Best food delivery service when you don’t want fast food
Specifications
Availability: 28 U.S. cities and regions
Fees: $1.99 to $8.99
Minimum order: Varies by restaurant for delivery
Subscription option: None
Reasons to buy
+Focuses on local restaurants+Real-time GPS tracking
Reasons to avoid
–Reach isn’t as extensive as other services
Available in 28 cities and regions across the country, Square’s Caviar app brings you food from a rich selection of local restaurants, with real-time GPS tracking for deliveries as well as the option to pick up your food to save on delivery-and-service fees.
Caviar offers a number of in-app exclusive deals, and it focuses less on fast food compared with other apps. Instead, Caviar emphasizes other types of restaurants, and it lets you leave instructions for no-contact delivery when you checkout for your order.
Postmates (Image credit: Tom’s Guide)
7. Postmates
Round-the-clock food delivery service
Specifications
Availability: 4,200 U.S. cities
Fees: Varies by restaurant and subject to surge pricing
Minimum order: Varies by restaurant for delivery, $1.99 on small cart orders
Subscription option: Postmates Unlimited for $9.99 a month
Even though it’s now owned by Uber, Postmates remains ready to satisfy your food cravings 24/7 with the option to have just about anything delivered from local stores to your doorstep. You can order pizza, burgers, groceries or even things like clothing or cellphone chargers from local restaurants and retail partners. The company just introduced no-contact delivery options as well.
Postmates does include a delivery charge and surge pricing during peak hours, but a $9.99-per-month Postmates Unlimited service removes surge pricing and delivery charges for orders greater than $15.
(Image credit: ChowNow)
8. ChowNow
Local eats, with a focus on pickups
Specifications
Availability: 18 U.S. cities and regions
Fees: Varies by restaurant
Minimum order: Varies by restaurant for delivery
Subscription option: None
Reasons to buy
+No hidden fees+Focuses on local restaurants
Reasons to avoid
–Delivery limited to select cities–Not as extensive as other services
ChowNow isn’t strictly a food delivery app — while delivery is available in select locations, ChowNow is largely focused on letting you place orders for food that you pick up at local restaurants. So if you’re looking for the convenience of having meals dropped off at your door, consider one of the other best food delivery apps.
Still, there are compelling reasons to turn to ChowNow, starting with the service’s focus on local eateries, instead of chains. That allows you to discover good, local eats that are close by, even if you’re stuck at home. Secondly, ChowNow promises commission-free ordering so that your final bill isn’t loaded down with unexplained fees. If you’d like to fill your belly while also helping out local restauranteurs, this is the app to check out.
Delivery.com (Image credit: Delivery.com)
9. Delivery.com
All-purpose delivery service
Specifications
Availability: 100-plus U.S. cities
Fees: Varies by location
Minimum order: Varies by location for delivery
Subscription option: Delivery Points reward program for free
Reasons to buy
+Delivers laundry, groceries and alcohol in addition to food+Extensive reach
Reasons to avoid
–Some restaurants tack on delivery fees
Delivery.com wouldn’t seem to be a likely candidate for the best food delivery services since it offers a broad range of delivery options, including the ability to schedule pickups and drop-offs for laundry and dry cleaning. But food delivery is very much a part of Delivery.com’s bag of tricks.
In addition to ordering your favorite munchies for delivery or takeout, Delivery.com also can bring you groceries, beer, wine and spirits, so think of it as a one-stop source for all your food needs. In addition, a group ordering feature lets you split orders with neighbors and roommates to minimize the number of deliveries coming and going.
goPuff (Image credit: GoPuff)
10. GoPuff
Get more than just food delivered
Specifications
Availability: 170-plus areas
Fees: $1.95 per delivery
Minimum order: None
Subscription option: Fam membership for $5.95 a month
Reasons to buy
+Deliveries include cleaning supplies and over-the-counter medicine in addition to food+Flat delivery fee
Reasons to avoid
–Food deliveries veer more toward snacks than full-fledged meals
GoPuff takes a quirkier approach to food delivery, offering snacks, ice cream, alcohol and other items, including over-the-counter medicine and cleaning supplies. Those last two items may be of particular interest for people staying in because of the coronavirus outbreak, and GoPuff offers no-contact delivery options.
Think of this app as a mobile convenience store that brings you exactly what you need, day or night, without requiring you to hoof it to a corner store. GoPuff features a catalog of more than 2,000 products and charges a convenient flat delivery fee of $2. (Pay for a $5.95-per-month Fam membership, and you’ll get free delivery, which will save you money if you turn to GoPuff more than three times each month.)
How to find the best food delivery service
When evaluating which food delivery service to use, look into how extensive a reach a particular service has where you live and whether it can bring you food from restaurants where you like to eat. Consider which service charge extra fees, though that can be hard to look up, as many deliver fees are at the discretion of the restaurants from which you order.
If you plan on using a service extensively, see if there’s a monthly membership program. In many cases that membership fee can wipe out any delivery charges or reduce other fees. In some cases, you can even expect faster delivery if you’ve got membership status.
What you plan to order can determine what service you use. Grubhub, DoorDash and UberEats specialize in meals from restaurants. Postmates, Delivery.com and GoPuff handle other types of food delivery, while InstaCart focuses nearly exclusively on grocery stores.
