FAQ

Straight answers.

Everything we get asked in sales calls. If we missed yours, email [email protected] and we'll add it.

Pricing & contracts

Do you charge per transaction?

No. ChowHub charges a flat monthly fee only. Your card processor (Stripe or Square) charges their published rate directly. ChowHub takes 0% on top.

Am I locked into a contract?

No. ChowHub is strictly month-to-month. Cancel any time at /manage/. No early-termination fee.

How do I upgrade my plan?

Open your ChowHub POS → go to System (admin login) → copy your Upgrade Code. On /packages/, click Subscribe on the plan you want, enter your Business Name and Upgrade Code, and complete payment. Then click "Already upgraded? Check now" in the POS to activate instantly.

Can I switch plans later?

Yes. Upgrades are instant. Downgrades take effect at the end of your billing period.

Do you offer a free trial?

Better — we have a free tier forever. Sign up at cloud.getchowhub.com, no card required.

Hardware & setup

What hardware do I need?

Anything that runs a modern browser. A Raspberry Pi, an old laptop, a tablet, an iPad. Pair with a Stripe Terminal (~$59) or Square Reader (~$49) for card-present payments.

Will it run on a Raspberry Pi?

Yes. A Pi 4 or Pi 5 handles a small restaurant just fine. We ship a Docker container that makes Pi installs straightforward.

What about printers and receipt hardware?

Most standard ESC/POS receipt printers work over network or USB. Cash drawers attached to the printer trigger the standard way. The full hardware guide is at /hardware/.

Do I need to install anything?

For the cloud version: nothing. Sign up and use it in a browser. For the self-hosted version: a single Docker container or a Pi image. Live in under an hour either way.

Payments & processors

Which payment processors do you support?

Stripe and Square. Both built in. You can run them at the same time and switch between them per order, or keep one live as a backup.

What rate will I pay on cards?

Whatever rate your Stripe or Square account is on. Typical published card-present is around 2.6% + 10¢. ChowHub adds 0% on top of that.

Can I use a different processor?

Today, the integrated processors are Stripe and Square. If you have a strong reason to use another (e.g. a Canadian high-volume Moneris contract), email us — we can talk about it.

What about cash payments?

Fully supported on every plan, including Free. Including manual card entry on Free.

Reliability & offline

What happens if my internet goes down?

ChowHub runs locally on your hardware. You can take orders, send to the kitchen, and process cash with zero internet. Card processing follows whatever your processor supports.

Is there a license grace period if internet is flaky?

Yes — 24 hours. Your POS keeps running even if it can't reach the license server. A bad connection won't shut down your dinner service.

Where is my data stored?

On the device you run ChowHub on. If you're on the Enterprise plan with cloud sync enabled, a synced copy lives in our cloud too — used for multi-location sync and online ordering.

Features & gaps

Do you have loyalty / rewards / punch cards?

Not yet. If that's core to your concept, Toast or Square (with paid add-on) is honestly better today.

Do you have payroll?

No. Use Gusto, ADP, or similar — we track hours and labor cost, but we don't run pay.

Do you do native DoorDash / Uber delivery dispatch?

Not today. You can run a DoorDash Storefront link alongside ChowHub fine; native dispatch integration is on the long-term list, not the short list.

Does it work in multiple languages?

The UI is English today. Currency is configurable. If you need a specific localization, email us — we prioritize based on demand.

Multi-location?

Yes — Enterprise plan. Menu sync, sales rollup across locations, fleet upgrades pushed to every site.

Still have a question?

Email us. We answer our own emails, usually within a day.