Guide: Delivery Margin

See the real profit on delivery orders after platform commissions, processor effective rate, boosts, discounts, refunds, fees, packaging… and food cost.

When to use this

Any time platform commission, boosts, discounting, or processing changes — or when menu prices move. Re-check monthly and after promo pushes.

Inputs — what goes where

  • Menu Price — list price before discounts.
  • Discounts / Refunds % — blended percent of orders discounted or refunded.
  • Platform Commission % — marketplace fee on order subtotal (post-discount).
  • Boost / Marketing % — optional promo/boost percent applied to subtotal.
  • Processing Effective Rate % — use RPS effective-rate number (all-in).
  • Fixed Delivery Fee — per-order fee the platform deducts (if applicable).
  • Packaging Cost — per-order container/utensils cost.
  • Food Cost $ — product cost for the order (COGS).
  • Sales Tax Handling — if tax flows through you, exclude from margin math.

Formulas — exactly what the sheet does

  • Discounted Subtotal = Menu Price × (1 − Discounts/Refunds %)
  • Commission Fee = Discounted Subtotal × Platform Commission %
  • Boost Fee = Discounted Subtotal × Boost %
  • Net Collected (pre-processing) = Discounted Subtotal − Commission − Boost − Fixed Delivery Fee
  • Processing Fee = Net Collected × Effective Rate %
  • Net Deposit = Net Collected − Processing Fee
  • Gross Profit $ = Net Deposit − Packaging − Food Cost
  • Margin % = Gross Profit ÷ Discounted Subtotal
  • Breakeven Price = solves Menu Price where Gross Profit $ = 0
  • Target Price (15%) = solves Menu Price where Margin % = 15%
Tip: If the marketplace calculates commission on pre-discount price, toggle the sheet’s switch to “pre-discount” so fees don’t get under-counted.

Walk-through example

Menu Price $18.00, Discounts 6%, Commission 22%, Boost 3%, Effective Rate 3.1%, Fixed Fee $1.25, Packaging $0.90, Food Cost $5.85.

  • Discounted Subtotal = $18 × 0.94 = $16.92
  • Commission = $16.92 × 0.22 = $3.72
  • Boost = $16.92 × 0.03 = $0.51
  • Net Collected (pre-proc) = 16.92 − 3.72 − 0.51 − 1.25 = $11.44
  • Processing = 11.44 × 0.031 = $0.35
  • Net Deposit = 11.44 − 0.35 = $11.09
  • Gross Profit $ = 11.09 − 0.90 − 5.85 = $4.34 → Margin % = 4.34 ÷ 16.92 = 25.6%

Breakeven and 15% target price buttons in the sheet update live as inputs change.

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