ezCater fees for restaurants: commission, payment fee and what a catering order really costs
ezCater fees for restaurants come to a 15% commission on marketplace orders. ezCater charges a restaurant a 15% commission on orders that come through its marketplace, plus a payment fee of 2.99%, so a catering order costs about 18% before your food [1] [2]. There is no signup fee and no monthly fee; you pay only when you accept an order [1]. Orders that come through ezOrdering on your own website carry a lower commission than the marketplace rate, which ezCater does not state in the pages we could read [1].
If you would rather take catering orders on a page of your own, you can build a free menu site with pickup ordering from a photo of your menu. Below: every ezCater fee, three catering orders worked out, a month of them, what ezDispatch adds, how it compares with the delivery apps, when it pays, and what to ask before you accept your first order.
ezCater fees: what it charges a restaurant
| Fee | Rate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Signup, monthly or recurring fee | None | You pay when you accept an order [1] |
| Marketplace commission | 15% | On the food subtotal; delivery fees are subject to commission by order source [2] |
| Payment transaction fee | 2.99% | ezCater's example applies it to the meal subtotal, delivery and tax [1] |
| ezOrdering (orders from your own website) | Lower than marketplace | Percentage not stated in the pages we read [1] |
| ezDispatch (delivery by ezCater's couriers) | Reported 10% of food subtotal, $30 minimum | Unconfirmed: we found it in an accounting guide snippet [3] |
Third-party pages disagree. One cites a processing fee of 2.75%, another a commission of 18% to 37%; both conflict with ezCater's own help pages and look out of date [4]. We use ezCater's figures and read them in November 2026. Your agreement is the number that counts, so ask your ezCater contact for the current sheet in writing before you accept an order.
Three catering orders, worked out
Food subtotals only, before delivery fees, tax and tips, and before your own food cost. Commission 15% plus payment 2.99% is 17.99%.
| Food subtotal | Commission (15%) | Payment (2.99%) | ezCater's fees | You keep of the food |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $200 (office lunch for 12) | $30.00 | $5.98 | $35.98 | $164.02 |
| $400 (team meeting for 25) | $60.00 | $11.96 | $71.96 | $328.04 |
| $800 (event for 50) | $120.00 | $23.92 | $143.92 | $656.08 |
| $1,500 (large corporate order) | $225.00 | $44.85 | $269.85 | $1,230.15 |
Delivery fees and tax change the base a little. If the diner pays a delivery fee and it carries commission and payment fees, your fee on each order grows by 17.99% of that delivery fee; check your first statement to see exactly what was charged on what.
A month of ezCater orders
Ten catering orders a month at $400 is $4,000 of food. At 17.99% that is $719.60 a month, or about $8,635 a year. Twenty orders at $400 is $1,439 a month. The fee is a flat share of every order, so it never gets cheaper as you grow; the plan does not give volume pricing in the pages we read.
Now take food and packaging at 35% of the price, which is $140 on a $400 order:
- An ezCater $400 order leaves $400 − $71.96 − $140 = $188.04 before labor and delivery.
- The same order taken direct with pay-at-pickup leaves $400 − $140 = $260, with no fee.
- The same order taken direct and paid by card on your own site at about 2.9% + 30¢ leaves about $248.
The gap is about $72 an order. Whether ezCater is worth that depends on one question: would this customer have found you without it?
Is ezCater worth 15%?
A catering order is big, the customer is a company, and the same company often orders again. That is what ezCater sells: a marketplace built for group orders, with the ordering and the payment handled. Reviewing it honestly means splitting your catering into two kinds of order.
- Orders ezCater brings you. A new office finds you, orders $400 and comes back in two weeks. You paid $72 to meet them. If they stay, the first order is a marketing cost and the second can go direct, if you give them a way.
- Orders you would have had anyway. A regular customer, a church group, a business next door. If they order through ezCater you pay 17.99% for something you did not need help getting.
The test is the same one we use for the delivery apps: look at your first month of ezCater orders and count how many came from names you have never seen. Those are the ones the fee bought. See the DoorDash commission numbers for the comparable question on delivery.
ezDispatch: what delivery adds
ezCater's delivery service is a separate choice. The pricing we found, in an accounting guide snippet, is 10% of the food subtotal with a $30 minimum [3]. Treat that as unconfirmed until your agreement says it. On a $400 order it would be $40, which takes the total ezCater cost to about $112; on a $200 order the $30 minimum is 15% of the food. Compare it with a driver of your own: if your cost per catering run is under $30 to $40, your own van is cheaper, and the customer sees the same hot food. Whatever you choose, make sure the catering price covers the delivery you promised.
ezCater compared with the delivery apps
| Channel | Typical fee on a delivered order | Built for |
|---|---|---|
| ezCater marketplace | 15% + 2.99% payment | Scheduled group orders from offices |
| DoorDash Marketplace | 15% to 30% by plan | Single-person orders, same-day |
| Uber Eats | 20% to 30% by plan | Single-person orders, same-day |
| Grubhub | 15% to 30% plus processing | Single-person orders, same-day |
| Your own page, pay at pickup | $0 per order | Regulars and nearby offices |
The app rates are from each company's page as we read them in early November 2026; see Uber Eats commission and Grubhub commission. On a big order, ezCater's flat 17.99% is in the same range as the lowest app tiers, but you carry a much bigger order, so the dollar fee is larger than on a single lunch. The trade is that a $400 catering order is worth many single-meal deliveries.
How to pay ezCater less
- Put a card in every catering box with a short link to your own catering page and a phone number.
- Offer returning customers a small reason to order direct: a free drink tray at $300, or a fixed delivery fee.
- Ask about ezOrdering and get its commission in writing; it is the lowest-fee way to use their tools [1].
- Price catering so a 17.99% fee still leaves you a profit; do not discount to match the fee on your own page.
- Set a minimum order and a lead time that make each order worth the work.
- Read each statement: confirm what the commission and payment fees were charged on, including delivery and tax.
The same logic applies on every marketplace. Commission-free online ordering compares the ways to take orders yourself, and how to set up online ordering for a restaurant walks through the setup.
Questions to ask before accepting your first order
- What is my exact commission and payment fee, in writing, and on what amounts?
- What is my ezOrdering rate if I link it to my own website?
- Are delivery fees and tax part of the base?
- When am I paid after delivery, and what happens on a cancellation or a complaint?
- Can I contact customers directly, and can I tell them about my own page?
- What does ezDispatch cost per order and what happens if a courier is late?
Questions
How much does ezCater charge restaurants?
A 15% commission on marketplace orders plus a 2.99% payment fee, with no signup or monthly fee [1] [2].
Does ezCater charge a monthly fee?
No. ezCater says there are no signup fees or recurring monthly fees; you pay when you accept an order [1].
Is ezCater cheaper than DoorDash?
About the same as DoorDash's lowest plan on a delivered order (15%), a bit more once you add the payment fee, and well below its higher plans (25% to 30%). It is built for large scheduled orders, not single meals [1] [2].
Can I take catering orders without ezCater?
Yes: a page of your own with a form or pickup ordering and a phone number. Pay-at-pickup costs nothing per order. All our guides are in the guides hub.
What is ezOrdering?
ezCater's tool for taking catering orders on your own website, at a lower commission than the marketplace [1].
Who pays the delivery fee?
Check your agreement: ezCater says delivery fees are subject to commission by the order's source [2]. Ask who sets the fee and what you receive.
Want regulars and nearby offices ordering from you with no commission? Build your menu site free from a photo of your menu; pickup orders ring your phone.
Sources
- Selling fees, ezCater Restaurant Partner Help Center, as shown in search results Nov 15, 2026 (no signup or monthly fee; commission and 2.99% payment fee; ezOrdering lower than marketplace). The page redirects, so we could not open the full text.
- What is the commission / payment breakdown?, ezCater, as shown in search results Nov 15, 2026 (15% marketplace commission; delivery fees subject to commission by order source).
- Accounting Guide 2025, ezCater, as shown in search results Nov 15, 2026 (a delivery fee of 10% of the food subtotal, $30 minimum; not confirmed as ezDispatch).
- ezCater alternatives, Honeycart, as shown in search results Nov 15, 2026 (a competitor; older figures that conflict with ezCater's pages).
Rates change. Confirm on your own ezCater agreement.