Grubhub vs DoorDash for restaurants: fees, pickup, plans and which to pick

On delivered orders the two cost nearly the same: both run 15%, 25% and 30% by plan, though Grubhub splits it into a 5%, 15% or 20% marketing commission plus a delivery fee from 10%, and adds 3.05% + $0.30 card processing [1] [2] [3]. They differ on pickup. DoorDash charges 6% on every plan; Grubhub charges its plan's marketing rate, from 5% on Basic up to 20% on All-access [2] [3]. So a restaurant with many pickup orders is usually cheaper on DoorDash, unless it sits on Grubhub's Basic plan.

The cheapest order of all is the one that comes to your own page. If you don't have one, you can build a free menu site with pickup ordering from a photo of your menu, and send regulars there. Below: every fee side by side, one order and one month worked out on each app, pickup, extras, who it suits, and a six-week test.

1. The fees side by side

The processing line matters. DoorDash says its Marketplace commission covers card processing; Grubhub's guides show processing charged on top [2] [3] [4]. That adds about $1.06 to every $25 Grubhub order, and a larger share on small orders: on a $12 order, $0.67, over 5%.

Both apps have older rate tables still online. Some guides quote Grubhub at 15%, 20% and 25% with delivery included [3]; DoorDash's trial and plan lines also vary. Rates here are as read on Nov 9, 2026; confirm them on your own agreement.

2. One $25 order, six ways

Food subtotal $25, before your food cost and tax. Grubhub processing is $1.06.

DoorDash leaves you more on every row. On delivered orders the gap is $1.06, the processing charge. On pickup it is $0.81 on the lowest plan, because Grubhub's 5% plus $1.06 costs more than DoorDash's flat 6%, and $4.56 on the top plan. Full workings for each app are in DoorDash's commission fee for restaurants and Grubhub's commission fee for restaurants.

3. A month on each, worked out

An example, not your numbers: 300 delivered orders at $25, $7,500 in food sales, on the lowest and top plans.

The gap is the card processing. If you deliver yourself on Grubhub's Basic plan, 300 orders cost $375 in marketing commission plus $319 processing, $694 a month, which beats Grubhub with its drivers only if your own driver costs less than the $750 the 10% delivery fee would have been.

Now the pickup month. 300 pickup orders at $25:

This is where the two diverge most: a Plus or All-access restaurant with a large pickup trade pays three to four times DoorDash's rate for the same order. Check what each of your pickup orders was charged on your last statements; the guides we read work from Grubhub's own profit calculator, not a published pickup rate [2] [3].

4. Is the higher plan worth it on either app?

Same maths on both: a higher plan pays only if it brings enough extra orders. With food costing 30% of the price ($7.50 on $25):

The test is the same on both: four normal weeks on the lowest plan, one full month on the higher one with no holiday in it, and compare orders, not sales. Where the extra orders came from matters: a new name is worth more than a regular who moved from your phone line.

5. Pickup and price-matching rules

DoorDash's 6% pickup rate is reported to require pickup menu prices that match your in-store prices [4]. Uber Eats has the same rule at 7%, 10% if not matched [7]. Grubhub's pages we read don't list a price-match rule for pickup. If you mark up delivery prices to cover commission, check each app's rule before you do. How the markup sums work is in does DoorDash mark up prices.

6. Extras that change the comparison

• Tablet. DoorDash's tablet is reported at about $6 a week after a trial [4]. Check what Grubhub charges for hardware on your agreement.
• Ads and offers. Both sell sponsored listings and funded discounts, which come out of your payout. Grubhub mentions a monthly ad credit on some plans [2].
• Refunds and adjustments. Both can charge a diner's complaint back to you. Photograph sealed bags and dispute adjustments in each Merchant Portal.
• Supplemental delivery. If you deliver yourself, Grubhub lets you pass it the orders outside your area and pay its delivery fee only on those [2].
• City caps. New York and San Francisco cap what apps charge restaurants, so the plans there differ from the table [8].

7. Which should you pick?

• Mostly delivery, no strong preference: DoorDash on cost, because the same rate leaves $1.06 more per order. Where you are matters more than a point of commission: ask a few regulars which app they use.
• Mostly pickup: DoorDash at 6%. Grubhub Basic at 5% plus $1.06 processing on $25 still costs a little more.
• You deliver yourself: compare DoorDash self-delivery (15%, worked out here) with Grubhub's marketing rate plus processing.
• Your town leans to one app: that matters more than a point of commission. Search your restaurant type in each app from a customer's phone and see which shows more of your rivals.
• Both? Many independents sit on the lowest plan of each for the new diners they bring, and send everyone else to their own page. Uber Eats is the third; see DoorDash vs Uber Eats.

8. A six-week test

1. Week 0: list your direct, phone and walk-in orders per week, so you know the baseline.
2. Weeks 1 to 2: list on the app you chose, lowest plan, no discounts.
3. Weeks 3 to 4: add the second app on its lowest plan.
4. Weeks 5 to 6: count orders, subtotals, commission and processing from each statement, and the new customers each brought.
5. Keep the app whose orders left more after commission and food, and drop the other if it brought fewer than a few new names a week.
6. Throughout, put a card with a QR code in every bag pointing at your own pickup page.

Questions

Is Grubhub cheaper than DoorDash for restaurants?

Rarely. Delivered orders match on plan rates but Grubhub adds 3.05% + $0.30 processing; on pickup DoorDash is a flat 6%, while Grubhub is 5% to 20% by plan [2] [3] [4].

Which app has more customers?

It varies by city, and we found no reliable public figure per town. Check the apps on a customer's phone and ask regulars which they use.

Can I be on both?

Yes. Neither lists a monthly fee or exclusivity on the plans we read [1] [4]. Be on both only if each adds orders you wouldn't have had.

Do both charge for pickup?

Yes. DoorDash 6%; Grubhub the marketing rate of your plan plus processing [2] [3] [4]. See DoorDash pickup commission.

What do I pay when diners order from my own website?

Card processing only: 2.9% + $0.30 through DoorDash's Online Ordering [5], and Grubhub Direct has no commission with processing on prepaid orders [1]. A page where diners pay at pickup pays nothing online: commission-free online ordering.

Which plan should a new restaurant pick?

The lowest on each. Move up only if a full test month brings the extra orders in the table above. All our restaurant guides are in the guides hub.

Weighing the third app too? Read Grubhub vs Uber Eats for restaurants.

Sources

1. Pricing and fees, Grubhub for Restaurants, read Nov 3, 2026.
2. How much does Grubhub charge restaurants? (2026), Menuline, read Nov 3, 2026 (reports Grubhub's pricing page and calculator).
3. How much does Grubhub charge restaurants?, Restolabs, updated July 27, 2026 (reported: processing, adjustments, older structure).
4. DoorDash commission rates and pricing, DoorDash, read Nov 1, 2026 (as listed in search), with Restolabs on DoorDash for the reported tablet and price-match details.
5. Online Ordering, DoorDash, read Nov 1, 2026 (as listed in search).
6. DoorDash commission and fees, explained, DoorDash, read Nov 1, 2026 (as listed in search).
7. Uber Eats pricing for merchants (US), Uber, read Nov 2, 2026.
8. New York City Council OKs cap on food delivery fees, Transport Topics, 2021.