It depends on where you live.<\/p>\n
To help consumers save<\/a> and find the best option for their budget, online lender NetCredit<\/a> analyzed data across the U.S. We compared the prices of the most popular takeout chains on Uber Eats, Grubhub and DoorDash, and by doing this we uncovered the least expensive service in every state and major city.<\/p>\n We sourced the price of a set list of popular items from Subway, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, KFC, Popeyes, Burger King and Taco Bell on Uber Eats, Grubhub and DoorDash, in each of America\u2019s 100 most populous cities and the five largest in each state. Then, we summed the prices of all items for every chain in each location to determine the cheapest service. Please find our full methodology, including the item lists, at the end of this article.<\/p>\n First, we identified the most affordable food delivery app in each state. We found that Grubhub is cheapest in 24 states, while DoorDash and Uber Eats are cheapest in 13 states each. The states where Grubhub is the cheapest include New York, Florida and the Carolinas.<\/p>\n A pair of developers working at Apartments.com founded Grubhub in 2004, driven by their own frustrations with takeout. \u201cWe were hungry, and sick of ordering the same pizza all the time,\u201d founder Matt Maloney told Business Insider<\/a> in 2012. \u201cIt’s kind of funny that it really was hunger that inspired [GrubHub].\u201d<\/p>\n European food ordering company Just Eat acquired Grubhub for $7.3 billion<\/a> in 2021 but quickly sold it at a massive loss<\/a> as post-pandemic eating trends rocked the market, and Grubhub fell behind DoorDash and Uber Eats. However, the firm remains a major presence, delivering food from 375,000 outlets<\/a> in over 4,000 U.S. cities.<\/p>\n Next, we checked the pricing of a fixed set of takeout orders in America\u2019s major cities. In Los Angeles and San Francisco, the cheapest app is DoorDash, which is the cheapest in California overall. However, the Californian cities of San Diego and San Jose buck the trend. In San Diego, Grubhub is the most affordable option, while in San Jose, it\u2019s Uber Eats.<\/p>\n In New York City, we found Grubhub to be around 8.4-12.4% cheaper than DoorDash and Uber Eats overall. However, the company has struggled<\/a> in the city in recent years, despite buying up legendary local online delivery service Seamless in 2013. Grubhub\u2019s short-term owners, Just Eat, erased Seamless\u2019s branding during a post-pandemic overhaul, but it seems likely to return under Grubhub\u2019s new owners \u2014 the innovative, New York City-based<\/a> restaurant and delivery service Wonder.<\/p>\n When we looked at how these food delivery services compare when buying McDonald\u2019s, we found that Grubhub is still the cheapest option in 24 states \u2014 plus Rhode Island, where our order cost the same whether delivering from Grubhub or DoorDash.<\/p>\n DoorDash performs better when analyzing McDonald\u2019s orders alone than when aggregating multiple outlets: for McD\u2019s, DoorDash is cheaper than Grubhub or Uber Eats in 18 states and ties with Grubhub in Rhode Island.<\/p>\n We also found that DoorDash is the cheapest in more major cities when looking at McDonald\u2019s orders alone: nine, plus Indianapolis and New York City, where it ties with Grubhub.<\/p>\n McDonald\u2019s has recently partnered with DoorDash to allow customers to order directly through a DoorDash-powered McDonald\u2019s site.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re making it easy for customers to order McDonald\u2019s wherever they are,\u201d says Shanna Prev\u00e9<\/a>, VP of Enterprise Sales & Business Development at DoorDash.<\/p>\nWhat we did.<\/h2>\n
Key Findings: DoorDash vs. Uber Eats vs. Grubhub.<\/h2>\n
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Grubhub is the cheapest major food delivery app in nearly half of America\u2019s states.<\/h2>\n
![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/11\/01_The-Most-Affordable-Food-Delivery-Service-by-State-e1763397503989.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\nDoorDash leads in California \u2014 but not in every CA city.<\/h2>\n
![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/11\/02_The-Most-Affordable-Food-Delivery-Service-by-City-e1763397636949.png\")
<\/a><\/p>\nDoorDash has partnered with McDonald\u2019s, but it is not always the cheapest option.<\/h2>\n
![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/11\/03_The-Most-Affordable-Food-Delivery-Service-for-McDonalds-by-State-e1763397793881.png\")
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![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/11\/04_The-Most-Affordable-Food-Delivery-Service-for-McDonalds-by-City-e1763397871857.png\")
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