LINGA KDS vs Northstar KDS vs Square KDS

LINGA KDS is the kitchen display module of the LINGA cloud POS for restaurants. Northstar KDS is the kitchen display screen inside Northstar's Food & Beverage module, part of a club management platform for golf, country, city and yacht clubs and community associations. Square KDS is a kitchen display app from Square that replaces paper tickets and kitchen printers with digital tickets on Android devices. All three are listed under Kitchen Display System. They differ in price, audience and platforms.

Key differences

  • price

    The only starting price published is Square KDS's: USD 20 per device per month. LINGA KDS and Northstar KDS do not publish a starting price.

  • audience

    Audience differs between the profiles. Listed by one product alone: LINGA KDS: Restaurants replacing kitchen printers; Northstar KDS: Private golf and country clubs; Square KDS: Restaurants already running Square POS.

  • platforms

    Listed platforms: LINGA KDS: iOS; Northstar KDS: Web; Square KDS: Web, Android.

  • countries covered

    LINGA KDS names 5 countries, Northstar KDS names 3 countries and Square KDS names 1 country. 1 country appears in every list.

Side by side

LINGA KDS vs Northstar KDS vs Square KDS: side-by-side comparison from published vendor information
FieldLINGA KDSNorthstar KDSSquare KDS
What it isLINGA KDS is the kitchen display module of the LINGA cloud POS for restaurants.Northstar KDS is the kitchen display screen inside Northstar's Food & Beverage module, part of a club management platform for golf, country, city and yacht clubs and community associations.Square KDS is a kitchen display app from Square that replaces paper tickets and kitchen printers with digital tickets on Android devices.
Best forRestaurants replacing kitchen printers; Single-location restaurants; Franchises and multi-location groupsPrivate golf and country clubs; City clubs, yacht clubs and community associationsRestaurants already running Square POS; Quick-service and fast-casual kitchens; Full-service restaurants with several prep stations
Pricing modelSubscription (bundled with POS plan)Quote onlySubscription per device
Starting priceNot publishedNot publishedUSD 20 per device per month
Free planNot publishedNot publishedNot published
Free trialNot publishedNot publishedNot published
ContractNot publishedNot publishedNone stated: Square says its plans have no locked-in contracts and can be cancelled or switched anytime
PlatformsiOSWebWeb, Android
CountriesAustralia, Canada, India, Turkey, United StatesAustralia, New Zealand, United StatesUnited States
LanguagesNot publishedNot publishedNot published
Number of integrations10Not published7
CertificationsNot publishedPCI compliantISO 27001, PCI compliant
Security practicesNot publishedNot publishedNot published
FoundedNot publishedNot published2009
HeadquartersNot publishedAlpharetta, Georgia, United StatesNot published
OwnerNot publishedNot publishedBlock, Inc. (Square, Inc. was renamed Block, Inc. in 2021)
Last reviewed29 September 202629 September 202629 September 2026

Integrations

No partner appears in every list.

Named only by LINGA KDS

  • ADP
  • Chowly
  • Dash Solutions
  • Deliverect
  • DoorDash Drive
  • Factor4
  • Octopus Bridge
  • Restaurant365
  • Shogo

Named only by Northstar KDS

Northstar KDS does not name any integrations in the material we reviewed.

Named only by Square KDS

  • DoorDash
  • OpenTable
  • Postmates
  • SevenRooms
  • Square POS
  • Square Online ordering

Which to choose

LINGA KDS

Choose LINGA KDS if your business matches one of the audiences it is listed for: Restaurants replacing kitchen printers; Single-location restaurants; Franchises and multi-location groups.

Northstar KDS

Choose Northstar KDS if you fit its listed audience: Private golf and country clubs; City clubs, yacht clubs and community associations.

Weaker fit: Independent restaurants that only want a standalone kitchen display. The KDS is documented as part of a club management suite, not as a separate product.

Square KDS

Choose Square KDS if your business matches one of the audiences it is listed for: Restaurants already running Square POS; Quick-service and fast-casual kitchens; Full-service restaurants with several prep stations.

Our profile lists a weaker fit: Kitchens that do not use Square POS or that cannot run Android devices: the app needs a Square Plus or Premium subscription and Android hardware.

What we could not confirm

LINGA KDS

  • Standalone KDS price
  • Contract term
  • Founding year and headquarters
  • Employee count and funding
  • Supported screen hardware
  • Interface languages
  • Security certifications

Northstar KDS

  • Prices and contract terms
  • Whether the KDS is sold on its own
  • Named third-party integrations
  • Founding year
  • Languages

Square KDS

  • Length of the free trial of Square plans
  • Languages the KDS app supports
  • Countries where the KDS app is sold outside the US
  • Company headquarters, employee count and funding (Block is a public company)
  • Which Android devices are recommended or supported

Go further

LINGA KDS profileNorthstar KDS profileSquare KDS profile

Other comparisons with these products

Sources

Facts on this page come from the pages below. Prices and features change, so confirm with each vendor before you buy.

Square KDS, reviewed 29 September 2026

  1. KDS product page: features, price, FAQ, hardwarehttps://squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/restaurants/kitchen-display-system
  2. Plans, no lock-in contracts, coursing, reservation integrationshttps://squareup.com/us/en/pricing
  3. Full-service restaurant fit and KDS pricinghttps://squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/restaurants/full-service
  4. Quick-service fit, delivery integrations, auto-86https://squareup.com/us/en/point-of-sale/restaurants/quick-service
  5. Company history, countries served, Block renamehttps://squareup.com/us/en/about
  6. PCI and ISO 27001https://squareup.com/us/en/security