Restaurant Sellers Give Delivery Apps Low Marks; Fees Highlighted as Major Concern
Creatrip Team
a month ago
A government survey found retailers using Korea’s three major delivery apps—Baemin (배달의민족), Coupang Eats, and Yogiyo (요기요)—rated their overall satisfaction at 49.1 out of 100. The lowest scores were for fee fairness (38.2), far below ratings for transaction terms (55.0) and cooperation efforts (50.7), signaling urgent need to revise commission structures. Only 28.3% of merchants were satisfied with app fees (commissions and delivery charges), though 63.2% were satisfied with overall app use. Merchants typically use 2.3 apps, rely on a primary app for 67.7% of orders, and face an average commission rate of 8.2%—well above the 4.5% they consider reasonable. No surveyed merchant reported receiving the 2% reduced commission promised in a 2024 fairness plan. Most deliveries (90.9%) use platforms’ own riders, costing merchants about 3,333 KRW per order versus 2,808 KRW when using local couriers; merchants think a fair maximum delivery fee is about 2,300 KRW. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups says it will use the findings to foster fairer conditions and better cooperation between apps and sellers.
