A pop-up toaster suits a cafe or breakfast counter that toasts to order in small batches, and a conveyor toaster suits a hotel breakfast, buffet or sandwich line that needs toast coming out steadily for an hour or more. The three numbers that decide it are slices per hour, how thick your bread is, and what electrical circuit you have.
We carry both kinds in our commercial toasters, and every figure below comes from those product pages.
The pop-up toasters we carry
- Prepline PT-4S: 4 slots, each 1.5 inches wide, rated for up to 225 slices per hour. Adjustable browning, two removable crumb trays, stainless steel body. It is 12.5 inches long and 7.5 inches deep and runs on 120V, 15 amps, 1800 W with a NEMA 5-15P plug.
- Waring WCT702: 2 slots, each 1 3/8 inches wide, with defrost, reheat and cancel buttons and a pull-out crumb tray. 120V with a NEMA 5-15P plug.
- Waring WCT708 and WCT704: 4 slot and 2 slot versions with 1 3/8 inch slots and self-centering racks. The 4 slot WCT708 is rated for up to 225 slices per hour and measures 10.8 x 12.5 x 7.4 inches. Both run on 120V.
Pop-up toasters are small and plug into a standard outlet. The trade-off is that someone has to load each batch, watch it and pull it, and the slot width limits what fits. Texas toast and bagel halves go in a 1.5 inch slot; thicker items may not.
The conveyor toasters we carry
- Cookline CT2: up to 350 slices per hour through a 3 inch opening, which takes bagels and buns. Belt speed sets the color, and it can discharge to the front or the rear. Its page asks you to confirm the voltage and plug with us before ordering.
- Hatco TQ3-10: 420 slices per hour through a 2 inch opening, on a 10.4 inch belt. It can toast one side or both sides of the bread and has a power-save mode. It runs on 120V, 14.8 amps, 1,780 W with a NEMA 5-15P plug, measures about 14.5 x 21.2 x 16.2 inches and weighs 43 lbs.
- Waring CTS1000 conveyor toaster: 450 slices per hour on 120V or 1,000 slices per hour on 208V, both with a 2 inch opening and a 10 inch belt, and a 5 minute heat-up.
With a conveyor, staff feed bread in and toast drops out the other end at the color set by the belt speed. Nobody has to stand over it, which is why buffets and busy sandwich lines use them. It takes more counter space and, for the highest output, a 208V circuit.
Side by side
- Output: up to 225 slices per hour for the 4 slot pop-up models; 350 to 1,000 for the conveyors.
- Thickness: slot widths of 1 3/8 to 1.5 inches; conveyor openings of 2 to 3 inches.
- Footprint: the PT-4S is 12.5 x 7.5 inches; the TQ3-10 is about 14.5 x 21.2 inches.
- Power: all 120V except the 1,000 slice per hour CTS model, which needs 208V.
- Labor: pop-up needs an operator for every batch; a conveyor needs someone to feed and collect.
- Bread types: a conveyor with a 3 inch opening handles split bagels and buns; slots suit sliced bread and thick toast.
Which one for which kitchen
- Cafe or diner toasting to order: a 4 slot pop-up such as the PT-4S or WCT708.
- Small office pantry or low volume counter: a 2 slot pop-up such as the WCT702 or WCT704.
- Bagel shop or burger line toasting buns: a conveyor with a wide opening, such as the CT2 with its 3 inch opening.
- Hotel breakfast or buffet: the TQ3-10 on a standard 120V outlet, or the 450 slice CTS model on 120V.
- Large cafeteria or banquet breakfast with a 208V circuit available: the 1,000 slice CTS model.
Plan the circuit before you order
The PT-4S page states that at 15 amps it should have its own circuit, and that two toasters, or a toaster and a coffee maker, on one circuit will trip the breaker. The TQ3-10 draws 14.8 amps, so plan it the same way. The 1,000 slice CTS model needs a 208V supply. Have an electrician confirm what your outlets can carry before the toaster arrives.
Mistakes to avoid
- Choosing by slot count alone when the real limit is slices per hour at your busiest half hour.
- Buying 1 3/8 inch slots for a menu built on thick bread or whole bagels.
- Sharing one circuit between the toaster and other countertop equipment.
- Skipping the crumb tray. The PT-4S page says to empty it every day.
What to buy
- Pop-up: the Prepline PT-4S 4 slice toaster or the WCT708 and WCT704 slot toasters.
- Conveyor, 120V: the Hatco TQ3-10 or the Cookline CT2.
- Conveyor, highest volume: the Waring CTS1000, listed with the rest of our commercial toasters.
Freight to the 48 contiguous states is included in the price. Toasters are powered equipment with a 7 day return window, and lease-to-own financing is offered on some models, with the estimated monthly payment shown on the product page.