There are three main delivery apps for Kiwi consumers to choose from. The question is, do they all deliver the same value for money? Menulog entered the New Zealand market in 2012, Delivereasy in May 2016, and UberEats was launched on 8 March 2017. 

We took a look through the three main food-delivery apps to find out which of the three offered the best service to the customer. We judged this under four categories: price point, ease of use, reward schemes and available restaurant options. 

What’s the cheapest food-delivery app (NZ)?

Fees

Each of the apps charges a fee based on the distance the driver has to take to get to you and the availability of the drivers at the time.  Delivereasy and Menulog provide free delivery if you spend over a certain amount. ($25 for Delivereasy and $10 for Menulog).

UberEats doesn’t have a cut-off point where delivery fees are waived and is the only company to add a service fee, which equates to 10 percent of your order value (before promotions) with a maximum of $4 on every order. 

Price

In-storeDelivereasyMenulogUberEats
McDonalds Family Pack$31$34.99 $34.00$41.39 
Murder Burger Meal$25.90$25.90$18.81 $45.59 
Pita Pit Chicken Pita $6.00$14.29 $10.08 (had to buy a Coke to qualify)$10.29
Ordered from an address in Point Chevalier, Auckland

In order to work out which app is the most cost-effective, we began by ordering a McDonalds’ family pack, which costs $31 in-store.  The meal is a quick and easy option for families and expensive enough to trigger discounts if there are any.

Menulog charged the least amount, out of the three, with no delivery fees.  Meanwhile, with the delivery and service fee added to the total, UberEats cost $41.39.  Our next order included a burger combo from Mt Eden restaurant Murder Burger.

Once again, Menulog was the cheapest and because of a 10% discount that was added at the checkout, it actually came out cheaper than ordering in store, at $18.81 instead of $25.90. Delivereasy charged $25.90 and UberEats was an eye-watering $45.99.

Our next order included a burger combo from Mt Eden restaurant Murder Burger. Once again, Menulog was the cheapest and because of a 10% discount that was added at the checkout, it actually came out cheaper than ordering in store, at $18.81 instead of $25.90. Delivereasy charged $25.90 and UberEats was an eye-watering $45.99.

Finally, we decided to go under the $10.00 threshold, to see how prices changed. Once again, Menulog was the cheapest, with a 10% discount on the meal. However, as the price was $6.30, the company wouldn’t allow it to be delivered until you bought something over $3.30. We purchased a 600ml Coke and it was still the cheapest delivery option, at $10.08. This time, Delivereasy was the most expensive, thanks to the delivery fee of $7.99.

Based on this exercise, it is clear that Menulog is the cheapest option. Thanks to a 10% discount on some orders, it is often even cheaper to deliver from Menulog than to go into the store. 

Ease of use

Menulog is well set out, with clear imagery, a review system where you can see how other customers have rated a restaurant and subtitles that you can tick to zone in on the type of meal you are looking for.  The downside of this app is that it has gone a bit too far with information overload and the various tabs make ordering a meal quite confusing. 

Delivereasy is more clear and concise, however the app developers have possibly gone too far with the sparse information available. Unlike the other two apps, you have to ‘search’ what you want to eat, rather than having the option to tick the type of meal that appeals to you (ie: burgers, pizza etc).  It also doesn’t have a very customer-friendly information section.

With a very user-friendly interface which allows customers to go straight to their chosen food or beverage (at the top of the screen), or browse through a range of options close to the address you have chosen, we felt that UberEats was the easiest to navigate. It also allows the customer to check out ‘top eats’ which have high customer ratings. The only pitfall, for the customer at least, is that ‘sponsored’ restaurants are placed higher up the search rankings. 

Available options

At last count, UberEats supplied 3,408 restaurants, Menulog services over 900 across the country, with plans to expand over 200% by mid-2021. Currently, the amount of restaurants that Delivereasy services has not been disclosed. Popular restaurants like KFC are not available on this app. Delivereasy does offer an alcohol delivery service though, as well as UberEats. 

Rewards for loyal customers

While Delivereasy and Menulog offer free delivery, UberEats has a more savvy approach to keeping their customers happy. While you can’t just get free delivery on your first purchase, you can receive partial discounts if you use the service regularly and/or buy a membership. The UberPass rewards system means that regular users who market the product to their friends, get thanked for doing so, but there is a monthly charge to enjoy the benefits. 

The verdict

MenulogDelivereasyUbereats
Cheapest*
Most options available*
Easiest platform to use*
Best reward scheme*

Based on the number of restaurants and beverage options, the user-friendly interface, and rewards available to regular clients, we give UberEats the top prize for value for money. However, if you just want a cheap service that doesn’t take into account how loyal you are as a customer, giving the same discounts to everyone, Menulog is a very close second, you just might have to skimp on your restaurant options.