‘I’m treating this as a real addiction’: Young Americans caught in food delivery debt trap

One young woman recently posted a confession on social media that thousands of others are thinking but haven’t said out loud: she deleted the DoorDash app from her phone like someone cutting ties with a dangerous habit. The reason? She was spending $9,000 a year ordering food at least once a day.

“I deleted the DoorDash app the other day as a way to at least try to keep it in check,” she wrote. “I’m not gonna lie, I’m treating this as a real addiction or at least something close to it. Cause it’s addictive and impulsive spending that is harming me and my finances in a serious way.”

She’s not alone. What started as an occasional indulgence during the pandemic has morphed into a daily habit that’s pushing some young Americans into serious financial trouble. The online food delivery business generated a record $36.32 billion in revenue in 2025, up from $31.91 billion in 2024, and young people are footing most of that bill.

Nearly 40% of people ages 29 to 44 use a food delivery app at least once a week, according to a recent YouGov poll. Among adult DoorDash users, 85% are 44 or younger. Their older counterparts see things differently. Only 12% of Gen Xers use delivery apps weekly, with one 57-year-old man summing up their perspective bluntly on Reddit: “It is beyond me why someone would pay twice as much for food that is half as good.”

The numbers back him up. A chicken sandwich with a side of red beans and rice ordered through DoorDash from Popeyes costs nearly $22, or double the price of buying it in person. Between service fees of 10% to 15%, distance-based delivery charges, tips for drivers, and restaurant markups that can hit 30% or more, the convenience comes at a steep price.

For some, it’s become unsustainable. A young pharmacist who identified as a member of Gen Z said in a Reddit post that he spent 10 percent of his annual salary on daily Uber Eats orders. “I don’t buy groceries and my fridge is empty,” he explained. A mother of two said she spends $1,500 or more monthly on DoorDash, reasoning that cooking would cut into time with her children and distract from work.

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SEE ALSO: DoorDash dependency sending Gen Z and millennials into debt

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Now companies are making it even easier to overspend. In March, DoorDash partnered with Klarna to let users split orders over $35 into four interest-free installments or defer payments to align with payday. The announcement sparked immediate backlash. Financial guru Dave Ramsey posted a GIF of himself burying his head in his hands in exasperation.

The concerns go beyond one app. LendingTree reported in January that 41% of buy now, pay later users paid late in the past year, up from 34% in 2024. Among those most likely to pay late were men, young people, and parents of young children. Nearly a quarter of users said they had three or more active buy now, pay later loans simultaneously.

Each missed Klarna payment incurs a fee of up to $7, and total fees can reach up to 25% of the order value. In other words, someone could end up paying $44 for a $35 food order.

“Trust me, there’s nothing like the feeling of actually keeping your whole paycheck instead of sending it to payments for last week’s french fries,” Ramsey said in a Facebook post, calling the feature stupid and warning that companies will make money off of broke people.

The debt is stacking up on top of what young Americans already owe. According to credit rating service Experian, millennials reported an average debt of $132,000 in June, while Gen Z carried more than $34,000 on average. The average American debt topped $104,000.