What is grab food market share in Vietnam?

GrabFood market share in Vietnam: 48% GMV lead

Understanding the GrabFood market share in Vietnam remains essential for businesses navigating this highly competitive delivery industry. Regional differences between major cities dictate success for delivery platforms and local food vendors. Explore these market dynamics to optimize delivery operations and avoid missed opportunities.

The Current State of Vietnam's Food Delivery Market

The answer to who is the leader of food delivery in Vietnam? depends heavily on which city you are standing in and whether you are counting total orders or total transaction value. There is no simple, one-size-fits-all number because the landscape is shifting rapidly under the weight of recent exits and aggressive local expansions.

GrabFood currently holds approximately 48% of the market share in Vietnam based on Gross Merchandise Value (GMV). While this establishes it as one of the primary leaders alongside ShopeeFood, the margin is incredibly thin.

Its closest rival, ShopeeFood, follows closely behind with a similar share. Together, these two giants control about 96% of the entire market. This level of consolidation has turned the industry into a massive duopoly where smaller players struggle to survive.

I remember when the streets of Ho Chi Minh City were a vibrant rainbow of delivery jackets - yellow, blue, red, and green. Now, it is almost exclusively green and orange. The market has matured, and the era of dozens of players burning cash to win users is effectively over. ^[2]

The total food delivery market in Vietnam reached a valuation of $2.1 billion in 2025. This growth is driven not just by volume, but by a shift in how people use these apps. For stakeholders, analyzing the GrabFood GMV Vietnam 2025 provides insight into consumer spending habits. There is a hidden psychological factor at play here - something I call the ecosystem lock-in - that keeps users tethered to Grab even when competitors offer lower prices. I will explain exactly how this mechanism works in the HCMC section below. ^[4]

Regional Dominance: Why Location Dictates the Leader

One of the most fascinating aspects of this market is how loyalty splits along regional lines. You cannot look at the national average and understand the daily reality of a delivery driver. In Hanoi, ShopeeFood is the undisputed king, commanding 56% of the market share. If you walk through the Old Quarter at lunch, the orange jackets are everywhere. But move 1,000 kilometers south to Ho Chi Minh City, and the tide turns. The HCMC food delivery market share shows GrabFood holds a solid 50% lead in the southern metropolis, ^[6] benefiting from its long-standing presence and deeper integration with other transport services.

Rarely have I seen a market so geographically divided by brand preference. This regional split exists because of early-mover advantages. ShopeeFood (formerly Now) established deep roots in Hanoi’s merchant network early on, while Grab utilized its massive fleet of ride-hailing bikes in the South.

The breakthrough for Grab in the South came from a simple realization: users in HCMC value speed and all-in-one convenience over almost everything else. This leads to the ecosystem lock-in I mentioned earlier.

Most users in the South use Grab for transport, food, and groceries. Switching apps for a $0.50 discount on a bowl of Pho feels like a chore when all your credit card details and loyalty points are already stored in one place. It is a friction-free trap.

The Battle for the High-Value User

There is a distinct demographic divide between who uses which app. GrabFood tends to be the preferred choice for users aged 35 and older. These users often order full meals for families or groups, leading to higher average basket sizes. In contrast, ShopeeFood captures a younger, more snack-oriented audience that prioritizes deals and variety. It is a volume vs. value game. Grab has leaned into this by promoting its subscription service, GrabUnlimited. This move has successfully increased group order frequency, which is significantly more profitable than single-item deliveries.

Initially, I thought the departure of Baemin in late 2023 would leave a vacuum for a new third player. I was wrong. Instead of new players rising, the remaining users were almost instantly swallowed by the top two.

The barrier to entry is now so high that even well-funded local players like beFood or Xanh SM Ngon are fighting for less than 5% of the crumbs left on the table. Looking at the Vietnam food delivery market share 2026, it is clear that efficiency is the new goal, replacing the old growth at all costs strategy.

GrabFood vs. ShopeeFood: A Comparison of Market Strengths

GrabFood (The Ecosystem Leader)

Stronger in full-meal categories and high-frequency group ordering

Holds 48-50% of the national GMV share, with a 50% stronghold in HCMC

Popular with professionals and families aged 35+ who prefer higher-value orders

Deep integration with ride-hailing and GrabUnlimited subscriptions for loyalty

ShopeeFood (The High-Volume Challenger)

Higher total order volume but often smaller average transaction values

Holds 45-47% of national GMV, dominating Hanoi with a 56% share

Favored by Gen Z and younger millennials looking for snacks and bubble tea

Leverages the massive Shopee e-commerce user base and ShopeePay vouchers

Optimizing Team Lunches: Minh’s Search for Efficiency

Minh, a 32-year-old IT manager in District 1, HCMC, was tasked with ordering lunch for his team of 15 people every Friday. He initially struggled with the manual process, juggling individual requests and trying to find the best vouchers across multiple apps.

He first tried using a different app every week based on who had the biggest 'new user' promo. This failed miserably. Tracking 15 different orders from different drivers led to cold food and absolute chaos in the lobby.

The breakthrough came when he joined GrabUnlimited. He realized that the group order feature allowed everyone to add their own items via a link, and the subscription waived the delivery fees for the high-value order.

By consolidating to one platform, Minh reduced his coordination time by 40 minutes per week. His team reported 95% satisfaction with food temperature, and he saved over 800,000 VND in delivery fees within the first month.