Benefits of online ordering for restaurants, and the catch in each
Online ordering brings a restaurant more takeout orders, fewer phone calls, fewer wrong orders, orders that come in while you're closed or busy, and a list of the people who order. Most of those benefits come from your own ordering page. On a delivery app you get the new diners, but you pay 15% to 30% of each delivery order for them and you don't get the diner's details.
This guide goes through each benefit with what it's really worth, which kind of ordering gives it, the downsides nobody selling software lists, and how to get the benefits without giving up a share of every order.
Why it matters now: most restaurant visits are off-premises
The National Restaurant Association's off-premises report puts the share of customer traffic that is takeout, drive-thru or delivery at 30% for full-service restaurants in 2024, up from 19% in 2019, and at 83% for limited-service places, up from 76% [1]. Takeout is the most common of the three [1]. Diners who eat your food at home are choosing on a phone, and a phone order is easier to place online than by calling.
The nine benefits, one by one
1. Fewer phone calls during the rush
A phone order takes a staff member off the line or the register for the whole call: greeting, menu questions, the order read back, the card number. When diners order online, they read the menu themselves and the order arrives written down. The phone still rings, but for questions, not for 20 orders in an hour.
What it's worth: an example, not a measurement: 15 phone orders a night at 3 minutes each is 45 minutes of one person's time. Over a month of 26 nights that's about 20 hours.
The catch: someone still has to watch for online orders. A tablet in the back that nobody hears is worse than a phone.
2. Fewer wrong orders
The diner chooses the item, the size and the changes. Nothing is misheard over a fryer. When something is wrong, you can see what they typed.
The catch: a menu online with missing options ("no add-ons", no way to say "no onions") pushes diners into the notes box, and notes get missed. Put the common changes on the menu as choices.
3. Orders while you're closed or slammed
Diners plan lunch at 10 a.m. and dinner on the train home. With scheduled orders they can order for later before you pick up the phone. You get orders spread across the day instead of all at once.
The catch: you need a pause button and a daily limit for nights when the kitchen can't take more. Every good system has one; set it before launch.
4. More orders from people already searching for you
When someone searches your name on Google, your listing can show an Order button. Google lets you choose your own ordering page for it [2]. A diner who was going to call may order on the spot, and one who would have used a delivery app orders from you instead.
The catch: if you don't set it, Google may show a delivery app there, and your regulars pay you through a commission. Our guide to Google Business Profile for restaurants shows where to set the Order button.
5. Your own list of regulars
Your own ordering page collects the diner's name and phone or email. Over a year that becomes a list of the people who like your food. Delivery apps keep that list for themselves.
The catch: a list is only useful if you use it, and only for people who agreed to hear from you. One message for a new dish or a slow Tuesday is plenty.
6. No commission on direct orders
This is the benefit with the most money in it. On a $25 delivery order, DoorDash's plans take 15%, 25% or 30%: $3.75 to $7.50 [3]. On your own page the order costs card processing, about $1.03 at 2.9% + 30ยข [4], or nothing if the diner pays at the counter.
What it's worth: 100 regulars' orders a month moved from a 25% plan to your own page at $25 each is about $625 a month kept.
The catch: only direct orders get this. The app's orders still pay the app. See what each charges in DoorDash's commission fee, Uber Eats commission and Grubhub's fee.
7. Fewer no-shows when diners pay ahead
A phone order for six pizzas that nobody picks up is food in the bin. If diners pay online, they come back for it.
The catch: paying online means card fees on every order. Many small places take pay-at-pickup for normal orders and ask for a card only on large ones.
8. A clearer view of what sells
Online orders come with times, items and totals. After a month you can see your busiest half-hour, the dish nobody orders and the add-on most people take. That helps with prep and pricing; our guide to pricing a menu item shows how to use it.
The catch: it's only the online share. Don't drop a dish that dine-in guests love because it doesn't sell for takeout.
9. Your menu is always up to date
Prices go up, a dish runs out, the specials change. An online menu changes in a minute, and Google can read a menu that's text on a page (see how Google reads your menu). A printed takeout menu on someone's fridge never updates.
The catch: it has to be updated. A wrong price online is a dispute at the counter.
Which benefits come from which kind of ordering
| Benefit | Delivery app | Your own ordering page |
|---|---|---|
| New diners who don't know you | Yes, the main reason to be there | Only from Google and word of mouth |
| Fewer phone calls | Yes | Yes |
| Fewer wrong orders | Yes | Yes |
| Diner's name and contact | No, the app keeps them | Yes |
| Cost on a $25 delivery order | $3.75 to $7.50 commission [3] | $0 to about $1.03, plus delivery if you offer it |
| Your prices, your rules | Their fees on top, their refund rules | Yes |
| Delivery drivers included | Yes | Only with your own staff or a paid courier |
The pattern most independent places land on: stay on one or two apps to be found, and send everyone who already knows you to your own page. Every bag from the app can carry a card with your own ordering link.
The downsides of online ordering
- Fees. Commission on apps, card processing on most direct systems, and sometimes a monthly plan. Count all three before you sign.
- Kitchen pressure. Orders can arrive faster than the line can cook. Without a prep time and a pause, quality slips for dine-in guests too.
- Packaging cost. Takeout needs containers, bags and labels. Price them into takeout dishes.
- A device to watch. Tablet, printer or phone: someone has to see the order.
- Menu upkeep. Prices, sold-out items and hours must match reality, or diners arrive to closed doors.
- Lock-in. Some systems keep your diner list or your ordering link when you leave. Ask before you print anything.
Who should wait
Online ordering isn't for every place on day one. Hold off if:
- Your food doesn't travel well and you don't want it judged at home (some dishes are ruined in 15 minutes in a box).
- You're full every night with dine-in and the kitchen can't take more.
- Nobody can watch for orders during service.
Even then, a menu online with your hours and phone number does a lot of the work. Our guide on whether restaurants need websites covers the smallest version.
How to get the benefits without a commission
- Put your menu online as text, with prices, on your own page.
- Add pickup ordering to that page. Free systems exist; our list of free online ordering systems for restaurants sets out the limits of each.
- Point Google's Order button to your page [2].
- Tell regulars: a sign at the counter, a card in app bags, your Instagram bio.
- Keep the apps for new diners if they pay for themselves; drop the ones that don't.
Step by step, with the settings that keep the kitchen sane, is in how to set up online ordering for a restaurant. Full Room does steps 1 and 2 for you: build your menu site free from a photo of your menu, with pickup orders that ring your phone.
Your first month: what to watch
| Week | Watch | Change if |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Every order arrives and is seen within 2 minutes | Missed orders: louder alert, or orders by text or call |
| 2 | Ready times kept | Late: raise prep time by 5 minutes |
| 3 | Share of takeout that came online vs by phone | Few online: link isn't visible; add it to Google and the counter |
| 4 | Notes diners typed, items sold out | Same note often: make it a menu choice |
Questions
Does online ordering increase restaurant sales?
It can add orders from people who'd rather not call and from times you'd miss on the phone. Vendors publish big percentages, mostly without a source; measure your own takeout before and after for a month.
What is the main benefit of online ordering for a small restaurant?
Fewer phone calls during the rush and no commission on orders from people who already know you, when the orders come through your own page.
Is online ordering worth it for a small restaurant?
Usually yes for takeout and pickup, if it costs little per order and someone can watch for orders. It's less clear for a full dining room with food that travels badly.
What are the disadvantages of online ordering?
Fees, kitchen pressure at peak times, packaging cost, a device to watch, menu upkeep, and lock-in with some systems.
Is it better to use DoorDash or your own online ordering?
The app finds new diners at 15% to 30% a delivery order [3]; your own page serves people who know you for little or nothing per order. Most places use both.
Ready to try it on your own menu? Build your menu site free, with pickup orders and no fee per order. More answers are in all our guides.
Sources
- Report: takeout, drive-thru and delivery are more popular than ever, National Restaurant Association, 2025; figures from its Off-Premises Restaurant Trends report (Circana CREST data), as reported in the report PDF, read Nov 3, 2026.
- Manage online ordering options, Google Business Profile Help, read Nov 1, 2026.
- DoorDash commission rates and pricing, DoorDash, read Oct 23, 2026 (as listed in search).
- Stripe pricing, Stripe, read Oct 22, 2026.