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> It's cheaper for me to drive to the restaurant and pick up the order

Of course it is... were you expecting delivery companies to perform magic while humans are required to bring you your food?

If a burrito costs $15, it may cost $30 to have it delivered from 20 minutes away; the alternative is 40 minutes of your time and $15. The thesis of delivery companies is that you value 40 minutes of your time more than $15.

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You are absolutely right that the delivery services sell the convenience of saving time. The economics of it also suggests that only the rich can truly afford it regularly. That's where the price gauging comes in. In India, it is often cheaper to drive down and get the food yourself because of the business model of the delivery apps. They take a commission from the restaurant (from the billed items) and also charge the consumer a bunch of fees for the delivery (ranging from subscription, platform fees, convenience fees, surge fees, delivery fees etc. etc). This has resulted in restaurants having a two-tier pricing model with the listed price in the delivery apps being way costlier. Just last week I wanted to get some food for some guests, and the total price on the delivery app for it was Rs. 1050, where as the restaurant price was Rs. 770. So even though the delivery price was listed as Rs. 17 for me in the app (as I also pay a subscription fee), in reality I was being charged a total of Rs. 297 (the cost of a car Taxi fare, both ways!).

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