providers sell physical kiosks and self-ordering software that puts guests in control of their orders and payment.
Handheld
Heartland Mobile POS and Toast Go® 2 are convenient solutions that let servers stay in sync with the back of house while taking orders and payments tableside.
Differences
Let’s talk about operating systems first. At the time of publication, Toast runs on Android™ and Heartland on both iOS and Android™.
As for the handheld POS devices, Toast Go® 2 is a mobile extension of Toast’s restaurant software. You can take orders tableside and curbside, process payments and bust lines — reducing wait times and speeding up the dining experience.
Heartland Mobile POS does all of the above, but it also gives you the full functionality of Heartland Restaurant in mobile form. That means its value goes way beyond a tableside payment device. Mobile and cloud-based, you can use it to run back-office tasks wherever you are: Monitor orders, check on staff or touch base with other locations. It’s the closest you’ll get to being everywhere at once! Plus, Heartland Mobile POS has a printer for those customers who still prefer a paper receipt; Toast Go® 2 does not have a built-in printer.
Potential benefits of a mobile POS
Turn tables faster
Improve order accuracy
Increase average ticket size
Enhance the customer experience
...all with fewer steps and mistakes.
Heartland Restaurant vs. Toast: Customer support
Similarities
Most restaurants don’t operate 9-5, so you need more than a 9-5 support model. Fortunately, regardless of your plan, both Heartland and Toast offer 24/7 customer care for point of sale products via phone, email and web. You can also troubleshoot using their knowledge bases and FAQs.
Differences
Restaurateurs who want more hands-on support (including implementation, menu building, integration assistance and more) can choose to purchase Heartland through a dealer or local relationship manager. Doing so gives them the option of in-person training and tech support, instead of phone or virtual only.
At the time of publication, Toast does not offer on-site, local support.
Which is best for my business?
That was a lot of info — how are we feeling? Let’s recap with a super high level overview of both solutions. As of the publication date:
Heartland Restaurant
Heartland Restaurant is an established solution from a provider that has spent over 25 years servicing restaurants’ unique needs. Though not necessarily the cheapest solution on the market, its flexible and scalable plans are packed with the critical features you need to stay competitive and find success. And most importantly, you don’t have to worry about fees for add-on features appearing on your bill.
Toast POS
An eatery with basic needs could start off with what appears to be an inexpensive option, but will be locked into a case of buyer’s remorse if they outgrow those limited included features and have to start adding on pricey features.
Now it’s your turn: We’d love to learn about your restaurant. Tell us a little bit about it, and we’ll show you personalized software and hardware options built with your business in mind.
And if you’re still feeling overwhelmed by choices, let’s talk it out! To learn more about Heartland’s restaurant POS technology or just ask a few no-pressure questions, contact us today. We’d love to be a resource.
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Heartland is the point of sale, payments and payroll solution of choice for entrepreneurs that need human-centered technology to sell more, keep customers coming back and spend less time in the back office. Nearly 1,000,000 businesses trust us to guide them through market changes and technology challenges, so they can stay competitive and focus on building remarkable businesses instead of managing the daily grind. Learn more at heartland.us