In an attempt to optimise its costs, food delivery platform Swiggy has started charging a platform fee of Rs 2 per order. The "platform fee" is applicable to all orders, irrespective of the cart value. The food delivery major initially rolled out the additional charge for users in a few metro cities, including Bengaluru and Hyderabad. However, it hasn't introduced any additional charges for its quick-commerce arm, Instamart.


Swiggy has yet to introduce the additional charge in major cities like Delhi and Mumbai. The platform delivers over 1.5 million orders each day; hence, the additional charge of Rs 2 would create a decent corpus to re-infuse back into its operations. The fee is likely to be extended to other cities in phases. Amid the funding crunch, the move would help the startup catalyse its journey to profitability.

The key reason for the relocation is a downturn in the delivery business. "The company was no exception," Swiggy's Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder Sriharsha Majety stated in an email to staff about the 380 job cuts.

Swiggy's incorporation of additional fees will most certainly help it reduce its cash burn, which "is a lot more than" what Zomato was burning, according to HSBC analysts. Swiggy burned roughly Rs 3,900 crore in fiscal year (FY) 2022, compared to Rs 700 crore for Zomato. Regardless, the latter had a larger market share.

Swiggy's revenue was around Rs 5,700 crore, compared to Zomato's revenue of around Rs 4,100 crore.