Consumer Psychology of Food Photography
Food photos change what people order. This guide shows what studies, surveys and delivery platforms report, and how strong each source is. Do you need photos for your own menu? See AI food photography and the AI food image generator.
We make MenuPhotoAI, an AI food photo tool, so we have an interest, and that is why each figure links to its source.
Skip the Food Photographer
DoorDash reports up to 44% more monthly sales for menus with item photos. The figure comes from a DoorDash study of over 15,000 merchants in Q2 2022. It is a platform figure, not an independent study. MenuPhotoAI turns a phone photo of your dish into a menu photo.
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Key Figures and Their Sources
How Fast People See and Decide
People Identify Images Fast
MIT researchers found that people can identify an image shown for only 13 milliseconds. The 2014 lab study used general scenes, such as a picnic. It is not about food or menus.
Speed Is Not Persuasion
The MIT study shows that people recognise images fast. It does not show that an image sells more than text.
People Decide in Minutes
DoorDash says 49% of Americans decide what to order within 5 to 10 minutes of opening the app. The figure is from its 2025 delivery statistics. DoorDash does not link it to photos.
What People Say They Look At
Snappr, a photography company, paid for a 2020 online survey of 600 US consumers. People rated food pictures 1.44 times as important as menu descriptions. They rated pictures 1.38 times as important as reviews. The page gives no question wording. Source: Snappr.
Photos and New Choices
A customer cannot taste a dish before it arrives. A photo shows what to expect. Just Eat says 42% of customers try a new restaurant because of the photography.
Pictures and Dish Names
- A 2017 study tested menu pictures with different kinds of dish names.
- For common descriptive names, a picture raised attitudes, willingness to pay and purchase intention.
- For unclear names, a picture helped some readers and put off others.
- The study measured stated intention, not real orders.
Source: Hou, Yang and Sun (2017), International Journal of Hospitality Management.
New Restaurants and New Dishes
- 42% of customers try a new restaurant because of the photography.
- 38% of customers tried a new item if it had a photo.
- Items with images go into baskets four times more often.
Source: Just Eat partner page (UK). Just Eat reports these figures about its own platform. The page does not give the method.
Younger Customers and Food Photos
Generation Differences (US)
Source: DoorDash, 2025 delivery statistics. These are survey answers from US consumers. The page gives no sample size.
Photos Help People Choose a Restaurant
DoorDash estimates that 38% of customers use menu photos to choose a restaurant. It said this in an April 2025 news release about its own AI photo tools.
Social Media Plays a Part
DoorDash says 20% of US Gen Z turn to social media influencers when they decide where to order. Source: DoorDash, 2025.
Read These Figures With Care
A trending dish is not the same as a dish chosen for its photo. Surveys show what people say, not what they order.
What Studies Say About Menu Pictures
Two studies in academic journals test how menu pictures change desire and purchase. Neither study measures orders on a delivery app.
Online Menu Appeal
- Brewer and Sebby (2021) showed a mock online restaurant menu with photos to US adults.
- They analysed 420 survey responses from 2020.
- Visual appeal and menu detail raised purchase intention.
- The effect ran through desire for the food and perceived convenience.
Source: Brewer and Sebby (2021)
Lifelike Pictures
- Fritz, Hadi and Stephen (2023) ran two field studies and two lab studies.
- In one restaurant, 101 diners saw a dessert menu on a tablet.
- 41.2% ordered dessert from the augmented reality menu.
- 18.0% ordered dessert from the menu with standard photos.
- The authors say people could imagine eating the dish more easily.
Source: Fritz, Hadi and Stephen (2023)
Limits of the Evidence
- The Brewer study measures stated intention, not real orders.
- The Fritz study compares two picture formats, not photos against no photos.
- Order figures for delivery apps come only from the platforms.
Try It on Your Menu
Just Eat says an item gets 16% more orders on average once it has a photo (Just Eat). Your result can differ. Try 5 free photo enhancements and judge for yourself.
Get Your 5 Free PhotosAppetite and Other Purchase Factors
Appetite
- A 2016 review covers neuroscience research on food images.
- It reports that images of desirable food change brain activity and attention.
- It also reports body and psychological responses.
- The effects are strongest in hungry people.
Source: Spence, Okajima, Cheok, Petit and Michel (2016), Brain and Cognition.
How to Read the Review
- A review sums up other studies. It is not a new experiment.
- It covers food images in general, not menu photos.
- The authors ask if such images make people hungry too often.
Photos Are One Factor Among Several
DoorDash says menu selection is the top factor when US consumers try a new restaurant. Menu price is a close second. Source: DoorDash, 2025.
What Platforms Report About Orders
- DoorDash reports up to 44% more monthly sales for menus with item photos (DoorDash, Q2 2022 study).
- Deliveroo says sites with menu photos can increase their orders by 25% (Deliveroo).
- Just Eat says an item gets 16% more orders on average once it has a photo (Just Eat).
Each platform reports its own data. These are not independent studies.
6 Points to Remember
A short summary of the evidence on this page. Each point links to its source.
Food Images Affect Appetite
A review links food images to changes in brain activity and attention.
Photos Help With New Choices
42% of customers try a new restaurant because of the photography.
Pictures Need Clear Names
Pictures help most when the dish has a common descriptive name.
Bottom Line
Platforms report more orders for menus with photos, and many customers say photos sway them. No source can promise a result for your menu. MenuPhotoAI turns a phone photo into a menu photo, so you can test this yourself.
Related Guides and Tools
Do Food Photos Increase Orders?
What the research and the platforms say about photos and orders.
View ResearchPhoto ROI Calculator
Estimate the return on better menu photos for your restaurant.
Calculate ROIMore Orders on Uber Eats
How photos and menu setup affect orders on Uber Eats.
Read GuideResearch Sources & References
Platform and Company Figures
- DoorDash: 50+ Food and Alcohol Delivery Statistics and Trends for 2025. Survey figures from the 2025 DoorDash trends report.
- DoorDash: menu photography blog. Up to 44% more monthly sales, from a study of over 15,000 merchants in Q2 2022.
- DoorDash newsroom, April 2025. An estimated 38% of customers use menu photos to choose a restaurant.
- Just Eat: Photos on menu. UK partner page with the 42%, 38%, 16% and four times figures.
- Deliveroo: How to increase your visibility in the Deliveroo app. Orders can rise by 25% with menu photos.
- Snappr blog, June 2022. Survey of 600 US consumers in 2020, paid for by Snappr.
Academic Research
- Potter, Wyble, Hagmann and McCourt (2014). Detecting meaning in RSVP at 13 ms per picture. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics 76, 270-279. Summary: MIT News.
- Spence, Okajima, Cheok, Petit and Michel (2016). Eating with our eyes: From visual hunger to digital satiation. Brain and Cognition 110, 53-63.
- Hou, Yang and Sun (2017). Do pictures help? The effects of pictures and food names on menu evaluations. International Journal of Hospitality Management 60, 94-103.
- Brewer and Sebby (2021). The effect of online restaurant menus on consumers' purchase intentions during the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Hospitality Management 94, 102777.
- Fritz, Hadi and Stephen (2023). From tablet to table: How augmented reality influences food desirability. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 51, 503-529.
Five sources are papers in academic journals. The other figures come from delivery platforms and from one company survey. Companies have an interest in their own figures. We read each source in October 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do food photos change what people order?
No single study gives the full answer. A 2014 MIT lab study found that people can identify an image shown for only 13 milliseconds. A 2016 review found that images of desirable food change brain activity and attention, most of all in hungry people. Delivery platforms also report more orders for menus with photos. DoorDash reports up to 44% more monthly sales for menus with item photos.
Sources: MIT News (2014), Spence and others (2016), DoorDash menu photography blog
What do customers say about food photos?
Just Eat says 42% of customers try a new restaurant because of the photography. It also says 38% tried a new item if it had a photo. DoorDash estimates that 38% of customers use menu photos to choose a restaurant. Snappr, a photography company, paid for a 2020 survey of 600 US consumers. People rated food pictures 1.44 times as important as menu descriptions. These are company figures, not independent studies.
Sources: Just Eat partner page, DoorDash newsroom (April 2025), Snappr survey
Do younger customers respond more to food photos?
DoorDash says 46% of US Gen Z and 41% of US Millennials are swayed by food photos. It also says 74% of US Gen Z and 69% of US Millennials have ordered a trending dish for delivery. Both figures are survey answers from its 2025 trends report. They do not show how many orders a photo adds.
Sources: DoorDash 2025 delivery statistics
Does a picture always help a menu item?
Not always. A 2017 study by Hou, Yang and Sun tested pictures with different dish names. For common descriptive names, a picture raised attitudes, willingness to pay and purchase intention. For unclear names, a picture helped some readers and put off others. The study measured stated intention, not real orders.
Sources: Hou, Yang and Sun (2017)
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