Square for Restaurants is a US-market (plus Canada, Australia, UK, Japan, Ireland) POS and payments platform priced as a percentage of revenue rather than restaurant management software. TufTable focuses on the day-to-day problems restaurant owners actually face — slow billing, kitchen mix-ups, and unclear software costs — and solves them at one flat price: Rs.7,000 per year.
A short summary before the details. Every point below is expanded further down the page.
| Feature | TufTable | Square |
|---|---|---|
| Yearly price | Rs.7,000 flat | Free-$1,788/yr + processing % (not in India) |
| QR ordering | ✔ | ✔ |
| Kitchen display (KOT) | ✔ included | ✔ included |
| Inventory | ✔ | Item-level only |
| CRM / loyalty | ✔ included | Extra cost |
| Free demo | ✔ | ✔ |
| Hidden charges | No | Processing fee scales with revenue |
This is the actual TufTable Kitchen Order Ticket screen — included in every plan, live the moment you sign up, at one flat annual price. Square includes a comparable kitchen display too, with cost tied more to plan tier and processing volume than the KDS itself.
Cost tied to plan tier and revenue
Square's plans (Free, Plus, Premium) bundle KDS and other features, but the main cost driver is the processing fee on every transaction, which moves with your revenue.
Square's plan fee is only half the picture — the processing percentage on every sale is what really scales cost with revenue. TufTable is a single flat number regardless of how much you sell.
Square is not available to restaurants operating in India — its hardware cannot be activated with Indian bank accounts. Figures shown are in USD for Square's US market (plans and processing rates as of its October 2025 pricing update) and are for structural comparison only, since a percentage-of-revenue model does not convert cleanly to a flat annual fee. Confirm current pricing directly with Square.
We didn't design TufTable to have the longest feature list. We designed it around recurring frustrations restaurants told us about — here's how each one plays out on TufTable versus Square.
Rs.7,000/year, flat — the same price whether it's a slow month or your busiest one.
Square charges a processing fee on every transaction (roughly 2.4-2.6%+15c in-person, 2.9-3.3%+30c online, depending on plan) on top of the monthly plan fee — a common model for payments-bundled POS platforms, though it does mean cost rises directly with revenue rather than staying fixed.
Inventory tracking is built for restaurant use, ready from day one.
Square's inventory is item-level only — solid for retail-style stock counts, but it can't track raw ingredients or recipe costing, which reviewers note is a real gap for restaurants trying to manage food cost.
Live KOT tracking is a core part of every TufTable plan, built specifically for restaurant kitchens.
Square's KDS is included in its plans and covers the basics well, but reviewers note it lacks features like automatic item-timing after a course is fired, which matters for full-service restaurants managing multiple courses.
Built and supported for Indian restaurants, with GST-compliant billing and support based in Surat.
Square is a widely used, well-regarded platform in the markets it serves, but it is not available to restaurants operating in India today — its hardware cannot be activated with Indian bank accounts, so it isn't an option regardless of price.
TufTable is billing and operations software — it doesn't hold or process your payments, so there's nothing for TufTable to freeze.
Square bundles payment processing directly into the platform, which is convenient day-to-day, but it has a reported reputation for placing sudden holds on funds from flagged transactions without advance warning, which can disrupt a restaurant's cash flow.
| Feature | TufTable | Square |
|---|---|---|
| POS & billing | ||
| GST-compliant billingNot available in India; no GST support | ||
| Inventory managementSquare: item-level only, cannot track raw ingredients or recipe costing | ||
| Kitchen display / KOTSquare: KDS included, but lacks features like auto item-timing after course-fire | ||
| QR code ordering | ||
| CRM & loyaltySquare: loyalty available as a paid add-on | ||
| WhatsApp integrationNot a Square feature | ||
| Online order / aggregator management | ||
| Sales & staff reports | ||
| Mobile appSquare: Square Register and companion mobile apps | ||
| Offline modeNot confirmed in public materials | ||
| 24×7 supportSquare: support hours vary by plan tier | ||
| Typical setup timeSquare: self-serve setup, generally quick to get started | ||
| Public flat pricing shown on websiteSquare: plan tiers published, but processing % on top makes total cost variable | ||
| Per-order transaction feeSquare: 2.4-3.3% + fixed fee per transaction, scales with revenue |
Square details above are based on publicly available information and independent reviews as of 2026, since Square does not publish full pricing or plan breakdowns on its website. Confirm current details directly with Square before making a decision.
Square prices Square for Restaurants as a monthly plan fee (Free, Plus at $49/month/location, or Premium at $149/month/location) plus a processing percentage on every transaction — so total cost scales with how much a restaurant sells, rather than a fixed amount. It is also not available in India today. TufTable publishes one flat Rs.7,000/year price, available in India, regardless of sales volume, which makes budgeting simpler for restaurants weighing both models.
per year, flat
plus 2.4-3.3% + fixed fee per transaction (not available in India)
For an India-based restaurant this is mostly a moot comparison, since Square isn't available there — but on cost structure, TufTable's flat Rs.7,000/year contrasts with Square's Free/$49/$149-per-month plans plus a 2.4-3.3% processing fee on every transaction, which means Square's effective yearly cost rises with revenue rather than staying fixed.
Square is a well-regarded, easy-to-start platform in the markets it serves, with a free tier and bundled payments. TufTable is built for restaurants — mainly in India, where Square isn't offered — that want a flat yearly price, ingredient-level inventory, and no processing-fee model tied to revenue. The right fit depends heavily on market and whether ingredient-level costing matters to the kitchen.
Yes. QR code ordering is included in TufTable's standard plan at no extra cost. Square also supports QR/online ordering as part of its platform.
TufTable's published price is Rs.7,000/year flat, regardless of sales volume. Square's plans run Free to $149/month/location ($0-$1,788/year) plus a 2.4-3.3% processing fee on every transaction — so its real yearly cost depends entirely on revenue, and can exceed TufTable's flat fee well before a restaurant is doing meaningful volume.
This mainly applies to restaurants moving operations to a market where Square isn't available, such as India. Menu, table, and staff setup on TufTable typically takes under 30 minutes with onboarding support. As with any POS switch, plan for a short overlap period to move historical reports and re-train staff on the new billing flow — TufTable's support team can walk through this during the free demo.
No quotes, no negotiation calls — book a free demo and see the billing, KOT, and inventory workflow live, then decide for yourself against Square.
