The proliferation of the internet and the rise of shared mobility solutions have transformed Southeast Asia (SEA) in a number of ways. This includes accelerating the great expansion of the food delivery business. Just over a decade ago, 80% of Southeast Asians had no or limited access to the internet [1]. Whereas today SEA is a vibrant emerging market with over 400 million internet users and a booming digital economy [2].

Statistics indicate that the food delivery industry in SEA is experiencing an upsurge in growth due to changing consumer habits. This shift is creating promising opportunities for market players in the region. In fact, revenue in the Southeast Asian Online Food Delivery market is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-2027) of 17.54%, resulting in a projected market volume of US$45.53 billion by 2027 [3].  For an emerging and increasingly time-conscious middle class in SEA, having ready-to-eat meals delivered to one’s doorstep has become the norm in contemporary society.

The demand for food delivery services has exploded particularly during the pandemic. The gross merchandise value of food delivery platforms in SEA has increased by 183% in 2020 [4]. However, the industry is undergoing rapid changes as restaurant dining returns after the pandemic. SEA’s online food delivery spending rose 5% to $16.3 billion in 2022, presenting the smallest gain since 2018 [5].

In the ever-changing landscape of SEA food delivery, what were the latest trends in 2022? Who were the key players, and how were their performances? Following the European Food Delivery Race, we are expanding the series into a new scope. In this article, we leveraged Dashmote’s Data Analytics SaaS platform and reported on the statistics from 7 major markets in SEA- Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam to answer the above questions.

SEA food delivery market size by region

According to Dashmote’s Q3 data, Indonesia has by far the biggest food delivery market in SEA, with more than 1.5 millions Digital Storefronts (DSFs) across its major delivery platforms. Dividing this number by the total Indonesian population, we could see that there are around 535 DSFs per 100,000 population. The revenue from Indonesian food delivery is projected to reach US$1,623 million by 2026 [6]. Companies engaged in food delivery services started to thrive in Indonesia in 2015 [7]. The two big players in this sector are Gojek and Grab. Our data shows that Grab is the most significant player in Indonesia in terms of market share and growth, taking up around 74.7% of the total restaurant base in Indonesia in 2022.

The second largest market in SEA is Thailand, with 1.3 millions DSFs on food delivery. However, with a much smaller population than Indonesia, there are around 1887 DSFs per 100,000 population.  Lineman is its biggest player, with 858K DSFs on its platform in Q4, 2022. This is followed by Grab, with over 323K DSFs on its platform. One may notice the good performance of Grab in many of the SEA countries. In fact, Grab merged with Uber Technologies for its Southeast Asian business in 2018 [8]. Through this acquisition, Grab also took over Uber’s network in the region and geared up to be a pan-regional food delivery platform in SEA.

The rest of the top 5 food delivery markets in SEA are Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines. They all have a relatively small DSFs base (much below 1 million) compared to the 2 biggest markets. In Vietnam, the dominant food delivery platform is Shopee Food, with 182K DSFs on its platform. Whereas in Malaysia and the Philippines, Grab and Foodpanda strive to be the market leader with minor differences in DSFs listings.

The fastest growing regions in 2022

According to Dashmote’s data, all 6 markets saw positive year-to-date growth in DSFs listings. The biggest market, Indonesia, also saw the largest average growth of 28.6%. The 34.3% growth of Grab and the 14.3% growth of Gojek made up the total growth. Competition in the food delivery industry in Indonesia is getting tougher as many platforms are eyeing the food market. Maxim, Shopee Food, and Traveloka Eat have also entered the market, planning to take a piece of the pie from the huge profit potential in Indonesia. 

The second biggest food delivery market in SEA, Thailand, is following closely in this food delivery race with a 28% year-to-date growth in DSFs listings. In Thailand, both Lineman and Grab grew by over 30% in 2022. However, Foodpanda decreased by 4.6% in DSFs listings. Having an European root, Foodpanda entered the SEA market in 2012 and became the pioneer in the food delivery sector in this region. However,  Foodpanda had a hard time further penetrating the market as the competition became increasingly fierce. In fact, Foodpanda even shut down its Vietnamese business in 2015.

Singapore and the Philippines fall behind in the SEA food delivery race with a nuanced 8.2% year-to-date growth. In Singapore, only Deliveroo grew rapidly in 2022 by 26%. Whereas Foodpanda and Grab only saw a small growth below 5%. In the Philippines, Foodpanda also had a challenging time with a 2.6% reduction in its DSFs listings. Overall, it’s clear that the rapid growth of the SEA food delivery market was softened in 2022.

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