Zomato Responds After Customer Complains About Charging Higher Delivery Fees For Shorter Distance

A customer took to X to highlight how Zomato charged an unusually high delivery partner fee for a distance of just 2 km. Sounds astounding? Well this is what happened recently. The post quickly drew reaction from Zomato Care.

Zomato’s hiked up delivery fee for shorter distance sparks confusion

A woman named Swati recently took to X to highlight what she called a “wonderful mathematics” moment with Zomato’s delivery charges. In her post, she wrote,

“Delivery fee for 3.8 km is Rs 40 & that for 2 km is Rs 42! Wonderful mathematics, @zomato.”

Swati shared that she was surprised to see how the platform charged more for a shorter distance. In one order, the delivery partner fee for 3.8 km was shown as Rs 40, while in another, it was Rs 42 for just 2 km.

To support her point, she even attached two screenshots of her bill summaries. One clearly mentioned a Rs 40 fee for 3.8 km, and the other showed Rs 42 for 2 km, exposing the inconsistency in calculation.

Her post underlined how confusing and disproportionate delivery charges can sometimes appear to users, especially when shorter distances end up costing more than longer ones.

Have a look at the whole tweet

Delivery fee for 3.8 km is Rs 40 & that for 2 km is Rs 42! Wonderful mathematics, @zomato. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/yDIgLY12qs

— Swati (@mostofswati) September 5, 2025

Zomato responds with a clarification

Soon after Swati’s post gained attention, Zomato stepped into the comment section to offer an explanation regarding the seemingly mismatched delivery charges. Addressing her concern, the company clarified that the higher fee was not just about distance but also due to an added component.

In their reply, Zomato wrote,

“Hey Swati, we’d like to clarify that very small orders are not economically viable to deliver which is why we apply an additional small order fee in addition to the delivery charges to make the food delivery ecosystem viable and compensate the delivery partners fairly for their time and effort.”

The company further explained that customers can check the exact calculation themselves by clicking on the fee details.

Zomato added,

“For a better understanding, you can click on the respective ‘delivery partner fee’ header, to view the breakdown of the respective charges. Let us know if you have any further queries, and we’ll be here to help.”

Check it out,

Hey Swati, we’d like to clarify that very small orders are not economically viable to deliver which is why we apply an additional small order fee in addition to the delivery charges to make the food delivery ecosystem viable and compensate the delivery partners fairly for their…

— Zomato Care (@zomatocare) September 5, 2025

All in all we can say that Swati’s post not only pointed out a curious mismatch in Zomato’s delivery fee structure but also prompted the platform to explain its pricing logic. While Zomato justified the higher charge on smaller orders as necessary to keep deliveries sustainable and fair for partners, the incident highlighted how such charges can sometimes appear confusing to customers.

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Ultimately, the exchange underscored the importance of transparent communication between platforms and users, ensuring that customers understand what they are paying for and why.

What are your thoughts on the hiked up delivery charge by Zomato for shorter distance? Do share your thoughts via the comments below.