Published 12 June 2026 | Updated 30 October 2026
On-Demand Delivery
How to Build a Food Delivery App Like Jahez in Saudi Arabia: Features, Cost and Guide (2026)
What Is Jahez and How Does It Work?
Jahez is a Saudi food delivery platform founded in Riyadh in 2016 and listed on the Saudi Exchange in 2022. Customers order from thousands of restaurants and stores in cities across the Kingdom, restaurants receive and prepare orders through their own app or dashboard, and riders collect and deliver them with live tracking. Jahez earns commissions from restaurants and delivery and service fees from customers, and has expanded into grocery and quick commerce, logistics and restaurant technology through subsidiaries and acquisitions such as The Chefz.
Quick answer
To build a food delivery app like Jahez, you need four connected products: a customer app, a restaurant app and dashboard, a rider app and an admin panel, linked by a real-time order, dispatch and payment system. For Saudi Arabia, the app also needs Arabic and English with right-to-left layouts, mada, Apple Pay, STC Pay and buy-now-pay-later, 15% VAT with ZATCA e-invoicing, compliance with the Personal Data Protection Law, and delivery operations that follow Transport General Authority rules. A single-city MVP typically costs $40,000–$80,000 and takes 3–5 months; a full multi-city platform costs $80,000–$160,000, and a Jahez-scale platform with quick commerce and AI dispatch costs $160,000–$350,000+. **Key takeaways (box):**
- A Jahez-style platform is four apps: customer, restaurant, rider and admin, connected by real-time dispatch.
- Saudi launches need Arabic RTL, mada, STC Pay, Apple Pay, Tabby or Tamara, cash on delivery options, VAT and ZATCA e-invoicing.
- Delivery logistics (rider supply, dispatch and delivery times) decide success more than app features.
- Typical cost: $40K–$80K MVP, $80K–$160K full platform, $160K–$350K+ for Jahez-scale systems.
- Start in one city or niche, prove unit economics, then expand.
The Saudi Food Delivery Market
Saudi Arabia is one of the largest food delivery markets in the Middle East, driven by a young, smartphone-first population, high card and wallet adoption and strong demand for late-night and family orders. Competition is intense: Jahez, HungerStation (Delivery Hero), Keeta (Meituan), Talabat, Mrsool, ToYou and Careem all compete on delivery speed, restaurant choice, fees and promotions. New players usually win by focusing on a city, cuisine, segment (such as premium or corporate) or model (such as restaurant-owned delivery or cloud kitchens).
The Four Apps You Need
| App | Users | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Customer app (iOS, Android, web) | Diners | Browse restaurants, order, pay, track, rate and reorder |
| Restaurant app and dashboard | Restaurant staff and owners | Accept orders, set prep times, manage menus, availability, promotions and payouts |
| Rider app | Delivery riders | Accept jobs, navigate, update status, collect cash, view earnings |
| Admin panel | Your operations team | Manage restaurants, riders, zones, fees, commissions, promotions, refunds and reports |
Must-Have Customer App Features
Sign-up and addresses
Phone OTP, Apple and Google sign-in, saved addresses with map pins and Saudi national address support.
Restaurant discovery
Search by cuisine, dish, rating, delivery time and fees, with Arabic and English menus.
Menus and customisation
Item options, add-ons, combos, notes and dietary tags.
Cart and checkout
Delivery or pick-up, scheduled orders, coupons, tips and clear VAT-inclusive pricing.
Payments
Mada, Visa and Mastercard, Apple Pay, STC Pay, Tabby or Tamara and cash on delivery where offered.
Live order tracking
Status updates and rider location on a map, with estimated arrival time.
Ratings and support
Rate food and delivery, report missing items and get refunds or credits quickly.
Loyalty and subscriptions
Points, free-delivery subscriptions and personalised offers.
Restaurant, Rider and Admin Features
| App | Key features |
|---|---|
| Restaurant app | Order alerts, accept or reject, prep time, menu and price management, item availability, opening hours, promotions, sales and payout reports, POS integration |
| Rider app | Online and offline status, job offers, navigation, pick-up and delivery confirmation with OTP or photo, cash collection, earnings and incentives |
| Admin panel | Restaurant and rider onboarding, delivery zones, dynamic delivery fees, commission settings, dispatch monitoring, refunds, promotions, analytics |
| Dispatch engine | Automatic rider assignment by distance, load and prep time, batching of nearby orders, surge handling |
Advanced Features That Set You Apart
AI dispatch and ETA prediction
Assign the best rider and give accurate delivery times.
Personalised recommendations
Suggest restaurants and dishes based on history, time and location.
Group and corporate ordering
Shared carts and company billing.
Grocery and quick commerce
Dark stores and 15–30 minute delivery of essentials.
Restaurant growth tools
Sponsored listings, promotions and analytics for partners.
Pick-up and dine-in pre-orders
Order ahead to skip queues.
Saudi Compliance and Localisation Checklist
Regulations change; confirm current requirements with a Saudi legal adviser before launch.
Commercial registration and licences
A Saudi commercial registration (or foreign investment licence) and the activity licences required for delivery platforms.
Transport General Authority (TGA) rules
Delivery apps and riders must follow TGA regulations on platform licensing, rider registration, vehicles and Saudisation of freelance delivery, which have tightened since 2024.
Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL)
Consent, purpose limits, data subject rights, breach notification and cross-border transfer rules, overseen by SDAIA.
VAT and e-invoicing
15% VAT and ZATCA FATOORA e-invoicing for invoices issued to customers and restaurants.
Consumer protection
Clear prices including VAT, refund and complaint policies, Arabic terms.
Food safety
Restaurants must hold municipal (Balady) licences and follow Saudi Food and Drug Authority rules; hot and cold delivery bags for riders.
Payments
Payment gateways licensed by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), PCI DSS and 3-D Secure.
Arabic and English
Full RTL layouts, Arabic menus, receipts, notifications and support.
Payment Methods for a Saudi Delivery App
| Method | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| mada debit cards | The national debit network used by most Saudi bank customers |
| Apple Pay | Widely used for fast mobile checkout |
| STC Pay and other wallets | Popular digital wallets in the Kingdom |
| Visa and Mastercard | Credit and international cards |
| Tabby and Tamara (BNPL) | Split payments for larger orders |
| Cash or card on delivery | Still expected by some customers in some areas |
Common gateways include HyperPay, Moyasar, PayTabs, Checkout.com and Tap Payments.
Technology Stack for a Food Delivery App Like Jahez
| Layer | Technologies |
|---|---|
| Mobile apps | Flutter or React Native for customer, restaurant and rider apps; native modules for background location |
| Web and admin | React or Next.js, with Arabic RTL support |
| Back end | Node.js (NestJS), Go or Java (Spring Boot) microservices |
| Real-time | WebSockets, Firebase or MQTT for order status and rider location |
| Databases | PostgreSQL with PostGIS, Redis for live state, Elasticsearch with Arabic analysers for search |
| Maps and routing | Google Maps Platform, Mapbox or HERE; Saudi national address data |
| Dispatch and optimisation | Custom dispatch algorithms, OR-Tools, ML models for ETAs |
| Messaging | Firebase Cloud Messaging, Unifonic or Twilio SMS, WhatsApp Business API |
| Cloud | AWS, Google Cloud (Dammam region), Oracle Cloud or local Saudi cloud providers for data residency |
Integrations a Delivery Platform Needs
| Integration | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Restaurant POS systems | Send orders directly to kitchens and sync menus and availability |
| Payment gateways and wallets | mada, Apple Pay, STC Pay, BNPL and refunds |
| ZATCA e-invoicing | Compliant invoices for customers and restaurant commissions |
| Maps and address services | Accurate addresses, routing and ETAs |
| Rider identity and payouts | Rider verification and weekly or instant payouts |
| Third-party logistics | Overflow delivery capacity at peak times |
| CRM and marketing | Segments, push campaigns, WhatsApp offers and loyalty |
| Customer support | In-app chat, ticketing and refund workflows |
How Much Does It Cost to Build a Food Delivery App Like Jahez?
| Scope | What is included | Cost (USD) | Approx. cost (SAR) | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customised ready-made solution | Rebranded customer, restaurant, rider and admin apps with Saudi payments added | $20,000–$45,000 | SAR 75,000–170,000 | 6–10 weeks |
| Single-city MVP | Four apps built for your model, Arabic RTL, mada and Apple Pay, basic dispatch, VAT invoices | $40,000–$80,000 | SAR 150,000–300,000 | 3–5 months |
| Full multi-city platform | Advanced dispatch and batching, POS integrations, loyalty and subscriptions, promotions engine, analytics, ZATCA integration | $80,000–$160,000 | SAR 300,000–600,000 | 5–8 months |
| Jahez-scale platform | Quick commerce and dark stores, AI ETAs and recommendations, ads platform, multi-country, high-availability microservices | $160,000–$350,000+ | SAR 600,000–1,310,000+ | 8–14+ months |
SAR figures are approximate at the pegged rate of SAR 3.75 per USD.
Cost by Feature
| Feature | Typical cost (USD) |
|---|---|
| Customer app core (sign-up, discovery, menus, cart) | $10,000–$22,000 |
| Payments (mada, Apple Pay, STC Pay, BNPL, refunds) | $5,000–$12,000 |
| Live tracking and notifications | $5,000–$12,000 |
| Restaurant app and dashboard | $8,000–$20,000 |
| Rider app with navigation and earnings | $8,000–$18,000 |
| Dispatch engine (rules-based) | $8,000–$20,000 |
| AI dispatch, batching and ETA prediction | $20,000–$50,000 |
| Admin panel, zones, fees and commissions | $10,000–$25,000 |
| Promotions, loyalty and subscriptions | $6,000–$15,000 |
| POS integrations (per POS family) | $4,000–$12,000 |
| ZATCA e-invoicing | $4,000–$10,000 |
| Arabic RTL design and localisation | $4,000–$10,000 |
Running Costs to Plan For
- Cloud hosting: $500–$2,000 a month for an MVP, much more at scale.
- Maps, routing and geolocation APIs: $300–$3,000+ a month depending on orders.
- SMS, WhatsApp and push notifications: $100–$1,000+ a month.
- Payment gateway fees: typically around 1–3% per transaction depending on method.
- Maintenance and updates: 15–20% of the build cost a year.
- Rider incentives, customer promotions and marketing: often the largest ongoing cost.
How Long Does It Take to Build an App Like Jahez?
| Stage | MVP | Full platform |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery and planning | 2–3 weeks | 3–4 weeks |
| UX and UI (Arabic and English) | 3–5 weeks | 5–7 weeks |
| Development and integrations | 8–12 weeks | 14–22 weeks |
| Testing and pilot | 2–4 weeks | 4–6 weeks |
| Total | 3–5 months | 5–8 months |
How to Build a Food Delivery App Like Jahez: Step by Step
- Choose your niche and city. Pick a city, district, cuisine or segment where you can offer something better: speed, lower fees, premium restaurants or corporate ordering.
- Plan delivery operations. Decide on own riders, freelance riders through licensed providers, restaurant delivery or third-party logistics, in line with TGA rules.
- Sign restaurants before launch. Onboard 50–150 restaurants in your launch area with clear commission and payout terms.
- Design for Saudi users. Arabic-first RTL design, local payment methods, Saudi addresses and familiar ordering flows.
- Build the four apps and dispatch. Start with ordering, payments, tracking and dispatch, then add loyalty, promotions and analytics.
- Integrate payments, POS and ZATCA. Connect gateways, restaurant POS systems and e-invoicing.
- Pilot and launch. Run a closed pilot to test delivery times, rider supply and refunds, then launch with targeted promotions.
- Measure and expand. Track order frequency, delivery time, contribution margin per order and restaurant retention before adding cities.
How Food Delivery Apps Like Jahez Make Money
| Revenue stream | How it works |
|---|---|
| Restaurant commission | A percentage of each order, often 15–30% depending on delivery model |
| Delivery fees | Charged to customers by distance, time or basket size |
| Service and small-basket fees | Fixed fees per order or for small orders |
| Subscriptions | Monthly plans for free or discounted delivery |
| Advertising | Sponsored listings, banners and promoted dishes paid by restaurants |
| Quick commerce margins | Product margins on grocery and essentials from dark stores |
| Restaurant technology | POS, marketing and analytics tools for restaurants |
Unit Economics: What Makes an Order Profitable
Each order must cover rider cost, payment fees, customer support, refunds and promotions from commission and fees. Platforms improve unit economics by increasing average order value, batching nearby orders, reducing delivery time and rider idle time, growing subscriptions and advertising, and cutting refunds through accurate orders and better packaging.
Challenges and How to Solve Them
| Challenge | Solution |
|---|---|
| Competition from large platforms | Focus on a niche, better service or lower restaurant fees |
| Rider supply at peak times | Incentives, shift planning, third-party logistics backup and batching |
| Late or wrong orders | Accurate prep times, POS integration, photo confirmation and quality scores |
| High customer acquisition costs | Referral programmes, subscriptions and restaurant co-marketing |
| Regulatory changes | Configurable rider rules and close legal monitoring |
| Peak demand (Ramadan, weekends, events) | Autoscaling, load testing and dynamic fees |
How PerfectionGeeks Helps
We build food and grocery delivery platforms for Saudi Arabia and the GCC: customer, restaurant, rider and admin apps, Arabic RTL design, mada, Apple Pay, STC Pay and BNPL payments, ZATCA e-invoicing, POS integration and smart dispatch, starting with a discovery workshop and a fixed-scope MVP.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers related to this article from PerfectionGeeks.
1. How much does it cost to build a food delivery app like Jahez?
2. How long does it take to build an app like Jahez?
3. What apps are needed for a food delivery business?
4. Which payment methods should a Saudi food delivery app support?
5. What regulations apply to delivery apps in Saudi Arabia?
6. Does the app need to be in Arabic?
7. How does Jahez make money?
8. How do delivery apps assign riders?
9. Can the app integrate with restaurant POS systems?
10. Should I use a Jahez clone script?
11. How can a new delivery app compete with Jahez and HungerStation?
12. Do you provide support after launch?
Conclusion
Tell us your city, target customers, delivery model and must-have features. Within 2 business days we will send a feature plan, a cost estimate in USD and SAR and a launch timeline, under an NDA.Plan Your Jahez-Style Delivery App
Shrey Bhardwaj is the Director & Founder of PerfectionGeeks Technologies, bringing extensive experience in software development and digital innovation. His expertise spans mobile app development, custom software solutions, UI/UX design, and emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain. Known for delivering scalable, secure, and high-performance digital products, Shrey helps startups and enterprises achieve sustainable growth. His strategic leadership and client-centric approach empower businesses to streamline operations, enhance user experience, and maximize long-term ROI through technology-driven solutions.