Pizza website: what it needs, how to lay out the menu, and ordering without the app fees

A pizza website needs four things on the first screen of a phone: whether you're open now, an Order button, your phone number and your address. Under that comes the menu as text, with every size and its price side by side, and toppings priced in one clear line, so nobody has to call to ask what a large with two toppings costs. Everything else, from the story of your oven to the photos, comes after.

This guide is for independent pizzerias, slice shops and pizza trucks, not chains. Below: what the site is for, how to lay out a pizza menu that works on a phone, how to take orders without paying a cut of each one, what each ordering route costs on a real order, delivery and party orders, Google, a checklist, and what it all costs.

1. What is a pizza website for?

Pizza is bought fast. Most people who open a pizzeria's site already want pizza tonight and are choosing where from, often on a phone, often after finding you on Google Maps. In one survey Toast reported, 32% of diners said they always check a restaurant's website before they go and 51% said they sometimes do [1]. They come with a handful of questions:

• Are you open right now, and until when? Late-night hours matter more for pizza than for most food.
• What does it cost? A large cheese, a large with two toppings, a whole pie for a party.
• Can I order online for pickup, and how long will it take?
• Do you deliver to me, and what's the fee and the minimum?
• Do you have gluten-free crust, vegan cheese, a by-the-slice counter, a lunch special?

A site that answers those in under a minute gets the order. A site that opens on a slideshow, a PDF menu or an "About our family" page loses it to the app that answers them first.

2. The first screen: open now, order, call, directions

Look at your site on your own phone. Before you scroll, a visitor should see:

1. Your name and the kind of pizza you make ("Detroit-style squares", "New York slices", "wood-fired Neapolitan"), in plain words.
2. "Open now until 11 pm" or "Closed, opens 4 pm", worked out from today's hours, not a full week's table.
3. One big Order for pickup button (and Delivery if you deliver yourself).
4. A Call button that dials when tapped, and Directions that opens the map app.

That's it for the top. One good photo of a real pie of yours can sit behind it. Video headers, rotating banners and pop-ups slow the page on a weak signal and push the Order button down. The galleries of "best pizza websites" are mostly chains with large design budgets [2] [3]; what you can copy from them is the order button at the top, not the animation.

For the full list of what any restaurant site should show, see what to put on a restaurant website.

3. How to lay out a pizza menu online

A pizza menu is harder to put online than most because the same item comes in several sizes and takes extra toppings. Paper menus solve this with a grid. Online, keep the grid and make it text, not a photo of the paper menu. Text reads on any phone without pinching, it can be changed in a minute when cheese goes up, and Google can read it (how Google reads your menu).

Sizes in one table

Put the sizes once at the top of the pizza section, then give each pie its prices across the row. An example layout, with made-up prices:

Say the size in inches and, if it helps, how many slices or people ("Large 16", 8 slices, feeds 3"). People ordering for a group want that number more than any photo.

Toppings in one line

List toppings once, grouped, with one price per size: "Extra toppings: $1.50 small, $2 medium, $2.50 large." Split them into regular and premium if you charge differently for meats or fresh mozzarella. Don't repeat the topping list under every pie.

Half-and-half and build your own

If you do half-and-half, say how it's priced ("each half priced at half the topping price" or "priced as the higher-priced half"). If your online ordering can't do halves, say "Half-and-half: call us" next to the menu so the order isn't lost. A "build your own" pie is a base price per size plus the topping line above.

Crusts, sauces, and diets

Crust choices (thin, thick, stuffed, gluten-free) and their upcharge go next to the sizes, not at the bottom. If you offer a gluten-free crust but bake it in the same oven, say so plainly; people with celiac disease need to know about shared surfaces. Mark vegan cheese and vegetarian pies with a word, not just a colored icon. The US Food and Drug Administration lists the major food allergens, including milk, wheat, soy and sesame [4]; naming the ones in each pie saves calls.

Everything else

Wings, garlic knots, salads, calzones, drinks and desserts each get a short section with their prices and sizes. Put the sections in the order people add them: pizza, sides, drinks, dessert.

4. Specials and deals without clutter

Pizza runs on deals: a lunch slice and drink, two large on Tuesdays, a family bundle. Show them, but don't bury the menu under them:

• One line under the first screen: "Tuesday: 2 large cheese $30". Change it when the deal changes.
• Put bundles in the menu as real items with a price ("Family deal: large 2-topping, garlic knots, 2-liter, $32") so they can be ordered online.
• Give each deal its days and hours. A lunch deal shown at 9 pm causes arguments at the counter.
• Take expired deals off the same day. An old coupon on your site is a promise.

5. Online ordering for a pizzeria: the routes and what they cost

There are four common ways to take pizza orders online. What matters is what each costs on a real order. A worked example, not your numbers: a $28 pickup order (a large two-topping and garlic knots).

On 400 such orders a month, a 25% delivery commission is $2,800 a month; card processing on your own site is about $444; pay at pickup costs nothing online. That's why many pizzerias keep the apps for new customers and delivery, and send regulars to their own Order button. The fuller comparison of services, with monthly prices, is in commission-free online ordering, and the full app rates are in DoorDash's commission for restaurants and Uber Eats commission.

What pizza ordering needs to handle

• Sizes and toppings as choices, priced per size, not a separate item for every combination.
• Half-and-half, or a note telling people to call for it.
• Ready times that change with how busy you are. Friday at 7 pm is not Tuesday at 4 pm; quote 40 minutes instead of 20 rather than miss it.
• Orders that reach you loudly: a phone ring or a kitchen printer. An email during the rush is a missed order.
• A way to pause online orders when the oven is full.

The setup, with five test orders before you tell anyone, is in how to set up online ordering for your restaurant.

6. Delivery: zone, fee, minimum

If you deliver with your own drivers, the site must say three things before someone builds an order:

• Where: a list of neighborhoods or ZIP codes, or "within 3 miles". A map image alone doesn't help someone checking their street.
• The fee and the minimum: "$3 delivery, $15 minimum".
• The usual time: "about 45 minutes, longer on Friday nights".

If you only deliver through the apps, say that ("Delivery through DoorDash and Uber Eats") with links, and keep pickup on your own page. A customer who walks five minutes for pickup saves the app's fees and you save the commission.

7. Party, catering and big orders

Ten pies for a birthday or an office lunch is the best order you'll get all week. Give it its own short section:

• How much notice you need ("24 hours for 6+ pies").
• A sample party order with a price ("10 large pizzas, mixed toppings, from $220").
• How to order: a phone number, a form, or the online order with a later pickup time.
• Whether you want a deposit. For big orders a phone call to confirm is enough for most shops.

8. Photos: your pizza, not stock

Use a few real photos of your own pies, taken in daylight or under your own lights, from straight above or at a low angle so the cheese and crust show. Three honest photos beat thirty stock pictures, and nobody believes a stock pizza. A photo per menu item isn't needed; one per category is plenty. Keep each image small so the page loads fast on a weak signal, and give each a plain description ("pepperoni pizza with cupped pepperoni, 16-inch").

9. Get found: Google and the pizza site

Most people find a local pizzeria through Google Search or Maps, by searching "pizza near me" or "pizza" plus a neighborhood. Your website helps that in three ways:

• Your Google Business Profile links to it, and its Order button points at your own ordering page. Google lets you add your own food ordering link to the profile [9]. Setup is in Google Business Profile for restaurants.
• The page title says what and where: "Tony's Pizza | New York slices in Astoria, open late". Not "Home".
• The menu is text, so Google can match searches like "gluten free pizza" or "white pizza" to your page.

Keep your hours the same on the site, Google and the apps. The plan for search, step by step, is in SEO for a restaurant website.

10. Pizza website templates: what to look for

Templates for pizza sites are everywhere: Wix, Squarespace and the restaurant platforms all have them [2] [10]. Judge one by what it does with your menu, not by its photo:

• Can it show sizes side by side, or does every size become a separate item?
• Does the first screen show open now and an Order button on a phone?
• Can you change a price from your phone in a minute?
• Does its ordering charge a percentage per order, a flat fee, or nothing?
• Does the free plan use your own .com or theirs?

Our sample restaurant sites include a pizza look built around sizes and toppings. For real sites walked through, see restaurant website examples; to compare tools that include ordering, see restaurant website builders with online ordering. Selling cakes and bread too? See what a bakery website needs.

11. What a pizza website costs

From nothing to thousands of dollars a year. A free plan on a menu tool or builder costs $0 with limits; site builders run about $17 to $159 a month on Wix [10]; restaurant platforms with ordering and marketing list $249 to $499 a month, like Owner.com [11]; a freelancer or agency adds a one-time $1,000 to $15,000 or more, by one firm's published ranges [12]. Your own .com costs about $10 to $20 a year. The full table, with what each includes, is in how much a restaurant website costs, and the free routes step by step are in how to make a restaurant website for free.

For most independent pizzerias the costs that matter are the fee per order and the time it takes to keep the menu true. A $0 site that takes 25% of every order is the most expensive option on this list once you're busy.

A pizza website checklist

Open your site on your phone, on mobile data, and check:

1. Name, kind of pizza, open now, Order, Call and Directions, all before scrolling.
2. Every pie shows its price in every size; sizes say inches and slices.
3. Toppings priced once per size; half-and-half explained.
4. Gluten-free and vegan options marked in words, with any shared-oven note.
5. Deals have days and hours, and none has expired.
6. Delivery zone, fee, minimum and usual time, or a clear "pickup only".
7. Party orders: notice needed and a sample price.
8. A test order reaches you loudly, with the phone locked.
9. Hours match Google and the apps, holidays included.
10. Your Google profile's website and Order links point to your own pages.

Common mistakes on pizza websites

• The menu as a photo or PDF. Unreadable on a phone, invisible to Google, and out of date the day prices change.
• An "Order" button that opens a delivery app. Every regular who taps it pays the app's fees and you pay its commission.
• Sizes hidden one tap deep. People compare a medium with a large; show both at once.
• Fixed 20-minute ready times on a Friday. A late pie costs more goodwill than a longer honest quote.
• Old specials. Customers will hold you to them.
• Different prices everywhere. If app prices are higher to cover the commission, say your own prices are lower; don't let the site and Google show different ones by accident.

Questions

What should a pizza website have?

Open now, an Order button, a Call button and directions on the first screen; a text menu with every size priced; toppings priced once; delivery zone and fee if you deliver; party orders; a few real photos; and hours that match Google.

Do I need my own website if I'm on DoorDash or Slice?

The apps bring new customers, but your regulars can order from you directly with no commission if you give them a page to do it. Your own site is also what your Google profile, flyers and pizza boxes point to.

How do I show pizza sizes on my website?

One table: pies down the side, sizes across the top with inches and slices, a price in each cell. Toppings get one line with a price per size.

Can I take pizza orders online for free?

Yes, with limits. Several menu tools take pickup orders free where diners pay at the counter; card payments online cost about 2.9% + 30¢ each [8]. Check for a monthly order cap or a fee per order before you sign up.

What's the best pizza website template?

The one that shows sizes side by side, puts the Order button on the first screen of a phone, and lets you change prices from your phone. Pick it by those, not by its demo photo.

How much does a pizza website cost?

From $0 on a free plan to $249 to $499 a month on restaurant platforms, plus any fee per order. A designer adds $1,000 or more once [11] [12].

If your menu today is a photo or a PDF, you can build your pizza menu site free from a photo of it: sizes and toppings come over as text, pickup orders ring your phone, and diners pay you at the counter. More answers for restaurant owners are in all our guides.

Sources

1. Restaurant reviews and ratings data, Toast, read Nov 3, 2026 (as listed in search; the page blocks direct reading).
2. 20+ best pizza websites and designs, UpMenu, read Nov 3, 2026.
3. Best pizza websites, Owner.com, read Nov 3, 2026.
4. Food allergies, US Food and Drug Administration, read Nov 1, 2026.
5. DoorDash commission rates and pricing, DoorDash, read Oct 23, 2026 (as listed in search).
6. Uber Eats commission for restaurants, our guide with its sources, Nov 2, 2026.
7. Slice chops fees to shops on under-$10 orders, Fast Casual, read Nov 3, 2026 (reported, not Slice's own price list).
8. Stripe pricing, Stripe, read Nov 1, 2026.
9. Food ordering links on your Business Profile, Google Business Profile Help, read Oct 22, 2026.
10. Wix plans, Wix, read Oct 22, 2026.
11. Owner.com pricing, Owner, read Oct 23, 2026.
12. Restaurant website cost breakdown, Appello, read Oct 23, 2026.