Last Updated -
October 26, 2026
Explore the business model, global strategy, and market performance including insights into its position in China.
Meituan is a Chinese technology and local-services platform founded in 2010 and headquartered in Beijing. Listed in Hong Kong under stock codes 3690 and 83690, the company connects consumers, merchants and riders across food delivery, instant retail, in-store dining, hotel and travel, grocery retail and other local-commerce services. Its stated mission is “We help people eat better, live better,” reflecting a focus on everyday consumer services delivered through a large digital marketplace.
The company has developed from a local deals and food-services platform into one of China’s leading ecommerce platforms for services. Its Core Local Commerce segment includes food delivery, Meituan Instashopping, in-store, hotel and travel, while New Initiatives includes grocery retail, overseas businesses and other emerging categories. Meituan earns revenue from delivery services, merchant services such as commissions and online marketing, and product sales tied increasingly to grocery and instant retail.
In Q2 2026, Meituan reported revenue of RMB104.6 billion, up 14.4% year over year, with profit for the period of RMB2.2 billion and adjusted net profit of RMB2.5 billion. Core Local Commerce remained the main profit engine, generating RMB71.5 billion of revenue and RMB5.7 billion of operating profit, while New Initiatives revenue rose 25.0% year over year to RMB33.1 billion. China remains the central driver of Meituan’s business, and its relevance for investors rests on whether it defends high-frequency local-services usage and merchant relationships amid strong competition in delivery, instant retail and local advertising.
Meituan is China’s leading local-services platform, built around frequent consumer use cases such as food delivery, instant retail, in-store dining, hotel bookings and travel. Its business model links consumers, merchants and riders in a three-sided network. Consumers generate demand, merchants pay for access, marketing and operating tools, and Meituan’s logistics network fulfills on-demand delivery across food, groceries and retail products.
The company makes money through three main revenue streams. In Q2 2026, delivery services generated RMB27.830 billion, merchant services generated RMB42.383 billion, and product sales generated RMB26.667 billion. Merchant services include commissions, online marketing and software-like operating tools for restaurants, local stores, hotels and travel partners. Product sales are increasingly tied to grocery retail and instant retail, especially inside New Initiatives.
The main competitive advantage is scale in China local services. Meituan has high-frequency consumer traffic from food delivery, broad merchant relationships across restaurants and local services, and a large fulfillment network that supports short-distance delivery. This scale gives it data, logistics density and merchant reach that smaller competitors would struggle to match. The company also invests heavily in technology and logistics, with Q2 2026 R&D expense of RMB7.670 billion and H1 2026 R&D expense of RMB14.713 billion.
Meituan’s market position is strongest in China, which remains the central driver of revenue, users, merchants, couriers and regulatory exposure. Its core network is built around domestic consumption patterns across food, retail, in-store services, hotels and travel. China macro conditions directly affect order frequency, average order value, merchant advertising budgets and travel demand.
Direct competitors include Alibaba’s Ele.me and broader local-services and instant-commerce ecosystem, JD.com’s instant retail initiatives, Douyin local life, Trip.com in travel, and Pinduoduo and other platforms competing for consumer spending. Compared with DoorDash in the US, Meituan has a broader local-commerce mix. DoorDash is heavily associated with restaurant delivery and US convenience delivery, while Meituan combines delivery, instant retail, in-store dining, hotel and travel, and merchant advertising at large scale in China.
The investment case depends on whether Meituan defends its local-services frequency and merchant relationships while competition stays aggressive. Q2 2026 showed a return to quarterly profitability, with group revenue of RMB104.643 billion, operating profit of RMB2.691 billion and adjusted net profit of RMB2.524 billion. The first half still showed pressure, with a RMB4.672 billion loss for the period, reflecting the cost of competition and investment in Q1. For investors, Meituan remains a scale leader in China local services, but its margins are sensitive to subsidies, selling and marketing intensity, delivery costs and regulation.
China is Meituan’s core market and the main driver of its revenue, users, merchants, couriers and regulatory exposure. In Q2 2026, group revenue rose 14.4% year over year to RMB104.6 billion, with Core Local Commerce contributing RMB71.5 billion, about 68% of revenue, and RMB5.7 billion of operating profit. New Initiatives revenue reached RMB33.1 billion, up 25.0%, supported by grocery retail and overseas delivery, although the investment case remains centered on China local services. Meituan’s local strategy is to deepen food delivery, Meituan Instashopping, in-store dining, hotel and travel by linking consumers, merchants and riders through high-frequency local demand. Partnerships are mainly with domestic restaurants, retailers, hotels and travel providers. Competitors include Alibaba’s Ele.me and local-services ecosystem, JD.com instant retail, Douyin local life, Trip.com and Pinduoduo. Q2 showed a recovery in profitability after Q1 pressure from aggressive competition and spending.
Meituan entered the second half of 2026 with a mixed but improving profile. Q2 2026 revenue rose 14.4% year over year to RMB104.643 billion, operating profit recovered to RMB2.691 billion, and adjusted net profit increased 69.0% to RMB2.524 billion. This marked a clear improvement from the first quarter, although the first half still showed the cost of competition and investment, with H1 2026 loss for the period of RMB4.672 billion compared with a profit a year earlier.
Meituan’s future outlook depends on whether Core Local Commerce sustains profitability while instant retail, grocery and overseas operations scale with better unit economics. The Q2 2026 rebound was encouraging, but the H1 loss shows that growth still comes with substantial competitive and investment costs.
Next Earnings Planned for:
June 1, 2026
This Company Profile was written by Dominik Diemer
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