How Food Delivery Works in 2026 — The Full Guide for Restaurants and Customers

Food delivery is a three-sided marketplace: customers who want a meal, restaurants who want more orders, and couriers who want flexible work. A platform like GeraEats connects the three and handles everything in between — payment, tracking, support, and dispute resolution. This guide covers both sides of the transaction: what customers actually pay and why, and how restaurants sign up, price their menus, and make food delivery work as a channel.

Jump straight to the section you need: For Customers · For Restaurants.

Part 1 — For Customers: How to Order and What It Costs

Step by step

1. Open the app or website and enter your delivery address. The platform shows only restaurants that can reach you.
2. Browse by cuisine, rating, or delivery time. Filters for dietary needs (vegan, halal, gluten-free) narrow the list.
3. Add items to your cart and pick any modifications (extra sauce, no onion, cooked medium).
4. Confirm delivery address and payment method. Most platforms save these for faster reordering.
5. Submit the order. The restaurant receives it instantly and confirms within a few minutes.
6. Track the order in real time — you see when the kitchen starts cooking, when the courier picks it up, and when they are approaching your address.
7. Receive and rate. Most platforms ask for a quick rating of the food and the courier.

What you actually pay

A typical food delivery receipt has five parts:

• Food subtotal. The menu price of the items you ordered. On delivery platforms, this is often slightly higher than the in-restaurant price to offset commission.
• Delivery fee. Pays the courier. Ranges from $1–$8 depending on distance, demand, and weather. Some platforms offer free delivery above a minimum order.
• Service fee. Platform margin. Usually 10–20% of the food subtotal.
• Small order fee. Charged when the order total is below a threshold (typically $10–$15) to cover courier cost.
• Tip. Optional but expected in many markets; 10–20% is typical.

For a $20 food order, the full doorstep price is often $26–$32.

Is it worth it?

Financially, cooking at home almost always wins. Food delivery is worth paying for when you are buying time, convenience, or access — a late-night work session, a house full of guests, a first time trying a distant restaurant. Treat delivery as a paid service, not a grocery replacement, and the value calculation becomes clear.

Part 2 — For Restaurants: How to Start a Food Delivery Channel

Do you need a separate delivery channel?

Most independent restaurants add delivery because their customers expect it. Delivery platforms reach customers who would never walk past the restaurant, and they handle the logistics — routing, payments, support — that a small restaurant cannot afford to build itself. The cost is commission, typically 15–30% per order.

Signing up on GeraEats

1. Create a restaurant account. Start at geraeats.com/for-restaurants.
2. Submit documents. Business registration, food safety certificate, owner ID, bank account details. Requirements vary by country.
3. Upload your menu. Item names, descriptions, prices, photos. Good photos increase orders significantly.
4. Set your opening hours and delivery zone. The zone determines which customers see you.
5. Verification call. A short onboarding conversation with the GeraEats team to confirm details and help you launch.
6. Go live. Typical time from sign-up to first order: 3–7 days.

Commission and pricing

Commission on food delivery platforms typically ranges from 15% to 30% per order, depending on the tier. Lower tiers often mean the restaurant handles its own delivery (pickup-only or self-delivery), while higher tiers include full courier service, in-app promotion, and customer support.

A practical pricing approach: set menu prices on the platform 10–15% higher than your in-restaurant prices. This offsets most of the commission without making your offering uncompetitive — customers understand that delivery costs money.

What to expect in the first 30 days

• Week 1: low order volume — customers need to discover you. Use launch promotions to build initial reviews.
• Week 2–3: volume grows as your restaurant appears in more search results. Reviews start to matter — respond to every review, positive or negative.
• Week 4: regular orders stabilise. This is when you can judge whether the commission is sustainable and whether your menu and packaging are working.

What makes a restaurant succeed on delivery platforms

1. Photos of every item. Items with photos get ordered 2–3× more than items without.
2. Tight menu. 15–30 items sell better than 60. Decision fatigue kills delivery conversion.
3. Packaging that travels. Food that looks great in-restaurant but arrives soggy loses repeat customers.
4. Fast confirmation. Accept orders within 1–2 minutes. Slow confirmation pushes customers to competitors next time.
5. Respond to reviews. Customers read how you handle complaints. Calm, specific replies convert browsers into orderers.

Frequently Asked Questions