Commission-Free Online Ordering: Why Restaurants Are Leaving Food Platforms

If you are paying 20 to 30% commission on every online order to a food delivery platform, you are giving away a big chunk of your margin. For many restaurants, that is the difference between a profitable month and a loss.

Commission-free online ordering changes the math. Instead of paying a platform for every order, you put an ordering page on your own website and keep 100% of the revenue. Here is why more Swedish restaurants are making the switch.

The true cost of food platform commission

Let's say your average online order is 350 SEK. At a 25% commission rate (typical for major platforms), you pay 87.50 SEK per order. If you do 100 online orders per week, that is 8,750 SEK per week, or 455,000 SEK per year in commission alone.

That is a salary for a part-time employee. Or a new oven. Or six months of rent.

The platforms argue that they bring you customers you would not otherwise reach. That is sometimes true. But for restaurants with an existing local customer base, most online orders come from people who already know you. They just use the platform because it is convenient.

How commission-free online ordering works

A commission-free online ordering system works like this:

1. You add an "Order Online" button to your website (a simple link, no embedding needed).
2. The button links to your ordering page on bestallnu.com, with a unique code that identifies your restaurant (e.g., bestallnu.com/order/your-restaurant-code).
3. The ordering page loads your branding automatically - colors, logo, menu - all pulled from your backoffice configuration. It looks like your own site, but it runs on our infrastructure.
4. Guests browse your menu, add items to cart, and check out.
5. Payment gets processed through your own payment processor (Swish, Worldline Checkout, etc.).
6. The order flows directly to your POS and kitchen display with no manual entry.
7. You keep 100% of the revenue with no commission and no per-order fee.

The only costs you pay are the standard payment processing fees (typically 1 to 2% for card, a fixed fee for Swish). These are the same fees you would pay for in-store card transactions.

What to look for in a commission-free ordering system

Not all commission-free systems are the same. When checking out your options, look for:

POS integration

The ordering system has to integrate directly with your POS. Orders should pop up in the POS and on the kitchen display automatically. No manual entry, no separate tablet on the counter running a different app.

Branded ordering page

The ordering page should look like your restaurant, not a generic template. BeställNu pulls your logo, colors, and menu from the backoffice automatically based on your unique restaurant code. Guests see your brand, not ours.

Payment options

Guests should be able to pay with Swish and card (at minimum). Payment should be processed at checkout, not on delivery. This kills no-shows and unpaid orders.

Menu management

You should be able to update your menu, prices, and availability from the same backoffice you use for your POS. Changes should be instant. No waiting for a platform to approve updates.

Pickup and delivery

The system should support both pickup and delivery. For delivery, you can use your own drivers or integrate with a third-party delivery service. But the order still comes through your ordering page, so you keep the customer data.

Customer data ownership

This is a big one. When a customer orders through a food platform, the platform owns the customer data, not you. With your own ordering page, you own the data. You can build a loyalty program, send marketing emails, and retarget customers.

The BeställNu online ordering page

BeställNu includes a commission-free online ordering page as part of the platform. Here is how it works:

• No embedding needed: You add an "Order Online" button to your existing website. It links to your ordering page on bestallnu.com with your unique restaurant code.
• Your branding, our infrastructure: The ordering page pulls your logo, colors, and menu from the backoffice automatically. Guests see your restaurant, not a white-label template.
• Direct POS integration: Orders flow straight to your POS and kitchen display. No separate tablet, no manual entry.
• Swish and card payments: Guests pay with Swish or Worldline Checkout at checkout. Payment is captured before the order goes to the kitchen.
• Menu sync: Your online menu syncs from the same backoffice as your POS menu. Update once, everywhere.
• Pickup and delivery: Support for both. Delivery can be handled by your own staff or a third-party courier.
• Customer data: All customer data is yours. Use it for marketing, loyalty programs, and analytics.

Making the transition

If you are currently on a food platform, you do not have to leave completely. Many restaurants use platforms for discovery and their own ordering page for repeat customers. The key is to point your regulars to your own ordering channel:

1. Add an "Order Online" button to your website homepage that links to your bestallnu.com ordering page
2. Print the ordering URL on receipts and table cards
3. Mention it in your social media bio
4. Offer a small discount (5%) for orders placed through your page vs. the platform

Within a few months, you will see a good chunk of your online orders shift to your commission-free channel.

Wrapping up

Commission-free online ordering is one of the highest-ROI changes a restaurant can make. The setup is straightforward, the savings kick in right away, and you own the customer relationship.

To see the BeställNu online ordering page in action, book a demo.