What is the best online ordering system for an independent restaurant?

The one that fits how you run. If you want one flat bill with ordering, rewards, email marketing and a kitchen tablet in a single plan, MasOrder is $99 a month. If you already use Square’s point of sale, its online ordering comes with every Square plan. If you want text marketing and a branded mobile app today, Owner.com lists both on every plan, and ChowNow lists text marketing from its Grow plan. Check each company’s current pricing before you decide.

Which online ordering systems take no commission?

All five take no commission on direct orders on at least one plan. MasOrder takes 0% on its one plan. Owner.com takes none on its $499 plan and 5% per order on its $249 plan. ChowNow says direct orders are commission-free with its Profit Protector feature enabled. Menufy lists no per-order commissions, and Square calls orders through its online ordering profile commission-free. Card processing still applies, and some platforms charge your guests a fee, so read the table above.

Is MasOrder really $99 a month with no commission?

Yes. The subscription is a flat $99 and MasOrder takes 0% of your orders. Customers pay a small service fee at checkout (5%, never more than $7.50), and Stripe’s standard card processing applies to each payment. An optional add-on, like Phone Routing, is billed on top only if you ask for it.

Does MasOrder have text-message (SMS) marketing?

Coming soon. Email campaigns are live today, and text-message campaigns are on the way. We will say so on our site when they ship.

← BlogComparisonOctober 19, 2026 · 7 min

Best Online Ordering Systems for Independent Restaurants (2026)

Five well-known ways to take orders on your own site, compared on price, fees and features, using each company’s own pricing page.

The short version

There are more good ways than ever to take orders on your own site without paying a commission on each one. We compared five well-known options for independent restaurants: MasOrder, Owner.com, ChowNow, Menufy and Square.

We are MasOrder, so we are biased. To keep this useful, every competitor fact below comes from that company’s own pricing page, read on October 19, 2026. Where a pricing page doesn’t say, we tell you to check their current pricing.

What each one costs a month

The listed price of each one’s lowest plan with online ordering, loyalty and email marketing, and no per-order fee to the restaurant.

Square$49 / month
Square Plus, per location. Square Free is $0, without loyalty or email marketing.
MasOrder$99 / month
Flat. No setup fee, no contract.
Menufy$149 / month
On a 12-month agreement. $179 month to month.
ChowNow$229 / month
Launch, billed yearly. $249 billed monthly, plus a $119 to $499 setup fee.
Owner.com$499 / month
Flat Rate. Or $249 plus a 5% restaurant fee on every order.

Card processing comes on top almost everywhere, so it sits in the table below rather than in these bars. Our own fees are broken down on our pricing page.

Who each one is best for

MasOrder

$99 a month, flat

Best forIndependent restaurants and food trucks that want one predictable bill and help getting set up.

Ordering site, rewards and email marketing in one plan
Free kitchen tablet while you are a customer
Text-message marketing is coming soon, not live yet

Owner.com

$499 a month flat, or $249 + 5% per order

Best forBusier restaurants that want text marketing and a branded mobile app today. Owner says its flat plan is best at $5k+ a month in online sales.

Setup and migration included
Month to month, no long-term contract
Guests pay a 5% order support fee

ChowNow

From $229 a month, billed yearly

Best forRestaurants that want a branded mobile app, and from the Grow plan up, third-party orders managed in one place.

Setup fee of $119 to $499
2.95% + $0.29 per transaction
Text marketing starts on Grow, from $319

Menufy

$149 a month on a 12-month agreement

Best forRestaurants that want a dedicated success manager and a multilingual team, and are fine signing for a year to get the lower price.

One plan, the full platform, no tiers
Automated email and text marketing
$179 month to month, cancel anytime

Square

$0, $49 or $149 a month per location

Best forRestaurants already on Square’s point of sale, or that want in-store and online sales in one system.

Online ordering on every plan, even Free
Loyalty and email marketing start on Plus
Online card payments: 3.3% + 30¢ on Free, 2.9% + 30¢ on paid plans

Pricing and features, side by side

Our column is MasOrder. Every other column is only what that company’s pricing page lists.

Scroll sideways to see all five.

MasOrder, Owner.com, ChowNow, Menufy and Square compared: price, setup, contract, commission, guest fee, card processing, online ordering, loyalty, email and text marketing, and kitchen tablet
Feature	MasOrder	Owner.com	ChowNow	Menufy	Square
Monthly price	$99 flat	$499 flat, or $249 plus 5% per order	From $229 billed yearly or $249 monthly (Launch). Grow from $319, Elevate from $409.	$149 on a 12-month agreement, or $179 month to month	$0 Free, $49 Plus, $149 Premium, per location
Setup fee	None	Setup and migration included	$119 to $499	Not listed. Check their current pricing.	Not listed. Check their current pricing.
Contract	None. Cancel anytime.	Month to month, no long-term contract	Billed yearly or monthly. Check their current pricing.	12 months at $149, or month to month at $179	Not listed. Check their current pricing.
Commission to the restaurant	0%	0% on $499. 5% per order on $249.	None on direct orders “with Profit Protector enabled,” per their FAQ	“No per-order commissions,” per their FAQ	None. Their page calls online-ordering orders commission-free.
Fee on your guests	5% service fee, never more than $7.50	5% order support fee	Not listed. Check their current pricing.	Not listed. Check their current pricing.	Not listed. Check their current pricing.
Card processing	Stripe’s standard 2.9% + 30¢	Not listed. Check their current pricing.	2.95% + $0.29 per transaction	Not listed. Check their current pricing.	Online: 3.3% + 30¢ on Free, 2.9% + 30¢ on Plus and Premium
Online ordering	Yes. Your own ordering site, on a MasOrder address or your domain.	Yes, with a website and a branded mobile app	Yes, with a website and a branded mobile app ($99 yearly Apple fee)	Yes, on your own branded site	Yes. An online ordering profile and a website builder.
Loyalty	Yes. Points on every dollar, redeemed for menu items you choose.	Yes	Yes, every plan	Yes, with coupons	Plus and Premium
Email marketing	Yes. Win-back, cart-recovery, holiday and one-off emails.	Yes	Yes. 500 contacts on Launch, 2,000 on Grow, 5,000 on Elevate.	Yes, automated	Plus and Premium
Text (SMS) marketing	Coming soon	Yes	Grow and Elevate	Yes, automated	Plus (500 texts a month included) and Premium (2,500)
Kitchen tablet	Free while you are a customer. Prints to Star and ESC/POS printers (printer not included).	Not listed. Check their current pricing.	Printers listed at $250 to $420. Check their current pricing.	“Free equipment” on the 12-month plan. Check their current pricing.	Kitchen display app: $30 a month per device on Plus, $20 on Premium, not on Free

What MasOrder looks like

Your ordering page

Your name and your menu, with pickup or delivery and a rewards sign-in. More on online ordering and rewards.

Da Catch Fish & Chicken’s menu on MasOrder, on a phone.

Your dashboard

The owner app shows today’s orders, earnings and Google rating in one place. Your customer list builds itself, so email campaigns have someone to send to.

The MasOrder owner app home screen with today’s earnings, an order count, a Google rating and the latest order, shown with sample numbers — The owner app’s daily view, with sample numbers.

Your kitchen tablet

New orders flash and chime, and tickets print on their own. See the kitchen tablet page for the details.

The MasOrder kitchen tablet showing a live order board with Scheduled and In progress columns, Ready and Start Order buttons, delivery and note flags, and a connected Star printer — The kitchen tablet, shown with example orders.

Two head-to-head comparisons

Weighing one of the big names? These go deeper, one platform at a time.

A diner holding a phone that shows a restaurant’s own MasOrder ordering page, with menu specials and a rewards sign-in prompt

MasOrder vs Owner.com: A Flat $99 Online Ordering Alternative for RestaurantsRead it →

Two cooks preparing plates at a restaurant prep line, with trays of food and a platter of oysters on the counter

MasOrder vs ChowNow: A Flat $99 Online Ordering Alternative for RestaurantsRead it →

Common questions

What is the best online ordering system for an independent restaurant?: The one that fits how you run. If you want one flat bill with ordering, rewards, email marketing and a kitchen tablet in a single plan, MasOrder is $99 a month. If you already use Square’s point of sale, its online ordering comes with every Square plan. If you want text marketing and a branded mobile app today, Owner.com lists both on every plan, and ChowNow lists text marketing from its Grow plan. Check each company’s current pricing before you decide.
Which online ordering systems take no commission?: All five take no commission on direct orders on at least one plan. MasOrder takes 0% on its one plan. Owner.com takes none on its $499 plan and 5% per order on its $249 plan. ChowNow says direct orders are commission-free with its Profit Protector feature enabled. Menufy lists no per-order commissions, and Square calls orders through its online ordering profile commission-free. Card processing still applies, and some platforms charge your guests a fee, so read the table above.
Is MasOrder really $99 a month with no commission?: Yes. The subscription is a flat $99 and MasOrder takes 0% of your orders. Customers pay a small service fee at checkout (5%, never more than $7.50), and Stripe’s standard card processing applies to each payment. An optional add-on, like Phone Routing, is billed on top only if you ask for it.
Does MasOrder have text-message (SMS) marketing?: Coming soon. Email campaigns are live today, and text-message campaigns are on the way. We will say so on our site when they ship.

Ready to try it?

Start free. No card, no contract, and billing begins 30 days after your first order.

Start with MasOrder See pricing

Written on October 19, 2026 from each company’s public pricing page: Owner.com (owner.com/pricing), ChowNow (get.chownow.com/pricing), Menufy (restaurant.menufy.com/pricing) and Square (squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/restaurants/pricing). Prices and plans change, so check each company’s current pricing before you decide.