So you wanna make money with food delivery on DoorDash, UberEats, Grubhub or Instacart but don't know where to start?
Or maybe you have questions about tipping your food delivery driver and Instacart shopper?
You've come to the right place! Food delivery is kind of my thing!
You've thought about signing up to be a food delivery driver on DoorDash, UberEats or Grubhub! Or maybe you've considered becoming an Instacart Shopper?
But you keep thinking: Where do I start? Which app is the best?
Maybe you've already signed up but you're not sure what to expect during your first order so you've put off going out.
What if I accidentally accept an order? How do I get out of an order that's gonna take longer than expected? What about equipment and taxes ??
How much does it pay?
Eeeek, so much to think about!If you're already a pro, skip to "For seasoned food delivery drivers" to share your most horrifying delivery experiences and be featured on this site.
Don't worry. Delivering food is actually a fun way to make money and we'll go through it together!
I know from personal experience that getting past the first few deliveries can be scary because you don't really know what you're in for.
It doesn't matter if you plan on doing it full-time or just for some extra cash after your day job.
Being a DoorDash, UberEats, Grubhub delivery driver or Instacart Shopper gives you the freedom to rake in extra money without that being desk-bound but getting started can be confusing since there is little guidance.
You need to know a few basic steps so you don't drive around aimlessly, taking small-paying orders with long delivery distances at restaurants and stores that are notoriously slow.
Having an upfront strategy of what you will and won't do can prevent unnecessary frustration so you can maximize your earnings and minimize wasted time and gas.
That's why I'm here. I have been involved in the gig economy for the better part of five years and have successfully completed thousands of orders across apps. I've had some painful experiences and while you'll also have your fair share of those, I'm here to help you avoid beginner pitfalls.
As someone who's also worked in corporate America, I still love big picture thinking and lik to keep updated on emerging trends and changes in the gig economy. Don't worry, I'll sift through those for you and post information that's relevant to you, here.
While specifics will vary based on your area, there are some tips and tricks that will minimize frustrations and maximize earnings.
Ready to get started?
There are three major food delivery services that include DoorDash (get started here), UberEats (get started here) and Grubhub (get started here). Postmates is now part of UberEats.
Then of course you have Instacart, which is often grouped in the food delivery services industry but is really more of a personal shopper gig. I completed over 1,200 orders on Instacart so I've learned a thing or two about how it differs from the others.
To get started with Instacart, go here.
If you're not sure which app best fits your needs, check out my detailed side-by-side comparison of DoorDash, UberEats, Grubhub here.
Curious what an order from start to finish looks like in the DoorDash, UberEats or Grubhub app? Check out the videos below.
For seasoned food delivery drivers
Check out my stories from the road and submit your craziest food delivery story from your time on DoorDash, UberEats, Grubhub, and/or Instacart, here for a chance to be featured!
For customers
I've met many customers over the years who valued the food delivery industry and the services it offers. Especially during 2020, I met some incredible people who were thankful for getting food delivered to their doorstep.
Most customers understand that they are in big part responsible for compensating their food delivery drivers or Instacart shoppers.
For more info on how to tip, check here for my guide to tipping your Instacart Shopper.
Or here for information about tipping your DoorDash, UberEats or Grubhub driver.
I also understand that there are food delivery drivers who are not exactly amazing at what they do so it seems like you're wasting your money on cold or missing food.
I've met plenty of bad drivers myself and let's be honest, I probably wasn't amazing when I first started. That's why I want to provide as much information to new food delivery drivers and Instacart shoppers as I can based on years of experience.
Still, there is some confusion about how much to tip your food delivery driver or Instacart Shopper because of a lack of transparency about gig worker pay.
I want to shed some light on that aspect with this site because the truth is, we gig workers on DoorDash, UberEats, Grubhub and Instacart would not be able to make a living without tips.
On average, we get paid around $$2-3 to pick up an order on DoorDash, UberEats and a little more on Grubhub since it pays for mileage from the restaurant and to the customer's.
An ideal order takes about 20 minutes to complete (most take between 30-45+ minutes) so you can see how that $3 adds up to maybe $9 an hour in an ideal scenario of 20 minutes per order but would most likely result in only $6 an hour.
Instacart will pay about $7-$9 for an order but keep in mind that it'll also take quite a bit longer to shop for a customer than it does to deliver food from a restaurant. Instacart is often lumped together with restaurant food delivery but from the shopper perspective, it's quite a bit more intricate. It's essentially a personal shopper app so a $2 is never enough.
As I said, DoorDash and UberEats don't pay for mileage, we have to duke that out come tax season; Grubhub and Instacart pay for mileage from the restaurant/store to the customer's. We are responsible for the mileage to the restaurant/store and any other extraneous mileage. Gas is another factor we don't get compensated for until tax season (if we remembered to save our receipts) nor are car repairs of which I had close to $1,500 last year alone.
So yes, the food delivery industry is a tip-based industry like the restaurant-industry but in the restaurant-industry, I don't have to use my own vehicle to drive miles and miles to different restaurants and customers' homes so it's up to customers to find it in their heart to tip extra knowing some of the behind the scenes effort that actually goes into the seemingly simple act of delivering food.
Also check out my food delivery stories from the road here and share your hilarious, nightmarish food delivery story from your perspective as the customer to be featured on the page.