warebyapps like hotplate: where else home bakers take orders
hotplate is good at drops: a preorder window, a text to your followers, pickup at a set time. here are the other apps home bakers and pop-ups use, what each costs, and which ones help new customers find you.
in this post
1what hotplate does2quick picks3the alternatives4fees on a $35 order5what happened to castiron6cottage food rules7questions8sourceshotplate costs sellers nothing a month, charges customers 5% plus 55¢ an order, and is built for selling to a following you already have. the closest alternative that also brings new customers is wareby: it lists your shop for shoppers within 25 miles, with pickup windows and no fee on top for customers. square online has a free plan with pickup and delivery. bakesy ($9.99 a month) is built for custom cake orders. and castiron, another baker favorite, was sold in 2024 and no longer runs as a platform for bakers.
what does hotplate do well?
hotplate is built around drops. you post a menu with a preorder window, your followers get a text, and they pick up in the windows you set. there’s no monthly fee, payouts are instant or next-day, and you can download your customer list. thousands of chefs and bakers use it.
so why look elsewhere? two reasons come up most. hotplate says it’s “not a consumer marketplace,” so it doesn’t bring you new customers. and by default, your customers pay a fee on every order: 5% of the subtotal plus 55¢, or $2.30 on a $35 order.
which hotplate alternative fits you?
| if you… | start with | why |
|---|---|---|
| want new customers nearby to find you | wareby | shoppers within 25 miles, pickup windows, no fee for customers |
| also sell in person with a square reader | square online | a free plan, with pickup and delivery |
| take custom cake and cookie orders | bakesy | a shop and order form built for custom bakers |
| want a full website of your own | shopify | your own brand and checkout, with local pickup built in |
| are just starting, with a few orders a week | instagram plus a payment link | free, though tracking orders by hand gets messy fast |
the best hotplate alternatives, compared
ordered from most like hotplate to least. we make wareby, so weigh our take on it with that in mind.
wareby
best for: home bakers and cooks who want new local customers, not just followers
- what it costs
- free to open. 10% + 3% + 30¢ a sale. no fee for customers
- who finds you
- shoppers within 25 miles, plus your own link
wareby vs hotplatewhat’s good- pickup windows with a cap on orders in each, and your own delivery area
- built for cottage food: a real person checks your food permit
- preorders, subscriptions and texts to past customers on loved
watch out for- you pay more per order than on hotplate, and your customers pay less
- no text to all your followers on the free plan
square online
best for: market vendors and cafes who already use a square card reader
- what it costs
- free plan: 3.3% + 30¢ a sale. plus: $49 a month
- who finds you
- people you send to your site
wareby vs square onlinewhat’s good- a real free plan, with pickup and local delivery
- online and in-person sales in one account
watch out for- the free plan shows square’s branding and can’t use your own domain
- retail preorders need plus, at $49 a month
bakesy
best for: custom cake and cookie orders
- what it costs
- $9.99 a month, or $17.99 for premium. 30 days free
- what it is
- a shop and order form for custom bakers
what’s good- made for custom orders: your bakesy shop works as your website and order form
watch out for- a monthly fee after the free month
shopify
best for: sellers with their own audience who want full control
- what it costs
- $39 a month ($29 billed yearly) + 2.9% + 30¢ a sale
- who finds you
- people you send to your site
wareby vs shopifywhat’s good- your own brand, design and web address
- low per-sale fees as you grow
- local pickup, local delivery and in-person selling included
watch out for- you bring every visitor
- a monthly fee from the start, plus paid themes and apps if you want them
instagram plus a payment link
best for: testing the waters with a few orders a week
- what it costs
- free to post. card processing on the payment link, like stripe’s 2.9% + 30¢
- who finds you
- your followers
what’s good- free, and where many customers already look
watch out for- orders live in your messages, so it’s easy to lose track
- checkout inside instagram ended in the us in 2025
what does each one cost on a $35 order?
| on a $35 order | customer pays | you keep | monthly |
|---|---|---|---|
| hotplate | $37.30 | $33.68 | $0 |
| wareby, free plan | $35.00 | $30.15 | $0 |
| wareby, founding shops | $35.00 | $31.55 | $0 |
| square online, free plan | $35.00 | $33.54 | $0 |
| shopify basic | $35.00 | $33.68 | $39 |
before sales tax and tips. we figured hotplate’s card processing on the $35 itself. bakesy’s card processing depends on how you take payment, so it isn’t in the table.
on wareby’s loved plan, orders through your own shop link have no sale fee, just card processing: your customer pays $35 and you keep $33.65. founding shops (the first 10 near you) get loved free for a year.
what happened to castiron?
castiron was an online shop builder that a lot of home bakers used. in late 2024 it was acquired by t.d. jakes enterprises, and castiron’s old web address no longer runs a platform for bakers. if you were on castiron, any of the apps above can take its place. a wareby shop takes about 10 minutes to set up.
which apps can a cottage food baker use?
any app that takes the order and lets you hand it over yourself. in minnesota, the person who made the food or their employee has to be there for the sale or delivery, so courier delivery is out for home bakers on every app, and shipping cottage food made for people isn’t allowed until august 1, 2027. other states differ, so check yours. the minnesota rule, explained.
questions people ask
what is hotplate?
hotplate is an online ordering app for chefs, pop-ups and home bakers, built around drops: menus with a preorder window, a text to followers, and pickup windows. it has no monthly fee. by default customers pay 5% of the subtotal plus 55¢, and sellers pay card processing.
what is the best alternative to hotplate?
it depends on what you want. wareby if you want new customers nearby to find you, with no fee for your customers. square online if you also sell with a square reader. bakesy for custom cake orders. shopify for a full website of your own.
is hotplate free?
there’s no monthly fee for sellers. sellers pay 2.9% + 30¢ card processing per order, and customers pay 5% + 55¢ by default.
what happened to castiron?
castiron, a shop builder popular with home bakers, was acquired by t.d. jakes enterprises in late 2024, and castiron’s old web address no longer runs a platform for bakers.
can i use hotplate and wareby together?
yes. use hotplate for drops to your followers, and wareby so neighbors who don’t know you yet can find you. wareby doesn’t ask you to sell only on wareby.
sources
- hotplate: pricing
- hotplate help center: understanding hotplate’s pricing
- hotplate blog: what hotplate does
- hotplate help center: can i offer delivery?
- square: online store plans
- bakesy: pricing
- bakesy
- shopify: pricing
- shopify help center: local pickup
- afrotech: t.d. jakes enterprises acquires castiron (2024)
- meta for developers: graph api v26.0 changelog (shops checkout sunset)
- stripe: pricing
- minnesota department of agriculture: cottage food producer registration
- minnesota department of agriculture: cottage food law guidance
- wareby: seller plans
we checked every fee and fact about other companies on october 12, 2026, on their own pages. fees change, so check theirs before you decide. spot something out of date? email hello@shopwareby.com and we’ll fix it.
hotplate, square online, bakesy, shopify, instagram and castiron are trademarks of their owners. wareby isn’t affiliated with any of them, and we make wareby, so weigh our opinions with that in mind.
we started tandoco, a small bakery in minneapolis, and sold under a blue tent at farmers markets before we built wareby. our story
