The Hidden Costs of Delivery Marketplaces (And How to Avoid Them)
Discover the real costs of using Glovo, Deliveroo, and Just Eat for your restaurant. Learn how commissions, fees, and data loss eat into your profits — and what alternatives exist.
When a delivery marketplace promises to "bring you more customers," it sounds like a no-brainer. More orders, more revenue, more growth. But what they don't tell you is how much of that revenue disappears before it ever reaches your bank account.
For most restaurant owners, delivery marketplaces like Glovo, Deliveroo, and Just Eat have become a necessary evil. But "necessary" is debatable — and "evil" might be closer to the truth than you think.
Let's break down every hidden cost, do the real math, and explore how you can take back control.
The Obvious Cost: Commissions
Every restaurant owner knows about commissions. What many don't realize is just how high they've climbed.
| Platform | Standard Commission | With Promotions | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glovo | 25–30% | 30–35% | Up to 35% |
| Deliveroo | 25–35% | 30–40% | Up to 40% |
| Just Eat | 14–25% | 20–30% | Up to 30% |
| Direct ordering (Sigital) | 0% | 0% | 0% |
These percentages apply to the total order value, including VAT in many cases. On a €25 order through Deliveroo at 30%, you're handing over €7.50 — before you've paid for ingredients, staff, packaging, or rent.
The Margin Killer
The average restaurant operates on 5–15% net profit margins. When a marketplace takes 25–35%, you're often losing money on every delivery order — or breaking even at best.
The Not-So-Obvious Costs
Commissions are just the beginning. Here's what else you're paying for — sometimes without even realizing it.
1. Promotional Fees and Forced Discounts
Marketplaces regularly push restaurants to participate in promotions: "20% off for new customers," "Free delivery weekend," "Buy one get one free." These promotions are funded partly or entirely by the restaurant.
- Glovo: Frequently runs "Super Promo" campaigns. Restaurants opting in absorb 10–20% additional discount costs.
- Deliveroo: "Marketer Plus" packages can cost €200–500/month for better visibility.
- Just Eat: Sponsored listings cost extra, and promotional discounts come out of restaurant margins.
If you don't participate, your listing gets buried. If you do, your margins shrink even further.
2. Menu Price Inflation Pressure
Many restaurants raise their delivery prices by 15–30% to compensate for commissions. Customers notice. They compare your delivery price to your dine-in price, and trust erodes. Some platforms even penalize restaurants for pricing significantly above dine-in menus.
3. Data You'll Never Own
This is the cost that doesn't show up on any invoice — but it might be the most expensive of all.
When a customer orders through Glovo, who owns that customer relationship? Glovo does. You don't get:
- Customer email addresses
- Order history analytics
- The ability to send promotions
- Insight into what drives repeat orders
You're essentially renting customers, paying per transaction, forever. With direct ordering, every customer becomes your customer.
4. Brand Dilution
On a marketplace, your restaurant is one of hundreds. Your carefully crafted brand identity gets squeezed into a standardized card with a photo and a star rating. The customer's experience is "ordering from Deliveroo," not "ordering from your restaurant."
5. Review Dependency
Your reputation on these platforms depends on reviews you can't fully control. A late delivery (the rider's fault) becomes a 1-star review on your listing. Platform algorithms then push you lower in search results, creating a vicious cycle.
The Real Math: A Case Study
Let's follow a typical month for a mid-sized pizzeria doing 300 delivery orders.
| Metric | Via Marketplace | Via Direct Ordering |
|---|---|---|
| Average order value | €28 | €28 |
| Monthly orders | 300 | 300 |
| Gross revenue | €8,400 | €8,400 |
| Commission (30%) | -€2,520 | €0 |
| Promo contributions | -€420 | €0 |
| Packaging (marketplace-branded) | -€150 | -€120 |
| Sponsored listing fees | -€200 | €0 |
| Your own delivery costs | €0 | -€600 |
| Platform/tech fee | €0 | -€49 |
| Net revenue | €5,110 | €7,631 |
| Difference | — | +€2,521/month |
That's over €30,000 per year in savings — even after accounting for your own delivery costs and a direct ordering platform subscription.
But What About Discovery?
The main argument for marketplaces is customer acquisition. That's valid — for your first few months. But paying 30% commission on every order from a repeat customer who already knows you? That's just a tax on loyalty.
The Hidden Cost Most Restaurants Ignore: Opportunity Cost
Every euro spent on marketplace commissions is a euro you can't invest in:
- Your own marketing (Google Ads, Instagram, flyers)
- Better ingredients to differentiate your menu
- Staff bonuses to reduce turnover
- Technology that puts you in control
Restaurants that redirect even half their marketplace commission budget into direct acquisition consistently see better long-term results.
How to Reduce Your Marketplace Dependency
You don't have to quit marketplaces cold turkey. Here's a practical transition strategy:
Phase 1: Set Up Direct Ordering (Week 1–2)
Get a branded ordering page live on your own website. Solutions like Sigital let you do this without development costs — you get a professional ordering system integrated with your site in days.
Phase 2: Convert Marketplace Customers (Month 1–3)
Include a flyer in every marketplace order: "Order directly from us next time and get 10% off." This costs you 10% once versus 30% forever.
Phase 3: Invest in Direct Acquisition (Ongoing)
Use the customer data you're now collecting to run targeted campaigns:
- Email marketing to past customers
- Google Ads for "[your cuisine] delivery near me"
- Instagram promotions with direct ordering links
- Loyalty programs that reward direct orders
Phase 4: Optimize Your Mix (Month 6+)
Keep marketplaces for discovery, but aim to convert at least 50% of your delivery orders to direct channels within 6 months. Some restaurants achieve 70%+ within a year.
The Flyer Trick That Works
The most effective conversion tool is embarrassingly simple: a small card in every delivery bag saying "Order direct at [yoursite.com] — save 10% on your next order." Conversion rates of 15–25% are common.
What a Direct Ordering Strategy Looks Like
A well-executed direct ordering setup includes:
- Your own branded website with online ordering built in
- A menu management system you control
- Customer database with order history
- Automated marketing (order confirmations, follow-ups, promotions)
- Analytics showing what sells, when, and to whom
- Loyalty features that reward repeat customers
This isn't about building expensive custom software. Platforms like Sigital provide all of this out of the box, specifically designed for restaurants.
The Bottom Line
Delivery marketplaces aren't inherently bad. They serve a purpose for discovery and initial customer acquisition. But treating them as your primary sales channel is a strategic mistake that costs the average restaurant €20,000–40,000 per year in commissions, fees, and lost customer data.
The restaurants that thrive in 2026 are the ones that use marketplaces tactically while building their own direct channels. They own their customer relationships, control their brand, and keep their margins intact.
The question isn't whether you can afford to invest in direct ordering. It's whether you can afford not to.
Ready to stop paying 30% commission on every order? Discover how Sigital helps restaurants build their own direct ordering channel — with zero commissions and full control over your customer data.
