On a rainy Boston evening, someone opens their favorite delivery app. They tap through the familiar menu – one burrito bowl, extra avocado and a drink. Maybe even a side of chips and dip. The total begins to climb. A service fee appears. A delivery fee. Taxes. The tip they know they should leave, because somewhere in Cambridge another person is biking through the cold rain, balancing their meal in an insulated bag. 

Across the country, restaurant prices continue to rise. In the city, where rents, labor costs and delivery fees stack on top of one another, the difference between eating in and dining out is increasingly jarring.

A delivered dinner for one can easily surpass $30 before tip. Meanwhile, a grocery trip with the same amount of money can cover ingredients for several meals.

At a local favorite, The Boston Burger Company, a cheeseburger, fries and soda can come out to $32 after taxes and fees. And that is without delivery. A grocery haul from Star Market – ground beef, burger buns, lettuce, cheese, potatoes and soda – costs around $25 and makes four burgers instead of one. 

Using data from Numbeo Cost of Living, our team compared the average price of a meal at an inexpensive restaurant with the estimated daily minimum cost of groceries per person. In many states, the average cost of eating out has dramatically outpaced the cost of cooking at home. 

Massachusetts lands in the middle. Not the most expensive state, but certainly not the cheapest.

And it is not just restaurants themselves driving up totals. Delivery apps have transformed takeout into a maze of service fees, delivery charges, small order penalties and suggested tips. The difference in delivery price varies from app to app as some platforms charge significantly higher digital fees while others incentivize subscriptions and loyalty programs that encourage users to order more frequently.

Millions are stuck between convenience and cost, struggling to decide what to sacrifice after a long day: their energy or their money.