Synopsis
As platforms raise prices and battle for workers, questions are emerging around the long-term size and profitability of the 10-minute househelp market. Companies are now expanding into adjacent categories such as cooking and car washing to deepen engagement and drive growth.The growth came as the two larger players — Urban Company and Snabbit — raised prices for their instant help services, pushing up post-discount average order values (AOVs). Pronto, which recently raised $20 million in funding doubling its valuation to $200 million, continued to trail on pricing and ticket size. Snabbit also closed a $56-million funding in April at a $350 million valuation.
“The months of March and April saw meaningful supply-side disruptions due to labour shortages, prompting platforms to raise prices in some mature micro markets,” a senior industry executive said. “At the same time, competition for workers remained intense as companies aggressively vied for a limited pool of service professionals.”
Urban Company’s InstaHelp service recorded a net AOV of Rs 180-200 in April, while Lightspeed-backed Snabbit saw AOVs of Rs 160-180, executives said. Pronto, meanwhile, clocked AOVs in the Rs 80-100 range. To be sure, Pronto’s lower AOVs are largely due to its pricing structure, with the company offering lower-priced 30-minute service packs unlike rivals that primarily operate on hourly pricing.
