As per reports, food delivery giants Zomato and Swiggy have hiked their platform fees in certain markets. Customers in Delhi and Bengaluru will now have to pay a fee of Rs. 6 per order – a 20% hike from the previous fee of Rs. 5. In Mumbai, some Swiggy orders will attract a platform fee of Rs. 7 (it used to be Rs. 5). Zomato first introduced a platform fee of Rs. 2 in August 2023 and since then, it has gradually increased the rate over time. Swiggy has also been charging similar fees.
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People have taken to social media to criticise the platform fee hikes. One of the viral posts creating a lot of buzz online is by Deepak Shenoy, the CEO of a Bengaluru-based company called Capitalmind. Deepak revealed that, in general, he had "massively reduced ordering from Swiggy/Zomato" and would only order once in a while. Recently, when he noticed the increased platform fees, he felt "Happy that I weaned myself off the daily ordering". He also said that the companies "take 30% from restaurants". He shared this post on July 13 and it took X by storm.
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Although he commented on the fee hike, that was apparently not the main reason for the change in his habits. Rather, it was due to health reasons. On July 15, he replied to his original post, stating, "Happy to learn, from media sources, that I have reduced this ordering because of a move of platform fee from Rs. 5 to Rs. 6. Yes, that's what caused it 🙂 I moved for health reasons, to a much more costly alternative, but it's way way healthier."
Happy to learn, from media sources, that I have reduced this ordering because of a move of platform fee from Rs. 5 to Rs. 6. Yes, that's what caused it 🙂
I moved for health reasons, to a much more costly alternative, but it’s way way healthier.— Deepak Shenoy (@deepakshenoy) July 15, 2024
Here is how some X users reacted to his original post:
30% is only for orders. They now take much more because now they pit ads (sponsored listings) and promotions etc which also cost the restaurants or they lose out on a lot of orders.
— Shantanu Goel (@shantanugoel) July 13, 2024
Did a comparison last week.. ordering thro Zomato 350Rs, just walking up to Restaurant and Buying is 275 Rs… Thats the price paid for convenience and not stepping out of the home..
— HsHari (@hshari24) July 13, 2024
30% from restaurants and how can the restaurants maintain quality.
More tasting powder, more adulterated things gets served to customers.— Only Option – Trader (@WithOnlyOption) July 13, 2024
Well not really, the restaurants pass that into the customers by cheekily increasing the price of their dishes by 30%. So the next time a restaurant owner cries about Swiggy taking commission, show them their menu on paper and in the app.
— Purnesh Tripathi (@purneshtripathi) July 13, 2024
The biggest component is packaging charges in online orders.
— Kumaar Appan (@prosper_haven) July 14, 2024
Before this, Zomato had announced an increase in its platform fee in April 2024. Click here to know more.
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