If you run a POS system or an online ordering platform, you can connect it directly to InhouseDelivery (IHD) so your merchants can offer delivery without signing up with delivery companies themselves, and without anyone re-keying orders into a separate app.
InhouseDelivery is a delivery aggregation and optimization platform providing cheaper, more reliable drivers, real-time alerts and 24/7 support. A custom integration gives your platform a single connection to multiple delivery providers, so orders placed in your system are dispatched to a driver automatically.
This article covers who the custom integration path is for, what it costs, how long it takes, and what happens at each stage.
Who this is for
The custom integration path is designed for companies that have their own software product and their own development team. It is the right fit if you are:
A POS provider wanting to offer delivery as a feature to your restaurant customers
An online ordering platform that takes orders on behalf of merchants and needs those orders delivered
A marketplace or aggregator that needs delivery coverage across many merchants at once
📌 Not a software provider?
If you are a single restaurant or a small group wanting delivery for your own stores, you do not need a custom integration. IHD already works out of the box with our existing ordering integrations — see InhouseDelivery Integrations or live chat with us to find the right option.
Where we operate
We support food delivery integration for online ordering platforms in major cities across the United States, Canada and Australia through DoorDash and Uber Direct.
Coverage is city by city rather than nationwide. During the first stage of the integration we will check your merchant footprint against our coverage so you know exactly which of your customers can be switched on, before you commit any development time.
Pricing
One-off integration and certification fee — $750
In local currency. Charged once.
There is a once-off integration and certification process which is charged at $750 (in local currency). This covers the sandbox environment and credentials, the technical walkthrough, a dedicated Slack channel with our integration team, ongoing support through your build, and the certification review before you go live.
Ongoing monthly commitment — $625 per month
500 deliveries at $1.25 each, in local currency.
Post-integration, there is a minimum monthly delivery volume requirement of 500 deliveries. This is billed at $1.25 per delivery (in local currency), which is $625 total per month. Any actual delivery volume processed during the month is deducted from this minimum commitment.
In other words, you are committing to a monthly floor rather than an extra charge on top of your deliveries. If your platform processes the full 500 deliveries in a month, the commitment is met by that volume. If it processes fewer, the shortfall is billed at the same $1.25 rate.
How the commitment works in practice
Deliveries processed in the month | What you are billed against the commitment |
0 | $625 — the full minimum |
200 | $625 — $250 from actual volume, $375 shortfall |
500 | $625 — met entirely by actual volume |
900 | $1,125 — actual volume only, no shortfall |
📌 Note
Driver fees are separate from the figures above and are charged to the merchant account the delivery is dispatched from, not to your platform. Driver rates vary by provider, distance and region — see the IHD: Third-party delivery and pricing FAQ for current rates.
What the integration gives your merchants
Once you are live, merchants using your platform get:
One connection, multiple delivery providers. Merchants do not need their own DoorDash or Uber Direct accounts, contracts or logins.
A quote before the order is placed. Your platform can show the delivery fee and estimated arrival time while the customer is still checking out.
Automatic dispatch. When an order is confirmed, a driver is requested automatically. Nobody has to copy an order into another system.
Scheduled and ASAP orders. Both are supported, so pre-orders work the same way as immediate ones.
Live tracking. Driver name, vehicle, live ETAs and a tracking link, which you can surface to the merchant, the customer, or both.
Delay and exception alerts. You are notified when a pickup or dropoff is running late, when an order is cancelled, or when a delivery is returned.
Refunds handled for you. If a delivery fails, a refund can be requested through your platform. Our support team follows up with the delivery network and credits the account on approval.
24/7 support. Our team is available around the clock for delivery issues.
The integration process
Once we approve your integration request, the work progresses in four stages. Most partners are live within four to six weeks.
Stage 1 — Intro and analysis (2–3 days)
We give you access to a sandbox environment with a test account and credentials
We run a call covering a high-level technical walkthrough and introduce the teams
We agree the scope of the integration together
We open a shared Slack channel with our integration team and invite your developers for any questions along the way
Stage 2 — Development (2–4 weeks)
Your team builds against the sandbox environment
We provide technical support throughout
We check in on progress at agreed points so nothing is discovered late
Timelines depend on the scope you agreed in stage 1.
Stage 3 — Testing and certification (2–3 days)
We review how your integration uses the API and walk through the workflows
You run an end-to-end demo for our team
On approval, we issue your production account and credentials
Stage 4 — Go live
We agree a launch date
Your live account is set up and tested
Ongoing support begins
📌 Tip
You do not need real drivers or real orders to test. Our sandbox includes a delivery simulator that moves test orders through the full delivery lifecycle automatically, including cancellations and returned deliveries, so your team can build and test the whole flow before certification.
What your team will build
At a high level, the integration is five pieces of work. The API documentation covers each in full technical detail for your developers.
Connect and authenticate - your system signs in to the IHD API with the credentials we issue.
Set up stores — each merchant location is registered with IHD and enabled for delivery. Most partners build this into their existing store setup flow so merchants never configure anything twice.
Get a quote — before the customer confirms, your platform asks IHD for a delivery fee and ETA for that store and delivery address.
Create the delivery — when the order is placed, your platform sends the order details and a driver is requested.
Receive status updates — IHD notifies your system automatically as the delivery progresses, from driver assigned through to delivered, so your merchants and customers always see current status.
Cancellations, refund requests and access to invoices and delivery history are also available, and most partners include them so merchants can self-serve rather than contacting support.
What we need from you
To move quickly through stage 1, have the following ready when you contact us:
A short description of your platform and how merchants use it
Which countries and cities your merchants operate in
Roughly how many merchant locations you expect to enable, and your expected monthly delivery volume
Whether delivery will be offered to all merchants or as an opt-in feature
Names and contact details for the developers who will build the integration
Your target launch date, if you have one
After you go live
Ongoing support. Your Slack channel with our integration team stays open, and merchants have 24/7 support for day-to-day delivery issues.
Billing. The monthly commitment is billed against your platform account. Delivery history and invoices are available through the API and your account, so you can reconcile volume yourself at any time.
Adding merchants. Once certified, you can onboard new merchant locations yourself through the API — no further certification is required for each new store.
New providers and features. When we add delivery providers or coverage in your markets, they become available to your integration without you needing to rebuild anything.
FAQ
Which countries and delivery providers are supported?
We support food delivery integration for online ordering platforms in major cities across the United States, Canada and Australia through DoorDash and Uber Direct. Coverage is city by city, and we will confirm your specific merchant footprint before you start building.
What does the integration cost?
There is a once-off integration and certification process charged at $750 (in local currency). Post-integration there is a minimum monthly delivery volume requirement of 500 deliveries, billed at $1.25 per delivery (in local currency), which is $625 total per month. Any actual delivery volume processed during the month is deducted from this minimum commitment.
Is the minimum charged on top of our deliveries?
No. It is a floor, not an addition. Deliveries you actually process count toward the 500, and only the shortfall is billed on top.
When does the monthly commitment start?
The commitment applies post-integration, once you are live in production. It does not run during the development and certification stages.
Who pays the driver fee?
Driver fees are charged to the merchant account the delivery is dispatched from. They are separate from your platform's integration fee and monthly commitment.
How long does the integration take?
Typically four to six weeks end to end — 2 to 3 days for intro and analysis, 2 to 4 weeks of development depending on scope, 2 to 3 days for testing and certification, then go-live.
Do we need real drivers or live orders to test?
No. The sandbox includes a delivery simulator that automatically moves test orders through the full lifecycle, including cancellations and returns, so you can test everything before certification.
When do we get production credentials?
At the end of the testing and certification stage, once your end-to-end demo has been reviewed and approved.
Can merchants keep using their own drivers as well?
Yes. Merchants can run their own in-house drivers alongside third-party delivery. In-house drivers are prioritised unless a delivery falls outside their service radius. See the Routing Orders FAQ for how orders are routed.
Do we need a separate integration for each country?
No. One integration covers all supported markets. Provider availability and pricing differ by region, but the connection your team builds is the same.
Do we need to re-certify when we add new merchants?
No. Certification is once per platform. After that you can onboard new merchant locations yourself.
How to get started
Email [email protected] with an outline of your platform and the details listed under What we need from you. We will review your integration request and, once approved, set up your sandbox access and book the introductory call.
If you want to talk it through first, live chat with us 24/7 using the icon at the bottom right of the page.
📌 For your developers
The full technical documentation — endpoints, payloads and sample code — is at ihd.readme.io. It is worth having your technical lead skim the Solution Overview and Webhooks sections before the stage 1 call.
Related articles: InhouseDelivery API Documentation · IHD Third Party Delivery and Pricing FAQ · Routing Orders FAQ