The Best POS Systems For Food Trucks

More advanced features are available on paid plans, but even the free plan covers the basics.

Some food truck owners might also want to purchase Square Marketing as a separate add-on.

Square’s register is simple to use and built for mobility. Key features include:

• Conversational item modifiers and real-time inventory tracking, so you can easily update menu availability on the fly.
• Kitchen display system (KDS) integration that syncs in-person and online orders for accurate, efficient fulfillment.
• iPad-based registers and KDS setups that are battery-powered and space-friendly for small trucks.

With a Square Online Ordering Site, you can:

• Upload your menu, truck schedule, and event locations.
• Embed online ordering, eGift card sales, and a custom contact form for catering requests.
• Add an event calendar so customers always know where to find you.

Square also integrates directly with Google Business Profiles and all major social media platforms, making it easy for customers to discover and order from your truck online.

Square runs on smartphones and tablets, so you can turn hardware you already own into a POS terminal. You will also need a Square Contactless Card + Chip Reader to accept payments.

Other Square hardware offerings that are great for food trucks include:

• Square Terminal lets you take orders and payments on a handheld device
• Square POS Register Bundles includes things like card readers, POS stands, cash registers, printers, customer-facing displays, and barcode scanners

Read more about it in our guide to Square POS hardware before purchasing any equipment.

Square has an in-house payment processor, which you must use on every subscription plan. Square charges the following fees per transaction:

• Card-Present Payments: 2.4% – 2.6% + $0.15
• Manual Card Entry Payments: 3.5% + $0.15
• Online Payments: 2.9% – 3.3% + $0.30

If you own a restaurant in addition to a food truck or want more ordering types, go with the Essentials plan. Very large restaurant/food truck businesses should consider the Premium plan to get lower payment processing rates.

Lightspeed’s best quick-serve and fast-casual restaurant features include:

• Separate quick-serve and full-service modes
• Order holds, which allow servers to take the next person in line if someone forgets their wallet or needs to wait to pay
• Custom online and self-ordering menus so that customers can’t order items like alcohol or miss-modifiers
• Set items as a composite of individual ingredients, which is great for fast-casual restaurants serving buildable items like grain bowls or burritos
• Automated inventory tracking with auto-86ing on POS screens so that servers can’t accidentally sell what they don’t have
• Kitchen display software with easy order fulfillment management
• Set rules to generate a purchase order email or connect the alert to a supplier’s website

Lightspeed Restaurant hardware is all iPad-based. Hardware options include a countertop POS with a customer display, standalone iPads for tableside ordering, and/or iPad kiosks for self-ordering. Lightspeed’s KDS is also iPad-based.

You may purchase iPads and accessories on your own or through Lightspeed.

We advise contacting Lightspeed to get a custom quote on a hardware bundle.

Lightspeed has an in-house processing program, Lightspeed Payments. Its fees are 2.6% + $0.10 for card-present transactions or 2.6% + $0.30 for card-not-present transactions for business owners on the Essentials plan.

Those on the Premium plan can get a custom payment processing rate, which should be lower than the rate offered on lower-level plans.

Revel is entirely quote-based. To get the best pricing, you will likely have to sign up for a two or three-year commitment.

Revel offers a combined retail and restaurant POS system, allowing you to sell retail products, weighted items, and made-to-order food from the same platform—ideal for food trucks and hybrid restaurant operations.

Key features include:

• Catering & event tools: Appointment scheduling, pre-ordering, service charges, and detailed catering reports.
• Age verification: Helpful for wine trucks and event-based vendors.
• Enterprise management: Centralized menu, inventory, staff scheduling, and reporting across multiple locations.
• Franchise management: Built-in tools for overseeing multiple brands or franchise locations.

Revel software runs on iPads.

You may get a quote from Revel for iPads, self-ordering kiosks, and other hardware. You also have the option to purchase compatible hardware on your own.

Revel offers an in-house payment processing system, Revel Advantage. You will have to contact Revel for a custom payment processing quote based on your business’s sales volume, average ticket size, and time in business, among other factors.

You also have the choice to integrate your POS with third-party payment processors, such as Adyen or FreedomPay. You may face an extra monthly fee if you choose a third-party provider over Revel Advantage.

Toast also offers several add-on products,  including Toast Payroll. The most popular add-ons are the marketing and digital ordering suite products, which include:

• Digital Ordering
• Loyalty
• Gift Cards
• Email Marketing
• Toast Catering & Events

Toast will often bundle add-ons and multiple POS terminals with a bulk discount, so you may get a better deal when you get a custom quote from a Toast representative.

One standout feature for food truck owners looking to build repeat customers is Toast’s built-in loyalty program, which includes:

• Multiple enrollment options: Customers can join during checkout (in-person, kiosk, delivery, or takeout) or through your website.
• Custom sign-up experience: Guests register via text or email, receive a welcome message, and get ongoing updates about your program.
• Automatic point tracking: Every purchase through a linked payment card earns points automatically.
• Digital loyalty account: Customers can view their points, track rewards, and even add birthdays to receive special offers.
• Auto redemption prompts: Once a customer earns enough for a reward, Toast automatically prompts them to redeem it.

Toast’s online ordering add-on also makes it easy to manage pickup and delivery across multiple food truck or restaurant locations. You can:

• List your truck on the Toast Takeout app and other third-party delivery platforms.
• Enable Google ordering, similar to Square.
• Set online order cutoffs during lunch rushes or large events to keep operations manageable.

Finally, Toast Catering & Events streamlines catering management with tools to:

• Accept pre-orders and custom requests online.
• Create estimates, invoices, and special catering menus.
• Sync events with Google Calendar.
• Send contracts with custom terms to secure payment.

Toast offers a Starter register kit and accessories exclusively for users on the Quick Start Bundle and Core plans.

The Handheld kit, which includes the Toast Go 2, is one of the best restaurant handheld POS systems.

Alternatively, you can pay $0/month, with $0 upfront, and pay higher payment processing fees to cover your Starter kit hardware and monthly software subscription costs.

Toast requires you to use its in-house payment processor. Rates vary by plan.

If you can, purchase your equipment up front. The amount you save on payment processing fees will probably more than cover your monthly fee.

Or, consider using equipment financing to pay for your Toast hardware.

Optional add-ons include:

• Online Ordering: $50/month
• Reservations: $229/month
• Gift Cards: $25/month
• Loyalty Program: $99/month
• Marketing: $99/month

The reservations app can be used to accept catering orders and book events.

TouchBistro’s hybrid setup combines local and cloud-based functionality, so it’s ideal for food trucks that can’t always rely on WiFi. Orders and payments run through a local router using iPads, and all data syncs to the cloud daily.

Key features include:

• Catering management: Create quotes, collect deposits, set event times, and manage pre-orders for catering clients.
• Delivery customization: Define delivery zones, fees, and order minimums; automated messages handle out-of-zone inquiries.
• On-location sales: Sell catering menu items directly on-site using the same hybrid POS system.
• Customer accounts: Save payment info, bill to house accounts, and accept partial or prepaid balances.

TouchBistro’s online ordering platform also supports:

• Posting truck and restaurant locations on a branded web app.
• Accepting pickup and delivery orders with real-time wait estimates.
• Running an integrated loyalty program for collecting and redeeming points.
• Showing dynamic upselling suggestions and item pairings.
• Collecting customer feedback directly through the ordering platform.

TouchBistro software runs on iPads, and you can configure iPads as POS terminals, customer-facing displays, kitchen display screens, and self-serve kiosks.

You must contact TouchBistro for a quote on hardware such as card readers, iPad stands, and cash drawers.

You can use TouchBistro Payments’ in-house payment processing (powered by Chase), or you can choose from several third-party processors, including Square.

TouchBistro Payments uses an interchange-plus pricing model, and TouchBistro will give you a custom payment processing rate quote.

Note that the free plan only covers processing.

The above pricing is for merchants who purchase their software/hardware package directly from Clover. Some Clover-authorized resellers may charge a different monthly subscription.

Clover’s base POS includes:

• An online ordering page that connects to your Google Business Profile
• A built-in loyalty program and gift card sales
• Scan-to-pay QR code ordering
• Retail sales tools for hybrid operations

Through the Clover App Market, users can access hundreds of retail, restaurant, and business apps—both Clover-built and third-party.

One standout is Truckfindr, an app made specifically for food trucks that lets you:

• Pin and update your truck’s real-time location
• Schedule future locations up to a week in advance
• Let customers order online and track order status
• Post a custom catering menu for pre-orders
• Send SMS updates about locations, specials, or new trucks

Additional add-ons include ID verification apps for alcohol sales and third-party delivery integrations.

Clover offers a unique bundled setup where your hardware, software, and merchant account are all connected. The reseller you purchase from provides both the Clover POS software and payment processing services.

If you buy directly from Clover, hardware prices range from $199 – $1,799 for the Clover card reader up to the Clover Station, the brand’s full countertop POS.

If you use Clover’s parent company, Fiserv, for payment processing, you’ll get the following flat-rate payment processing:

• Card-Present Transactions: 2.3% – 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction
  
• Card-Not-Present Transactions: 3.5% + $0.10 per transaction
  

If a large amount of your revenue comes from online or phone orders, choose a different payment processor or POS provider for your restaurant, as Clover’s rates can get expensive.