Delivery & Dark Kitchen
Own cost per delivery =
(Hourly cost / Deliveries per hour)
+ Vehicle cost per delivery
+ (Fixed fleet costs / Deliveries per month)
External cost per delivery = Order value x Commission %
Break-even deliveries =
Fixed fleet costs / (External cost - Own variable cost)It depends on volume. A platform charges a percentage of every order with no fixed cost, while your own fleet has fixed costs (vehicles, base wages, insurance) plus a lower variable cost per delivery. Below a certain number of deliveries the platform is cheaper; above it, your own fleet wins. This calculator finds that crossover point.
Own cost per delivery = (hourly rider cost / deliveries per hour) + vehicle cost per delivery + (fixed fleet costs / deliveries per month). It combines the variable labour and vehicle cost of each drop with the share of monthly fixed fleet costs spread across all deliveries.
External (platform) cost = order value x commission %. Unlike your own fleet, this scales purely with order value and volume, with no fixed component, which is exactly why platforms are cheap at low volume and expensive at high volume.
Break-even deliveries = fixed fleet costs / (external cost per delivery - own variable cost per delivery). It is the number of deliveries at which the saving on variable cost finally pays off the fixed cost of running your own fleet. Above it, in-house is cheaper.
The usual blind spots are vehicle maintenance and fuel, insurance, paid idle time between deliveries, and the management overhead of scheduling riders. Include them in the hourly cost and fixed fleet cost, otherwise the in-house option will look cheaper than it really is.