Epos Now vs Toast Processing Fees in 2026: The True Cost

Comparing Epos Now and Toast centers on how each provider marks up wholesale interchange rates. Both point-of-sale systems process transactions on the exact same underlying card networks. Your total expense depends on the margin added to those wholesale rates, hardware obligations, and subscription billing policies.

Processing expenses equal network interchange rates plus provider markups. Wholesale rates for Visa CPS Retail credit start at 1.51% + $0.10. Mastercard Merit III Core credit sits at 1.65% + $0.10. Because both platforms add custom margins over these floors, assessing overall value requires looking at the total subscription cost rather than relying on upfront marketing claims. Ensure parity between your advertised rates and actual processing costs by factoring in every contract term.

When comparing EPOS Now versus legacy POS fees or Toast's cloud pricing, you have to look past standalone percentages. Fee predictability demands clear billing, reliable support, and the elimination of recurring hidden charges that quietly erode your profit margins.

The October 2026 lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission and eight state attorneys general against Toast directly impacts its true cost of ownership. Regulators allege hidden fees, subscription traps, and misleading $0 hardware promotions. This action exposes non-processing costs that drastically increase the real expense of running the platform for restaurant operators.

On October 29, 2026, the FTC and state regulators, including California, filed legal action over Toast's fee transparency, promotional hardware, and 24/7 support claims. Reporting in late October and early November highlighted widespread scrutiny over subscription practices that artificially alter effective fee structures.

When evaluating Toast against Epos Now, merchants must factor in the financial risks identified in these filings. Undisclosed recurring software charges and binding contract terms inflate the total cost of processing far beyond your initial fee schedule quote.

Card network interchange rates set the absolute wholesale floor for US credit card processing. These sit at 0.05% + $0.22 for regulated debit and 1.51% to 1.65% + $0.10 for retail credit cards. Both Epos Now and Toast build their merchant markups on top of these unalterable wholesale costs.

Visa and Mastercard publish baseline transaction schedules that serve as the foundation for US card processing. Visa Debit CPS Regulated and Mastercard Debit Regulated both carry a wholesale cost of 0.05% + $0.22 per transaction. Processors applying percentage-based pricing add a margin on top of this regulated rate, while flat per-transaction pricing assesses a fixed fee.

For consumer credit card volume, Visa Credit CPS Retail sets a baseline rate of 1.51% + $0.10 per sale. Mastercard Consumer Credit under Merit III Core charges 1.65% + $0.10 per transaction. Any processing rate charged above these published network floors represents pure provider margin. Knowing these floors makes it easier to spot processor markups against true network interchange rates on your monthly bill.

You avoid POS subscription traps by evaluating complete hardware bundles and contract commitments. Do not accept promotional $0 hardware offers that mask ongoing software fees. Your total cost of ownership encompasses hardware financing, mandatory software tiers, and processing margins combined.

Regulatory actions in late October 2026 brought intense scrutiny to Toast over deceptive hardware marketing and subscription practices. Promoted $0 hardware offers can lock merchants into mandatory software tiers or undisclosed monthly service fees that inflate operational overhead for the entire life of the contract. Similar aggressive billing often leads to merchant account rate creep, where processors quietly raise margins over time.

Epos Now provides software and hardware options that you must evaluate against your long-term operational needs. Reviewing agreement terms, hardware obligations, and support claims ensures you maintain strict control over your total processing expenditures.