How to Build a Food Delivery App? [Updated Guide]

Over a few years, the food delivery segment is expanding, and by 2029, the industry will likely grab $165 billion in revenue. The competition will surge for a long time because of the growth of quick commerce brands and on-premise consumption. 

Every month, numerous food delivery apps are launched in the market and vanish, except for those that have aimed to resolve chief challenges of consumers, like long delivery times, no estimated delivery time, etc. 

One top food delivery app, Foodpanda, a German-based mobile food delivery marketplace, stole the show and opted for a widely known Dijkstra algorithm that finds the shortest path from source to destination in the graph.

In 2023, the company experienced a 9% bump in revenue, reaching 10.5 billion euros. 

Following this approach to emerge with something valuable and unique per the customers’ expectations, you should further focus on the food delivery app development trend. 

Where to start? No worries! You are on the right page; in this blog post, we will explain in detail why to build a food delivery app like Uber Eats, the benefits to know, the steps to develop, the revenue model to choose, the cost to create, and more. 

Let’s get the ball rolling!

What Are the Food Delivery Apps?

Food delivery apps are mobile applications that allow people to use their smartphones or other devices to order food online from local restaurants. Once they place the order, the food is delivered to their doorstep! This means you can save time going to a restaurant and getting the desired food. 

These apps make ordering food easy and convenient. They usually have menus from multiple restaurants, so you can browse numerous options before placing an order. You can also pay online for your food through the app, which makes the whole process even more seamless.

The best part about food delivery apps is that you can track your order in real-time, so you know exactly when your food will arrive. These apps often have other features, like user reviews and ratings, special deals and discounts, and the ability to save your favorite orders or restaurants for future use.

What Is Food Delivery App Development?

Food delivery app development is the process of creating a food delivery application that includes careful planning and consideration of essential features, functionality, and the latest technology and trends. 

Are you devising to build a food delivery app to expand your food business and increase your brand recognition? Connect with a food app development company and get guidance and essential resources for a smooth development process and seamless product run.

Why Invest in a Food Delivery App Development?

Can food delivery apps be profitable? It’s a general question that might be hitting your mind. Here, we will help with an ultimate answer to this. 

While opting for the convenient and quickest ways to get food delivered at home while lounging on your couch, you can anticipate the never-falling boom of food delivery apps is not going to stop now. 

Let’s explore some facts and figures and know what they forecast about the food delivery market:

• Per Statista, by 2028, the number of users in the meal delivery market is expected to reach 2.5 billion users. 
• Countries like the US dominate the global online food delivery market with a more extensive consumer base and expected delivery infrastructure. 
• By 2028, the segment is predicted to showcase a CAGR of about 10.06%, leading to an elevated market volume of $1.79tn. 
• The market size of global online food delivery will likely hit a CAGR of about 10.3% in the forecast period of 2023 to 2030, which was valued at $221.65 in 2022. 

The statistics depict the future of the food delivery app market as bright and shining with time. So, by investing in food delivery application development, you can grab your profit share and lead the industry. 

Benefits Of Developing a Food Delivery App – From a Business Perspective

How to make a food delivery app? Business owners looking to create a food delivery app should know how they would benefit. 

Here, we will go through the top advantages businesses can reap:

1. Improved Operational Efficiency

Restaurants that usually get overwhelmed with food orders find it challenging to manage, which impacts other business processes. 

An on-demand food delivery app development can help with streamlined order management by automating order transmission to the kitchen directly. 

2. Increased Customer Experience

Customers always cherish services that provide them ease, comfort, and satisfaction in meeting their requirements.

Such apps can help food delivery businesses ease their consumers with quick and quality meal delivery services that boost their experience and make them come repeatedly. 

3. Increased Sales

Physical restaurants, cuisines, and other eateries cover local customers, which limits sales and, thereby, revenue. 

Creating a food delivery mobile app helps businesses reach a wider audience, improves brand loyalty, and boosts sales. 

4. Increased Visibility

Every offline business venture is reached by local or nearby customers only. This means it limits the business visibility among localists. 

But with the meal delivery app development, one can connect with online customers wherever they are, at any time, increasing the visibility of their businesses. 

5. Streamlined Operations

Running restaurants following customary ways can make business process management hectic, be it order processing, assigning, scheduling, delivery management, or more. 

Choosing online food delivery app development like postmates can help businesses manage seamless operations by automating the jobs. Besides, making things well-managed saves time and effort for other valuable business jobs. 

Types Of Food Delivery Apps You Can Develop

Based on the trending food delivery startups, some major types of food delivery apps are in demand. Here, we will talk about a few with an idea of their working to help you make the right decision of building one for your business. 

1. Online Food Delivery App

The food delivery platform that drives more orders to their cuisines and restaurants in the form of home delivery and takeaway is a food delivery app. Using the fleet of their hired drivers, the restaurants use their food order and delivery apps for successful meal deliveries. The detailed work will be described later in the blog. 

Working of an Online Food Delivery App

The customers explore the listed food on the apps and order per their choice. After the order placement, the restaurant sends an order confirmation notification to the customer. Ahead, while the order is being processed, the restaurant notifies the delivery network about the food status. When the order is ready, the nearest food delivery personnel picks it up and delivers it to the predefined location. 

Examples: Postmate, DoorDash, and Grubhub

2. Campus Food Ordering App 

Such a food delivery mobile app facilitates staff, students, and visitors of a particular campus to order food from campus eateries. Such apps help food management brands and franchisees regulate their digital experience and connect directly with customers.

Working of Campus Food Ordering App

All-in-one campus meal delivery solution empowers students within the campus of college, school, or other educational institutions.

First, the students order food from the campus food delivery app and the notification is sent to campus restaurants. They fulfill the order and further, the campus-based delivery agents pick and deliver the food to students anywhere within the campus. 

Examples: Zingo: Food Delivery, GrubHub Campus Dining, and Boost.

3. Intercity Food Delivery App

Acting as an intermediary between restaurants and customers, an intercity food delivery app allows you to order food from different cities and get it in yours. Yes, with such sort of apps, we can avail of intercity food delivery. So, no more craving for the food from another city, when you can get it in your place. Improved food storage and packaging following the cold chain mechanism may add up to the cost but are the most preferred ways to keep and deliver food with freshness intact. It maintains food at a certain temperature retaining the moisture that’s responsible for the unharmed food taste.

Working of an Intercity Food Delivery App

Using the app, the user orders the food from different cities, regardless of the location. The customers pay more than the actual price, obviously an extra amount for the extra comfort, and get the order delivered to their city. It may take a few days, but the food that’s served is of top quality with a well-maintained taste.  

Examples: JustMyRoots, and Tastes2Plate

4. Travel Food Delivery App 

Such an app is the ultimate solution for ordering tasty food during train journeys. Using this app, you can order food while on the train and get the delivery to your train compartment. 

Working of Travel Food Delivery App

On the app, the users search for restaurants, check the food menu, and place the order. The restaurants accept the orders, prepare them, and notify the courier partner who picks them up and delivers them to the customer right in his train compartment. 

Examples: IRCTC eCatering, RailRestro, Eatigo, and 

How Does a Food Delivery Mobile App Work?

The use of trending technologies strengthens food delivery apps. The seamless working of such apps lies in the algorithms they use. 

Regarding food delivery apps, the algorithms opt for the best possible options that can match customers’ food delivery needs. Let’s check each separately:

1. Personalization

Considering the user’s past orders, locations, and preferences, the personalization algorithm of the app showcases the most relevant options. 

2. Distance

Using the Dijkstra algorithm, most food delivery apps find the closest route between the restaurants and customers to promise the shortest delivery times and increased convenience. 

3. Real-Time Data

Using the real-time data of restaurants, the app assumes their order volumes and if they can deliver orders within the prescribed delivery time. Ahead, the app lowers the ranking of such eateries in the search results, allowing other restaurants to take the orders. 

4. Popularity

The popularity algorithm chooses the restaurants with the highest ratings and gives them greater visibility on the application, improving the popularity factor.

Food Delivery Business Models to Choose

Choosing the best and most suitable business model for your food delivery business is essential for ultimate success. 

Let’s review the top food delivery models you can pick for your business.

1. Aggregate-Based Model 

Usually opted by varied aggregators, this business model includes three key players: 

• Customers
• Restaurants
• Delivery Network (optional)

Working

The platform connects the customers looking to order food and the restaurants providing food delivery services, acting as an intermediary. Ahead, customers browse restaurants and food and place orders using the platform. Then, they pay online, and the platform sends the orders to the restaurant. Then, the restaurant prepares the food and either uses its delivery network for order delivery or delivers itself. 

Revenue Streams

• Delivery Fees
• Subscription Services
• Commissions

Examples: User Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub.

2. Dedicated Model

In this model, a single eatery or restaurant operates its food delivery service, and only two players participate:

• Customers
• Restaurants

Working

Customers use the food delivery app to place their orders directly to the restaurant. The restaurant is responsible for preparing the food, ensuring its quality, and delivering it to its customers. 

3. Cloud Kitchen

Also known as a ghost kitchen or virtual kitchen, a cloud kitchen is a model that prepares food for takeout or delivery. 

Working

Cloud kitchens provide no facility for dine-in that receive online orders from food aggregator platforms. 

Multiple virtual brands can operate single cloud kitchens under different names and menus, meeting diverse customer choices and maximizing kitchen usage. 

Revenue Streams

• Delivery Fees
• Franchise Fees
• Food and Beverage Sales
• Subscription Services
• Commission Model

4. Food Chain Stores Model

Also acknowledged as the Vertically Integrated Model, the Food Chain Stores Model is a multi-store food business structure where a brand regulates the complete supply chain of its products, from production to distribution and, finally, sale to customers. 

Working

The company may own a manufacturing unit or contract with independent farmers. It takes care of the processing and packaging of finished food. Ahead, owing to a vast distribution network, the company delivers the food to retail stores where the consumers buy it. 

Examples: Subway, McDonald’s, and KFC. 

Steps to Develop a Food Delivery App

You can grab a huge market share and boost your business’s revenue by choosing to develop a food delivery app like Postmate or Doordash. 

Follow the below steps to develop your app:

1. Market Research

The first step to building a food delivery app is conducting market research in which you understand your target audience and the top apps that are ruling. Also, aim at the issues their customers are facing, focusing on which you can appear with a unique product in the market. 

2. Choose a Suitable Business Model

Based on your app’s objective, pick a business model (explained above) and start with the food delivery app development services. 

Select Features and Functionalities to Include: Now, choose the features and functionalities you want to incorporate in your app, making it valuable and letting it attain the pre-decided goals. 

Pick Revenue Models: Make your app earn profit by picking the revenue models that suit your business objectives and target audience. 

3. Choose a reliable Mobile App Development Company

You may be tech-savvy and hold the caliber to develop a food delivery app yourself. But, doing this while running a business would be quite challenging. So, hire a reliable mobile app development company with an applauding portfolio to complete your app development project. 

4. Design the App

Aiming at essential designing factors, like visual aesthetics, seamless navigation, user-friendliness, and accessibility, create engaging UI/UX design for your food delivery app. 

5. Develop the App

Now, perform coding per the plan and make your app a reality, including decided features and with expected quality. 

6. Test the App

Now, as your app is developed, it’s time to test it, locate the bugs, errors, or issues, and fix them. 

7. Deploy the App

Now, deploy the app to the app stores and make it available for the end users. 

8. Ongoing Maintenance and Support

The online meal delivery app development is not enough to thrive in the market; constant support and maintenance are necessary. It takes care of regular upgrades, maintenance, and making the app match dynamic market trends. 

Potential Challenges of Developing a Food Delivery App with Solutions

While developing a food delivery app, you may get flooded with varied challenges. Here, we will talk about some solutions for your ease. 

Challenge 1: Increasing Competition

With the emerging new players, the food delivery market is becoming more competitive, making it challenging for food businesses to thrive. 

Solution:

You can aim at your niche market, like particular dietary needs, delivery times, or cuisines. For that, implement innovative features and functionalities and stay ahead of the curve with improved user experience and robust brand identity. 

Challenge 2: Logistics and Delivery Management

Businesses can find it complex to manage large restaurant networks efficiently and delivery drivers that can make timely deliveries complex. 

Solution: 

Investment in robust logistics tools and technologies, partnering with reliable delivery partners, and offering flexible delivery modes can help with the best quality and speedy food delivery. 

Challenge 3: User Acquisition and Retention

In this crowded market, attracting and retaining users can be expensive and tricky. 

Solution: 

Opt for effective marketing strategies, providing promotional offers, incentives, and excellent customer services for constant improvement.

Challenge 4: Shortest Delivery and Time Estimates

Obviously, your app should offer convenience to users with the fastest delivery and accurate time estimates. Because of the growing on-road traffic, giving time estimates to customers and delivering orders quickly becomes challenging. 

Solution: 

Like other top food delivery apps, you can opt for the Dijkstra algorithm. Also known as a single-source shortest-path algorithm, Dijkstra helps find the shortest route to the delivery location. Also, it offers service time and high-precision delivery estimates. 

Challenge 5: Payment Processing and Security

Adhering to the relevant regulations while ensuring reliable and secure payment processing is crucial. 

Solution: 

Partnering with a trusted payment gateway, seamless implementation of robust security measures, and maintaining transparency about data privacy and security practices can help. 

Must-Have Features To Include In The Food Delivery App

After knowing the challenges and solutions to overcome, let’s proceed with selecting essential features and functionalities that you should include in your food delivery app development solution. 

We will segregate each feature and functionality per the panels/users of the app. 

1. Customer App

2. Delivery Agent App

3. Restaurant Panel

4. Admin Dashboard

Advanced Features To Include In The Food Delivery App

Besides general features, the inclusion of some advanced features will enhance the customer experience, making your app more valuable. 

1. Floating Window

When placing orders, consumers usually close the app window to switch to other jobs on their digital devices. They must regularly open and close their food delivery app’s window to check the order status. This can be annoying while they are into something more important. Here, integrating the Floating Windows displays can improve customer experience by displaying a floating message on their device holding the tracking of their order. 

2. Personalize Recommendations

Customers always crave to feel more valuable, and personalization is better for them. By analyzing their past orders and other relevant details, you can better understand their favorite cuisine, the price range they look for, and their preferences and customize their feeds and interface, which in turn increases retention, improves brand reputation, and boosts revenue. 

3. Coupons for Delayed Delivery 

Be it a token of appreciation or a heartfelt apology for delayed delivery, many food delivery apps provide special discounts, offers, and coupons to their consumers that free up word of mouth, raise brand awareness, and drive new customers. 

Advancements in Food Delivery Landscape 

Food delivery businesses are not going to be dependent on labor anymore. They must match the latest trends and make online food delivery reliable and quick. 

1. Drone Delivery

Imagine a drone flying to your home to deliver food and other essentials. Yes, it’s possible, and in fact, in operations by various global brands. 

Drone delivery is acknowledged as a fantastic way to deliver food in less time by avoiding getting stuck in heavy traffic. Firms can opt for this food delivery trend, grow faster, and stay ahead of the pack. 

Example: Flytrax

2. AI and ML Integration 

Are you wondering how AI and ML can be used in food delivery apps? 

AI and ML integration in food delivery apps address various issues businesses find challenging. 

Benefits of Integrating AI and ML in Food Delivery Apps

• Streamline Operations
• Personalized Recommendations
• Improve Customer Experience
• Order Processing
• Food Safety

Example: Grubhub (to offer a seamless experience for restaurants and guests) and UberEats (To improve dish quality and restaurant recommendations). 

3. Sustainability Initiatives 

Today, people prefer brands that perform expectedly while aiming for sustainability. 

You can consider eco-friendly packaging solutions for your food delivery app. Like, reusable bags, bottles, composable containers, and more can promote sustainability objectives. Besides, supporting carbon footprint evaluation and food waste management by taking waste food and disposing of it safely can encourage environment-friendly choices. 

Example: Green Chef

4. Curbside Pickup/Takeaway

One more food delivery trend, curbside pickup is a growing offering by food delivery apps that allow consumers to pick up their orders from specific restaurants to avoid waiting for delays and get fast, safe, and convenient food delivery. 

Example: Postmates

5. Point-of-Sale 

Revolutionizing food ordering via POS can help streamline off-premise orders and let the staff quickly aim at food preparation and meeting deliveries. 

Examples: Grubhub, Doordash, and Uber Eats

Top Players In The Food Market

Owing to the increasing popularity of metropolitan culture, on-demand food delivery apps have become mainstream. Currently, the food delivery industry is thickly populated by some prominent names that allow customers to order their favorite food anytime and anywhere. Some of the leading food delivery mobile apps that are leading the chart so far include:

1. Postmates

“Postmates was launched in 2011; with its 24/7 availability, customers can access their essentials anytime, anywhere. After merging with UberEats in 2020 and officially announcing the merger in June 2021, it expanded beyond food to offer groceries, flowers, and thoughtful gifts. Postmates is a reliable platform connecting customers, independent workers, and store personnel, ensuring high-quality delivery services without compromises. It’s among the top quick delivery apps, providing exceptional service to meet everyone’s needs.

Unique Selling Proposition of Postmates

• A broad range of businesses, including grocery stores, restaurants, convenience stores, etc. 
• Aims at on-demand delivery. 

2. Grubhub

Grubhub is a prominent player in the food delivery market. With its user-friendly interface and extensive restaurant network, Grubhub offers a seamless experience for users to explore and order from a wide variety of local eateries. What sets Grubhub apart is its commitment to customer satisfaction, ensuring timely deliveries and personalized recommendations, making it a go-to choice for food enthusiasts seeking convenience and quality.

Unique Selling Proposition of Grubhub

• Lists a large network of restaurants with varied culinary options.
• Features exclusive menu items and deals.
• Conduct rewards program.

3. DoorDash

DoorDash is an on-demand food delivery platform connecting customers with local restaurants and drivers. Founded in 2013, it offers a mobile app and website for browsing menus, placing orders, and tracking deliveries. With a wide range of restaurant partnerships, DoorDash delivers fresh meals to customers’ doorsteps. It operates in multiple countries and has expanded its services to include DashPass and partnerships with grocery and convenience stores. One of the standout features of DoorDash is its ability to schedule deliveries, you have the convenience of ordering in advance and choosing a specific delivery time that works best for you

Unique Selling Proposition of DoorDash

• DashPass Subscription
• Competitive Pricing
• Prioritizes driver well-being

4. Just Eat

One of the leading global online food delivery marketplaces, Just Eat is connecting consumers with 699,000+ partners in 20 countries. It uses a hybrid model that ensures its consumers have various options (partners) to order from. Consumers order via their mobile app and website. Their chief revenue stream comes from charging an amount from their partners, and others come from online payment services, promoted placement, and sales of merchandise and packaging. 

Unique Selling Proposition of Just Eat

• Popular in European markets
• Target independent restaurants
• Aim at Sustainability

5. Deliveroo

Deliveroo runs a hyperlocal three-sided marketplace that connects local restaurants and grocers, consumers, and riders to meet orders in under 30 minutes. By providing reliable and fast delivery that consumers can easily track online, Deliveroo has expanded rapidly. Now, the company operates in 10 markets globally. 

Unique Selling Proposition of Deliveroo

• Aim at Technological Innovation
• Collaboration with High-End Restaurants and Chefs
• Fast Delivery Times

Tech Stack for a Food Delivery App Development

A combination of required tools and technologies lets the food delivery app perform effectively. 

Let’s check out which tech stack to pick:

Food Delivery App Developer Team Structure

To develop a feature-rich and flawless mobile app, one needs to deploy an experienced development team that is experienced in the industry domain. It is always better to hire a food delivery app development company because an app development agency has all the needed resources under one roof along with a sense of responsibility. Given below is the team structure you need to create a mobile app development team.

• Android App Developers
• iOS Mobile App Developer
• The Project Manager
• A good business analysis
• Front-end developers
• Back-end developers
• Quality analysis professionals

Things To Consider When Creating A Food Delivery App

Running a business demands following defined standards and regulations that can maintain your success and support infinite growth. For that, consider the below aspects while developing a food delivery app. 

1. Delivery Regulations

Specific regulations relevant to food delivery services are essential to aim for while you run your business online, like license requirements, delivery restrictions, and food safety standards. 

2. Regulatory Compliance

You should ensure your food delivery app complies with the local laws and regulations related to the market, such as online transactions, data protection, and others. 

3. Payment Regulations

Payment processing regulations and standards should be prioritized to protect user information and financial transactions via your app. 

4. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Ensure you draft transparent and complete privacy policies and terms of service documents highlighting user responsibilities, rights, and data handling practices. 

5. Contracts and Agreements 

Sign agreements and contracts with your partner restaurants, users, and delivery partners to define the terms of responsibilities, liabilities, service, and dispute resolution procedures. 

6. Data Privacy

User data security is a major concern in every type of business. Be sure you implement measures to safeguard your user data and privacy per the data protection laws, like GDPR. 

App Monetization Opportunities for food delivery app

There are several ways in which you can monetize your on-demand food delivery app. Some of the most popular ways are listed below:

1. Surge Charge

This is another popular revenue source, wherein the app incriminates a surged price when the demand is too high. The food menu on the app gets limited and a peak price is charged when the customer places an order. UberEats is one food delivery app that largely relies on this form of revenue stream.

Recently, Swiggy is also experimenting with this new model, where an additional delivery charge of INR 20 is added to every order placed on festivals, holidays, and rainy days when there is less delivery staff available.

2. Delivery Fee

A lot of restaurants do not offer delivery services. These restaurants are most likely to pay for the delivery charges in return for your food delivery services. This is a popular monetization strategy that has benefited many businesses.

Zomato launched its food delivery services in 2015. In a brief spell, food deliveries account for 30% of Zomato’s overall revenue, making it the second-biggest source of income for the organization.

3. Advertising 

Advertisements are the best and fail-proof method of generating enormous sums of revenue. You can feature a few restaurants in the top section of the app or run a short video for them on the home screen for the target audience and for all this, you can charge a specific amount of money.

This is the greatest source of income for the popular Zomato. It generates as much as 62% of its revenue via advertisements.

4. Premium Listing 

One more way to earn money for your food delivery app is a premium listing, also known as a featured listing, where you can charge an amount from restaurants to feature their listing and get more users engagement.  

5. Commission Fee 

In this model, the food delivery app owner charges a specific amount of commission for every order placed through the app. This is a popular source of revenue for many companies as it helps in generating high income.

This type of revenue model is followed by Foodpanda. It charges a pre-decided commission from the restaurants for every order placed through its mobile app or website.

How Much Does It Cost To Develop A Food Delivery App?

An average food delivery app development cost starts from $20,000 to $2,00,000. Well, to know the exact cost, you need to hire a reliable mobile app development company with a team of experts and the required experience. 

Additionally, while setting your budget aside for app development, consider the factors that impact the cost of development. Let’s review some below:

• Development Platform: You have varied options to choose for which platform you want to build your food delivery app. You can opt for one first and later build another platform to increase your customer base. 
• Geographical Locations of Developers: The regions of the developers you hire for your food ordering app development project decide the price factor. The hourly charges vary with the region; they differ in the US, North America, Eastern Europe, and other places. 
• Expertise and Skills: The more talented professionals you hire, the higher the charges will be. You need to decide which level of expertise will suit your project and budget. 
• Complexity of the App: With the increasing level of the app’s complexity, the cost to develop an app also increases. You can start with a simple app, considering your budget, and with time, you can upgrade it.
• Features and Functionalities to Include: Including features and functionalities also affects the cost of your project. Starting with the standards, they may be better despite exceeding your budget by incorporating advanced ones. 

How Can EmizenTech Help You?

As you are all set for custom food delivery application development, you need perfect guidance and consultation before you start your project. A trusted and leading app development company with an outstanding portfolio and ratings can help you with a successful app development project.

You don’t have to get trapped in the crowd of varied firms when you just need to turn your head to EmizenTech, a reliable meal delivery app development company. Why hire? Here are some points that may avoid your misconception.

Key Highlights of Emizentech

• Clutch Awarded and Recognized
• Competitive Pricing
• 24*7 Assistance
• Engaging Portfolio
• Years of Experience
• Certified Professionals and Developers
• Ongoing Support and Maintenance Service
• On-time and Expected Project Delivery, etc. 

Conclusion

The decision to develop a food delivery app can be profitable for your business, expanding your services, increasing customer engagement, and boosting revenue and brand recognition, which can be beneficial in the long run. While building an app, consider the key things, choose a suitable revenue model, include must-have features, and keep track of factors affecting the budget (mentioned above). 

Just being tech-savvy is not enough to build an app; you need to conduct other valuable business operations that can also be accomplished from your end only. But, for food delivery app development, you can connect with a mobile app development company, sit back, relax, and witness your project becoming successful.