The online takeaway food market has witnessed significant growth over the past few years owing to the convenience and variety it offers to time-starved consumers. Online takeaway food platforms allow users to conveniently browse menus, view items, customize orders and make payments online or through mobile apps for quick doorstep delivery. This saves users the effort of physically visiting restaurants or takeaway joints. The convenience and ease of ordering online has made online food delivery or takeaway an attractive option especially for nuclear families and working professionals with fast-paced lifestyles.
The online takeaway food market is estimated to be valued at USD 20.32 Bn in 2024 and is expected to reach USD 51.17 Bn by 2031, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.1% from 2024 to 2031.
Online Takeaway Food Market Demand are gaining popularity among consumers of all age groups in both developing and developed countries. Key players operating in the online takeaway food market are Zomato, Swiggy, Delivery Hero, Takeaway.com, Just Eat Holding, Foodpanda, and Domino's Pizza.
Key Takeaways
Key players: The major players like Zomato, Swiggy and Delivery Hero are investing heavily in expanding their fleet size, technology, infrastructure and brand building to gain market share. The entry of global players like UberEats and DoorDash has further intensified competition in the market.
Key opportunities: Growing preferences for convenience foods due to changing lifestyles and increase in number of nuclear families present significant growth opportunities for players. Growing number of millennial and Gen Z consumers who are early technology adopters also bodes well for online food ordering platforms.
Global expansion: Leading players are focusing on global expansion plans and have been making strategic acquisitions to expand footprint and customer base internationally. Zomato recently acquired operations of UberEats in India to consolidate its leadership position.
Market Drivers
Rise in burden of chronic diseases like obesity, heart diseases and diabetes have increased health awareness. This has boosted demand for healthy, balanced takeaway meal options offered by online food platforms.
Growing geriatric (aging) population prone to mobility issues has also boosted convenience demand for online food ordering and delivery services. Online platforms cater to their needs through easy to use interfaces and doorstep delivery of meals.
Market Restrain
Concerns about quality and hygiene of food delivered after a long period. Issues like spillage, wrong orders and packaging failures act as a deterrent. Players need to focus on superior customer experience to address these concerns.
High operating costs associated with delivery fleet maintenance, fuel costs, customer acquisition commissions eat into margins for companies. Sustainable profitability remains a challenge especially in highly competitive markets.
Segment Analysis
The online takeaway food market can be segmented based on type, platform, and cuisine. By type, the sub segment of platform-to-consumer is dominating as it allows customers to directly order food online from various restaurants and cloud kitchens through their websites and mobile apps. The platform-to-consumer model is dominating as it provides enhanced convenience to customers in browsing menus, adding items to carts and making payments online.
By platform, the mobile applications sub segment dominates the market as high mobile penetration allows consumers to conveniently browse menus and place food orders using both Android and iOS apps. Many restaurants and cloud kitchens are also specifically launching native apps to provide optimized ordering experience to customers on mobile devices.
By cuisine, the Asian/Chinese food segment dominates as these cuisines are very popular among online food orders. The variety of Asian dishes available along with affordable prices drive its large customer base in the online takeaway food market.
Global Analysis
The North America region presently dominates the global online takeaway food market and is expected to continue its dominance during the forecast years. This is due to high urbanization, busy lifestyles, and rising number of nuclear families in the region which drives the demand for online food delivery services for convenience.
The Asia Pacific region is projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period owing to rising disposable incomes, growing young population, and proliferation of smartphone users in densely populated countries of China and India. This will boost the adoption of online platforms for ordering meals and snacks from nearby restaurants and cloud kitchens.