Here’s everything about ordering pizza online and having it delivered to someone else:
Generally, yes, you can order pizza online and have it delivered to someone else.
If that other person lives in your local area, it should be an easy process.
If they live farther away, you might run into delivery restrictions.
If they live out of the country, then things can get a lot more complicated pretty quickly.
So if you want to learn all about how to order pizza for someone in and out of the country, then this article is for you.
Let’s dive into it!
Can You Order Pizza for Someone Else?
Let’s elaborate on this a bit.
As a rule, can you order pizza for someone else? Yes.
It’s actually pretty easy to do, and I’ll walk you through it in the next section.
But, just because it’s allowed doesn’t mean that it will always work.
There is a catch, and it’s also pretty simple.
The delivery address has to be a viable destination for the pizza.
So, if you try to order a pizza for someone who doesn’t live close to the restaurant, you’ll likely find that such a delivery is unavailable.
The good news is that most sites take this into account, and they’ll check the delivery address before you try to complete the order.
So, you’ll know that you can’t get the pizza delivered before you actually pay for anything.
How Do You Order Pizza Online and Have It Delivered to Someone Else?
Ok. Assuming that you are ordering pizza for someone with a viable address, how do you actually do it?
Are there any special rules or restrictions?
I’ll get into some of the more complicated possibilities later, but for the most part, you just have to enter the addresses correctly.
You will use your own billing address to palace the order, but you should put the correct delivery address, which will be different.
When you put in the delivery address, the system should verify that the delivery is possible.
As long as everything checks out, you can place the order and pay for the pizza, and the other person will receive it.
Chains vs. Local Restaurants
There is one thing to keep in mind.
Especially if you are placing this order for someone who lives in a different city or town, you’re likely to have better luck with a chain restaurant.
It’s very unlikely that a pizza place will deliver beyond a certain radius, and you can assume that the radius doesn’t extend to the next town or city.
So, look for a pizza chain that has a local branch that can deliver to your friend (or whoever you are sending pizza to).
What if You Have the Pizza Delivered to Someone in Another State?
So far, everything is easy.
But, what if they live in a different state?
The good news is that this doesn’t really change anything.
If you are in the United States, then ordering from one state for delivery in another state should be fine.
You’re still limited by the delivery range I’ve already mentioned, but if you can find a restaurant in the range of the delivery destination, you don’t have to do anything special.
This holds true in a lot of countries.
In Canada, you can order for someone in another province.
Any other country that doesn’t have specific state-to-state (or whatever districting system the country uses) limitations will allow for this process, and you don’t have to make any extra effort for it to work.
Just put in the correct addresses, and the pizza place handles the rest.
What About Having the Pizza Delivered to Another Country? (4 Hurdles)
Ok. That’s all good and well, but what if you’re ordering for someone in another country?
Is that even possible?
It is possible, and it’s still potentially an easy process.
As long as there are no special obstacles, you can place an order for anyone anywhere in the world, provided they are in the delivery range of the restaurant you choose.
That said, international commerce is a bit more complicated, and there are some obstacles that do pop up from time to time.
So, let’s take a minute and cover each of them individually.
#1 Verification
It’s standard practice for a delivery company to want a valid phone number when you place the order.
This verifies the order, but more importantly, it allows the delivery person to contact the patron in case they have trouble completing the delivery.
So, if you’re ordering for someone in another country, they’ll want a valid phone number for the person receiving the pizza.
They’ll probably notice that your phone number isn’t right for this, so you’ll need to supply the correct phone number of your friend.
As long as you can do that, verification won’t be a problem.
#2 Exchanging Currency
But, verification is only one possible issue.
There’s also the fact that every country has its own currency.
If you’re placing an order outside of your own country, then a currency exchange has to take place.
Now, this exchange should be automated.
Most online stores these days have systems that handle currency exchange rates and everything needed to make it all work.
Even with that, there are two things you need to know about that might drive up the cost of this pizza.
First is the exchange rate.
How many dollars does it take to equal a Euro?
That question applies to any exchange of currencies, and the rates are always fluctuating.
So, if the exchange rate isn’t favorable, you might pay more than you expected for the pizza.
The second issue is international purchasing fees.
A lot of credit card companies charge a fee to complete a transaction that takes place outside of your own country, and that could definitely apply to this price order.
Keep an eye on those fees to make sure the pizza isn’t prohibitively expensive.
#3 IP Restrictions
On a completely different note, not all pizza places want to deal with the many complications attached to foreign trade and sales.
They might block foreigners from placing orders, and they have the right to do that.
One easy way to do this is with IP restrictions.
The ordering system can see what country you are in based on your IP address, and it might use that to prevent you from ordering in another country.
For international pizza chains, your IP address will have you automatically redirected to the correct site for your country of residence.
You can get around IP restrictions, but it’s going to take some effort.
You can try contacting customer support to see if they can help you with your international order.
You can also try using a VPN, and these instructions can help with that.
#4 Trade Embargos
Here’s the final hurdle.
It sounds weird, but international trade agreements can be pretty tricky.
Depending on such agreements (and restrictions), you might not actually be allowed to do commerce with a specific country.
As an extreme and unlikely example, if there was a Pizza Hut in North Korea, citizens in many western countries would be legally prohibited from placing an order at the North Korean store.
Ultimately, this is uncommon, but it’s not impossible.
So if it seems like you really can’t place your order, consider checking trade restrictions between your country and the country where you are sending the pizza.