Third-party delivery platforms — the major ones that handle restaurant ordering across the US — charge commission rates between 15% and 30% per order. Sometimes higher when marketing fees and listing boosts are factored in.
For a restaurant doing $10,000 per month in delivery revenue, that is $1,500 to $3,000 disappearing before food cost or labor. For a restaurant doing $30,000 in monthly delivery, the commission bite can exceed $8,000 per month — nearly $100,000 per year.
What commission-based delivery actually costs
The commission percentage is not the only cost. Third-party platforms also:
- Own the customer relationship. When a customer orders through a major delivery app, that customer belongs to the platform — not the restaurant. You do not get their contact information. You cannot market to them directly. You cannot build a relationship that outlasts a promotional discount.
- Control the search ranking. Your restaurant’s visibility on the platform is determined by the platform’s algorithm. Paying for advertising on that same platform — in addition to commissions — is often the only way to maintain visibility as the platform grows and competition increases.
- Set the pricing expectation. When a platform runs promotions or discounts your items to attract customers, you often absorb the cost. Promotional fees are deducted from your payout.
What Fairfield County restaurants are paying
Fairfield County has a dense restaurant market — Stamford, Norwalk, Bridgeport, Greenwich, Westport — with high consumer expectations for delivery speed and quality. Restaurants here compete on food and on the delivery experience simultaneously.
A 25% commission rate on a $50 order means the restaurant receives $37.50 before food cost, packaging, and any other overhead. For many menu items, that math does not work. Restaurants in Fairfield County are increasingly aware of this, but alternatives have historically been limited to major platforms.
The no-commission model
PICKD is a local delivery network serving businesses in Fairfield County, CT. Unlike the major platforms, PICKD does not take a percentage of each order. Businesses pay a flat rate for access to local drivers, real-time tracking, and delivery dispatch — the cost does not grow as order volume grows.
The difference matters at scale. A restaurant doing 500 deliveries per month at a $30 average order value with a 25% commission rate is paying $3,750 per month in commissions. Under a flat-rate model, that number stays predictable regardless of how many orders go out the door.
Real-time tracking, real local drivers
Commission is not the only issue with major delivery platforms. Delivery quality — driver reliability, order accuracy, estimated arrival times — varies significantly on gig economy platforms where drivers are covering multiple platforms simultaneously and optimizing for their own efficiency.
PICKD uses local drivers who are familiar with Fairfield County streets, neighborhoods, and delivery windows. Businesses and customers both get real-time GPS tracking. When there is a problem, you contact a local team — not an offshore support center.
Is this the right model for every restaurant?
A restaurant doing very low delivery volume may not feel the commission pain acutely — the absolute dollar amounts are small. But for any restaurant doing meaningful delivery revenue, the commission math almost always favors a shift to a flat-rate or direct model.
PICKD currently operates in Fairfield County, CT. If your restaurant is in Stamford, Norwalk, Westport, Bridgeport, Greenwich, or the surrounding area, the delivery economics are worth examining.