In recent times, food delivery apps have become an important part of consumer lifestyles across the world.  The last few years have been a boom time for food apps.

The multiple consumer benefits are clear. The apps offer customers various cuisines, options to compare and choose favoured dishes without the need to go outside. Moreover, tailored campaigns and discounts encourage customers to order more takeaways.

Although the lockdowns of the pandemic provided more impetus for takeaways, food delivery apps are now firmly embedded into consumer lifestyles. 

As such, Rakuten Insight Global surveyed over 150,000 consumers within its 12 proprietary panels across APAC & in the US. Some of the key findings are:

• o In China, 63% of consumers order at least 3-6 times a week. Conversely, in Japan, 76% of consumers never make an order
• o Dinner is the most common mealtime for food apps (56%), followed by lunch (48%). Snack-time (afternoon or late night) may be an interesting growth opportunity
• o Fast food is cuisine of choice for 65% of consumers, perhaps highlighting the guilty pleasure nature of food apps
• o GrabFood is the app of choice in 5 markets: Malaysia (79%), Philippines (71%), Singapore (84%), Thailand (56%) & Vietnam (66%)
• o In line with previous surveys, food delivery apps were used more during the COVID-19 pandemic by 51% of consumers
• o This increase was due to government restrictions (51%), social distancing (44%), and to feel happier at a stressful time (30%)
• o Indications are that consumers will continue to use food apps.

Download the report here!

Related articles: 2023 Consumer Pulse Report, Impact of Inflation on APAC Consumers

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