The Polarising Practice of Dubai's Delivery App Pricing

Dubai's food delivery scene has become a battleground of contradictions, where restaurants routinely inflate prices by 30-50% on delivery platforms, only to turn around and offer 50% discounts to lure customers back. This polarising practice has sparked heated debates across social media and left diners, restaurant owners, and delivery apps pointing fingers at each other.​

The Double-Pricing Dilemma

The numbers tell a stark story. A recent Reddit investigation uncovered restaurants charging AED 40 on delivery apps for meals priced at just AED 26 directly—a staggering 38% markup. Another comparison showed the same order costing AED 77 through an app versus AED 47 when ordered directly from the restaurant, a 30-dirham difference that amounts to nearly 64% more.​

This isn't just about occasional price discrepancies. Delivery platforms like Talabat, Deliveroo, Careem, and the newer Keeta routinely mark up menu items by 30-50%, with some bread items inflated by over 100%. One frustrated Dubai resident discovered that after all the markups and fees, delivery apps charge 43% more than direct ordering just to cover the platform's 30% commission.​

"Between a food delivery app (77dhs) and directly ordering from the cafeteria (47 dhs) there is a whopping 30dhs difference! I expected there to be a few dhs difference but not this much." — Reddit user on r/dubai​

The 50% Discount Illusion

Here's where the practice becomes truly controversial: after inflating prices dramatically, these same platforms bombard customers with "50% off" promotions, creating an illusion of value. Careem's "Got You" promo offers 50% discounts on minimum AED 40 orders, which after service fees brings a AED 40 dish down to around AED 23-24. Keeta launched in Dubai with a splashy 50% off first-order promotion, capitalizing on the same strategy.​

The math reveals the manipulation. When restaurants inflate prices by 40-50% and then offer "50% off," customers are essentially paying close to the original restaurant price—or sometimes still more—while feeling like they scored a deal.​

"The prices seem inflated, and they often advertise discounts that merely revert to the original restaurant rates. Additionally, there's always a service fee, which raises the question of the benefit of having a pro subscription." — Reddit user on r/UAE​

Restaurant Owners Caught in the Middle

Restaurant operators face an impossible choice. Delivery platforms charge commissions ranging from 25-35% per order. To survive these cuts, restaurants must either inflate menu prices on apps or watch their profit margins evaporate entirely.​

One viral calculation broke it down: "You have to increase your price 43% to be able to markup 30% commission. Customers pay the price. Neither restaurants nor 3rd party delivery companies should be blamed. The platform commission is what's making things expensive".​

Multiple restaurant owners told media outlets they're forced to reduce portion sizes for delivery orders due to razor-thin margins. Some have banded together to threaten three-day boycotts of delivery platforms, arguing the 25-35% commission structure is unsustainable.​

"Aggregators charge between 25 to 30 per cent as a commission on orders, and this amount has steadily increased over the years. Not only that, but they have a lot of other fees that they charge restaurant owners such as the discount credit card commission. What happens is that these fees just keep piling up and eating into your revenues." — Gaurav Varma, CEO of The Royal Orchid Group of Restaurants Abu Dhabi​

Social Media Erupts

The controversy has flooded Dubai's social media channels with complaints and call-outs. Reddit's r/dubai community has hosted multiple viral threads with titles like "Food delivery apps are quietly ripping off us and our favorite local restaurants" (123 upvotes), "We are getting scammed by food delivery apps" (May 2025), and "Beware of Overcharging by Online Food Delivery Apps in Dubai!".​

"It's shocking to find out how these apps are charging customers more than what the restaurants would actually bill us, despite flaunting those so-called 'special discounts'... Imagine buying a meal for AED 60 on an app when it's just AED 40 if you order directly from the restaurant!" — Reddit user on r/dubai​

Twitter and Instagram have seen similar outcry, with posts highlighting the new Dubai regulations as a "big shake-up" and questioning whether the subscription models genuinely save money or just mask inflated baseline prices. One LinkedIn post from a food and beverage strategy leader called delivery commissions "the biggest survival challenge for operators today," noting that in emerging markets "delivery costs more than rent".​

"I understand that food delivery platforms tend to add 3-4 dirhams to the cost of items, but 13 dirhams? On top of that, there are additional charges for service and delivery... This is just absurd." — Reddit user on r/UAE (150 upvotes)​

Dubai's Regulatory Response

The outcry prompted action. In September 2025, Dubai's Corporation for Consumer Protection and Fair Trade (DCCPFT) issued comprehensive new guidelines banning hidden fees and requiring full pricing transparency. Platforms must now clearly display all charges before checkout—including delivery fees, service charges, and taxes—and cannot add surprise costs after payment.​

The regulations also prohibit platforms from offsetting subscription benefits by passing hidden or inflated costs to restaurants, and mandate that exclusivity claims and promotional offers be factually accurate.​

The Consumer Dilemma

Dubai residents find themselves navigating this minefield with creative strategies. Many have switched to ordering directly from restaurants via phone or WhatsApp to avoid markups. Others game the system by stacking subscription services (Talabat Pro at AED 29/month, Deliveroo Plus at AED 39/month) with credit card cashback offers—like the Noon One card's additional 20% off—to actually achieve genuine savings.​​

The "Entertainer" app has become popular for its buy-one-get-one-free deals at restaurants, while Careem's DineOut program offers up to 50% off dine-in bills, prompting some to question whether eating out has become cheaper than delivery.​

"I save money, they earn more — it's a win-win situation. My daughter frequently orders from a Thai restaurant, at least once a week. When she brought us there for a dine-in experience, the owner recognized her... Now, she receives extra goodies with every order since she's a familiar face!" — Reddit user advocating direct ordering​

The Verdict

This pricing practice is polarising precisely because there are no clear villains. Platforms argue their commission structures reflect the true cost of logistics and technology infrastructure. Restaurants insist they're merely passing along unavoidable platform fees. And customers feel manipulated by artificial discounts that obscure actual value.

The new regulations may bring transparency, but they won't resolve the fundamental tension: someone has to pay for the convenience of delivery, and in Dubai's competitive food scene, everyone is trying to avoid being that someone. Until the economics fundamentally shift, expect the cycle of inflated prices and deep discounts to continue—just with clearer labels on what you're actually paying for.