The online food delivery market in the UAE is worth $10.86 billion in 2026. In a country of about 11.3 million people, that makes food delivery one of the biggest consumer internet markets in the Middle East.
The global online food delivery market will reach $1.51 trillion in 2026. The UAE holds about 0.9% of global online food delivery revenue.
This post covers the size of the market, its growth, users, orders, platform market share, average order values, new entrants, cloud kitchens, and what comes next.
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- The UAE online food delivery market is worth $10.86 billion in 2026. It is forecasted to reach $22.19 billion by 2034, growing 9.34% a year.
- About 42% of UAE residents used food delivery apps in.
- UAE users placed about 103 million app orders in 2025, up from 55 million in 2020.
- Talabat leads the market with a 42% share of delivery sales value and 46% of orders.
- Delivery made up 30.5% of all UAE restaurant orders in the first half of 2026.
- The average delivery order in the UAE is worth AED 76.97, or about $21.
How Big Is The UAE Online Food Delivery Market In 2026?
The UAE online food delivery market is worth $10.86 billion in 2026. The market is forecasted to add about $1.1 billion in gross order value every year till 2034.
At the end of the projected period, the market size will stand at $22.19 billion.
| Year | Market Size |
| 2026 | $10.86 billion |
| 2027 | $11.87 billion |
| 2028 | $12.98 billion |
| 2029 | $14.19 billion |
| 2030 | $15.51 billion |
| 2031 | $16.96 billion |
| 2032 | $18.54 billion |
| 2033 | $20.27 billion |
| 2034 | $22.19 billion |
Source: The Report Cubes
How Does The UAE Online Food Delivery Market Compare With The Global Market?
The UAE accounts for about 0.9% of global online food delivery revenue. Worldwide, the market will reach $1.51 trillion in 2026, up 9.5% on the year.
Platform-to-consumer delivery is the bigger of the two delivery models in the UAE, with 60.23% of market revenue.
Sources: Grand View Research & Statista
How Much Revenue Do Food Delivery Platforms Make In The UAE?
As per the latest solid figures available, food delivery platforms in the UAE earned $720.7 million in revenue in 2024. This counts platform income, not the full value of the food ordered.
Platform revenue is forecast to reach $1,799.1 million by 2033. That is a growth rate of 10.2% a year from 2025 to 2033, and almost 2.5 times the 2024 figure.
Source: IMARC Group
How Many People In The UAE Use Food Delivery Apps?
About 42% of UAE residents are active food delivery app users, which is roughly 4.7 million active users.
UAE users order food online 3.2 times a week on average. The global average is 1.8 times a week, so UAE users order 78% more often than the world as a whole.
50.2% of residents pay for a food delivery subscription. Speed is the top reason people pick one app over another. The most common complaints are late delivery, reported by 53.6% of users, and cold food, reported by 40.8%.
Sources: Ken Research & The Report Cubes
How Many Food Delivery Orders Are Placed In The UAE?
UAE users placed about 103 million fulfilled app orders in 2025. That is more than 280,000 orders every day, and about nine orders for every resident of the country.
Order volume was 55 million in 2020, so orders have grown 87% in five years. Orders are forecast to reach about 177 million by 2032, growing 8.04% a year.
Source: Ken Research
Which Food Delivery App Leads The UAE Market?
Talabat leads UAE’s food delivery market with a 42% share of delivery sales value and a 46% share of orders. The top two platforms, Talabat and Deliveroo, hold 74% of delivery sales value between them, and the top four hold 100%.
| Platform | Share Of Delivery Sales Value (GMV) | Share Of Orders |
| Talabat | 42% | 46% |
| Deliveroo | 32% | 25% |
| Careem | 18% | 18% |
| Noon | 8% | 10% |
35.0% of residents named Talabat their preferred app. Noon Food followed at 31.6%, Careem Food at 11.8%, Deliveroo at 8.6%, and Smiles at 8.4%.
What Is The Average Food Delivery Order Value In The UAE?
The average delivery order in the UAE was worth AED 76.97 in the first half of 2026, or about $21. A year earlier it was AED 77.35, a fall of 0.49%.
The average dine-in bill is much higher at AED 115.81 per visit. In the first quarter of 2026 alone, the average delivery order was AED 79.37.
| Metric | H1 2026 | H1 2025 |
| Average delivery order value | AED 76.97 | AED 77.35 |
| Average dine-in spend per visit | AED 115.81 | AED 115.21 |
| Delivery share of restaurant orders | 30.5% | 25.4% |
| Delivery share of restaurant revenue | 22.5% | 18.6% |
Sources: Khaleej Times & Arabian Business
How Much Restaurant Business Comes From Delivery?
Delivery made up 30.5% of all UAE restaurant orders in the first half of 2026, up from 25.4% a year earlier. Delivery orders rose 15% in the period, even though total restaurant orders fell 4%.
Restaurants that offer delivery handled about 1,940 delivery orders a month each. The average delivery restaurant earned AED 454,000 from delivery in the first quarter of 2026, up 18% on the year. For context, the whole UAE foodservice market was worth $23.21 billion in 2025.
Sources: Khaleej Times & Arabian Business
Which Channels Do UAE Customers Order Through?
Mobile devices handle about 70% of food delivery transactions across the MENA region. Smartphone penetration in the UAE stands at 97.6%, so almost every resident can order from an app.
About three-quarters of all delivery orders in the UAE flow through aggregator apps rather than restaurants’ own websites. Dubai alone hosts more than 13,000 restaurants and cafes, about 60% of all food outlets in the country.
Sources: Gulf News & The Report Cubes
How Big Is The Cloud Kitchen Market In The UAE?
The UAE cloud kitchen market was worth $430 million in 2025. It is forecast to reach $1.083 billion by 2032, growing 14.1% a year, which is faster than the food delivery market itself.
Dubai-based Kitopi is the largest cloud kitchen operator in the region. It raised $50 million in growth funding in February 2026 to expand across the Gulf.
Sources: Foodics & Grand View Research
How Fast Is Grocery Delivery Growing On Food Apps?
Grocery and retail delivery is growing three times faster than food delivery on the region’s biggest platform. Talabat’s grocery and retail order value rose 45% in the fourth quarter of 2025 to $788 million, while its food delivery grew 12%.
Non-food orders now make up 32% of everything sold through Talabat, up from 29% a year earlier.
Source: Zawya
What Happens Next In The UAE Food Delivery Market?
The UAE online food delivery market will more than double from $10.86 billion in 2026 to $22.19 billion by 2034. Orders will climb from about 103 million a year to about 177 million by 2032.
The competitive picture is changing faster than the market itself. Keeta arrived in late 2025, DoorDash now stands behind Deliveroo, and grocery delivery is growing three times faster than food on the leading platform. The next phase of the market will be decided by order frequency, subscriptions and non-food baskets rather than new users alone.
FAQs:
How big is the UAE online food delivery market?
The market is worth $10.86 billion in 2026. The market is growing 9.34% a year and will reach $22.19 billion by 2034.
Which food delivery app has the biggest market share in the UAE?
Talabat leads with a 42% share of delivery sales value and 46% of all orders.
How many people use food delivery apps in the UAE?
About 42% of residents, or roughly 4.7 million people, are active food delivery app users in the UAE
What is the average food delivery order worth in the UAE?
The average delivery order was AED 76.97 in the first half of 2026, or about $21.
How many food delivery orders are placed in the UAE each year?
About 103 million app orders were fulfilled in 2025, more than 280,000 a day.
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