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Food Delivery Money-Saving Guide: How I Cut ¥300 From My Monthly Bill

Money Saving, Spending Tips, Food Delivery Savings, Urban Life —

Last month I calculated: food delivery accounted for one-third of my living expenses.

Honestly, that number shocked me.

Not saying we shouldn’t order delivery—work is crazy busy, who has time to cook daily? But whether we’re spending wisely is another question.

So I started researching delivery savings strategies. Tested for a month, successfully cut delivery spending from ¥1200 to ¥900, saving ¥300.

Sharing these tips with you today.

Tip 1: Master the ‘Timing Code’

Delivery platform prices aren’t fixed—different times offer different discounts.

‘10-11 AM’: Many restaurants release early-bird deals to boost lunch sales. Ordering then often scores bargains.

‘2-4 PM’: Off-peak hours, some restaurants offer ‘afternoon tea specials.’ Good for non-rush eaters.

‘After 8 PM’: Some restaurants clear inventory with big discounts. But limited menu choices—best for ‘not picky’ eaters.

My strategy: If not super hungry, I wait until around 10:30 AM, often stacking platform coupons with merchant early-bird deals.

Tip 2: Proper Membership and Red Packet Usage

Many buy delivery memberships but don’t maximize value. Let me teach you.

‘Meituan/Ele.me Membership’:

  • Fixed monthly threshold-free red packets
  • Key is ‘upgrading’—during peak hours (lunch/dinner), platforms often prompt ‘Add ¥X to upgrade to bigger red packet’
  • My rule: If upgrade cost < red packet increase, upgrade

‘Bank Credit Card Discounts’:

  • Many banks have delivery discounts, like ‘¥30 off ¥10’
  • These stack with platform red packets for ‘discount on discount’
  • Always check available card discounts before paying

‘Merchant Private Traffic’:

  • Join merchant WeChat groups or follow official accounts for ‘hidden deals’
  • Like ‘Join group for ¥8 threshold-free coupon,’ ‘Today’s special combo’
  • Restaurants I frequent—I joined their groups, do get extra discounts

Tip 3: The Art of Minimum Spend

Platform ‘¥30 off ¥15’ looks tempting, but easy to buy unwanted items to hit thresholds.

Correct minimum spend strategy:

‘Reverse Bundling’:

  • First pick what you actually want, calculate total
  • If close to next discount tier, add a small side or drink
  • But if gap is large, don’t force purchases just to hit threshold

‘Group Ordering’:

  • Order with colleagues/roommates, easier to hit high minimums
  • Per-person cost much cheaper than individual orders

‘Focus on ‘Special Combos’:

  • Many restaurants have ‘solo dining combos’ cheaper than à la carte
  • And combos are reasonably portioned, won’t overeat just to hit minimums

Tip 4: Choose ‘High Value’ Restaurants

Not all cheap delivery is worth ordering, nor is expensive always better.

My selection criteria:

‘Check ‘Real Photos’ in Reviews’:

  • Merchant photos are heavily edited—real portions visible in user photos
  • If real photos show generous portions, this place probably won’t disappoint

‘Check ‘Return Customer’ Ratio’:

  • Meituan/Ele.me show ‘return customer’ labels
  • High return customer rate indicates stable value and taste

‘Avoid ‘New Store’ Traps’:

  • New stores have big discounts but inconsistent quality
  • Unless it’s a chain brand, I wait for ratings to stabilize before trying

Tip 5: DIY ‘Restocking’

This tip is a bit like ‘cheating,’ but really works.

‘Bring Your Own Drinks’:

  • Delivery drinks are expensive, and we often order extra to hit minimums
  • I buy a case of drinks for office/home, only order food with delivery

‘Bulk Up Staples’:

  • Some places offer cheap or even free extra rice
  • I order one dish + extra rice, cheaper than combos

‘Bring Your Own Snacks’:

  • Snacks ordered to hit minimums are often not what you really want
  • Buy your own snacks to keep on hand, focus on proper meals when ordering delivery

Using these strategies consistently for a month cut my delivery spending from ¥1200 to ¥900.

Key point: saving money ≠ lowering quality of life.

I still eat what I want, just order smarter.

If you want to control delivery spending too, I suggest starting with the easiest:

  1. Adjust ordering times to use early-bird deals
  2. Check all available red packets and card discounts before paying
  3. Don’t buy unwanted items just to hit minimums

Do these three, saving ¥100-200 monthly is easy.

Of course, the ultimate savings method is: cook yourself.

But I understand—not everyone has time and energy. So on days when ‘delivery is necessary,’ hope this guide helps.

Got your own delivery savings secrets? Please share!

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