June 8, 2026
Restaurant Software Cost: Commission or Flat Monthly Fee?
The real cost of running a restaurant is not the monthly software fee you see on the screen. Most operators pay between 15 and 35 percent commission on every order that comes through marketplaces like Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat, and they rarely treat it as a cost because the bill is charged quietly, order by order. Yet when you push the same revenue through your own channel on a flat monthly fee, the amount you pay stays fixed regardless of how many orders you take. This article puts both models in the same table and works out the real cost and the payback with concrete order volume.
The core of the math is simple: marketplace commission grows with your revenue, a flat monthly fee does not. At 200 orders a month the commission looks bearable; at 2,000 orders it turns into the single biggest line item eating your profit. With commission-free online ordering you sell through your own branded website and app, and that commission stays in your pocket. For a detailed side-by-side, you can also read our marketplace commission versus your own site comparison.
Below you will find the cost components of restaurant software, how marketplace commission works, the order volume at which a flat fee pulls ahead, and a worked ROI example step by step. The goal is to help you choose the model that leaves the most in your till at the end of the month, not the one that looks cheapest on paper.
The real cost components of restaurant software
Seeing the total cost of restaurant software as a single monthly figure is misleading. The real picture has several components. First is the software subscription: the monthly or annual price of modules like order tickets and cloud POS, QR menu, online ordering and reporting. Second is the one-time setup and menu migration: entering products, prices, categories and variations into the system. Third is hardware: the tablet, receipt printer and any devices needed for a kitchen display system (KDS).
The real hidden component is the per-transaction deductions. Marketplace commission, online payment commission and, in some systems, a per-order surcharge all fall into this group. In a flat monthly model the first three components are known up front and do not change as orders rise. In a commission model the fourth component grows in proportion to your revenue and makes up most of the total cost.
To decide correctly, write out two lines: fixed monthly cost and variable per-transaction cost. Marketplace visibility that looks like a modest monthly figure can turn into a far larger expense once per-order commission is added on top. On your own channel the number stays fixed regardless of order count.
How marketplace commission works and why it grows
Marketplaces like Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat take a percentage of the order value as commission on every order they bring you. Depending on the contract, the campaign and the visibility package, this rate generally ranges from 15 to 35 percent. On top of the commission come service fees, advertising packages and campaign contribution shares. In the end, 25 to 35 percent of every order goes to the platform.
The most exhausting part of commission is that it grows with your success. The more your restaurant sells, the more you pay the platform. It does not behave like a fixed expense, but like a tax tied to your revenue. The customer also belongs to the platform, not to you; the phone number, the order history and the loyalty are held by the marketplace, not by you, so you cannot build loyalty and promotions.
On your own commission-free online ordering channel the logic flips. The customer orders from your branded website or app, payment flows straight to you, and you pay no commission to a platform. All that remains is the low processing rate your bank charges for online payments, which is far below marketplace commission.
When does the flat monthly fee pull ahead?
The crossover point between the two models is order volume. For a newly opened business taking a small number of online orders, the visibility a marketplace brings can be valuable, and at low volume the total commission stays small. But once the order count passes a certain threshold, the total commission paid clearly overtakes the flat monthly software fee.
Let's run a simple comparison. Say the average ticket is around $15 and marketplace commission is 25 percent. On every order you pay roughly $3.75 to the platform. Just 100 online orders a month means about $375 in commission; at 500 orders that figure rises to roughly $1,875, and at 1,000 orders to about $3,750. By contrast, a flat monthly package covering order tickets and cloud POS plus online ordering stays the same no matter how many orders you take.
The practical rule is this: for any restaurant that reaches a few hundred online orders a month, a flat-fee owned channel is far cheaper than marketplace commission. To see the exact numbers, compare the packages on the pricing page against your own average ticket and monthly order count.
Worked example: the Joe's Burgers scenario
Say Joe's Burgers is a mid-sized fast food spot that has caught on in its neighborhood. It takes 1,200 online orders a month, the average ticket is about $18, and right now every order comes through marketplaces. The average marketplace commission is 28 percent. Monthly online revenue is 1,200 times $18, or $21,600. At 28 percent, about $6,048 goes to the platforms as commission every month. Annual commission is roughly $72,500.
Now let Joe's Burgers move half of its orders to its own commission-free online ordering channel. Those 600 orders are now commission-free; only an average 2 percent processing rate goes to the bank for online payments. The revenue from those 600 own-channel orders is $10,800, and the bank's deduction is about $216. Add a flat monthly software package, say around $130. Total monthly cost on the own channel is roughly $346.
Had it kept those same 600 orders on the marketplace, it would have paid about $3,024 at 28 percent commission. The difference is roughly $2,680 a month, more than $32,000 in annual savings. On top of that, the phone numbers and order history of these customers now belong to Joe's Burgers; with loyalty and promotions it can lift the repeat-order rate, and with cloud reports it can see which product leaves what profit.
How do you calculate the return (ROI)?
The return on restaurant software is the sum of the commission you avoid paying plus the operational gains, divided by the fixed software cost. The first and biggest component is the commission you do not pay on the orders you move to your own channel. Multiply your average ticket by the monthly order count you expect on your own channel and by the commission percentage; the result is money that stays directly in your till.
The second component is operational efficiency. With order tickets and cloud POS, dine-in and delivery orders are gathered in one system; with a kitchen display system (KDS), orders are prepared quickly and without errors; with a QR menu, the load of waiter calls and printed menus drops. These items are not as visible as commission, but they create meaningful monthly savings by cutting wrong orders, waiting and waste.
The third component is the repeat customer. On a marketplace the customer is loyal to the platform; on your own channel the contact details stay with you and are won back through loyalty and promotions. Convincing a customer to order from your own channel a second time is far cheaper than paying commission every single time. Add these three components together and, for most restaurants, a flat-fee system pays for itself within the first month.
Cost differences by segment
Order volume and ticket size vary by segment, so the weight of commission varies too. In high-volume, low-ticket businesses commission hurts the most. In a burger or pizza operation, for example, hundreds of orders a day go through, and the commission taken from each quickly reaches an expense close to total revenue.
In businesses like a coffee shop or a bakery, the ticket may be lower but frequency is high; when you move the loyal customer to your own channel, the commission savings grow over the long term. For a full-service restaurant, gathering dine-in, delivery and pickup channels into one system delivers an additional operational gain.
Whatever segment you are in, the logic is the same: a marketplace is a useful channel for visibility and the first customer, but keeping all your volume there turns commission into a permanent expense. The right strategy is to use the marketplace as a discovery channel and move repeat orders to your own commission-free channel.
Questions to ask when deciding
Before choosing a model, get clear on your own numbers. First: how many online orders do I take per month and what is my average ticket? Second: how much total commission am I paying marketplaces right now, and what is the average percentage? A business that knows these two numbers can calculate, in minutes, how quickly a flat-fee owned channel pays for itself.
Third: which modules are included in the software price? Are online ordering, order tickets, QR menu, reports and KDS charged separately, or are they in the package? Fourth: is there a hidden per-order fee or transaction commission? Confirm that the flat fee is genuinely flat and does not pile up as orders rise. Fifth: do the customer data, the phone numbers and the order history stay with me?
Once you have the answers to these questions, the most reliable method is to try the system with your own menu. With a free trial you can set up your own branded ordering channel and observe the cost over a few weeks of real orders. To go deeper into the logic of switching to a commission-free model, also read our commission-free online ordering system guide.
Marketplace Commission vs Your Own Commission-Free Channel
Marketplace Commission (Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat)
- • 15 to 35 percent commission on every order, growing with your revenue
- • Extra fees for advertising and visibility packages
- • Customer phone number and order history stay on the platform
- • Loyalty and repeat orders are built by the platform, not you
- • Brand experience depends on the marketplace's design
- • Cost piles up unpredictably as orders rise
RestApp Commission-Free Own Channel
- No per-order marketplace commission, a flat monthly fee
- Your own branded ordering website and mobile app
- Customer data, phone numbers and order history stay with you
- You manage repeat orders with loyalty and promotions
- Order tickets, QR menu, KDS and reports in one system
- Cost is independent of order count and known up front
Key takeaways
- The real cost is not the monthly software fee but the total expense: subscription, setup, hardware and, most importantly, the per-transaction commission, all calculated together.
- Marketplace commission (15 to 35 percent) grows with your revenue; a flat monthly fee stays fixed regardless of order count.
- At an average ticket around $15 and 25 percent commission, every order means about $3.75 in commission; at a few hundred orders a month, a flat-fee owned channel comes out far cheaper.
- ROI comes from three components: commission you avoid, operational efficiency (KDS, order tickets, QR menu) and higher repeat orders from customers kept on your own channel.
- Use the marketplace as a discovery channel and move repeat orders to your own commission-free channel; let the customer data and loyalty stay with you.
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper for restaurant software, commission or a flat monthly fee?+
At low online order volume marketplace commission looks bearable, but as the order count rises the total commission quickly overtakes a flat monthly fee. At an average ticket around $15 and 25 percent commission, every order means about $3.75 in commission; for most restaurants that reach a few hundred orders a month, a flat-fee owned channel is clearly cheaper.
What are the commission rates on food delivery marketplaces?+
The commission rate on marketplaces like Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat generally ranges from 15 to 35 percent depending on the contract, the campaign and the visibility package. Advertising packages, service fees and campaign contribution shares can be added on top, so the real cost of each order can climb to the 25 to 35 percent range.
Are there really no deductions on your own commission-free ordering channel?+
You pay no marketplace commission. All that remains is the low processing rate the bank charges when you take online card payments, which is usually around 2 percent and far below marketplace commission. On cash, pay-at-the-door or pickup orders, even that deduction does not apply.
At what order volume does flat-fee software pay for itself?+
The exact threshold depends on your average ticket and your commission rate. Calculate the commission you avoid on the orders you move to your own channel: the moment your monthly commission savings exceed the fixed software fee, the system has paid for itself. For most mid-volume businesses, that happens in the first month.
Will I lose customers if I leave the marketplace?+
You do not have to leave the marketplace entirely. The right strategy is to use the marketplace to discover new customers and move repeat orders to your own commission-free channel. On your own channel the customer's phone number and order history stay with you, so you win them back with loyalty and promotions and stop paying commission every single time.
Which features should a flat monthly fee include?+
It depends on your needs, but a typical package covers online ordering, order tickets and cloud POS, QR menu, cloud reports and the kitchen display system. Before buying, confirm whether each module is included and whether there is any hidden per-order fee; make sure the flat fee truly stays fixed regardless of order count.
Stop paying commission on your orders
Launch your own commission-free online ordering system with RestApp.