Square is the closest spiritual cousin to ChowHub — also pass-through-ish, also developer-friendly. ChowHub even uses Square as a processor option. The difference: Square charges per KDS device, charges processor lock-in for the rest of the stack, and is meaningfully pricier at feature parity.
| ChowHub | Square for Restaurants | |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | Yes — solo operators, no card | Yes — 1 location, very limited |
| Mid plan | $59/mo Pro (recipe inv + reports) | $69/mo Plus (per location) |
| KDS | Included, unlimited devices | $20/mo per device on Plus |
| Processor | Your Stripe OR your Square | Square processing required, 2.6% + 10¢ |
| Hardware | BYO — Pi, tablet, laptop | Square Terminal $299, Register $799, or iPad |
| Contract | Monthly | Monthly (this is Square's strength) |
| Recipe inventory | Yes (Pro) | Limited |
| Loyalty | No | Yes — $45/mo add-on |
| Email / SMS marketing | No | Yes — $15+/mo add-on |
| Capital / lending | No | Yes (Square Capital) |
| Self-host / offline | Yes (Docker / Pi) | Limited (offline on Square hardware) |
Operators who want real KDS, real recipe inventory, and the freedom to negotiate processing rates separately. Especially good if you're already at 3–5+ KDS screens — the per-device cost on Square gets painful.
You need native loyalty + marketing + payroll + Capital working as a tightly integrated bundle, and the slickest possible onboarding for non-technical staff.
Export your existing menu to CSV. Import it into ChowHub with the bulk loader. Connect your Stripe or Square account (you can keep the one you already use). Pick a slow weekday — Tuesday afternoon works for most — and switch over. Run both systems in parallel for the first lunch if it helps you sleep. We can answer migration questions on email at any point.