Delivery apps have made it easy to get everything from fast food meals to weekly groceries delivered to your front door. Not only are the apps convenient for consumers, but they offer a flexible way to earn extra money.
“I can sign in and out for work as I please around my full-time job, so it’s great to fill in half an hour or more here and there when I am feeling like getting out,” says Brett Mallory of Cheboygan, Michigan. With a full-time job as a mail carrier, Mallory is very familiar with his town, which makes food deliveries an easy option to earn extra cash with this side gig.
While details can vary by company, most drivers are hired as independent contractors who set their own hours. In most cases, workers must possess a valid driver’s license, pass a background check and have reliable transportation.
For good pay and plentiful work opportunities, try the following delivery apps. Be aware that the best food delivery app to work for will depend on where you live, since not all services are available in all areas.
— DoorDash/Caviar.
— GrubHub.
— Hungry.
— Uber Eats/Postmates.
— Gopuff.
— Roadie.
— Instacart.
— Shipt.
— Bite Squad/ASAP.
— Favor.
DoorDash/Caviar
If you’re looking for the best delivery service to work for, start with one of the most recognizable names in the industry. DoorDash is often associated with restaurant meal deliveries, but dashers — as their delivery workers are known — can also pick up groceries or goods from local gas stations, drug stores or other retailers. Dashers also deliver orders for the food delivery app Caviar.
DoorDash is available in more than 7,000 cities in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Japan, meaning there are work opportunities even outside big cities. Dashers aren’t limited to working in their hometown either. They can also pick up deliveries in cities they may be visiting.
“It depends on where you live if you could work for Doordash full time, but I feel it’s worth my time when I do it,” Mallory says. He adds that how well you’re paid depends largely on the tips you receive.
Base pay starts at $2 to more than $10 per delivery, according to the company, but workers can earn extra from tips and promotions. On average, that equals out to about $16.30 per hour, according to employment website Indeed.
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Grubhub
Grubhub is another major player in the world of food delivery. The company has more than 320,000 restaurant partners in more than 4,000 U.S. cities. Every day, Grubhub delivers more than 715,000 orders, and it serves 32 million active diners.
Drivers must be at least 19 to deliver for Grubhub, but no previous experience is necessary. The company requires workers to use insulated bags when making deliveries, and if you don’t have your own, Grubhub can provide one. driver.grubhub.com/ In markets in which the driver needs to pay for restaurant orders prior to delivery, a Grubhub Driver Card is issued to make payment.
Drivers earn a base rate for each delivery plus 100% of tips. They earn, on average, $20 per hour, according to self-reported data on employment website Glassdoor.
Hungry
Before the pandemic, Hungry focused on delivering catered meals to offices and business clients. “We are a platform that is designed to connect companies with top local chefs,” says Jeff Grass, company CEO and co-founder. With the move to remote work in 2020, Hungry expanded its service to make meal deliveries to homes as well.
Delivery workers for Hungry fall into one of two categories: delivery captains and catering captains. Delivery captains drop off meals at homes and earn a base pay per gig or drop plus incentives for productivity. Catering captains not only deliver meals, but they also set up and provide service. They receive a pay per catering based on the amount of time it will take plus tips. Captains receive alerts when jobs are available, and they are free to accept and decline them as they wish.
Minimum pay for Hungry is equivalent to $15 per hour, but most delivery captains make $20 to $40 per hour, Grass says. “We’ve had people make $10,000 a month in Boston and New York,” Grass says. Catering captains earn $25 to $36 per hour on average. Hungry operates in 14 metro areas nationwide.
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Uber Eats/Postmates
Launched by the ride-sharing company Uber in 2014, Uber Eats has partnered with more than 825,000 merchants worldwide. Its app is available in more than 11,000 cities globally, but earning opportunities for drivers may be best in large metro areas. Uber Eats also owns and delivers for Postmates.
To deliver by car, Uber Eats requires that a person be at least 19 years old, have a valid driver’s license and have a two- or four-door vehicle. Those delivering by bike or foot need to be 18 years old, while scooter delivery drivers must be 19. All deliveries are managed through the Uber Driver app.
Uber Eats pays drivers a flat fee for picking up and dropping off meals, plus workers earn tips. The food delivery app may also pay an additional amount for delivering in surge zones or completing quest goals. Average earnings are approximately $18.12 per hour, according to Indeed.
Gopuff
For those who don’t want to spend time driving to multiple restaurants or stores, Gopuff may be the best option. Drivers pick up orders at one of more than 500 micro-fulfillment centers serving more than 1,000 cities nationwide. Gopuff offers a variety of essential products to its customers, including snacks, groceries, health care goods and baby supplies.
Drivers with Gopuff manage all their deliveries through the goDrive app. The app allows drivers to reserve a delivery slot and earn an hourly subsidy. However, signing up for a specific time is not required to fulfill orders through the app.
Gopuff pays drivers a base rate of $2.25 to $5.00 per order as well as 100% of customer tips. There may be bonus earning opportunities as well. Average earnings equal $18 to $25 per hour, according to the company.
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Roadie
If you order groceries for delivery from your favorite retailer, it might be a Roadie driver who brings the bags to the front door. Roadie enables delivery for major retailers and thousands of small businesses.
“Roadie covers more than 26,000 ZIP codes. It’s the largest local delivery footprint in the U.S.” says Marc Gorlin, founder and CEO of Roadie, a UPS company. In addition to grocery deliveries, drivers can use Roadie’s platform to earn money delivering all kinds of things, from delayed luggage to big screen TVs. “We’re cool with episodic work,” Gorlin says. “You do it when it suits your life.”
Drivers earn an average of $13 per delivery, but multiple deliveries can be combined on the same trip to earn more money per mile. Drivers can earn more on longer distance deliveries and larger items, such as furniture.
Instacart
For groceries, Instacart is the best delivery app to work for in many people’s minds. The company provides grocery pickup and delivery services at 40,000 stores across more than 5,500 cities.
Full-service shoppers with Instacart both shop for and deliver groceries to customers, while in-store shoppers are responsible for selecting a customer’s order and staging it for pickup. For both roles, shoppers must be able to lift 50 pounds and have consistent access to a recent smartphone that they can use effectively.
There are separate pay structures for each position. Full-service shoppers are independent contractors who can work at whatever time is convenient for them. They are paid per order and receive 100% of tips. Meanwhile, in-store shoppers are scheduled for shifts equaling up to 29 hours per week. Indeed reports personal shoppers and store shoppers with Instacart earn around $24,000 to $25,000 per year with this gig.
Shipt
Shipt was launched in 2014, and the grocery delivery service operates in more than 5,000 cities nationwide. It delivers from more than 120 retailers, and Shipt shoppers select items themselves in stores and then deliver them to customers’ homes.
To deliver for Shipt, shoppers must be 18, have a valid driver’s license and drive a reliable vehicle built no earlier than 1997. They must also be knowledgeable about produce, be able to lift 40 pounds and have a newer smartphone.
Shipt shoppers are paid per order plus tips. If an order isn’t picked up by a shopper, the company may add promotional pay to the order to encourage a shopper to claim it. According to Shipt, experienced shoppers can earn $16 to $22 per hour.
Bite Squad/ASAP
Operating in more than 200 cities collectively, Bite Squad and ASAP are owned by the same company and have smaller footprints than other apps. Still, they are among the best food delivery services to work for, offering flexible scheduling and making daily cashouts available.
Delivery Logistics handles scheduling for both apps and requires drivers be 18 or older, have a valid driver’s license, an insured vehicle, a smartphone and an insulated bag. Those who don’t have a bag can purchase one from Delivery Logistics. Drivers then use an app to select time blocks to work at their convenience.
Drivers earn a base payment plus tips plus any surge pay or incentives attached to an order. There can be fees of $1.99 to $2.99 to transfer earnings to your bank account, however. Indeed reports Bite Squad drivers typically make $18.24 per hour.
Favor
Austin-based Favor has been delivering items to state residents since 2013. Its delivery workers are known as runners, and they bring customers more than meals. They may deliver almost anything a person requests, from dry cleaning to over-the-counter medication.
Favor is only available in Texas, and runners in most cities will need a vehicle. However, Austin runners can deliver via bicycle in the downtown area. After applying, there is a 10-minute online orientation before people can begin scheduling themselves for work.
Runners earn 35% of the delivery fee for orders and 100% of tips. Favor says it offers hourly guarantees of $9 to $10 per hour, but during peak times in busy areas, average income is closer to $12 to $18 per hour.
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Best Food Delivery App Companies to Work For originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 10/25/22: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
