Toast
Toast is a U.S.-based restaurant management platform. It offers an all-in-one system (POS, payments, online ordering, and kitchen tools) but relies on proprietary hardware and bundled payments, creating lock-in.
Why we win
Why we lose
Built for UK customers
Built in Europe for European operators, fully compliant with regional needs, payments and fiscalisation.
Pricing
Toast discounts hardware and software heavily to win deals, making upfront costs look cheaper.
IOS & Cloud-based
Runs on Apple devices that staff already know how to use → faster training & less mistakes. Access your restaurant data anywhere, anytime (not tied to one terminal).
Strong brand recognition in the US
Very popular in the US but is only now building brand awareness in Europe (UK specifically)
Hardware flexibility
Toast locks customers into proprietary Android hardware. Lightspeed is iOS-powered, cloud-based, and works on sleek Apple devices.
Native features built-in
Reservations and employee management are built into Toast, whilst Lightpseed relies on integrations (reservations soon coming to Lightpseed)
Stronger integration ecosystem
180+ integrations across payments, delivery, loyalty, and more (vs. Toast’s ~100).
Local 24/7 Support
Teams on the ground in UK, not US-based only.
Bechmarks & Trends
Real-time data on how similar restaurants to you are performing in your neighbourhood. Toast doesn’t offer this.
“Why should I choose Lightspeed over Toast when Toast is much cheaper”
Toast often discounts upfront but locks you into long-term contracts and higher payment processing fees. Toast will lock you into their Android hardware without flexibility to swicth or choose your own.
“Toast has a good reputation in the UK. Why would we go with Lightspeed”
Lightspeed is built by Europeans with the European customers in mind. Toast is pure North American and will always focus on their customers in NOAM.
“Toast reporting feels very detailed”
Lightspeed reporting is built to be simple for day-to-day operations but powerful for growth. Plus, we give you industry Benchmarks & Trends data, so you can compare your business performance against peers — something Toast doesn’t offer.