What you actually net,
per delivery order.
Most operators we work with under-model the cost of delivery — the platform commission is the headline number, but packaging and restaurant-funded discounts often turn a healthy-looking dish into a wash. Move the sliders to model your menu.
Listed price the customer sees on Zomato / Swiggy
Raw material cost per portion (food cost line)
Containers, lids, cutlery, tape, bag — per order
Zomato / Swiggy take. Typically 22–28% in India in 2026.
Restaurant-funded discount on menu price (excludes platform-funded)
What you actually net
Menu price minus your 10% discount
24% of the menu price goes to the DSP
Direct cost to fulfil the order
30.9% margin on the menu price
Same dish dine-in nets 70.0% margin (no platform cut, no packaging)
Healthy
Delivery is contributing real margin. Variance comes mostly from order mix and ingredient inflation — keep an eye on the food-cost slider above 35%.
Delivery margin sits 39.1 pp below dine-in for the same dish.
The number that matters isn’t commission. It’s the gap.
The interesting line on the calculator isn’t “Restaurant net.” It’s the gap between delivery net and dine-in net for the same dish. That gap is what your in-store customers are quietly subsidising every time they walk in.
For most QSR and casual menus we model, the gap sits at 12–22 percentage points. That’s the cost of being on the platform — not the commission line, the gap. It’s also the budget you have to play with on direct-ordering investments before they break even.
The other dial worth watching: the discount you fund yourself. A 10% restaurant-funded discount on a typical 24% commission dish doesn’t just cost 10% — it compounds with the platform take and quietly halves the net on a dish that already wasn’t making much.
Want help building this into your real ops?
Restronaut builds custom digital systems for F&B operators. Direct ordering, integrations, real margin reporting — built by people who’ve spent 20 years in kitchens.