Delivery driving is an excellent way to earn money on the side or for moments when you need a job immediately. As a delivery driver, you bring the customer the product(s) from the business the customer placed the order. Your responsibility is ensuring that the package is delivered promptly and in proper condition. In the United States, the average wage for a delivery driver is about $20 per hour as of July 30th, 2019, with the range of pay between $17 to $24 according to salary.com.
Being a delivery driver may not be one of the most sought out jobs in the past. As our 
lifestyle and job markets change, you can see that now there is an opportunity to make money as a delivery driver.
In this age of technology, this service job is different from what we knew before; it is more flexible, and there is less commitment to the job. Allowing you to decide to be a full-time driver or a part-time driver and earn extra income on top of your regular salary.
In the rise of instant gratification, the demand for food delivery and product delivery has increased. It creates vast opportunities for you to make more money.
Restaurants have grown their revenue by providing this extra service of allowing food delivery directly to their customers.
It creates a win-win-win situation, where the delivery app business can thrive, the restaurant can increase their revenue, and the job market is open for people like you.
The largest delivery service is the restaurant to consumer delivery, according to Statistica.
I am here to share with you how you can take advantage of this opportunity by learning about the nine best companies to work for as a delivery driver.
With this job, you are your boss, and you work your hours so it is up to you how much money you can earn.
1. Deliver for Uber Eats
UberEats delivers food orders from restaurants to the customers who placed their order from the UberEats app.
Users install the app on their phones, they select food from the menu items, and then place their order. Once the customer pays for their order, then the food will be made available for delivery.
Your job is to pick up the order from the restaurant and deliver it to the customer.
How to become an UberEats driver:
- Sign up to download the app and start your activation. Once your account is active, you’re able to accept deliveries.
- If your account is active, you will receive offers for food deliveries available near you, once a customer has placed an order through their app.
- Using your UberEats delivery app, you can select to accept the delivery. If you do, then you will go to the restaurant via your bike, scooter, walk or your car and pick up the customer’s order.
- The app itself will guide you to the pickup and the drop off locations. Note: Not all options for transportation are available in every single city. You may not be able to use your bike or scooter, but the car option is always available.
- You deliver the food to the customer. Once you pick up the order, you will receive navigations to the customers’ location through the app, and all you have to do is drop it off. All payments go through the app, which makes it easy and straightforward for you to deliver the goods.
Requirements for becoming an UberEats delivery driver:
- You have to be at least 19 years or older
- You have to have a vehicle that meets the requirements of Uber Eats
- A valid driver’s license
- Valid and proof of insurance
- Your vehicle registration
- A minimum of one-year Driving Experience
Vehicle requirements:
Cars have to be at least a two or four-door vehicle made after 1998.
If a city allows you to drive scooters: the requirements are that it is at least a two-wheel scooter. It is 50 cc or less motor and doesn’t go faster than 30 miles per hour.
For bicycles, there are no specific requirements. It would be up to you and your comfort of being able to bike for quite a while.
How you receive payments from UberEats:
- You receive your pay every time you drop off an order to a customer. The app processes the payments. You don’t ever have to worry about ever taking money or payments directly from the customer.
- Your pay is based on the delivery fee for the order. The delivery fee can also vary based on a few factors. The pickup fee itself, fee mileage, and fee surge pricing (this is usually if a particular restaurant is in high demand).
- You can take out the money you’ve earned multiple times a day; up to five if you register your debit card with instant pay.
- A bonus is that you could receive tips from the customers through the UberEats customer app, but tips are not required.
2. Deliver for Instacart
Working with Instacart, you’ll be doing just a little bit more than delivering the food, you will also be doing some grocery shopping. Keep this in mind if you are interested in becoming a driver for Instacart.
Instacart’s service is providing grocery deliveries for as little as one hour. Their app connects personal shoppers who would be you, with customers who make grocery orders from their app.
Through the app, the customer places an order of grocery items they want from the local grocery store, and schedule a delivery for when they want the grocery to be delivered to them.
Your job as the delivery driver is to go to the grocery store, grocery shop, and then deliver the goods to the customer within the allotted time.
Requirements to becoming an Instacart Shopper and delivery driver:
- You must be 18 years an older
- You can work in the United States or Canada
- You have access to a vehicle
- You own a recent smartphone so that the app is compatible
- You can lift anywhere between 30 to 40 pounds
You can create your schedule. You can do this on your time off from your regular job to earn extra income.
You can expect to deliver as early as 9 a.m. and run as late, until midnight but this is all depending on the local grocery stores.
With Instacart you have two options for work. You can either be a full- service shopper where you do the shopping and the delivery. Or you can be an in-store shopper, where you only do the shopping. In both cases, you can choose your hours, and they’re very flexible.
You can expect to earn an hourly rate between $7 to $20, and the average seems to be hovering about $11 per hour.
As an independent contractor, your pay is commission-based. It depends on the number of items in each order and the number of deliveries that you’ve completed. To make the most from your wage, you will most likely work during peak hours, when people want their groceries delivered to them. These are typically Sundays and during the holiday season.
Although your schedule can be flexible, you have to keep in mind, when most people can be home to accept the delivery of their groceries.
You will receive your pay weekly through direct deposit. Therefore, you will need a checking account.
3. Deliver for DoorDash
Doordash reaches out to local restaurants in the area so that they can offer delivery services for them through you.
They are all about building community and connecting people inside of the city.
They facilitate door-to-door delivery. You pick up the order from the local restaurant and drop it off to the customer who placed the order.
Right now, it is one of the best delivery driving jobs available.
How to get started with DoorDash:
- Activate your account, provide your information and then DoorDash does a background check on you.
- Once you are set, all you have to do is install the DoorDash app to your Android or iOS device.
- Finally, you make money by turning on your app to take orders available for delivery in your area.
Requirements to become a DoorDash delivery driver:
- You have to be 18 years or older
- You do not have any major violation in the last seven years such as DUI, reckless driving etc.
- You do not have more than three incidents in the last three years
- You are required to have a criminal background check
- You have insurance
The types of vehicles you can use varies. You will be able to use motorcycles, scooters, bikes, and even walk.
You can be a DoorDash delivery driver in many of the major cities across Canada and the USA, for a full list click here.
As a driver, you could make up to $25 an hour. DoorDash guarantees that you will make a minimum of $10 an hour. You may also receive tips as a bonus but don’t rely on that to calculate your hourly wage.
You receive your payments through direct deposit so make sure you have a bank account where they can transfer the money. Alternatively, you can take out the money that you received the next day using fast pay.
4. Deliver for Shipt
Shipt is similar to Instacart where you will be doing grocery shopping for customers and delivering the groceries that you shopped for to their doorstep.
Currently, Shipt is only available in the US.
How to get started with Shipt:
- You apply and interview for the delivery driver position.
- Successfully pass the interview process to get approved.
- Once you’re approved, then you download the app, and you can start working.
Requirements for becoming a Shipt delivery driver:
- You have to be at least 18 years of age
- You have a valid US driver’s license
- You have auto insurance
- You have access to a reliable vehicle at least 1997 or newer
- You have some knowledge of produce selection
- You have an insulation cooler bag
- You can lift 40 lb
- You own a new iPhone or Android smartphone. Currently, they’re looking for iOS 10 or newer or Android 5.1
You can schedule your own time; therefore, it is up to you what you could earn. Generally, you can earn up to $22 per hour.
Your earnings are commission-based, and currently, the commission is $5 plus 7.5% of the order amount, but you can also get tips.
To make the most from Shipt job, it is always good to offer exceptional customer service. Sundays and Mondays seems to be good days to work at Shipt.
5. Deliver for Postmates
Postmates is like a combination of all the other delivery driving job companies.
They offer delivery for groceries and alcohol under the hour as well as dinners from restaurants.
They guarantee that the delivery for groceries and liquor are within an hour.
With Postmates, it’s free to sign up, and you can get started quickly.
You download the app for iOS or Android, and you log in online whenever you want to make any money.
Just like the other apps, you are given directions through the app. Your job is to pick up the orders and deliver.
You can see the amount you earn in the app and how they calculate your earnings. Each week you receive direct deposit payment, but, you can cash out anytime if you want.
With Postmates, you can earn up to $22 per hour.
Requirements for being a delivery driver with PostMates:
- You must be at least 18 years or older
- You own a smartphone that can download the Postmates Fleet app
- You have to pass their background check
- There are no vehicle requirements so you can deliver by car, scooter, or bike
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFvK2aScSCs
The cool thing about PostMates is that you they give everything you need to deliver; you even receive a free insulated delivery bag.
6. Deliver for Deliv
Deliv is a solution for businesses to provide same-day delivery services to their customers.
They see a need for retailers and businesses to deliver their products to their customers, and they work with large retail companies all across the United States.
As a delivery driver, you let them know when you’re available, and through their app, they send you available deliveries that you can make.
It’s up to you how much money you earn and what your schedule will be like since it’s flexible.
Keep in mind that you are only receiving pay for deliveries you make and not the blocks of hours that you commit to for the week.
Deliv has partnerships with companies such as Best Buy, Office Depot, PetSmart, Macy’s, Bed Bath & Beyond, Home Depot, and more.
Requirements for being a delivery driver for Deliv:
- You are 18 years of age
- Your car is at least 1998 or newer
- You can lift 50 lbs
- You have a smartphone with a data plan
- You can deliver excellent customer service
- You speak English fluently
- You have at least one-year driving experience
There are currently 35 cities across the United States, where Deliv is available.
Deliv also provides on-call support if you need help.
Your earning potential is up to $22 per hour. You can expect to receive about 10 to $12 an hour plus your mileage and any tips that you receive from customers.
You receive your pay weekly with Deliv.
Items which you can expect to deliver will be from malls and retailers. Items can be clothing, flowers, and gift baskets. With Deliv, you don’t do any of the shopping, nor do you handle any money transactions.
7. Deliver for GrubHub
GrubHub is another restaurant delivery service. You pick up and deliver food from restaurants to the customers.
You schedule your hours, and GrubHub will send you potential customer order information in your predefined delivery zone. Once they send orders your way, you have about 90 seconds to accept or decline. You will have all the details of the location and your potential earnings before you decide to accept or reject the delivery job.
The GrubHub app will direct you to the restaurant for pickup, and once you have the order, they will lead you to your final destination to drop off the order.
Requirements for being a GrubHub delivery driver:
- If you are not driving and you’re using a bicycle, you must have a valid state ID
- If you have a car, you must have a valid driver’s license for at least two years and auto insurance
- You are 19 years of age and 21 years in Chicago and older
- You have an iOS 10 or an Android 5.0 higher and a data plan
- You have a checking account
All of your scheduling is through the app. If you do not schedule yourself ahead of time, and you decide you want to deliver, all you do is toggle on the delivery. They highly recommend that you schedule your availability.
You receive payment for every delivery, and all the tips that you receive all go to you.
Your potential earning is up to $25 an hour.
You get your pay for the week that you work, from Monday to Sunday of the previous week. You receive your payment through direct deposit into your bank account.
8. Deliver for Amazon Flex
Working for Amazon Flex, you will be providing delivery to customers who place orders through Amazon.
To get started, you need to select the region which you want to deliver for, and answer a few questions.
After you meet their requirements, then you download the Amazon Flex app.
Complete the following steps:
- Sign up for Amazon Flex, and you can either use your Amazon account or create a new Amazon account.
- Answer the questions that they ask, and they will conduct a background check.
- Select the area where you will pick up and deliver the Amazon packages.
- You will have to watch some videos for their best practices of how to deliver packages.
- Provide your tax and payment details.
You can expect to pick up packages from the Amazon delivery station and deliver directly to customers. The block times are typically 3 to 6 hours. With Prime Now and AmazonFresh, where you pick up groceries or household items that you deliver directly to customers, the blocks are typically 2 to 4 hours.
Requirements to deliver for Amazon Flex:
- A smartphone to install the Amazon Flex app
- Android 6.0 or newer
- For iPhone, it has to be iPhone 5S or newer with iOS 11 or higher
- 2 GB or higher Ram
- Camera with a flash
- GPS
- Sim
- Your vehicle has to be a 4-door midsize sedan or larger. Only in a few regions, you can use bicycles for orders, and in that case, you will need a basket and a helmet and must be in good condition
- Your vehicle must be in good condition that is safe and reliable for transport
- You must have insurance
Your earning potential is between $18 to $25 an hour, and Amazon pays you by the delivery block.
There is potential for you to earn more if you have a large vehicle such as an SUV or van which fits more packages. If so, you’ll be able to receive offers for longer delivery routes.
If you’re looking to earn more, there are also peak times and delivery blocks which offer higher rates.
There is potential for you to receive tips from customers, but, it is only available for Prime Now and AmazonFresh.
Using the Amazon Flex app, you’re able to track your earnings, and you receive payments on Tuesdays and Friday through direct deposit to your bank account.
Delivering for Prime Now, you will only receive your payment after one to two days after the delivery because they calculate the tips you receive.
There are only limited opportunities available in specific locations at this time.
9. Deliver for Caviar
As the name suggests, Caviar is a delivery service for more of the higher-end local restaurants and only services certain cities across the United States.
Caviar is available in Chicago, Manhattan, Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and San Francisco Bay area.
Requirements for being a delivery driver for Caviar:
- You have to be 18 years or older
- You must have a vehicle – car, truck, bike, scooter or motorcycle
- A smartphone to install the mobile app
- You must have at least two years of driving experience
- Pass a background check
Once you’ve met the requirements, you sign up for the app, sign an agreement, and you can start working.
With Caviar, you also have the flexibility to choose the hours you work.
They are expanding, so they may be coming to a neighborhood near you.
Your potential earnings are up to $25 an hour. You can expect an average between $15 to $20 per hour. You can also receive tips since the app offers this option.
You can opt-in to receive payouts through the cash app. Once the order has been delivered, you will see the cash deposited in your account. The app also allows you to keep track of all of your payouts.
Bonus: Deliver for Saucey
Saucy offers mainly the delivery of alcohol to consumers.
The company provides a delivery time of 30 minutes.
Right now it’s only available in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, San Diego, Sacramento, and Oakland.
With Saucey, you also set your schedule.
It is still relatively new, and they are growing and expanding so they may come to a city near you.
You can earn up to about $700 per week, but, expect about $7 per delivery.
If you’re delivering within a neighboring area and you can deliver within the 30 minutes, then that’s a pretty decent salary within the hour.
Requirements for being a delivery driver for Saucey:
- You are 21 years of age and older
- You have a valid driver’s license
- You own a smartphone
- No DUIs within the last five years
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed learning about different delivery driving job opportunities.
You can create a decent income as a delivery driver. It offers a lot of flexibility, so you work when you decide to work. Keep in mind that to make the most money you may be working during prime hours when customers typically place their orders.
Delivery driving is a great side hustle if you want to save up for a vacation or pay off some debt. It is also a good option if you just lost a job and you need some income immediately.
For those who are entrepreneurs, who want to start creating a business, this is a good option for you to make some money while you grow your business.
By working for a few different delivery companies and maybe evening combining delivery driving with Uber or Lyft driving, then it could be a pretty decent income stream.
Keep in mind that you are self-employed and a contractor. Therefore, you need to keep track of expenses such as your vehicle expenses, your gas, your mileage, etc.
Make sure you have a good accountant who will give you information on how to set aside money for income tax purposes.
A little tip if you decide to get into this gig, is to keep a phone charger in your car, and make sure you have hands-free access to your phone.
To make the most income from your job, make sure to provide the best customer service. You never know who will be giving you a great tip due to your excellent service.
I hope you enjoyed this read. Let me know if you’ve ever tried one of these delivery driving jobs or which one appeals to you most. Feel free to leave your comments below.
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