Why food delivery apps are struggling?

According to a study of the food delivery app industry in winter 2021 conducted by the University of Oregon and the Oregon Consulting Group, thin margins resulting from the low rates needed to retain customers and the amount needed to pay drivers, combined with high competition across the industry, have resulted in a “ ...



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DoorDash said Thursday that it saw a record number of orders and active users in the fourth quarter as it expanded overseas and gained market share at home. The San Francisco-based delivery company said its monthly active users grew 28% to a record 34 million during the October-December period.

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“Essentially, the reason that DoorDash and Uber Eats have continued to lose money is because they make very little incremental profit when those food orders are placed,” says McCarthy. The delivery apps make money by charging restaurants a commission for each order placed through the app.

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Before the pandemic, Uber had far more rides, and worse margins. Uber has diseconomies of scale: when you lose money on every ride, adding more rides increases your losses, not your profits. Meanwhile, Lyft — Uber's also-ran competitor — saw its margins worsen over the same period.

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Finally, a profit In Q2 2023, Uber's revenue totaled $9.23 billion, up 14% from $8.1 billion a year earlier. As we mentioned above, Uber finally turned an operating profit, reporting $326 million in Q2 compared to an operating loss of $713 million a year earlier.

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While all food delivery apps are more expensive than ordering directly from a restaurant, Uber Eats has the highest mark-up, according to an analysis from financial technology firm Self Financial.

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