How to Order Food Delivery in Colombia
Rappi is the first app to try in Colombia. DiDi Food is the useful second check in seven large cities, especially when the first card or restaurant search fails.
Pin the accessible entrance and search Rappi first. Where DiDi Food appears, build the same basket there before choosing. Price, arrival time and a reachable handoff matter more than the logo, and you'll want reception ready if the building controls access.
Choose a Colombian delivery route
| Your situation | Start here |
|---|---|
| Restaurant food, groceries, pharmacy or convenience items | Open Rappi first and set the real building entrance before comparing merchants.13 |
| Restaurant delivery in one of DiDi Food's seven listed cities | Compare DiDi Food with Rappi for a different restaurant list and checkout total. Its current iOS listing includes English, though restaurant text can remain Spanish.456 |
| A foreign-issued card is rejected | Try one other card, then select cash only if that exact basket displays it. Do not keep resubmitting the same payment.25 |
| The address has no couriers or the app cannot find the entrance | Ask the hotel or host to place a direct restaurant order and arrange a lobby handoff. |
App details
RappiEssential
Colombia's broadest practical app for restaurant meals, groceries, pharmacies and convenience delivery.
DiDi Food
A useful restaurant-delivery alternative in supported Colombian cities, with card and cash options.
At a glance
- An account is required. Rappi does not document which foreign numbers will complete its verification flow.
- Rappi charges the method chosen for the basket. Card authorization varies by issuer, while any cash choice appears during checkout.
- The app has an English interface, but merchant menus, courier messages and support can remain in Spanish.
- Strong in major Colombian cities and surrounding zones. The live delivery pin, not the city name, determines the available restaurants.
Not available here Uber Eats ended its Colombian service on November 22, 2020. Rappi and DiDi Food are the useful current delivery alternatives.
Bogotá and Medellín have choice, but the pin still decides
DiDi Food currently names 7 Colombian markets: Barranquilla, Bogotá, Bucaramanga, Cali, Cartagena, Cúcuta and Medellín. Rappi's restaurant catalogue is address-driven and also covers groceries, pharmacy and convenience items. Those pages confirm platform presence, while the live pin decides street-level service.41
Two familiar logos are stale advice. Uber Eats ended Colombian restaurant delivery on 22 November 2020, and iFood closed its Colombian operation on 21 November 2022. The ordinary Uber ride app remains a different service.89
A Colombian address needs the porter, tower and door
A street address can lead to a whole conjunto or hotel block. Keep the official address in the main field, then add the torre, apartamento, portería or lobby and the entrance visible from the road. Move the map pin to that entrance rather than to the centre of the property.
DiDi passes the delivery location and customer instructions to the courier. Its courier process for an unreachable customer requires at least 2 calls and a 10-minute wait before the rider can report the problem. Keep the phone reachable and tell reception the order name before the courier arrives.57
Foreign-card acceptance is decided at checkout
Rappi says a registered payment method is verified inside its platform. DiDi Food supports online bank payments and cash, with the final methods shown for the order. Neither operator promises that every overseas issuer, billing address or fraud check will pass.25
Neither platform guarantees every foreign card. After one decline, try one other card or use cash only if the live basket offers it. Do not keep resubmitting a failing payment, and never follow an unrecorded payment link sent in chat.25
The checkout total matters more than the delivery badge
Rappi discloses a variable service fee during checkout. DiDi Food says its total can combine the merchant price, delivery charge, service charge and applicable taxes, with the service component changing by city, merchant, order value and promotion. Compare after the address and items are identical.25
If cash appears, select it before placing the order and carry small Colombian-peso notes. It can rescue one basket, but it isn't promised across every merchant. Never send an off-platform transfer requested in chat when the order record shows a different method.5
If the app does not work
If neither app completes the order, ask reception or the host to call a nearby restaurant and confirm the price, payment and lobby handoff first. For a failed paid order, keep the order number and screenshots, then use the platform's in-order support rather than negotiating a second payment with the courier.25
Frequently asked questions
Which food delivery app should I try first in Colombia?
Rappi is the broader opening search for a mixed order. In a city served by DiDi Food, price the meal there too and choose only after both apps resolve the real entrance, arrival time and delivered total.
Can I use a foreign card for food delivery in Colombia?
There is no issuer-wide guarantee. Make a modest test order when you still have another meal option, try one alternative card after a decline and choose Colombian-peso cash only when the basket offers it.
Will a courier bring food to my Colombian hotel room?
Ask reception where riders wait and whether they may enter. Place the pin at that accessible point, add the hotel and order name to the note, then reach the lobby before arrival if entry is controlled.
These apps need data
Guac eSIM covers Colombia with plans from $0.58 per GB. Install it before you land and activate instantly.
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