Grubhub has agreed to pay $5 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging the company misled California customers about delivery fees, service fees, and menu prices. If you ordered food through Grubhub or Seamless for delivery to a California address between January 24, 2019 and January 12, 2026, you may be eligible to claim a $10.00 site credit. The deadline to file is May 12, 2026, and claims can be submitted at www.GHdeliveryfeesettlement.com. The lawsuit, Wang et al.
V. Grubhub, Inc., accused the company of promoting low or zero delivery fees to lure customers in, then tacking on service fees, small order fees, and inflated menu prices that effectively wiped out any savings from the advertised deal. Think of it this way: you see “free delivery” on a burger that costs $12 at the restaurant, but on Grubhub the same burger is listed at $15.50, plus a $2.99 service fee. The “free delivery” saved you nothing.
Table of Contents
- Who Is Eligible for the Grubhub Misleading Fee Settlement?
- What Does the $5 Million Settlement Actually Get You?
- What Did Grubhub Allegedly Do Wrong?
- How to File Your Grubhub Settlement Claim Before the Deadline
- Key Deadlines and What Happens If You Miss Them
- Grubhub’s History of Fee Controversies
- What This Settlement Means for Food Delivery Pricing Going Forward
- Frequently Asked Questions
Who Is Eligible for the Grubhub Misleading Fee Settlement?
The class includes anyone who ordered and paid for food through the Grubhub or Seamless app or website for delivery to a California address during the class period, which runs from January 24, 2019 through January 12, 2026. That is a roughly seven-year window, so even if you used Grubhub just a handful of times years ago, you likely qualify. Seamless users are included because Seamless operates as a Grubhub brand — same platform, different name. There is one important limitation: the delivery address must have been in California. If you are a California resident who happened to order food while traveling in New York, that order would not count.
Conversely, if you live in Nevada but had food delivered to a friend’s place in Los Angeles, that order would qualify. The geographic restriction is about the delivery destination, not where you live or where your billing address is. If you are unsure whether you placed qualifying orders, check your Grubhub or Seamless order history. The apps retain records going back several years, and your email inbox likely has order confirmation messages as well. You do not need to prove you were personally harmed by inflated fees — membership in the class is based on having placed qualifying orders during the class period, full stop.
What Does the $5 Million Settlement Actually Get You?
Each eligible class member who files a valid claim will receive a $10.00 Grubhub site credit, redeemable on the Grubhub app or website. That is the individual payout regardless of how many orders you placed or how much you spent during the class period. Someone who ordered twice and someone who ordered 500 times would each receive the same $10 credit. However, if the total number of valid claims exceeds what the $5 million fund can cover at $10 per person, the credit amounts will be reduced proportionally. In practical terms, if one million people file claims, the math works out to $5 per person instead of $10.
Grubhub has millions of California users, so proportional reduction is a realistic possibility. There is no way to know the final credit amount until the claims period closes and the settlement administrator tallies everything up. One detail worth noting: attorneys’ fees of up to $1,000,000 and incentive awards of $1,000 each for the seven class representatives are being paid separately by Grubhub, not out of the $5 million settlement fund. That means the full $5 million is reserved for class member claims. In many class action settlements, legal fees come directly out of the settlement fund, which reduces what is left for claimants. That is not the case here.
What Did Grubhub Allegedly Do Wrong?
The core allegation is straightforward deception through fee layering. According to the plaintiffs — Charles Wang, Marilee Bogaert, Robert Allan Perkins Jr., Carissa Recco, Christine Bak, Denise Sznitko, and Jesse Stout — Grubhub advertised low or no delivery fees to attract customers, then quietly loaded up orders with service fees, small order fees, and menu prices marked up above what restaurants actually charge. For example, a customer might see a restaurant advertising “$0 delivery” on Grubhub and assume they are getting a deal. But the restaurant’s $9 burrito might be listed at $11.50 on the platform, a $3.49 service fee gets added at checkout, and if the order is under a certain amount, a small order fee appears too. By the time the customer pays, the total is significantly higher than what they would have paid ordering directly from the restaurant — despite the promise of free delivery.
The case was filed in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, as Case No. 23STCV24118, with Judge Timothy Patrick Dillon presiding. Class counsel KalielGold PLLC out of Washington, D.C. represented the plaintiffs. Grubhub denies all allegations and has not admitted any wrongdoing. The settlement is not an admission of guilt — it is a business decision to resolve the litigation rather than risk a trial.
How to File Your Grubhub Settlement Claim Before the Deadline
Filing is done online at www.GHdeliveryfeesettlement.com. The process is straightforward: visit the site, fill out the claim form with your name, contact information, and details that confirm you placed qualifying orders. You have until May 12, 2026 at 11:59 PM PST to submit your claim. If you are weighing whether it is worth the few minutes to file, consider the tradeoff. The claim takes roughly five minutes to complete, and even if the credit gets reduced proportionally, you are looking at something in the range of $5 to $10 for minimal effort.
That said, the credit is only usable on Grubhub, so if you have stopped using the platform entirely and have no intention of returning, the practical value to you is zero. Unlike settlements that issue cash payments or checks, this one locks you back into the ecosystem that allegedly overcharged you in the first place. For those who still use Grubhub regularly, filing is a no-brainer. The credit will automatically apply to a future order. Just be aware that you need to use the credit before it expires — settlement credits typically come with expiration windows, so check the terms once your credit is issued.
Key Deadlines and What Happens If You Miss Them
There are three critical dates to know. The opt-out and objection deadline is March 30, 2026. If you want to exclude yourself from the settlement — preserving your right to sue Grubhub independently — or if you want to formally object to the settlement terms, you must do so by that date. The final approval hearing is scheduled for April 29, 2026 at 10:00 AM before Judge Dillon. And the claim filing deadline is May 12, 2026 at 11:59 PM PST. Missing the claim deadline means you get nothing.
There are no extensions, no late submissions, and no appeals. The settlement administrator will not chase you down. If you do nothing, you remain part of the class, you give up your right to sue Grubhub over these specific allegations, and you receive no credit. This is how most class action settlements work — the default position for people who do not act is that they release their claims and get nothing in return. One warning: if you believe your individual damages from Grubhub’s fee practices are significantly higher than $10 — say you spent thousands on the platform and can document substantial overcharges — you may want to consider opting out and pursuing your own legal action. Once the settlement is finalized and you have not opted out, your claims against Grubhub on these issues are gone permanently. The opt-out deadline of March 30, 2026 is earlier than the claim deadline, so this decision needs to be made first.
Grubhub’s History of Fee Controversies
This is not Grubhub’s first run-in with regulators and consumers over its fee practices. The company has faced scrutiny from multiple directions, including complaints from restaurants about commission rates and from customers about lack of transparency in pricing. Several cities and states passed emergency fee caps during the pandemic, specifically targeting delivery platforms like Grubhub, DoorDash, and Uber Eats for charging fees that many considered excessive and opaque.
The broader pattern across food delivery platforms is one of burying the true cost of an order behind a stack of separately labeled fees. Customers see an attractive menu price and a low delivery fee, then discover at checkout that the real total is 30 to 40 percent higher than expected. This Grubhub settlement is one of the first to directly address this bait-and-switch fee structure through class action litigation, and the outcome could influence how other platforms disclose their pricing going forward.
What This Settlement Means for Food Delivery Pricing Going Forward
While Grubhub has not admitted wrongdoing, a $5 million settlement sends a signal. Plaintiffs’ attorneys are watching, and similar lawsuits against other delivery platforms could follow if fee transparency does not improve. The Federal Trade Commission has also been increasingly vocal about junk fees across industries, including food delivery, and state legislatures in California and elsewhere continue to push for stronger disclosure requirements.
For consumers, the practical takeaway is to keep comparing prices. Check what the restaurant charges directly — either through its own website or by calling — before placing a delivery order. The convenience of Grubhub and its competitors comes at a cost, and that cost is not always obvious from the advertised delivery fee alone. If you qualify for this settlement, file your claim before May 12, 2026 and pocket whatever credit comes your way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need proof of my Grubhub orders to file a claim?
The claim form at www.GHdeliveryfeesettlement.com will ask for identifying information. Grubhub has records of customer orders, so the settlement administrator can verify eligibility. Having your order history available may speed things up, but you are not required to submit individual receipts.
I used Seamless, not Grubhub. Am I still eligible?
Yes. Seamless is owned and operated by Grubhub, and orders placed through the Seamless app or website for delivery to California addresses during the class period are included in this settlement.
Will the $10 credit be reduced?
Possibly. If the total valid claims exceed $5 million at $10 per claimant, the credits will be reduced proportionally. The final amount depends on how many people file.
Can I get cash instead of a Grubhub credit?
No. The settlement provides site credits usable on the Grubhub app or website only. There is no cash payout option for individual claimants.
What if I no longer have a Grubhub account?
You can create a new account or reactivate your old one to use the credit. Check the settlement website FAQ at www.GHdeliveryfeesettlement.com for specific instructions on how credits are distributed.
Does filing a claim cost anything?
No. Filing a claim is free. If anyone contacts you asking for payment to file a claim on your behalf, that is a scam.