Guides
Delivery, meal prep and dark kitchens
Work out what you keep per order after app commission, packaging and promotions, and how many orders a day your delivery kitchen needs to cover its costs.
Read the guide: Delivery-first food business: the cost model
- Delivery-first food business: the cost modelWork out what you keep per order after app commission, packaging and promotions, and how many orders a day your delivery kitchen needs to cover its costs.→
- How to price weekly meal prep plansWork out the cost per box of your weekly meal prep plans by plan size, delivery days and packaging, and how much a subscription discount can really afford.→
- Dark kitchen economics: rent, apps and orders per dayHow to work out a dark kitchen's fixed cost per day, what you keep per order after app commission, and how many orders a day you need to break even.→
- Delivery packaging cost per order: how to work it outWork out what the packaging on each delivery order costs, item by item: containers, dip pots, cups, bag, seal and cutlery, and which items you can trim.→
- Delivery app promotions: do they pay back?How to work out what a delivery app promotion costs you per order, how many extra orders you need to stand still, and when new customers make it pay back.→
- Own delivery or apps: what each order really costsCompare the cost per order of your own driver with a delivery app commission, and find how many deliveries per shift you need before your driver pays.→
- Delivery menu design: dishes that travel and payHow to build a short delivery menu: dishes that arrive in good shape, app prices that cover commission, and combos that lift orders without losing margin.→
- Minimum order and delivery fee: how to set themWork out a minimum order and a delivery fee per zone from what each order costs you, and the order value above which free delivery still leaves you a profit.→
- Frozen meals: costing freezing, storage and packsHow to work out the real cost of each frozen meal: recipe, freezer-safe packaging, freezer electricity and wear, losses, and the cash sitting in the freezer.→
- Virtual brands from one kitchen: the real numbersHow to tell whether a delivery-only virtual brand makes money: which costs are new, which you share with your main brand, and how to split rent and staff.→
What does it really cost you?
Put your recipe into the free calculator: ingredients, packaging, your time and the gas. You get the cost per unit and your margin in two minutes, no account needed.