“This fee helps us pay our bills to keep Zomato running. To maintain services during festive season, it has increased slightly,” a notification on the app said.
Zomato had first introduced the platform fee in 2023 as a Rs 2 per order flat levy, and has subsequently increased it over time. Its Bengaluru-based rival Swiggy, which was the first to start charging this levy, has also raised the fee over time to Rs 7.
Platform fees are additional charges applied to each food order, separate from goods and services tax, restaurant charges, and delivery fees.
As per people tracking the sector, these platforms deliver 2-2.5 million food delivery orders per day and any increase in platform fee substantially improves take rates for the companies.