FreshBooks vs QuickBooks Online: the Canadian view
Both are good. They're built for different businesses. Here's how to tell which one is yours, with Canadian prices checked Nov 2, 2026.
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The short answer
- Small café, takeout or food truck: start with Square for Restaurants Free. You pay only processing (2.5% credit, 0.75% + 7¢ Interac debit in person).
- Busy bar, lounge or full-service room, or a hotel with outlets: get a quote from Lightspeed Restaurant (C$89 / C$239 / C$499 per month). Premium supports multiple revenue centres.
- Table-service restaurant that wants one vendor for software, hardware and payments: get a quote from TouchBistro (from $69/month POS; Essentials bundle from $119/month; currency not stated).
- In Quebec: Square says it is not compatible with WEB-SRM. Lightspeed says it is certified.
None of these were tested hands-on for this guide. Allison's experience is on the back-office side of hotels, restaurants and lounges (the reports and reconciliations these systems feed), not with these specific products.
Published prices (checked Nov 2, 2026)
| Square for Restaurants | Lightspeed Restaurant | TouchBistro | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software | Free; Plus C$60/location + C$40 per extra device | C$89 / C$239 / C$499 | From $69 (POS); $119 bundle |
| Kitchen display | Included on Plus | C$40/screen/month | Add-on |
| Processing | Published: 2.5% credit, 0.75%+7¢ debit, 2.8%+30¢ online | Quote | Quote / bundled |
| Canadian company | No (Block, US) | Yes (Montréal) | Yes (Toronto) |
What to ask every POS rep (get it in writing)
- Effective processing rate for your actual card mix (Interac vs credit vs premium cards), and any monthly minimums.
- Contract length and cancellation fees, and whether hardware is leased or owned.
- Offline mode: what works when the internet drops, especially Interac (Square says Interac doesn't work offline).
- Bar tabs and pre-authorization, split cheques and auto-gratuity.
- Accounting export: can it post a daily sales summary (sales by category, GST, tips, tenders, cash over/short) to QuickBooks or Xero, rather than every transaction?
- Tips and tip-outs: how tips are reported for payroll.
- Liquor inventory and variance reporting, if you run a bar.
The month-end view
Whichever you choose, the reconciliation that matters is POS sales report = bank deposits from the processor + cash deposits + fees. If a system can't give your bookkeeper a clean daily summary, it will cost you in bookkeeping hours what it saved in software fees.
Square for Restaurants (Canada)
- Free: C$0/month + processing (unlimited countertop devices and locations)
- Plus: C$60/month per location + C$40/month per extra countertop POS device (KDS screens included, 24/7 support)
- Premium: custom (over $250,000/year in card sales)
- Processing: in person 2.5% credit, 0.75% + 7¢ debit chip/tap; online 2.8% + 30¢; manual/card-on-file 3.3% + 15¢
Hardware sold separately.
Lightspeed Restaurant
- Starter: C$89/month
- Essential: C$239/month (multi-location, advanced inventory)
- Premium: C$499/month (multiple revenue centres for hotels, raw API access)
- Kitchen display: C$40/month per screen
From Lightspeed's Canadian (French-language) pricing page. Lightspeed notes prices can vary by business type.
TouchBistro
- Point of Sale: from $69/month (hardware, payment processing and other fees extra)
- Essentials Bundle (software + hardware + payments): from $119/month (processing extra)
- Custom setup: quote
The pricing page we checked does not state the currency. Get a written quote.
Sources (checked Nov 2, 2026)
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