Zomato adds Rs 5–21 fee for cash-on-delivery orders
Zomato began charging Rs 5 to Rs 21 for cash-on-delivery orders, on top of existing fees. It declined to comment on the calculation basis or any cap. Swiggy has not introduced a similar fee.
Read the source at MedianamaThe numbers
Figures in the source Rs 7Rs 12
Why it matters to operators and investors
Explore digital-payment partnerships that ease cash users’ transition, while assessing whether Swiggy’s reported lack of a comparable fee creates a customer-acquisition advantage.
What to watch next
- Changes in cash-on-delivery share alongside total order conversion: migration without volume loss would support the base case.
- Fee variation by basket size, location or customer cohort, and any published calculation method or cap; Rs 21 is the reported upper observation, not a confirmed ceiling.
- Swiggy introducing a comparable fee or promoting cash-payment price advantages.
- Disproportionate abandonment of small baskets and repeat-order declines among cash-paying users.
- Checkout disclosure changes, waivers or increased retention promotions.
Likely next moves
The desk's read of what comes next — analysis, not reported by the source.
- Zomato is likely to emphasize prepaid payment options and monitor conversion losses among cash-paying users.
- Swiggy may initially preserve its reported lack of a comparable surcharge as a checkout-price advantage rather than immediately match the fee.
- Zomato may target retention offers at affected customers if lost orders outweigh cash-handling savings.
The counter-case
The surcharge could push price-sensitive cash users toward Swiggy, which reportedly lacks a comparable fee, or reduce order frequency. Extra revenue per cash order may merely offset collection costs rather than improve margins; opaque fee calculation also risks checkout friction.