Uber Eats
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Online food ordering |
| Founded | August 26, 2014 (as UberFRESH) |
| Founders | Travis Kalanick Garrett Camp |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, California, U.S. |
Area served | Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, France, Germany, Guatemala, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Panama, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States |
Key people | Dara Khosrowshahi (CEO) |
| Services | Food delivery |
| Revenue | Increase $13.7 billion (2024) |
| Parent | Uber |
| Website | ubereats |
Uber Eats is a platform for online food ordering and delivery introduced by the ride-sharing firm Uber in August 2014. It stands as one of the foremost international food delivery platforms and competes with companies such as DoorDash, Grubhub, Deliveroo, and Just Eat Takeaway.com.
In December 2020, Uber completed the acquisition of U.S.-based delivery service Postmates for $2.65 billion. Postmates’ operations were merged into Uber Eats while preserving its distinct brand identity with a strong foothold in the Western United States.
The company has encountered criticism related to worker classification and pricing strategies that include concealed fees and ambiguous subscription perks. Additionally, Uber Eats has been investigated for possible antitrust concerns.
History
Founded in 2009 by Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick, Uber entered the food delivery market in August 2014 through UberFRESH in Santa Monica, California under the leadership of Jason Droege. In 2015, the service was rebranded as UberEats and launched as an independent app beginning in Toronto. By 2016, it had expanded its reach to London and Paris.
In March 2018, Uber divested its Southeast Asia ride-hailing and food delivery businesses to competitor Grab in exchange for a 27.5% equity stake. This exit covered markets like Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.
August 2018 marked a change from a fixed $4.99 delivery charge to a variable fee based on distance ranging from $2 to $8; in the UK and Ireland markets, fees are calculated according to order value. By February 2019, commission rates were lowered from 35% to 30%. The company also invested in virtual kitchens (ghost kitchens) to bolster delivery-only restaurant concepts.
By November 2018, Uber Eats was active in 200 cities across 20 countries within EMEA and announced plans to triple its workforce in Europe. In 2019, it initiated drone delivery tests in the Northern Hemisphere and collaborated with Apple on launching the Apple Card. That July introduced an option for dine-in ordering.
Toward the end of 2019, Uber Eats withdrew from South Korea due to intense market rivalry and introduced a pickup service. It also began delivering Burger King orders throughout the United States.
In January 2020, Uber sold its Indian food delivery segment to Zomato for a stake valued at $3.55 billion; by August 2022 Uber had fully exited India. Around this period, exclusive McDonald's delivery contracts were lost in both the UK and U.S.
Jason Droege resigned as head of Uber Eats in February 2020; at that point it was Uber’s second-largest income source following ridesharing.
During the COVID-19 pandemic surge, Uber Eats experienced a 30% growth in new users but faced backlash over high commission fees charged to restaurants (ranging from 30% to 35%).
In May 2020, operations ceased in eight countries including Czech Republic, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and UAE—with Middle Eastern services transferred to Careem. In July 2020, Uber acquired Postmates for $2.65 billion.
By late 2020 Uber Eats withdrew from Argentina and Colombia. December 2021 saw completion of its inaugural space delivery alongside Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa; it also exited Hong Kong after five years of operation.
Early 2022 brought an announcement that Brazil operations would end by March to concentrate on other services locally. That same month introduced a fuel surcharge based on distance traveled and prevailing gas prices across North America.
April 2022 featured a collaboration with UK supermarket Tesco offering one-hour grocery deliveries from twenty stores. The following month autonomous delivery pilots commenced in Los Angeles with Serve Robotics and Motional.
In December 2022 Uber partnered with Cartken to deploy robot deliveries in Miami.
January 2024 saw the decision to discontinue the alcohol delivery app Drizly by March to consolidate alcohol services under Uber Eats.
In May 2024 Uber sought to purchase Delivery Hero’s Foodpanda Taiwan business for approximately $950 million but abandoned the agreement in March 2025 after regulatory rejection by Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission; a $250 million termination fee was paid.
Also in May 2025 Uber entered Turkey’s food delivery sector by acquiring an 85% controlling interest in Trendyol Go for about $700 million. Trendyol Go operates under Trendyol which is majority-owned by Alibaba Group.
Allegations of monopolistic conduct lawsuit
In April 2020, a collective of New York residents initiated legal action against Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub, and Postmates, accusing these platforms of engaging in monopolistic conduct by mandating that restaurants maintain identical pricing for dine-in and delivery services to appear on their applications. This policy purportedly compels dine-in patrons to indirectly cover delivery expenses, while the platforms impose fees ranging from 13% to 40% of restaurant revenue, despite typical restaurant profit margins being only between 3% and 9%. The plaintiffs are pursuing triple damages for alleged overcharges dating back to April 14, 2016, affecting both dine-in and delivery customers across the United States. The lawsuit, titled Davitashvili v GrubHub Inc., 20-cv-3000, is filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Although initial filings have been submitted, no trial schedule has been established.
Antitrust litigation
In 2022, Uber Eats was subjected to an antitrust lawsuit accusing it of price-fixing by requiring restaurants to set equal prices for delivery and dine-in services as a condition for app inclusion, in addition to levying fees between 13% and 40% on restaurant revenues.
Strike over courier compensation
On February 14, 2024, Uber Eats couriers in the United Kingdom organized a strike from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., coordinated by Delivery Job UK, demanding a minimum payment of £5 per delivery. This action represented the largest labor protest impacting the platform within the UK.
Settlement regarding AI bias
In March 2024, an African American Uber Eats courier received a confidential settlement after being denied access and facing account termination in 2021 due to the app’s AI-driven facial recognition system. Since April 2020, Uber Eats has employed AI facial recognition technology to authenticate drivers by comparing live selfies with previously stored images.
Financial performance
| Year | Revenue (billion USD) |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 0.6 |
| 2018 | 1.5 |
| 2019 | 1.9 |
| 2020 | 4.8 |
| 2021 | 8.3 |