The debate between food delivery convenience and home cooking economy is not just about money—it involves time, effort, skills, and lifestyle. This article provides an honest cost comparison to help you make informed decisions about where to allocate your food spending.
The Direct Cost Comparison
Let us start with the numbers. We will compare the cost of common meals prepared at home versus ordered through delivery.
Simple Lunch: Dal-Rice-Sabzi
Home cooking cost: ₹50-70 per serving. This includes rice, dal, vegetables, oil, and spices. Quantities can be scaled, and leftovers used.
Delivery cost: ₹180-250 including taxes and delivery fees. Restaurant quality may be higher, but so is the price.
Cost difference: ₹110-180 per meal.
Pasta or Noodles
Home cooking cost: ₹40-80 per serving. Basic pasta with sauce or stir-fried noodles with vegetables.
Delivery cost: ₹220-350 for similar dishes from casual dining restaurants.
Cost difference: ₹150-270 per meal.
Chicken Curry with Rice
Home cooking cost: ₹120-180 per serving including chicken, rice, and spices.
Delivery cost: ₹300-450 for chicken curry meal from restaurants.
Cost difference: ₹150-270 per meal.
Biryani
Home cooking cost: ₹100-150 per serving when made in quantities. Initial spice investment pays off over multiple uses.
Delivery cost: ₹250-400 per serving depending on restaurant.
Cost difference: ₹100-250 per meal.
Monthly Cost Scenarios
Let us model what different eating patterns cost over a month, considering 90 meals (assuming you eat three meals a day, 30 days).
Heavy Delivery User
Delivery: 60 meals. Average cost: ₹300. Total: ₹18,000.
Home cooking: 30 meals. Average cost: ₹80. Total: ₹2,400.
Monthly food cost: ₹20,400.
Moderate Delivery User
Delivery: 24 meals (about 6 per week). Average cost: ₹300. Total: ₹7,200.
Home cooking: 66 meals. Average cost: ₹80. Total: ₹5,280.
Monthly food cost: ₹12,480.
Minimal Delivery User
Delivery: 8 meals (about 2 per week). Average cost: ₹350. Total: ₹2,800.
Home cooking: 82 meals. Average cost: ₹80. Total: ₹6,560.
Monthly food cost: ₹9,360.
The Difference
Heavy versus minimal delivery user: ₹11,040 monthly difference, or ₹132,480 yearly. This is a significant sum that could fund major financial goals.
Calculate your own scenario using our Zomato Spending Calculator.
Hidden Costs of Home Cooking
The comparison above focuses on ingredient costs. Home cooking has additional costs that should be considered for a fair comparison.
Time Cost
Cooking takes time: shopping for groceries (1-2 hours weekly), meal prep (15-45 minutes per meal), and cleaning (10-20 minutes). If you value your time at ₹200-500 per hour, these hours add up.
Energy and Effort
After a long day, cooking requires energy that you might not have. The mental load of deciding what to cook, ensuring you have ingredients, and executing the meal has real value.
Initial Investment
A well-equipped kitchen requires investment: cookware, appliances, storage containers, spices. These costs spread over time but exist.
Food Waste
Home cooking can lead to food waste from unused ingredients, failed experiments, or forgotten leftovers. Studies suggest households waste 5-15 percent of groceries purchased.
Hidden Costs of Food Delivery
Delivery also has costs beyond the bill amount.
Health Costs
Restaurant food typically contains more oil, salt, and sugar than home-cooked meals. Regular consumption may have long-term health implications that translate to medical costs.
Inconsistency
Unlike home cooking where you control portions and ingredients, delivery quality varies. Sometimes you get value; sometimes you pay premium for disappointing food.
Packaging Waste
Each delivery generates plastic and paper waste. While not a direct financial cost, environmental consciousness is a consideration for many people.
The Time-Money Tradeoff
The core question is: what is your time worth?
When Delivery Makes Sense
If you can use the time saved for productive or high-value activities, delivery may be economically rational. A freelancer who can earn ₹500 in the hour saved by ordering might come out ahead.
When Home Cooking Wins
If the alternative to cooking is scrolling social media or watching TV, the time-money argument weakens. The cooking time might even be enjoyable and relaxing.
Reality Check
Be honest about how you actually use time saved. If you would genuinely work, learn, or do something valuable, count the time savings. If not, the direct cost comparison is more relevant.
Finding Your Balance
The answer is rarely all-delivery or all-cooking. Most people benefit from a strategic mix.
Weekday Lunch Strategy
Batch-cook simple lunches on Sunday for the work week. This captures home cooking savings for meals that are functional rather than experiential.
Weekend Treat Strategy
Reserve delivery for weekends or special occasions when you want variety, specific cuisines, or rest from cooking. These become treats rather than defaults.
Skill-Based Strategy
Cook dishes you make well at home; order cuisines that require specialized skills or equipment you do not have. Making restaurant-quality sushi at home is hard; making dal-chawal is easy.
Energy-Based Strategy
Cook when you have energy and time; order when you are genuinely exhausted or pressed for time. The key is honest assessment rather than defaulting to delivery.
Practical Calculation Exercise
Try this exercise to find your optimal balance:
- Use our calculator to estimate current delivery spending
- Estimate how many delivery meals you could realistically replace with home cooking
- Calculate the potential savings using the cost differences above
- Consider whether the time and effort tradeoff is worthwhile for your situation
- Set a target that feels challenging but achievable
Conclusion
Food delivery costs two to four times more than home cooking for most meals. Whether that premium is worth it depends on your time, energy, skills, and financial priorities. The key is making conscious choices rather than defaulting to either extreme.
Start by understanding your current spending with our Zomato Spending Calculator, then experiment with different ratios of delivery to home cooking to find your optimal balance.