Ultimate Guide to All the Major Food Delivery Services in Singapore in 2021

Food delivery—truly our saviour during circuit breaker and whenever we’re too lazy to get off our asses to go out for food.

“But there’s tons of apps nowadays,” you cry. “Which one do I choose?”

Well, we’ve got you covered.

We are going to touch on seven different delivery apps, namely AirAsia, Deliveroo, Deliver.sg, foodpanda, Grabfood, Oddle Eats and WhyQ. Perhaps you can try one for every day of the week.

Customer Pros and Cons

AirAsia:

AirAsia’s food delivery service was recently set up in March 2020 and has around 100 participating merchants, according to The Sunday Times.

It has a low commission rate of 15% and delivery fees start at S$2.99. This means that food delivery might be cheaper with AirAsia Food depending on where you’re ordering from.

AirAsia Food operates on a wide 15km delivery radius so you’ll be able to order food not just from the nearby mall or hawker centre. They have a 500-strong rider fleet.

In addition, those who are a part of the AirAsia loyalty programme will benefit from using their app. The points gained in the programme can be used to pay for food!

The app currently accepts Visa, Mastercard and BigPay for making payments.

However, AirAsia has a relatively low number of merchants and riders compared to the other more seasoned delivery apps. Orders are also limited to between 9:00am to 9:00pm so no late-night feasts for you.

Read the AirAsia Food review by TODAYOnline here.

Deliveroo:

This service is not only available here you know, but also in London and other 11 countries. It covers halal and vegetarian meals. The Sunday Times reports that Deliveroo has not disclosed the number of merchants, but it seems to be over 7,000.

Delivery costs are distance-based, ranging from S$3 to S$5. The minimum order depends on the restaurant you pick. Occasionally, there will also be free delivery from participating restaurants!

You can also opt for the S$14.90 monthly plan which includes free delivery and extra discounts and offers.

The delivery radius is split into north, south, east, west and central zones. Some merchants offer delivery beyond their zones.

They also have a much bigger rider fleet of 9,000 riders.

As mentioned earlier, the monthly subscription is very beneficial to customers who order food delivery often.

Deliveroo accepts credit and debit cards for payment.

Deliver.sg:

Though not as well-known, Deliver.sg was launched by Maxima Logistics Pte Ltd. as a way to bring restaurants closer to customers regardless of their location.

The food delivery company did not state the number of participating merchants, however, they promise to have a wide range of restaurants for customers to order from.

According to Lendingpot, Deliver.sg offers island-wide delivery operated by Lalamove. They promise to deliver food within 90 minutes from the time of the order.

Delivery cost is distance-based and they are working towards lowering their delivery fees are more orders are placed with them. There is no minimum order!

However, their platform raises food prices by 10%. Their first pick-up is only available at 10:00am and their last pick-up is at 10:00pm, unlike the bigger operators.

Deliver.sg only accepts credit and debit cards for payment.

Foodpanda:

This is the very first independent food delivery service, which offers services in 40 countries worldwide. Halal and vegetarian meals supported, with over 16,000 merchants offering their food.

However, the app has a higher commission rate of 30% to 35%. The delivery charges and minimum order amount depends on the restaurant. Foodpanda also offers island-wide delivery.

Thankfully, their services run 24/7 on the island. They have a huge rider fleet of 11,000 to 13,000 to support hungry Singaporeans every day, no matter the time of day.

In addition, foodpanda has loyalty programmes so that customers can accumulate points for vouchers. There is also a monthly subscription plan from S$7.99 which includes free delivery from selected restaurants when orders cost above S$15. Occasionally, other deals and discounts are available.

Flash 15 minute deals through Pandabox are constantly available for customers.

Unfortunately, most eateries have a small delivery radius on the app and commission fees are high. Orders are also subject to 7% GST.

One of us actually tried to be a Foodpanda rider. Watch his experience here:

Grabfood:

Another huge contributor to the food delivery service, Grabfood was set up in 2018 with more than 10,000 merchants on the app.

Similar to foodpanda, they are able to deliver food from all over the island. As such, the delivery fee is usually S$3 to S$5 depending on the distance.

As of 2019, they have around 13,000 delivery riders onboard.

Grab also offers rewards and points when you use cashless payments (how useful in a pandemic!). They also allow customers to order from more than one shop in the area while paying just one delivery fee.

However, they charge a 25% to 30% commission on all delivery and self pick-up orders, in addition to the 7% GST.

Depending on where you’re ordering from, the delivery radius might be small too and thus, the food you can order is limited.

The app uses Grab Pay, credit and debit cards.

Oddle Eats:

Oddle Eats was actually launched way back in 2014. They have more than 1,000 restaurants on their platform.

They have a very low commission rate of only 10%, however, the delivery fees and delivery radius are set by the merchants themselves. This can range from S$3 to S$20 in delivery charges and deliveries can be limited or island-wide.

The Sunday Times reports that Oddle Eats has a “very strong” rider fleet from their partner logistics provider, Lalamove and Zeek.

The restaurants themselves also offer discounts or free items when minimum orders are met! Customers will also be able to save their restaurants on the app for future orders. Bundle deals and credit card promotions will be available.

Unfortunately, as the delivery is done by third parties, they incur a separate charge for merchants. Hence delivery fees are usually high. Merchants also enforce a minimum order.

Payment methods also depend on restaurants.

WhyQ:

WhyQ was founded in 2017 and now has nearly 3,000 merchants on the app!

The charge no commission fees and offer a S$1.50 delivery fee for scheduled orders. Delivery fees also cost up to S$4.99 for on-demand orders.

Unfortunately, they do not have island-wide delivery. The delivery radius varies and often becomes more limited in areas with more offices or residences.

WhyQ has a 2,000 rider strong fleet.

One benefit of using WhyQ is that they have a customer loyalty programme where users can earn points to qualify for discounts and other benefits. The app also has a monthly subscription plan (S$4.99) to allow customers to order food from various stalls within a hawker centre for the same delivery charge.

Lendingpot also notes that WhyQ also provides a corporate order option and certain stores have no minimum order.

The platform specialises in hawker food deliveries so if you love your local hawker centre fare, be sure to check WhyQ out! It helps support our local hawkers.

However, the app has a relatively high mark-up of 40% or more on the prices of items and a small delivery fleet.

WhyQ accepts a variety of payments, such as DBS Points, PayLah, credit and debit cards.

Did you know that there are other delivery apps available? Check them out here!

Featured Image: ThamKC / Shutterstock.com