Ever wondered why your delivery sales look great but your bank account doesn't reflect it? Delivery platforms eat up 15-30% of every order, yet most restaurant owners don't properly account for these costs in their annual planning. The result? You think you're making money while you're actually bleeding cash.
What exactly are delivery platform costs?
Delivery platforms like Thuisbezorgd and Uber Eats hit you with multiple charges on every single order. Here's what you're really paying:
- Commission: 15-30% of the order value
- Payment fees: 2-4% extra for online payment
- Marketing fees: additional costs for promotion
- Packaging costs: boxes, bags, stickers
⚠️ Watch out:
Commission gets calculated on the order value including VAT, but you figure your profit excluding VAT. This makes the real hit much worse than it appears.
Calculate your real platform costs per order
You need to stack up every single cost and convert them to a percentage of your actual net revenue. Don't skip anything.
💡 Example:
Order of €32.00 (incl. 9% VAT):
- Order value excl. VAT: €29.36
- Platform commission (25%): €8.00
- Payment fees (3%): €0.96
- Packaging: €1.20
Total platform costs: €10.16 on €29.36 = 34.6%
Factor this into your annual budget
Once you've nailed down what each order actually costs, you can project this across your expected delivery revenue for the entire year. From tracking this across dozens of restaurants, the numbers often shock owners who thought they were profitable.
Formula: Expected delivery revenue × Platform costs % = Total platform costs per year
💡 Example annual calculation:
Expected delivery revenue: €180,000 per year
- Platform costs 34.6%: €62,280
- This is €5,190 per month
- Or €173 per day (at 6 working days)
So you need to earn an extra €173 every day just to cover the platform costs.
Compare with your current margin
To figure out if delivery actually makes sense, stack the platform costs against your normal margin on dine-in sales.
If your standard net margin runs 12%, but platform costs hit 35%, you're losing 23% on every delivery order. Unless you bump your prices accordingly.
⚠️ Watch out:
Most restaurants bump their delivery prices by 10-15% to offset platform costs. Calculate if that's actually enough for your specific situation.
Plan your cashflow
Platforms typically pay out weekly, but you're covering costs immediately. This creates a cashflow gap that can crush you, especially during those first few months.
- Week 1: you're paying for ingredients and labor but haven't received a dime yet
- Week 2: you get paid for week 1, but you're covering week 2's costs
- You've always got 1 week of revenue stuck 'in transit'
💡 Cashflow example:
With €3,000 delivery revenue per week you've got:
- €3,000 always floating between you and your account
- Platform costs (35%): €1,050 per week gone immediately
- Net receipt: €1,950 per week
Your cashflow takes a €3,000 hit compared to running without platforms.
How do you calculate the impact of platform costs on your annual budget?
Gather all platform costs per order
Add up: commission percentage, payment fees, marketing fees and packaging costs. Calculate this per average order to get your total cost percentage.
Estimate your expected delivery revenue for the year
Look at your current delivery figures and growth plans. Calculate conservatively - it's better to underestimate than to be disappointed.
Calculate total platform costs per year
Multiply your expected delivery revenue by your platform costs percentage. Divide by 12 for monthly costs and by the number of working days for daily costs.
Compare with your normal profit margin
Check whether your platform costs are higher than your normal net margin. If so, you need to raise your delivery prices or accept that delivery is marketing, not profit.
Plan your cashflow impact
Calculate how much revenue is always 'in transit' due to payment delays. This amount is not available for daily expenses.
✨ Pro tip
Track your platform costs separately for each service over 90 days - rates often differ by 3-8% between platforms. Focus your marketing budget on the cheapest platform to maximize your actual profit per order.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
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Frequently asked questions
Why are platform costs higher than I thought?
Because commission gets calculated on the price including VAT, but you figure your profit excluding VAT. Plus, most owners only count commission and forget about payment fees and packaging costs.
Should I raise my delivery prices to cover platform costs?
That depends on your competition and what customers will accept. Many restaurants bump delivery prices by 10-20% to offset costs. Test different price points to see what works in your market.
How often should I recalculate my platform costs?
Check this every quarter at minimum. Platforms change their rates regularly and your order volume shifts, which affects your average costs per order.
Can I negotiate better rates with delivery platforms?
If you're doing serious volume (usually €50,000+ per year per platform), you might have some negotiating power. Smaller operations typically have to accept standard rates.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
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