Delivery app commissions: what you pay and how to grow direct orders

Delivery apps bring customers who might not have known you. But every order pays a commission. Understanding how much you pay, and how many of those orders could come to you directly, is one of the most useful calculations a restaurant can make.

What the apps charge

Commissions depend on the app, the plan and your contract. As a reference, DoorDash’s published US restaurant plans range roughly from 15% to 30% per delivery order depending on the plan, with a lower commission on pickup orders. Always check your contract and statements: that’s the only number that matters for your business.

Run the numbers with your own data

With our delivery commission calculator you enter your monthly orders, average ticket and commission, and see what you pay per month and per year, and how much you’d save if some of those customers ordered directly.

It’s not about leaving the apps

For many restaurants the apps are a valuable discovery channel. The goal is that customers who already know you, or who find you on Google, have an easy way to order directly.

How to encourage direct orders without the headache

1. A simple ordering system of your own. Many point-of-sale systems include online ordering. Working well on a phone matters more than having lots of features.
2. Link it on Google. On your profile, set your link as the preferred ordering option.
3. Say it in the restaurant and on the bag. A QR code with “Order direct here” on takeout packaging.
4. Offer something the app doesn’t, if your margin allows: a side, faster pickup or your special dish for direct orders only.
5. Measure. Count every month how many orders come direct and how many through apps.

Beware of promises

Nobody can guarantee how many customers will switch to direct ordering. Test with small numbers and review results every month.

At LocalDual we check that your ordering link works on a phone and is the one showing on Google. Start with the free review.