Toast, Inc.
Company History
Toast History: Founding, Growth & Key Milestones
Founded 2011 in Boston, Massachusetts, United States
When was Toast founded?
Toast was founded in 2011 in Boston, Massachusetts, United States by Aman Narang, Steve Fredette and Jonathan Grimm, making it 15 years old.
- Founded
- 2011
- Founding place
- Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- Founders
- Aman Narang, Steve Fredette and Jonathan Grimm
- Headquarters today
- Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- Milestones documented
- 11 (2011–2026)
- Current CEO
- Aman Narang
- Acquisitions
- 3
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2011 | Toast Founded in Cambridge by MIT Endeca Alumni |
| 2013 | Pivots from Mobile Consumer App to Full Restaurant POS |
| 2015 | $30M Series B Led by Bessemer Venture Partners |
| 2018 | $115M Series D at $1.4B Valuation & Launches Toast Go |
| 2020 | $400M Series F at $4.9B Valuation & COVID-19 Operational Pivot |
| 2021 | Historic Initial Public Offering on the NYSE (NYSE: TOST) |
| 2021 | Toast IPO |
| 2023 | Expands to Canada, UK and Ireland; Crosses 100,000 Locations |
| 2024 | Aman Narang Appointed CEO & Toast Achieves GAAP Profitability |
| 2025 | Revenue Reaches $6.15B and Net Income $342M |
| 2026 | About 180,000 Locations and $2.4B ARR by Mid-Year |
- Where was Toast founded?
- Toast was founded in Boston, Massachusetts, United States in 2011.
- Who founded Toast?
- Toast was founded by Aman Narang, Steve Fredette and Jonathan Grimm.
- When did Toast start?
- Toast was founded in 2011.
- How old is Toast?
- Toast is 15 years old as of 2026.
Founding Story
Toast was founded in 2011 in the Boston area by Aman Narang, Steve Fredette and Jonathan Grimm, who had worked together at Endeca, an enterprise search company Oracle agreed to buy in 2011 for about $1.1 billion. Their first product was a mobile app that let diners view and pay their checks by phone. Restaurant owners told them the real problem was the aging, server-based POS systems that the app would have to connect to. The founders changed course and built an Android-based cloud POS for restaurants, signing early customers in Boston and raising venture capital from investors including Bessemer Venture Partners. Building restaurant-specific features such as kitchen display routing, handheld ordering and offline mode helped Toast spread through local restaurant communities before expanding nationally.
Founders
Aman Narang
Aman Narang co-founded Toast in 2011 alongside Steve Fredette and Jonathan Grimm. Originally attempting to build a mobile payment app for restaurants, the founders pivoted to building a complete Android-based point-of-sale system. As Co-President, Narang drove the aggressive go-to-market strategy that allowed Toast to rapidly displace legacy systems like Micros in independent restaurants. He took over as CEO in 2024. Aman Narang was born in 1982.
Steve Fredette
Steve Fredette co-founded Toast in 2011. As President and long-time product visionary, he architected the company's shift from a simple POS hardware provider into a comprehensive software ecosystem handling payroll, inventory, and online ordering for restaurants. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Jonathan Grimm
Jonathan Grimm co-founded Toast and served as its Chief Technology Officer. He built the initial cloud-native backend that allowed restaurants to manage menus and view analytics from anywhere, a massive upgrade over the hard-wired, on-premise servers used by legacy competitors. (Exact birth year remains publicly undisclosed).
Key Milestones
Toast Founded in Cambridge by MIT Endeca Alumni
Aman Narang, Steve Fredette, and Jonathan Grimm founded Toast to build cloud software for restaurants.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgPivots from Mobile Consumer App to Full Restaurant POS
Pivoted to a complete cloud restaurant POS system, signing its first commercial restaurant in Cambridge.
Source: en.wikipedia.org$30M Series B Led by Bessemer Venture Partners
Raised $30 million, crossing 1,000 restaurant locations and expanding regional field sales across the US.
Source: en.wikipedia.org$115M Series D at $1.4B Valuation & Launches Toast Go
Raised a $115 million Series D led by TCV and Tiger Global, reaching unicorn status, and launched the Toast Go handheld.
Source: en.wikipedia.org$400M Series F at $4.9B Valuation & COVID-19 Operational Pivot
Raised a $400 million Series F at a $4.9 billion valuation in February 2020, then cut about half its workforce in April 2020 as COVID-19 shut dining rooms.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgHistoric Initial Public Offering on the NYSE (NYSE: TOST)
Went public on the New York Stock Exchange, raising $870 million at an opening valuation of $20 billion.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgToast IPO
Toast went public on the New York Stock Exchange in September 2021.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgExpands to Canada, UK and Ireland; Crosses 100,000 Locations
Began selling outside the US and passed 100,000 restaurant locations.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgAman Narang Appointed CEO & Toast Achieves GAAP Profitability
Co-founder Aman Narang became CEO on January 1, 2024; Toast reported $19 million of GAAP net income for the year, its first annual profit.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgRevenue Reaches $6.15B and Net Income $342M
Added a record 30,000 net locations to about 164,000 and processed about $195 billion in GPV.
Source: businesswire.comAbout 180,000 Locations and $2.4B ARR by Mid-Year
Q2 2026 revenue rose 23% to $1.91 billion with a record 9,500 net location adds.
Source: businesswire.comMajor Acquisitions
xtraCHEF
2021Acquired the automated restaurant inventory management and food cost tracking platform.
Sling
2021Acquired the leading employee scheduling and labor communication platform.
Delphi Display Systems
2023Acquired the leading provider of digital drive-thru display systems and order confirmation technology.
Keep researching Toast
Toast Company History FAQ
When, where, and by whom was Toast originally founded?
Toast was founded in 2011 in the Boston, Massachusetts area by three former Endeca software engineers: Aman Narang, Steve Fredette, and Jonathan Grimm, initially incorporated as Opti Systems before rebranding to Toast in 2012.
What was Toast's original product concept and why did the founders pivot?
The founders originally built a consumer mobile app that let diners view their tab and pay their restaurant checks from their smartphones. When restaurant owners explained that legacy point-of-sale (POS) systems were too outdated to connect to mobile apps, the founders pivoted to build an all-in-one cloud POS for restaurants.
How did the founders' experience at Endeca influence Toast's technology?
At enterprise search pioneer Endeca (acquired by Oracle in 2011 for $1.1 billion), the founders learned how to build high-scale data architecture, applying those principles to handle complex restaurant menus, kitchen order routing, and rapid payment authorization.
How did Toast build its early customer base in Boston in 2012–2014?
The founders personally installed hardware, trained kitchen staff, and resolved technical glitches in local Boston bars, pizzerias, and cafes, building word-of-mouth momentum in local dining communities before expanding nationally.
What made the Toast Go handheld ordering terminal a major industry milestone?
Launched in 2018, Toast Go was a purpose-built, ruggedized handheld tablet allowing waitstaff to take orders and process card payments directly at the table, speeding up table turn times, eliminating server trips to central terminals, and increasing server tips.
How did Toast survive and navigate the catastrophic COVID-19 restaurant crisis in 2020?
When indoor dining shut down in April 2020, Toast had to lay off roughly half its workforce. It quickly pivoted to roll out contactless QR code table ordering, flat-fee online takeout ordering, and gift card programs, helping tens of thousands of restaurants survive and rapidly rebounding.
When did Toast complete its Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange?
On September 22, 2021, Toast completed its IPO on the NYSE under the ticker symbol TOST at $40 per share, raising approximately $870 million and reaching a peak valuation exceeding $20 billion.
Who was Chris Comparato and what was his role as CEO (2015–2023)?
Chris Comparato led Toast as CEO for over eight years, taking it from a regional startup with under 1,000 restaurants through hypergrowth, steering it through the pandemic, and orchestrating its successful 2021 NYSE public listing.
What was the 2023 consumer order-fee controversy and how did management respond?
In June 2023, Toast introduced a $0.99 fee charged directly to consumers on online orders over $10. Following intense pushback from restaurant owners who felt it damaged their customer trust, management listened to feedback and rescinded the fee within weeks.
When did co-founder Aman Narang become CEO and what was his strategic focus?
Co-founder Aman Narang took over as CEO on January 1, 2024. He focused on achieving GAAP profitability, expanding recurring gross profit, expanding into enterprise restaurant chains, and launching international markets in Canada, the UK, and Ireland.
How many restaurant locations does Toast serve today?
Toast grew from 40,000 locations at its 2021 IPO to over 164,000 locations by the end of 2025, and surpassed 180,000 live restaurant locations by mid-2026, processing nearly $200 billion in annual gross payments.
Where is Toast headquartered today?
Toast is headquartered in the Landmark Center in Boston's Fenway neighborhood, maintaining major corporate offices in Chicago, Omaha, and Dublin, Ireland.
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