Grubhub Review: Unlock New Diners and Accelerate Your Deliveries

Ordering dinner shouldn’t be this frustrating.

If you’re tired of endless menu confusion and long delivery waits, you’re likely looking for a better way to connect with local restaurants and get your meals fast.

The real issue is, you’re wasting time sorting through clunky apps and unreliable delivery updates—and that eats into your busy evenings more than you realize.

That’s where Grubhub stands out. I’ve put the platform to the test and found it brings together thousands of restaurants, flexible delivery options, and powerful tools for both diners and restaurants. This all-in-one approach promises faster orders, fewer headaches, and a smoother food ordering experience.

In this review, I’ll break down how Grubhub actually makes food ordering convenient for you with its features, pricing, and available alternatives.

You’ll see, in this Grubhub review, which features truly solve your ordering problems—so your software choice gets you real value.

You’ll leave knowing the features you need to order and manage food hassle-free.

Let’s get started.

Grubhub Overview

Grubhub has been a major player in online food ordering since its founding in Chicago back in 2004. Their mission is clear: creating a convenient digital alternative to old paper menus.

They primarily serve tech-savvy consumers and busy professionals in dense urban and suburban areas. I believe what sets them apart is their longstanding focus on restaurant partnerships, aiming to be a genuine growth driver for local businesses, not just another app on your phone.

The recent acquisition by Wonder Group is a massive strategic shift I’m watching closely. We will explore the real-world implications of this new direction for you as we go through this Grubhub review.

Unlike competitors like DoorDash that pursue massive scale, Grubhub competes with a more deliberate approach by deepening its relationships in core urban markets. I find this often results in better loyalty programs and more exclusive local deals.

They work with an extensive network of 375,000 partner merchants across over 4,000 U.S. cities. This means you’ll find everything from independent neighborhood gems to the most popular national restaurant chains.

Lately, I’ve seen their strategy pivot toward integrating Wonder’s delivery-first restaurant concepts. This smart play could give you direct access to higher-quality, chef-driven meals that are specifically designed for an excellent at-home dining experience.

Now let’s examine their core capabilities.

Grubhub Features

Always hunting for new customers for your restaurant?

Grubhub features really shine in connecting diners with local eateries, helping you expand your reach effortlessly. Here are the five main Grubhub features that transform how you manage online orders and delivery.

1. Grubhub Marketplace

Struggling to get your restaurant noticed?

Limited visibility means fewer new customers discovering your amazing food. This can seriously impact your revenue growth, especially if you’re a new restaurant.

The Grubhub Marketplace puts your menu in front of millions of diners, significantly boosting your restaurant’s exposure. From my testing, this feature acts as a massive digital storefront, driving new customers directly to you. It’s like having a marketing team working for you 24/7.

This means you can easily attract a broader customer base without spending a fortune on advertising.

2. Grubhub Delivery

No in-house delivery staff slowing you down?

Managing your own delivery logistics is expensive and complicated. This often forces restaurants to miss out on online orders or rely on inefficient methods.

Grubhub Delivery taps into their network of licensed drivers, allowing you to offer delivery without the operational headache. What I found impressive is how restaurants can choose between Grubhub’s drivers or self-delivery, offering flexible options. This feature ensures your food reaches customers quickly and reliably.

So, you can expand your delivery radius and serve more customers, even without your own fleet.

3. Grubhub Dashboard & Order Management

Drowning in a sea of paper orders?

Disorganized order processing leads to mistakes and frustrated customers. This can significantly reduce operational efficiency and harm your restaurant’s reputation.

The Grubhub Dashboard provides a centralized hub to manage all incoming orders, streamlining your workflow. Here’s what I found: it integrates with existing POS systems, which drastically reduces manual entry errors and ensures smooth operations. This feature gives you real-time control over your kitchen.

This means you can process orders faster, reduce errors, and keep both your staff and customers happy.

4. Menu Management

Is updating your menu a constant headache?

Outdated menus or poor food photos can drive customers away. This often leads to missed sales opportunities and a subpar online presence.

Menu Management allows you to easily upload and update your menu with high-quality images and descriptions. From my evaluation, this feature’s ability to make real-time adjustments for daily specials or sold-out items is incredibly valuable. Your menu always looks fresh and appealing.

So, you can showcase your dishes perfectly, attracting more orders and maximizing your menu’s potential.

5. Marketing Tools & Promotions

Need to attract new diners and keep them coming back?

Limited marketing options make it tough to stand out in a crowded market. This often results in stagnant sales and a struggle to build customer loyalty.

Grubhub offers various marketing features, including loyalty programs and targeted promotions. What I love about this is how you can use free resources to build customer loyalty, or sponsored listings for a visibility boost. This feature helps you craft campaigns that resonate.

This means you can run effective promotions, bringing in new customers and turning them into regulars easily.

You’ll actually appreciate how these Grubhub features work together, creating a complete digital ordering ecosystem that streamlines your entire online business.

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Grubhub Pricing

Hidden fees eating into your margins?

Grubhub pricing for restaurants primarily revolves around commission rates based on chosen plans, with additional fees for delivery and processing.

Plan	Price & Features
Basic Plan	5% marketing rate (min.) + delivery/processing fees • Free listing on platform • Custom-branded ordering website • Professional menu photoshoot • On-demand account support
Plus Plan	10% marketing rate (min.) + delivery/processing fees • All Basic features included • Standard delivery fees for diners • Access to Grubhub Plus (GH+) diners • Increased exposure to loyal customers
Premium Plan	15% marketing rate (min.) + delivery/processing fees • All Plus features included • Lower delivery fees for diners • Enhanced visibility for your restaurant • Optional Sponsored Listing (additional 5%)
Grubhub Direct	No commission (delivery/processing fees apply) • Online ordering for your own website • Automatic menu updates • Customizable branding • One-time setup fee ($99, new users) • Monthly fee ($49/location, new users)

1. Value Assessment

Understand the real costs here.

Grubhub’s tiered commission model means you pay based on the visibility and features you need. What I found important is how the higher tiers offer more diner benefits, like lower delivery fees, which can attract more orders to your restaurant.

This approach means your budget investment aligns with the level of service and marketing exposure you desire.

2. Trial/Demo Options

Evaluate before you commit.

Grubhub doesn’t offer a traditional free trial period for their commission plans, but you can explore Grubhub Direct for your own website at a low cost. What I found is that you can launch with the Basic Plan and upgrade as your needs and order volume grow.

This lets you experience the platform’s features and understand your actual order volume before upgrading your plan.

3. Plan Comparison

Choose the right fit for you.

The Basic Plan is suitable for new restaurants testing the waters, while Plus and Premium offer increasing value through better diner experiences. What stands out is how Premium unlocks lower diner delivery fees, potentially boosting your order volume significantly.

This tiered pricing helps you match your marketing spend to your desired level of platform visibility and competitive advantage.

My Take: Grubhub’s pricing strategy offers scalable commission models, allowing restaurants to choose between basic listing and more integrated marketing for greater exposure and diner benefits.

The overall Grubhub pricing offers flexible commission tiers tailored to your restaurant’s needs.

Grubhub Reviews

What do real customers actually think?

This section dives into Grubhub reviews, analyzing real user feedback to provide balanced insights into what customers truly experience with the platform for food ordering and delivery.

1. Overall User Satisfaction

User sentiment is generally positive.

From my review analysis, Grubhub’s user base often expresses satisfaction with its core functionalities, particularly the ease of finding and ordering food. What I found in user feedback is how the intuitive interface contributes to a smooth experience, making it a preferred choice for many seeking convenience.

This indicates you can expect a reliable and straightforward ordering process.

2. Common Praise Points

Users consistently love the convenience.

Customers frequently commend the seamless order management and the ability to track deliveries in real time. Review-wise, the wide selection of local restaurants is a consistent highlight, allowing users extensive choices for their meal preferences.

This means you’ll likely find your favorite local spots easily.

3. Frequent Complaints

Commission fees cause frustration.

A recurring complaint among restaurant partners centers on Grubhub’s commission rates, which some find impact their profit margins significantly. What stands out in user feedback is how limited visibility for basic plans can hinder smaller businesses from reaching new customers effectively.

These issues are more relevant for restaurant owners than individual diners.

The overall Grubhub reviews reveal a generally positive user experience for diners, though restaurants face common challenges.

Best Grubhub Alternatives

Considering other delivery apps?

The best Grubhub alternatives include several strong options, each better suited for different business situations, geographic locations, and specific customer priorities.

1. DoorDash

Prioritizing broader restaurant selection and reach?

DoorDash often makes more sense when you’re in a suburban or rural area, or if you prioritize a wider variety of restaurants and potentially faster delivery. From my competitive analysis, DoorDash boasts a larger market share and coverage, offering more options, though Grubhub often provides better savings for higher-value orders.

Choose DoorDash if your priority is extensive restaurant choice and broader geographic availability.

2. Uber Eats

Already an Uber user with aggressive deal preferences?

Uber Eats is a strong Grubhub alternative if you’re already integrated into the Uber ecosystem and prefer a consolidated experience. What I found comparing options is that Uber Eats typically offers more aggressive marketing programs, which can lead to appealing deals, though this often comes at a higher cost for restaurants.

Consider this alternative when a unified app experience and frequent deals are more important to you.

3. ChowNow

Are you a restaurant aiming for commission-free orders?

ChowNow is an excellent Grubhub alternative specifically for restaurants looking to maximize profit margins on online orders. Alternative-wise, ChowNow stands out for being commission-free for restaurants, allowing them direct customer relationships without marketplace fees, unlike Grubhub’s commission model.

Choose ChowNow if you’re a restaurant prioritizing direct customer relationships and eliminating commission fees.

4. Caviar

Seeking a curated, higher-end dining experience?

Caviar works better when your focus is on upscale or specialized dining experiences. From my competitive analysis, Caviar features a more curated selection of restaurants, including unique and higher-end eateries, which sets it apart from Grubhub’s broader, more general offerings.

Choose this alternative for special occasions or when you specifically want access to premium, non-fast-food establishments.

The best Grubhub alternatives ultimately depend on your specific needs and dining preferences, or your restaurant’s business model.

Grubhub Setup

What does Grubhub implementation really entail?

For this Grubhub review, I’m focusing on the practicalities of deploying and adopting Grubhub for your restaurant. Here’s what you’re looking at for a realistic setup.

1. Setup Complexity & Timeline

Getting started is surprisingly straightforward.

Grubhub setup involves receiving a welcome kit with a tablet and scheduling a menu photoshoot, indicating a relatively quick onboarding process. What I found about deployment is that ease of setup is consistently praised, allowing most restaurants to begin taking orders quickly rather than facing lengthy delays.

You’ll need to plan for initial administrative tasks and coordinating the menu photography to get operational efficiently.

2. Technical Requirements & Integration

Minimal technical hurdles to overcome.

Your restaurant primarily needs a tablet to manage incoming orders, and Grubhub easily integrates with most existing Point-of-Sale (POS) systems. From my implementation analysis, integration with your current POS is a key feature for streamlined order management and accurate transactions, which simplifies your workflow.

Prepare your IT or operations team to connect the Grubhub system with your current POS and ensure smooth data flow.

3. Training & Change Management

User adoption is intuitive for most staff.

Restaurant staff will need training on the Grubhub Dashboard to confirm orders and manage fulfillment, but the process mirrors in-person interactions. What I found about deployment is that the platform is user-friendly for daily tasks, minimizing the learning curve and encouraging quick adoption among your team.

Invest a little time in training your staff on the dashboard, focusing on order confirmation and real-time menu adjustments.

4. Support & Success Factors

Robust support helps ensure ongoing success.

Grubhub offers on-demand account support and recent updates like self-serve refund requests significantly improve efficiency for dispute resolution. From my analysis, quality of support is a notable strength, providing accessible help and resources that contribute positively to your operational success.

Focus on leveraging their support resources and continually optimizing your menu and operational flexibility to maximize your Grubhub success.

Overall, Grubhub setup offers a streamlined process for quick market entry, focusing on operational ease rather than complex technical deployments.

Bottom Line

Grubhub: Your next delivery platform?

My Grubhub review offers a clear final assessment of its strengths and limitations, helping you determine if this platform is the right fit for your restaurant’s needs.

1. Who This Works Best For

Restaurants seeking online visibility and delivery support.

Grubhub is ideal for small local eateries to large chains aiming to expand their customer reach through online ordering and delivery services. What I found about target users is that restaurants without their own delivery fleet gain significant operational efficiency by leveraging Grubhub’s infrastructure.

You’ll succeed if your priority is increasing online orders and streamlining delivery logistics with a reliable third-party platform.

2. Overall Strengths

Seamless online ordering and powerful marketing tools.

From my comprehensive analysis, Grubhub excels by providing an intuitive platform for order management, diverse delivery options, and robust marketing/analytics tools. Based on this review, the streamlined incoming order management with POS integration significantly simplifies daily operations for your team.

These strengths translate directly into wider customer reach and data-driven decisions that can genuinely grow your business.

3. Key Limitations

Commission fees significantly impact your profit margins.

The primary drawback for restaurant owners is the substantial commission fees on marketplace orders, particularly when combined with marketing and delivery commissions. Based on this review, restaurants on basic plans face limited visibility, often appearing several pages deep in search results without sponsorship.

I’d say these limitations are critical considerations that require careful evaluation of your business model and profit goals.

4. Final Recommendation

Grubhub earns a recommendation for growth-focused restaurants.

You should choose Grubhub if your restaurant aims to broaden customer reach and streamline operations through an established third-party delivery platform with ready-made infrastructure. From my analysis, this platform best serves businesses prioritizing market expansion and operational ease over maximizing profit margins on every single order.

My confidence level is high for restaurants needing marketing and delivery support, but it drops for those strictly focused on commission-free models.

This Grubhub review highlights strong benefits for growing your customer base, but carefully consider the commission structure before committing to the platform.