With mobile apps becoming increasingly popular and more widely used, it’s not surprising that building apps like DoorDash or UberEats will in fact nurture exponential growth for your food delivery app development company, maybe even earn you a title in the Hall Of Fame among the industry-leading behemoths.
Before you learn how to start a DoorDash business, you need to understand that building an app like DoorDash in the on-demand food delivery market requires you to understand the reasons behind the success of apps like Uber Eats and DoorDash. It is crucial to figure out the new and unique elements you can add to your food delivery app development project, making it stand out from the competition.
Keep reading this blog to gain insights into how to make a food delivery app like DoorDash and become a force to be reckoned with. But as always, let’s discuss the essentials first, like what is an app DoorDash along with some common statistics and insights, before jumping into the detailed steps you will need to employ for your food delivery app development project. Or you can skip it altogether and get in touch with the leading app development company or everywhere else to build it for you.
Table Of Contents
What is DoorDash?
DoorDash is an on demand food delivery service application that people use to place orders for their favorite restaurants to deliver meals to their home, work, or anywhere with an address, or choose a self-pickup option to go pickup their desired meals themselves. Think of it as a centralized platform where users have the option to browse and view menu options, deals, and ongoing promotions, from multiple restaurants, all under one-roof.
Food Delivery App Like DoorDash & Industry Statistics
DoorDash pulled ahead of the competition in 2020 and currently has 57 percent of market share in the US, the second largest market for food delivery.
In the US, DoorDash is the most popular food delivery app, with over 50% market share
The Online Food Delivery market revenue is forecasted to reach US$0.91tn in 2024 with an annual growth rate of 12.33% from 2023-2027, resulting in a final projection of US$1.45tn by 2027 in terms of market volume.
In the Meal Delivery segment, the number of users is expected to amount to 2,644.2m users by 2027.
User penetration in the Online Food Delivery segment will be at 37.2% in 2024 (Source).
What Features To Definitely Incorporate in 2024
Below are some of the leading features you definitely need to incorporate into your food delivery app development project.
· Quick Orders with Scheduled Deliveries
Consumers enjoy gratifying their demands for food, and they enjoy it even more if it can be done with only a few taps. Apps like DoorDash have made it easier for customers to purchase their favorite foods. Whether they’re working a long day, or it’s too late to cook, there’s one easy fix: An app like DoorDash, you can appeal to people’s emotions and allow your customers to schedule deliveries and order, directly to their homes.
· Real-time Tracking And Fleet Management System
Customers who use on-demand delivery services need to check in on their orders and get updates regarding its status in real-time. So, adding a map or geolocation will make it hella simpler for users to track orders and for you, the controller. As a start-up offering food delivery services, you can easily keep an eye on the riders thanks to fleet management solutions that will provide you with up-to-date information on each driver and the status of their deliveries. Moreover, you can let users choose between pick-up and home delivery. Users may easily schedule or pre-order food through the app if they want it to be delivered in advance. Your food delivery system will set itself apart from other food delivery services thanks to this extra feature.
· Multiple Payment Gateways
Attempting to create a similar DoorDash mobile app? Ensure that the features you include are dominating the market. Adding a seamless multi-payment gateway is the main obstacle. PayPal, ApplePay, Stripe, and other well-known, reliable sites are just a few examples. When it comes to making purchases or conducting financial transactions online, people want a secure and recognisable identity. In order to gain their trust and ensure that you never experience a payment-related issue, pick a reliable mobile payment interface when creating your food delivery app.
· Group Order/Bill Splitting
Have you ever heard of group order features in apps? The very best. Why? Each person has a unique set of taste buds. A community option for in-app ordering is easy to implement. Your meal delivery app should be designed to facilitate group chat ordering. Your customer experience will increase as a result, and word-of-mouth advertising will help your app gain more users. The app can thus turn into a one-stop shop for a large family dinner or celebration.
How to Make a Food Delivery App Like DoorDash in 2024 (A 10-Step Guide)
How to Create a Food Delivery App Like DoorDash – 10 Steps Process
1. Research and Analyze the Market
The first step in building an app like DoorDash would be to conduct an in-depth and accurate assessment of the marketplace and your desired target audience, so you can gauge the feasibility of your project and long-term sustainability, as well as decide your preferred app like DoorDash business model. Make sure to meticulously research your direct and indirect competitors as well to gain a deeper understanding and insight into the existing market, and how your competitors (like Uber Eats) are best catering the needs of your audience.
2. Choose a Food Delivery Model
Now it’s time to choose a food delivery model for your app. There are a lot of different models you can choose for delivery apps like DoorDash. We’ve gone ahead and listed some of the more commonly applied business models in food delivery apps.
Order-Only Model
In this food delivery apps like DoorDash model, your business will get an application that is only equipped to allow delivery orders only. That means you will receive orders on your food delivery app and simply forward it to the restaurant to prepare and dispatch it, themselves.
Order-and-Delivery Model
This type of food delivery app model will enable your business to process, send, and deliver orders. All the restaurants do is prepare the customers orders, and the delivery app platform will handle the logistics of delivery themselves.
Restaurant-Specific Model
The restaurant-specific business model exists to benefit restaurant owners themselves, the most. This food app model enables restaurant owners to take delivery orders and parcel orders directly from the app, prepare them, and dispatch it themselves, personalizing and branding it along the way as needed.
Assess your business requirements, budget, project scope, and long-term goals to assess which food app model is the right choice for your business.
3. Select the Monetization Model
Now comes the phase where you decide what monetization strategy or revenue generation model to implement, so you can earn from your delivery apps like DoorDash. Here are the most common monetization models used by similar businesses for food delivery apps.
Food Delivery App Monetization Models
The next step in how to make a delivery app is choosing a monetization model. Here are a few of the commonly used monetization models employed in building a delivery app.
Commission-based
Advertising-based
Surge Pricing-based
Subscription-based
Commission-based
The commission based monetization model charges users on the basis of two things, Delivery fee and service or platform fee.
Delivery Fee: You can choose and set a delivery fee that is a reasonable amount by taking into consideration factors like, distance between the restaurants and the delivery addresses. Although, you will need to create a solid user base in the first six months following deployment to effectively use this model.
Service Fee: You can charge eateries a small service fee for them using your food delivery app like DoorDash. You can keep the initial fees as low as possible so that eateries will choose your new app over industry heavyweights like UberEats and GrubHub.
You don’t have to stop here, you can implement any type of commission structure you deem fit once your food delivery app has gained notable traction and has become a household name.
Advertising Fees
One of the most widely used monetization strategies is charging advertising fees for advertisers who want to showcase their ads on your food delivery app platform. There are a variety of different types of ads you can add to your food delivery app such as, Banner Ads, Interstitial Ads, Video Ads, Playable Ads. The only catch in using this specific monetization strategy is that you need a substantial amount of recurring users and reach to attract advertisers to your app.
Surge Pricing
This is another monetization strategy used by a variety of different food delivery platforms like UberEats. In it, users are charged a peak factor or surge price, depending on the plethora of different factors such as, time of day, number of users using the app at a given time, influx in the total number of orders being placed (peak hours) local weather and traffic conditions, as well as a variety of other factors.
Subscriptions
By adding subscriptions, you can encourage your users to spend a bit more money to unlock premium features such as priority delivery, exclusive access to promotions, vouchers, special offers, discounts, free delivery, no minimum order requirement or purchase amount, and more. This model is particularly useful to ensure constant recurring revenue.
Again, you don’t have to stop there, you are free to add any additional revenue or monetization model you deem fit for your business after assessing your unique needs.
4. Identifying the Right Mobile App Development Team/Company
Now we’ve reached the stage where we start building the food delivery mobile app platform for your business. This involves choosing an appropriate team or company for your food delivery app. There are three things you can do for choosing the mobile app development company or team;
i) Hire an in-house development team
ii) Hire freelancers
iii) Outsource to onshore/nearshore and offshore developers
In-house development team
If you are choosing to hire an in-house team of UI and UX designers, front end and back end developers, Android and iOS specific developers (depending upon which platform you want to build your app on, you can choose to build it for both as well), architects, quality assurance specialists, and more. The costs associated with hiring an in-house development team is very high as they are inclusive of recruitment costs, training costs, salary expenses, perks and benefits cost that come with the job, and the intangible cost of time spent hiring these interviews. Alternatively, partnering with an Android app development company can help mitigate these costs and streamline the development process.
Freelancers
Freelancers are best for building an MVP food delivery app within a few months. It is worth mentioning that they are the riskiest option to go with as they are not easy to manage, are known to frequently delay deliveries, and may or may not be trustworthy because you will be sharing sensitive business information with them. But at the same time, if you need a quick MVP delivery app to see if your idea works and is feasible, hiring freelancers just may be the most financially feasible option available.
Outsourcing
The last option you have is to outsource the development of your food delivery app. Given the saturation of custom mobile app development companies, it is becoming increasingly difficult to assess and gauge which company is the right choice for your specific needs. So before you jump the bandwagon and sign up with an app development company, take some time to take a look at the work they’ve done in the past. Their portfolio will speak volumes about the quality of their work and how much they live up to their promise. It is also imperative that you discuss your project scope in detail, what you will be expecting from them, how you will be measuring the project’s success, how many resources will be delegated to work on your project, dedicatedly that is, and more. All in an effort to ensure all your needs are met. So choose the company you outsource to wisely after doing all your homework.
Usually, companies will charge you sky-high prices to create a delivery app, but not Trango Tech. We offer industry-leading expertise and technical support in nominal rates to maximize the accessibility of our premier services, for all. Just juxtaposition whatever our competitors are offering, to our proposal and roadmap, and the answer will become clear itself.
5. Choose the Essential Features
Types of Essential App Features
Customer App Features
A user-friendly and feature-driven customer app is crucial to build a food delivery app since it will generate most of the revenue for your business.
Sign up and Log in
A customer’s profile can be created by signing up using an email, mobile number, or social network account.
Search & Filter
Consumers can take advantage of this by using the search and filter features to find eateries quickly.
Place and Track the Order
Customers are more at ease with the status of their applications when they can track their orders, which enhances the ordering and delivery of meals as a whole.
Payment Gateways
To streamline and expedite all payments, integrate several payment gateways into your app, such as PayPal, Stripe, bank and credit cards, and COD..
Chatbot and Customer Care
Customer service people handle situations requiring specialist attention and help, while chatbots handle all basic questions from clients about their orders, profiles, and payments.
Reviews & Ratings
Users can score and review products based on their interactions with the food and packaging. It can assist other users in selecting the best eateries while avoiding low-quality establishments.
The restaurant app must have a highly user-friendly application to accept, reject, and confirm the received orders faster.
Accept and Reject Orders
Restaurants can easily accept and reject orders with this feature.
Manage the Menu
Restaurants can add, remove, and modify the items in their menu with this feature.
Track Payments
This feature enables payment tracking for received and pending payments.
Reply to a Review
A restaurant can share its reply on a positive or a negative review to build a better relationship with the users and create a responsive brand image.
Track Delivery Executive
Restaurants can keep track of the delivery executive until they deliver the order.
Admin Support & Assistance
Restaurants can talk to the app admin about customer issues, payments, service fee policies, and delivery fee changes.
Push Notifications
This feature notifies users about new orders, pending and received payments, personal customer requests, delayed delivery agents, and delivered orders.
Enable Discounts Offers & Rewards
Restaurants can provide discounts and rewards for any food order customers make from their restaurants. Such order rewards/offers draw customers toward a restaurant.
Features for Delivery Agent App
The delivery executive will need an app to accept new order pick-ups and deliveries.
Create a Profile
The delivery executive can create a profile with details like phone number, email address, and driving license.
Accept/Reject the Order
Delivery executives can use this feature to accept or reject orders.
Order Information
Delivery executives can check all order-related information like food items, directions for address by customers, the address, and the estimated delivery time.
Chat and Call
Delivery executives can chat and call customers to deal with any problem with delivery and reaching the address.
Push Notifications
This feature will notify delivery executives about new or nearby orders or if they receive a tip.
Features for the Admin Portal
The admin portal will be necessary to manage all operations on your food delivery app and ensure everything is running as intended.
Manage Restaurants
The app owner/admin can manage new restaurants and evaluate them for approval and rejection. Providing a featured tag and paid advertising tools to restaurants will also be possible with this feature.
Manage Delivery Executives
Admin can oversee payments, delivery agent registration/verification, and evaluate their performance to see if you need to remove or reward any of them.
Payment Gateway Management
The admin can deal with issues regarding payment gateways and add new or remove old ones when necessary.
Analytics
The admin can use this feature to review the app usage, user behavior, and user interface/experience.
These are some core features you must add to the various portals of your food delivery application. Add more, less, or advanced features according to your project and budget requirements.
No matter how skilled your team of developers is, no matter how much market research you’ve done, nor how much money you spend, if your developmental timeline is not optimized, you’ll be making shots blindly. There are two approaches you must take to ensure efficient development when looking to make a delivery app.
Agile Methodology
Agile development includes an iterative approach that can break your project into smaller parts to focus on incremental deliveries rather than one final one like Waterfall. Choosing Agile allows you to review and improve every little aspect of your food delivery app project during development, ensuring a quality product with no functionality errors, bugs, and design issues after completion.
User Experience Is Key
Being a food delivery business, the quality of your solutions depends on the user-friendly elements it can provide to users. You must ensure your UI/UX designer is up to the task and can create a visually appealing UI interface design and a highly convenient user experience. It will ensure user retention and better revenue when building a delivery app.
More importantly, you must improve team morale, ensure better collaboration, and monitor the development process without micromanagement. It will help you achieve the business goals of your food delivery project.
8. Test the Application
Once your food delivery app like DoorDash is developed, comes the testing stage where you put it through a series of rigorous tests, inside and out, to weed out any and all errors, as well as loose or spaghetti code (if any). The cruciality of this stage cannot be emphasized enough, because it will ultimately help ensure an immaculate experience for your users. If your app like DoorDash wishes to compete with or even come close to the industry leading giants like UberEats and GrubHub, then we recommend taking your time in the testing stage. Here are some of the various types of tests you should perform on your app like DoorDash, ranging from Functional testing, Usability testing, UI testing, Compatibility (Configuration) testing, Performance testing, Security testing, Recovery testing, and more.
9. Post-launch Support and Maintenance
Planning post-launch support and maintenance is an integral aspect of your food delivery app development project. Once you deploy your app, the users will share their feedback and experience after using it, or it may start having some errors/bugs that you could not have identified before.
Post-launch support and maintenance help incorporate such user feedback to improve your app further and deal with any bugs/errors that may arise. The faster you can respond to application issues/user complaints, the more reliable your platform will seem to users and the better the user experience they can have in your food delivery app.
Final Thoughts
To recap, in this blog, you learned all the development and research steps needed to build an app like DoorDash yourself, what gives DoorDash competitive advantage, along with which food delivery app development company you need to get in touch with to build your app for you. To learn more about how to start a food delivery app, just get in touch with us at Trango Tech.
Frequently Asked Questions About DoorDash Clone App Development
What is DoorDash and how does it work?
DoorDash is a food delivery platform that connects customers with local restaurants and independent delivery drivers. The app enables customers to browse menus, place orders, and track their deliveries in real-time. Restaurants can partner with DoorDash to expand their reach and offer delivery services to their customers. Delivery drivers can use the app to find and accept delivery requests and earn income by delivering food to customers.
What are the key features of an app like DoorDash?
Key features of an app like DoorDash include an intuitive user interface, seamless integration with local restaurants and delivery drivers, real-time tracking of orders and deliveries, secure payment processing, and robust customer support. These features ensure that customers have a positive experience when using the app, while restaurants and delivery drivers can efficiently manage their orders and deliveries.
How much does it cost to develop an app like DoorDash?
The cost of developing an app like DoorDash can vary depending on the complexity of the app, the technology used, and the development team’s expertise. However, it typically requires a significant investment of time and resources to build a robust and scalable platform that can handle a high volume of orders and deliveries.
What technologies are used in developing DoorDash like apps?
Technologies commonly used in developing DoorDash like apps include cloud-based infrastructure, GPS tracking, real-time data processing, secure payment gateways, and customer relationship management tools. These technologies enable the app to efficiently manage orders and deliveries, process payments securely, and provide excellent customer support.
How long does it take to develop an app similar to DoorDash?
Developing an app similar to DoorDash can take several months to a year, depending on the app’s complexity and the development team’s resources. A team of skilled developers and designers will need to work together to design, develop, test, and launch the app, ensuring that it meets the desired performance and user experience standards.
How do you ensure the safety and security of users’ data in an app like DoorDash?
Ensuring the safety and security of users’ data is a top priority when developing an app like DoorDash. This requires implementing robust security protocols, including encryption, two-factor authentication, and regular security audits. Additionally, compliance with privacy regulations and data protection laws must be ensured to protect user information and maintain trust in the app.
How do you manage payments and transactions in an app like DoorDash?
Payment and transaction management in an app like DoorDash involves partnering with payment gateways and financial institutions to securely process payments from customers and pay delivery drivers and restaurants. The app must also provide transparent and accurate reporting of financial transactions, including earnings and fees.
Will I be able to customize the app?
Customization options are an essential aspect of any app, and apps like DoorDash are no exception. Users should be able to customize their orders, preferences, and delivery options based on their needs and preferences. Additionally, restaurants and delivery drivers may require different customization levels based on their unique requirements.
Is DoorDash or Grubhub better?
The choice between DoorDash and Grubhub ultimately depends on the individual user’s preferences and needs. Both platforms offer similar features, including delivery from local restaurants and real-time order tracking. However, some users may prefer one platform over the other based on the availability of specific restaurants or delivery options.
What are the legal requirements for developing an app like DoorDash?
Legal requirements for developing an app like DoorDash include complying with privacy regulations and data protection laws, obtaining necessary licenses and permits for food delivery services, and ensuring compliance with labor and employment laws for delivery drivers. Additionally, legal agreements with partner restaurants and delivery drivers must be established to ensure compliance and mitigate legal risks.
Ali Hassan is a passionate content creator with 5+ years of expertise in content marketing, currently serving our app development company via technical content. As a savvy content strategist, Ali masterfully combines creativity with in-depth research to produce compelling, high-quality content. Known for his proficiency in SEO optimization, he turns complex tech concepts into engaging, user-friendly stories that resonate with both experts and beginners. Whether you're a seasoned developer or a tech newcomer, Ali’s insightful narratives are designed to inform, inspire, and keep you coming back for more.
