The best Uber Eats alternatives for restaurants are DoorDash and Grubhub if you want another marketplace (both start below Uber Eats' 20%), and direct ordering on your own website if you want to stop paying commission: Menuline ($29 or $99 a month), Square Online or DoorDash Online Ordering (both from $0). For delivery without the marketplace, Uber Direct sends Uber couriers to your own orders from $7.99 a delivery.
| Alternative | Type | What the restaurant pays | Delivery | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DoorDash | Marketplace | 15%, 25% or 30% delivery; 6% pickup | Dashers | Lower entry rate, similar reach |
| Grubhub | Marketplace | 5%, 15% or 20% + 10% if it delivers + 3.05% + $0.30 | Grubhub drivers or yours | Self-delivery restaurants |
| Menuline | Direct ordering | $29 or $99/mo, 0% commission (diners pay 5%) | Pickup today; Uber drivers coming soon | Moving regulars off the apps |
| Square Online | Direct ordering | $0, $49 or $149/mo + 2.9% to 3.3% + 30¢ | Couriers via Square partners | Square POS restaurants |
| DoorDash Online Ordering | Direct ordering | $0 Starter + 3.3% + $0.30 | Dashers | Restaurants staying on DoorDash |
| Uber Webshop | Direct ordering | $0 + 2.5% + $0.29 | Uber couriers | Restaurants staying on Uber Eats |
| Owner.com | Direct ordering | $249/mo + 5%, or $499/mo (guests pay 5%) | Listed as a feature | High-volume restaurants |
| Uber Direct | Courier only | From $7.99 per delivery | Uber couriers | Delivery for orders you already own |
Each company's figures per its published US pricing pages as of October 2026. Rates vary by market; confirm before you sign.
Disclosure: Menuline publishes this guide and sells direct online ordering, so we compete with several options here. Uber Eats does things none of us can, and we cover those too.
What does Uber Eats charge restaurants today?
Per Uber Eats' US pricing page as of October 2026:
| Plan | Delivery | Pickup | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lite | 20% (15% in select cities) | 7% | No Uber One |
| Plus | 25% | 7% | +5% on Uber One orders |
| Premium | 30% | 7% | 20-order minimum protection for 6 months |
| Self-delivery | 15% (your drivers) | 7% | Overflow to Uber couriers at 25% |
The 7% pickup rate requires proof that app prices match in-store; otherwise it's 10%. There's no monthly fee, and card processing is included. Our Uber Eats fees breakdown covers the fine print.
On $8,000 a month in delivery (200 orders at $40), that's $1,600 on Lite, $2,000 on Plus and $2,400 on Premium. That's the number every alternative below has to beat.
Is there a delivery app with lower commission than Uber Eats?
Yes, at the entry tier. Per each company's published pricing as of October 2026:
| Marketplace | Entry delivery rate | Pickup | Top tier | Processing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uber Eats | Lite 20% (15% in select cities) | 7% | 30% | Included |
| DoorDash | Basic 15% | 6% | 30% | Included |
| Grubhub | Basic 5% + 10% if Grubhub delivers | 5% + processing | 20% + 10% | 3.05% + $0.30 extra |
DoorDash is the straight swap. Its pricing runs 15% (Basic), 25% (Plus) and 30% (Premier) on delivery, and 6% on pickup. On the same $8,000, Basic costs $1,200, $400 a month less than Uber Eats Lite. Details in our DoorDash commission rates guide.
Grubhub splits the bill. A 5%, 15% or 20% marketing commission, a delivery fee starting at 10% when its drivers deliver, and 3.05% + $0.30 processing, per its pricing page. Basic with Grubhub drivers on $8,000 comes to about $1,504. Grubhub gets cheap if you deliver yourself: Basic plus processing is about 9% on a $40 order. See Grubhub fees.
For pizzerias, Slice charges a flat fee per order instead of a percentage; see our Slice alternatives guide.
Swapping marketplaces trims a few points. It doesn't change the model: you still pay a percentage on every order, including orders from your regulars. As our DoorDash alternatives guide puts it, swapping apps swaps logos, not economics.
What does each option cost on a $40 order?
Restaurant-side cost on one $40 order, per each company's published rates:
| Order type and channel | Restaurant pays | Diner also pays |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery, Uber Eats Premium (30%) | $12.00 | Uber Eats fees |
| Delivery, Uber Eats Plus (25%) | $10.00 | Uber Eats fees |
| Delivery, own site + Uber Direct (restaurant covers $7.99) | $9.28 | Nothing extra, by your choice |
| Delivery, Uber Eats Lite (20%) | $8.00 | Uber Eats fees |
| Delivery, Grubhub Basic + Grubhub drivers | $7.52 | Grubhub fees |
| Delivery, DoorDash Basic (15%) | $6.00 | DoorDash fees |
| Pickup, Uber Eats (7%) | $2.80 | Uber Eats fees |
| Pickup, DoorDash (6%) | $2.40 | DoorDash fees |
| Pickup, own site on Uber Webshop (2.5% + $0.29) | $1.29 | Not listed |
| Pickup, own site on Menuline | $0 commission (processing not listed) | $2.00 (5% platform fee) |
Own site + Uber Direct uses Uber Webshop processing ($1.29) plus Uber Direct's "as low as" $7.99. Actual courier prices vary with distance and speed.
Read the table twice, because it holds the honest lesson. Delivery is expensive however you do it. Even with your own ordering site, a courier at $7.99 is about 20% of a $40 ticket, unless the diner pays some of it. Where direct ordering wins big is pickup and regulars: $1.29 or less to the restaurant, against $2.80 on Uber Eats pickup and $8 to $12 on Uber Eats delivery.
Is direct ordering the real alternative to Uber Eats?
For the orders that are already yours, yes. Your regulars found you once; they shouldn't cost a marketplace percentage every week.
Menuline. Menuline is $29 a month (Starter) or $99 (Growth), both $1 a month for the first 3 months, month-to-month with no setup fee and 0% commission to the restaurant. You get a restaurant website, commission-free ordering, an online menu, loyalty rewards, email marketing and Google listing tools; Growth adds a branded app. A specialist builds your menu from your Uber Eats store link. The caveats: diners pay a 5% platform fee, ordering is pickup only today (delivery with Uber drivers is coming soon), and marketing is email only.
Uber's own Webshop. Uber lists 2.5% + $0.29 per order for commission-free ordering on your own site, free with your Uber Eats marketplace account. It's the cheapest per order, and it keeps you tied to Uber Eats.
DoorDash Online Ordering (formerly Storefront). $0 a month on Starter with 3.3% + $0.30 processing, Dashers for delivery, and an active DoorDash store required. See our DoorDash Storefront review.
Square Online. $0, $49 or $149 a month, with 3.3% + 30¢ online processing on Free and 2.9% + 30¢ on paid plans, per Square's plans page. Best if Square is your POS. If you're watching every dollar, our guide to the best free online ordering systems compares the $0 options.
Owner.com. $249 a month + 5% or $499 flat, per its pricing page, with a 5% order support fee paid by guests on both plans, matching Menuline's 5% diner fee.
What is Uber Direct, and when does it make sense?
Uber Direct is Uber's courier network without the marketplace. You take the order on your own website, app or phone, and an Uber driver delivers it. Per Uber's page as of October 2026:
- Pricing "as low as" $7.99 per delivery, varying by distance, speed, integration and region
- Commission-free, with no startup costs or monthly minimums
- About a 10-mile radius in serviceable areas
Three things to know before you count on it:
- It replaces delivery, not demand. Uber Direct brings no new customers. Your orders still have to come from your own site, Google profile and regulars.
- You need an ordering system that connects to it. Uber says rates vary by "channel partner, API, dashboard." Several ordering platforms dispatch Uber Direct for you; ChowNow's Flex Delivery and Uber's own Webshop both use Uber couriers, and Menuline's delivery, coming soon, uses Uber drivers.
- Decide who pays the courier. At $7.99 on a $40 order, covering it all yourself costs about as much as Uber Eats Lite. Many restaurants charge the diner a delivery fee and keep the rest of the margin.
What does a hybrid plan save?
Take the same restaurant: 200 Uber Eats orders a month at $40 on Plus, paying $2,000. Suppose 80 of those orders are regulars who'd happily order direct for pickup:
| Scenario | Uber Eats fees | Direct channel | Monthly total |
|---|---|---|---|
| All 200 on Uber Eats Plus | $2,000 | $0 | $2,000 |
| 80 regulars move to Uber Webshop pickup | $1,200 | $103 processing | $1,303 |
| 80 regulars move to Menuline Growth pickup | $1,200 | $99 (diners pay 5%) | $1,299+ |
Either way, moving 40% of orders saves about $700 a month, or $8,400 a year, while Uber Eats keeps bringing new customers. The difference between the last two rows isn't price. It's whether your direct channel depends on staying on Uber Eats.
The free delivery app fee calculator runs this math on your own numbers.
When is Uber Eats still the right choice?
Often, at least for part of your business:
- Discovery. Uber One members and undecided browsers find restaurants on Uber Eats. If you're new or in a crowded area, that's hard to buy elsewhere.
- Self-delivery at 15%. If you have drivers, Uber Eats' self-delivery plan is one of the cheapest marketplace rates published.
- A safety net for new restaurants. Premium's 20-order monthly protection for the first 6 months lowers launch risk.
- City pricing. Where Lite is 15%, Uber Eats ties DoorDash at the entry tier.
The winning setup for most restaurants isn't "quit Uber Eats." It's "stop giving Uber Eats your regulars." Our guide to reducing delivery app fees covers bag inserts, loyalty and Google ordering links.
The bottom line
Uber Eats charges restaurants 20%, 25% or 30% on delivery and 7% on pickup, per its US pricing as of October 2026. DoorDash (15% Basic) and Grubhub (5% plus delivery and processing) are slightly cheaper marketplaces, but they don't change the model. The real alternative is direct ordering for pickup and regulars: Menuline at $29 or $99 a month (diners pay 5%), Square Online or DoorDash Online Ordering from $0, or Uber's own Webshop at 2.5% + $0.29. Add Uber Direct couriers from $7.99 when you need delivery without the marketplace. To see how many of your orders could move direct, run the free Menuline AI grader.