As the shadow of LPG crunch looms over Zomato’s top line, the food delivery giant has hiked its platform fees by nearly 20% to ₹14.9 per order.

A quick check of the app by Inc42 revealed that the company is now charging a platform fee of ₹14.9 per order on a pre-GST basis, up from ₹12.5 earlier.

The hike in platform fee is on a pan-India basis in all markets where Zomato operates, reported news agency PTI quoting sources.

This comes six months after listed Eternal’s food delivery arm increased its platform fee to ₹12.5 during Ganesh Chaturthi (around August) in Mumbai last year. It hiked the charges pan-India later on.

Meanwhile, rival Swiggy has been charging a platform fee of nearly ₹15, inclusive of GST, from customers since August last year. Another food delivery platform magicpin currently charges a platform fee of ₹14.2 per order.

First introduced in 2023 at a nominal ₹2, the platform fee has climbed steadily over the past three years. Over the past many quarters, this additional cost head for customers has helped the foodtech companies bump up their revenues and improve the unit economics.

The increase in platform fees also comes as food delivery platforms are feeling the heat due to the shortage of LPG across India, triggered by the ongoing meltdown in the Gulf. These platforms are facing unprecedented supply-chain issues as several partner restaurants have been forced to restrict deliveries or halt operations altogether.

Piling on top of this, rising crude oil prices are also likely to increase inflationary pressures, which could dampen demand and increase fuel costs for delivery operations.

Overall, the shortage will likely have a direct impact on near-term operations of Zomato and Swiggy, especially Q4 FY26 numbers. As per a precious report by brokerage platform Motilal Oswal, LPG disruption could create a near-term hiccup if shortages persist through March.

“Our estimates currently assume Zomato’s GOV growth at 15.3%/18.0% in FY26/27E and Swiggy at ~20.2%/17.3%, supported by gradual market share gains and continued expansion across cities…However, if the commercial LPG shortage persists through the remainder of March, it could begin to reflect in a temporary decline in order volumes in Q4,” the brokerage firm said earlier.

The impact of the ongoing geopolitical tensions and the LPG crunch has also been visible in the shares of Zomato’s parent Eternal. The listed foodtech major’s stock has declined more than 13% in the past month and is down 16.4% on a year-to-date (YTD) basis.

Shares of Zomato closed 1.49% higher at ₹232.3 on the BSE today.

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