A Bengaluru woman has uncovered a potential pricing disparity on quick-commerce platforms which has now sparked widespread debate on social media. Instagram user Pooja Chhabda conducted an experiment on Zepto and found that the platform charged significantly more for the same products when accessed via an iPhone compared to an Android device.
In a video the woman posted, she found a 500-gram pack of grapes was priced at Rs 65 on an Android phone but surged to Rs 146 on an iPhone — more than double the cost. Similarly, capsicum was listed at Rs 37 for Android users, while iPhone users saw a price of Rs 69. Chhabda’s further comparisons of vegetables like cauliflower and onions revealed consistent discrepancies.
Sharing her discovery on Instagram, Chhabda urged others to check if they, too, were being charged differently based on their device.
The pricing disparity is believed to stem from assumptions about user demographics. Quick-commerce platforms likely perceive iPhone users as having higher disposable incomes, making them more likely to pay a premium.
Social media users had mixed reactions. While some expressed outrage, with one saying, “This is a serious issue and I might rethink using my iPhone,” others saw humor in the situation. “Status comes at a cost,” one user joked. “You wanted an iPhone, so you have to pay Apple’s price,” another user commented.
Some users claimed that the disparity extended beyond pricing. “It’s not just iPhone vs Android but cheap vs premium phones. You’ll notice differences in availability and delivery times too,” one suggested.
One user commented that the price difference can be due to several other factors. “The prices affect different accounts, probably the one on Android is a new account or has not ordered recently, that gives some over and above normal offers to order something. I guess on the iphone, the account holder must have been ordering recently. That’s it guys, or even the delivery locations might be different cause, different stores sell at different prices. It could be anything.”