Who would have thought that when you’re not in the mood to cook, you can simply order food from your smartphone and have it delivered right to your doorstep? All thanks to food delivery app like DoorDash, UberEats, and Instacart, this is now a reality.
Today, even toddlers know they can order food with a phone, and they can name the apps too. This shows just how popular on-demand food delivery applications has become.
With busy schedules, more and more people are choosing to have meals delivered at their home. Moreover, the increased use of smartphones and internet is boosting the popularity of online food delivery app market which is expected to reach $505.50 billion by 2030.
DoorDash has become one of the most popular apps in the food delivery industry, especially in the USA. Its success has inspired many other businesses and entrepreneurs to create similar apps. Are you also thinking about building an apps similar to DoorDash? Of course, that’s why you’re here.
In this blog, we’ll discuss how to build an app like DoorDash, its key features, cost, and more. You’ll find all the information you need to easily create your own DoorDash clone app.
What Is DoorDash?
DoorDash is a widely used food delivery mobile app that lets users order food from local restaurants and have it delivered to their home or any address they choose. You can easily browse menus and find discounts from lots of restaurants all in one place. Apart from food, DoorDash also delivers groceries, alcohol, medicines, and flowers from nearby stores.
The DoorDash app has over 310,000 menus and 55,000 stores in cities across the USA, Australia, and New Zealand. Moreover, the app has a 4.7 star rating and over 50 million downloads on the Play Store.
How Does DoorDash Work?
Wondering how the DoorDash app actually works? Before you build app like DoorDash, it’s very important to understand its working mechanism. So, let’s see how it works:
For Customers
- First, download the app and create an account on the DoorDash app by entering basic details like address, email ID and contact number.
- Next, browse a variety of restaurants, food and beverage options based on your location. Then select a restaurant, and add food items to the cart.
- Place your order right in the app and make payment using credit cards, debit cards, or opt for cash on delivery.
- Easily track your order in real-time, from the restaurant to your doorstep. Moreover, you can also see updates like driver location and estimated delivery time.
For Restaurants
- Restaurants have to download the DoorDash Order Manager app on a tablet to get, track, and manage orders.
- When a customer places an order, a notification pops up on the Order Manager app and the restaurant confirms the order and sends it to the kitchen for preparation.
- The restaurant can set a preparation time, so DoorDash assigns a driver to pick it up on time. The app lets restaurant staff chat with the driver or contact DoorDash support for help.
For Drivers (Dashers)
- Drivers have to install the Dasher app on their smartphone. Select “Dash Now” and pick a delivery zone to begin.
- The DoorDash app shows nearby delivery options with pay, distance, and the number of items for each order. Drivers can decide to accept or decline each delivery.
- After accepting, the app gives directions to the restaurant for order pickup. Once the order is ready, drivers confirm the pickup in the app.
- The DoorDash food delivery app provides directions to the customer’s location for the final drop-off. Drivers can also check their earnings and tips right in the app.
Top Reasons to Invest in Food Delivery Apps Similar to DoorDash
Are you a restaurant owner planning to build your own app for food delivery services like DoorDash? Trust us, you have made a great decision. But if you still have doubts, then this section will clear them up, as we are going to discuss the key benefits of developing apps like DoorDash.
So, let’s have a look:
1. Streamlining Business Operations
Does your restaurant or eatery business face issues managing inventories and orders? If yes, then an app like DoorDash is the solution to your problem. A food delivery app helps you manage and oversee all business operations through a single application. It will handle orders automatically and assign delivery to drivers with zero human intervention.
2. Expanding Market Reach
With a physical restaurant establishment, you can only reach a limited number of people, but having an app for food delivery services like DoorDash empowers you to expand your reach. Basically, apps similar to DoorDash provide you with the golden opportunity to take your business globally.
3. Boost Sales
Every business dreams of making more and more sales each season. Apps like DoorDash have the capability to bring this dream of yours to reality. When you give people the option to order food from your restaurant without stepping out of their homes, who wouldn’t like that? Customers will order from your restaurant more frequently.
4. Diversify Revenue Streams
A food delivery platform like DoorDash assists businesses in unlocking new revenue streams. With a physical store, you can only earn from the sales made in the restaurant, but a food delivery app solution enables you to make money through different monetization models such as subscription models, advertising, delivery charges, and many more.
Must-Have Features of App Like DoorDash
Features are one of the most important aspects that play a great role in deciding the success of any mobile application. So, make sure you add the right set of features to your app like DoorDash. If you are confused about what features to add, you can take the help of your food delivery app development company USA. They have a great understanding of what features work well and what do not.
Let’s have a look at the must-have features of an app like DoorDash for the customer panel, restaurant panel, and driver panel.
1. Customer Panel
The customer panel features of DoorDash similar apps should make it easy for users to search, browse, and place orders.
| Features | Description |
| Profile Creation | Allow users to create their account in the app using their email ID or social media logins. |
| Smart Search | Through this feature customers can search restaurants by price or delivery time. |
| Real-Time Delivery Tracking | Users can easily track their food order in real-time to know exactly when it will arrive. |
| Order History | Enables users to see their past orders and easily reorder food items they liked before. |
| Push Notifications | By adding this functionality, customers get updates on their order, like when it’s confirmed by restaurant. |
| Reviews and Ratings | Allow customers to rate food and delivery, helping others know what to expect. |
| Multiple Payment Options | Make sure your app like DoorDash supports paying with cards, digital wallets, or cash on delivery. |
2. Restaurant Panel
When designing the restaurant panel features of apps like DoorDash, hire dedicated developers should ensure that they simplify the process of managing and delivering orders for restaurants.
| Features | Description |
| Personalized Dashboard | This feature makes it easy for restaurants to view all orders, payments, and business details in one place. |
| Order Management | Allow restaurants to see received orders and manage them with ease. |
| Menu Management | Your app like DoorDash should enable restaurant owners to add, remove, or change items on the menu. |
| Sales Analytics | Track sales and understand which items are the most popular to make smarter business decisions. |
| Inventory Management | This functionality empowers restaurants to track ingredients and automatically update the menu when supplies run low. |
| Alerts And Notifications | Get instant alerts about new orders, payments, and delivery updates through the app. |
3. Driver Panel
The features you integrate in the driver panel of delivery apps like DoorDash should make it easy for drivers to receive deliveries and deliver the item to the end customer safely.
| Features | Description |
| Driver Registration | Allow drivers to create their profile on the app by entering information like contact number, age, and vehicle details. |
| Accept/Reject Order | Through this feature, drivers can decide whether to accept or reject orders. |
| Earnings Dashboard | Apps similar to DoorDash should enable drivers to track all earnings and tips right in the app. |
| GPS Tracking | The food delivery app should have GPS and navigation functionality to assist drivers in getting the best route to deliver orders. |
| In App Chat/Call | This is a must-have feature, as it enables drivers to connect with customers and restaurants. |
| Push Notifications And Alerts | Drivers get notified instantly through the app when a new delivery request comes in with all details. |
How to Create an App Like DoorDash: Step by Step
You have made an excellent decision to build a food delivery app like DoorDash. But the main question arises “How to make an app like DoorDash?” Well, food delivery app development requires careful attention and a meticulous approach; it demands the expertise of professionals. So, to make the process easy for you, it’s best to hire a reputed food delivery app development agency in USA.
In this section, let’s take a look at the key steps involved in building apps for food delivery like DoorDash.
1. Research and Market Analysis
The very first step involves doing thorough market research. Begin by identifying your target audience for whom you are developing the app. Conduct competitor analysis and try to determine why your competitors are popular, what features they offer, and what they lack.
Try to identify the gaps. Evaluate what users want in food delivery apps like DoorDash and design your app features accordingly. This stage will help you simplify the entire app development process.
2. UI/UX Designing
The UI/UX design is one of the most important parts of the food delivery app development process on which the look and feel of your app like DoorDash depend. The app designers should focus on creating a simple but intuitive user interface.
The design should be visually appealing to attract users to stay and navigate the mobile application. Moreover, at this step, UI/UX designers will also craft an app prototype to showcase how the app similar to DoorDash will look and work, such as showing app screens.
3. Tech Stack Selection
Selecting the best and right tech stack is very important for developing a high-quality app like DoorDash. Food delivery app developers USA can choose programming languages like Node.js, Python, Java, and Kotlin; and databases such as PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MongoDB.
You can utilize Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud Platform for cloud hosting. When choosing the technology stack, consider scalability, app performance, cost, and security. These factors will help you pick the right tech stack.
4. Hire Food Delivery App Development Company
Hiring a reliable food delivery app development firm is one of the best decisions that you have made to ensure the success of your app development project. Choose a firm that has years of experience in creating apps like DoorDash and ensure they have the capability to create a custom solution for your business.
You can also ask the food delivery app development agency to show their project portfolios. Additionally, don’t forget to check client testimonials to make the best decision.
5. DoorDash Like App Development
In this stage, the actual food delivery app development like DoorDash takes place. Here, the food delivery app developers will start creating the frontend and backend of your mobile app similar to DoorDash, using the best tools and technologies.
They will write high-quality code to create a secure, easy-to-use, and scalable DoorDash clone application. If required, application developers will also integrate third-party APIs to boost the functionality of your app.
Read Also: How to Develop a Food Delivery App Like Deliveroo: A Complete Guide
6. Testing and Launch
Once the app like DoorDash development is completed, the app developers will pass it on to QA engineers for testing. They will rigorously test the app and fix all the issues, ensuring the app delivers a smooth user experience.
After the testing is completed, your app is all set to launch in the market. Remember that even after the launch, keep a close watch on the app performance. If users report any issues, immediately resolve them before they cause considerable damage.
Cost to Build DoorDash Similar Apps
Cost is one of the most important aspects that spring to mind when businesses decide to invest in creating a food delivery app like DoorDash. And it’s quite natural. Knowing the food delivery app development cost helps you plan your finances and stay within budget during the development process.
The cost to make an app like DoorDash is affected by a number of factors, such as app type, platform selected, feature complexity, UI/UX design, food delivery app development company’s location, and third-party integrations. Apart from this, there are also some other variables that influence the price, such as app testing, marketing costs, support and maintenance, as well as app store fees. After calculating all these factors, the cost is determined.
On average, the cost to develop a DoorDash clone app can begin at around $15,000. Remember, this is just a ballpark figure; the actual price can vary depending on your project needs. To get a personalized quote, you can try using our cost calculator or get in touch with us and share your app details.
Grubhub vs DoorDash vs Uber Eats: Comparison Table
Do you also wonder that which is better Uber Eats or DoorDash or Grubhub? All these three are prominent food delivery mobile apps that have captured a large share of food delivery market in the USA. If you are developing a food delivery app, you can definitely take inspiration from these market-leading apps.
To make things easy for you, in the below table, let’s discuss the key differences between Uber Eats vs Grubhub vs DoorDash.
| Key Aspect | Grubhub | DoorDash | Uber Eats |
| No. Of App Downloads | 10M+ | 50M+ | 100M+ |
| Platform Compatibility | Android and iOS | Android and iOS | Android and iOS |
| Restaurant Partners | 375,000+ | 500,000+ | 1.5 million+ |
| Highlighting Features | Multi-store ordering, in-app wallet, AI-powered recommendations. | Multiple carts, local creator videos feature. | AI-generated menu descriptions, live order chat. |
| Average Delivery Time | 35 minutes, 49 seconds | 26 minutes, 24 seconds | 38 minutes, 4 seconds |
| App Availability | Mainly operate in over 4,000 U.S.cities | Over 35 countries | Over 6,000 cities across 45 countries |
| Subscription And Membership | Grubhub+ | DashPass | Uber One |
| Monetization Model | Subscription, advertising, delivery fees, commission from restaurants. | DashPass subscriptions, delivery fees, service charge, commission from merchants. | Commission from restaurants, delivery fees, advertising, subscription. |
Partner with Helpful Insight to Develop a Successful Food Delivery App Like DoorDash
From the above discussion, one thing is very clear that the food delivery apps like DoorDash have been all the rage. In fact, the demand for food delivery platforms is expected to soar in the near future, as people are constantly looking for good apps that deliver food to their doorstep.
So, as a business, this is your golden opportunity to enter this lucrative market by building a food delivery app similar to DoorDash, and Helpful Insight will help you with that.
Helpful Insight is a trusted on-demand food delivery app development company based in the USA that specializes in creating top-quality and feature-packed apps like DoorDash. We have a team of professional food delivery app developers who have extensive experience in creating food delivery apps for businesses of all sizes.
Our mobile app developers are committed to developing your DoorDash clone app that is better than DoorDash in terms of quality, features, and design.
So, what are you waiting for? Connect with our team today and share your app idea. We would be more than happy to transform your app idea into a profitable business.
FAQs
Developing a food delivery app can bring a plethora of benefits and can skyrocket the success of your restaurant business. An app like DoorDash will help you streamline business operations and improve operational efficiency. It also assists in boosting sales and revenue while expanding market reach. Moreover, a DoorDash clone app helps businesses make smarter decisions by providing data-driven insights.
These are just a few benefits. To know more about how a DoorDash like app development can help your business achieve success, schedule a free consultation today.
The timeline to make an app like DoorDash is influenced by a wide range of factors such as app complexity level, platform chosen, number of features, tech stack selected, app testing, and many more. So, without knowing your project requirements, it will be difficult to determine the duration. Once you share the details with our team, we will equip you with all the information regarding when you can expect your app development to be completed.
Although there are so many food delivery applications available in the market but Uber Eats, Grubhub, Instacart, and Postmates are the top DoorDash alternatives.
There are multiple ways through which food delivery apps like DoorDash make money. The different monetization models include advertisements, delivery fees, subscription plans, commission from restaurants, etc. You can choose the model best suited according to your needs.
