The 10 Leading Restaurant POS Providers (2025)

Choosing a restaurant POS today isn’t just about taking payments. The right platform ties together front-of-house, kitchen, online ordering, loyalty, labor, and analytics, while staying fast and reliable at the rush. Below is a practical, operator-focused guide to ten of the strongest providers in the market right now, with plain-English positioning, key strengths, and each company’s website so you can dig in further.

Toast

Ideal for: Full-service, fast casual, and multi-unit concepts that want an all-in-one, restaurant-only platform (POS, KDS, handhelds, online ordering, payroll, loyalty).

Why operators pick it: Deep restaurant feature set, strong ecosystem of first-party modules, robust handhelds and KDS, and a very active release cadence.

Website: toasttab.com

Square for Restaurants

Ideal for: Newer or growing restaurants that value quick setup, transparent pricing, and modular add-ons (handhelds, KDS, kiosks, team management, marketing, loyalty).

Why operators pick it: Low friction to launch, easy staff training, and an expanding hardware lineup (including handhelds) make it attractive for QSR/fast casual and bars.

Website: squareup.com

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New Developments in the U.S. Restaurant Market (2025)

Byline: August 24, 2025

1) Demand is resilient, but value is the new battlefield

After years of whiplash from inflation and shifting consumer habits, restaurants entered 2025 with surprisingly sturdy fundamentals. Industry forecasts put sales at $1.5 trillion this year, supported by nearly 16 million workers.

The growth, however, comes with a decisive pivot to value. McDonald’s recently secured franchisee agreement to price eight core combo meals about 15% below the sum of their parts and revive “Extra Value Meals” with $5 and $8 timed deals.

Spending rose 2% in 2024 even as traffic flatlined, showing that check growth rather than visit growth has driven industry expansion.

2) The pricing rulebook is being rewritten by regulation

Regulatory shifts in 2025 are reshaping how restaurants display pricing:

– California’s “Honest Pricing Law” requires restaurants to display the full cost of items upfront, banning hidden surcharges.
– New York tightened its rules on credit-card surcharges, requiring full disclosure before checkout.

The net result is fewer “junk fee” add-ons and more transparent menu boards.

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