The cheapest way for a small restaurant to take its own online orders is Square Online's free plan ($0/month, 3.3% + 30¢ per online order) or Menuline ($29/month, 0% commission). Owner.com ($249/month + 5%, or $499), ChowNow ($249 to $449/month plus setup) and Popmenu ($179 to $499/month plus an ordering add-on) cost more and bundle more. Third-party apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub charge 15 to 30% of most marketplace delivery orders instead of a monthly fee.

Every figure below comes from each company's own pricing page or published terms, checked in October 2026. Prices change, so confirm with the vendor before you sign. Disclosure: Menuline publishes this page and is one of the platforms compared. Where a competitor is the better fit, the linked guides say so.

How much do restaurant online ordering platforms cost?

Platform	Monthly price	Per-order cost to the restaurant	What diners pay extra	Setup	Contract	Full guide
Menuline	$29 Starter or $99 Growth ($1/month for the first 3 months)	0% commission	5% platform fee	Included	Month-to-month	Menuline vs Owner.com
Square Online	$0, $49 or $149 per location	3.3% + 30¢ (Free) or 2.9% + 30¢ (paid)	Nothing by default	Self-serve	None	Square Online review
Owner.com	$249 + 5% per order, or $499 flat	5% on the $249 plan	5% order support fee	Ask in writing	Month-to-month, demo to sign up	Owner.com pricing
ChowNow	$249, $349 or $449	2.95% + $0.29	7.5% only on ChowNow App and eat.chownow.com orders	$119 to $499	Auto-renews for your plan term	ChowNow pricing
Popmenu	$179, $299 or $499, plus an ordering add-on	$1.00 per order if you absorb it	$1.00 if passed to the guest	Quoted	Minimum term, then auto-renews	Popmenu pricing
Menufy	$149 (12-month agreement) or $179	Convenience fee if you absorb it	Convenience fee if passed on	Onboarding included	12 months or month-to-month	Menufy pricing
Toast	$0 or $69 POS plans; online ordering is a quoted add-on	2.49% to 3.09% card processing, per Toast	Depends on your setup	Hardware purchase	Per your Toast agreement	Toast pricing
DoorDash Online Ordering	$0 with an active DoorDash store	Standard payment processing	Delivery fee on delivery orders	Self-serve	None	DoorDash commission rates
GloriaFood	Free, paid add-ons from $19	Your own payment gateway	Nothing by default	Self-serve	Shuts down April 30, 2027	GloriaFood alternatives
BentoBox	Not published; sold only to Clover POS customers	Not published	Not published	Quoted	Quoted	BentoBox alternatives

Card processing is a cost on every platform, including Menuline (it comes out of payouts). Some vendors list it as a per-order fee and some don't, so compare the total you'd pay on a typical month, not the headline price.

What do DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub charge restaurants?

Marketplace	Commission per order	Guide
DoorDash	15% (Basic), 25% (Plus), 30% (Premier); 6% on pickup	DoorDash fees
Uber Eats	20% (Lite), 25% (Plus), 30% (Premium) on delivery, 15% on Lite in some cities; 7% on pickup	Uber Eats fees
Grubhub	5%, 15% or 20% marketing commission, plus a delivery fee from 10% when Grubhub delivers, plus 3.05% + $0.30 processing	Grubhub fees

Marketplaces bring new customers, which is what the commission pays for. Most restaurants keep them for discovery and move regulars to their own ordering. The math is in how to reduce delivery app fees and commission-free online ordering.

Which platform fits which restaurant?

If you are...	Look at	Why
Small, takeout-first, want the lowest fixed cost	Square Online Free, Menuline Starter	$0 to $29 a month; Square if you already use Square POS
Independent that wants a website that ranks, ordering, loyalty and email in one place	Menuline, Owner.com	Menuline at $29 to $99 self-serve; Owner.com at $249+ with SMS and delivery
Leaving GloriaFood before April 30, 2027	Square Online, FoodAmigos, Menuline	See the GloriaFood migration checklist
On Toast and need orders inside the POS	Toast Online Ordering, ChowNow	Menuline orders don't flow into Toast
Full-service with reservations and a big dining room	Popmenu, Toast	Reservations and table tools Menuline doesn't offer
A pizzeria on Slice	Read the fee math first	Slice fees for restaurants

Head-to-head comparisons

Alternatives guides

Pricing and reviews

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest online ordering system for a restaurant? Square Online's free plan costs $0 a month but charges 3.3% + 30¢ per online order. Menuline Starter costs $29 a month ($1 for the first 3 months) with 0% commission, while diners pay a 5% platform fee. Which is cheaper depends on your order volume and whether you count the diner's side.

Is commission-free online ordering really free? No platform is free of all fees. "Commission-free" means the platform doesn't take a percentage of the order from the restaurant. You still pay card processing, usually a monthly plan, and on some platforms the diner pays a service fee.

Which is cheaper, Owner.com or Menuline? Menuline is $29 or $99 a month. Owner.com is $249 a month plus 5% per order, or $499 a month flat. Both charge diners a 5% fee at checkout. Owner.com includes SMS marketing and delivery, which Menuline doesn't offer today.

How often is this page updated? We recheck vendor pricing pages at least monthly and date every change. If you spot an outdated number, email hello@menuline.ai and we'll fix it.

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