FOLOS vs. ChowNow
Both are flat-fee alternatives to marketplace commissions. Here's how they compare on features, flexibility, and positioning.
Summary
Both FOLOS and ChowNow are flat-fee restaurant online ordering platforms designed as alternatives to commission-based marketplaces. The main differences are in POS flexibility, the presence of a ChowNow-branded discovery marketplace, and the channel model. FOLOS is built entirely around the restaurant's own brand and direct ordering channel; ChowNow also operates a discovery marketplace that restaurants can opt into.
What Is ChowNow?
ChowNow is a restaurant online ordering platform that lets independent restaurants accept orders through their own website on a flat monthly subscription model — without paying per-order commissions. ChowNow also operates ChowNow Marketplace, a consumer-facing app where listed restaurants can receive additional order discovery from customers browsing the ChowNow network.
What Is FOLOS?
FOLOS — Food Online Ordering Systems — is a branded direct ordering platform for restaurants. It operates on a flat monthly fee and is built to give restaurants a fully owned direct ordering channel: their brand, their domain, their customer data, connected to their existing POS and payment workflows. FOLOS does not operate a competing consumer marketplace.
Where the Two Are Similar
Both platforms share the same core positioning against commission-based marketplace ordering:
- Flat monthly subscription, not a percentage of every order
- Branded ordering on the restaurant's own website
- Restaurant access to customer data from direct orders
- Pickup and delivery support
- Multi-location support
The Discovery Marketplace Difference
ChowNow offers a dual-channel model: the restaurant's own ordering page, plus optional visibility on the ChowNow Marketplace app. This can provide additional discovery for restaurants that want exposure to ChowNow's consumer user base.
FOLOS focuses exclusively on the restaurant's own direct ordering channel, without a marketplace layer. The philosophy is that repeat customers should have a clear, direct path to order from the restaurant — without a marketplace environment that shows competing restaurants alongside yours.
Which model fits better depends on what a restaurant needs most: additional discovery volume, or a purely clean direct ordering channel with no marketplace adjacency.
POS and Payment Flexibility
FOLOS is built to work alongside a restaurant's existing POS and payment processor, with flexibility for restaurants that have specific integration requirements or prefer to maintain their current payment relationships.
ChowNow supports integrations with a defined list of POS and ordering systems. If your restaurant's POS is not on their supported list, integration options may be more limited.
The Reseller and Channel Difference
FOLOS operates a formal reseller and partner program, allowing POS providers, payment processors, restaurant consultants, and web agencies to offer FOLOS-powered direct ordering to their restaurant accounts. This is a meaningful difference for technology partners who serve multiple restaurant clients.
| Feature | FOLOS | ChowNow |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Flat monthly fee | Flat monthly subscription |
| Per-order commissions | ❌ | ❌ |
| Branded ordering experience | ✅ | ✅ |
| Restaurant owns customer data | ✅ | ✅ |
| Marketplace discovery network | ❌ | ChowNow Marketplace available |
| POS integration flexibility | ✅ | ChowNow-supported integrations |
| Pickup and delivery support | ✅ | ✅ |
| Multi-location support | ✅ | ✅ |
| Reseller / white-label channel | ✅ | ❌ |
Which Is Right for Your Restaurant?
If your restaurant wants a direct ordering channel plus access to a supplemental discovery marketplace, ChowNow's dual-channel model may be worth exploring. If your goal is a clean, fully branded direct ordering channel with maximum flexibility over your POS, payment processor, and partner relationships — without any marketplace layer — FOLOS is designed for exactly that use case.
See How FOLOS Works for Your Restaurant
Book a demo and we'll walk through how direct ordering fits your current setup.