Is it worthwhile driving for Postmates or DoorDash?
Doordash sign up bonus referral code: 2069103961
Click here to apply:
One of the fastest growing driving industries are the door-to-door delivery services. Ever since Uber made taxi driving sexy everyone wants to supplement their income with logistics work. The reason these sectors have become so attractive are the apps that were developed for them. Suddenly, these mobile apps with all their amazing functions make driving an interesting work environment. Door-to-door delivery, which was relegated to a schoolboys weekend hobby or city cyclists timed the event is now a major employment sector. Which just goes to prove, it's not the subject, but how you package it, the PR boys have been working overtime and made delivery work sexy and seductive.
We now present an in-depth review of what these sectors are all about, and look at DoorDash and Postmates:
Postmates
Postmates is a door to door delivery service providing deliveries of all kinds of items from stores and shops such as office supplies and snacks as well as food deliveries from restaurants. Usually, the deliveries are for small quantities.
Postmates is an easy job to perform. All the driver needs to do is open the Postmates app and wait for orders to come in. There is no shift or scheduled work, and once the app is opened, the driver receives requests and picks up the delivery from the merchant. The delivery can be pre-ordered paid for when the driver arrives with a special Postmates credit card that is used to pay for the orders. The driver takes a picture of the receipt and sends it to support via the app and delivers the order to the customer.
Postmates requirements for application are:
- The applicant is 18 years or older
- Has a vehicle or bicycle, car, truck, motorcycle, or scooter
- Owns an iPhone or Android smartphone
- Valid US Driver's license
- Insurance card with name on policy
- A social security number (background check)
- Pass the background and driving record check
- Pass an orientation interview online or in person
There is a mandatory background check that covers the last seven years. If you have any prior offenses or driving offenses, Checkr, who performs all the background checks, will find them.
Postmates Earning (Drivers are called Postmates)
- Postmates get paid a flat fee with an additional fee per minute and a calculated fee per mile between the pickup and drop-off destinations.
- Postmates get all the tip amounts tipped by a customer through the app after the delivery has been completed.
- There is an hourly guarantee (bonus) for Postmates that accept all the requests (100%) within an hour.
- Peak hours, known as Blitz pricing (like Ubers Surge) gives a higher rate during peak hours of the day.
- The earnings made from deliveries are paid to the Postmates after four to seven days.
- The average income per hour is around $8.00 to $15.00 in most cities.
Example of income in Los Angeles
The flat rate is $1.35 which is automatic the moment a request is accepted.
The per minute rate is $0.10 for waiting at a store or restaurant
The per mile rate is $0.13 when delivering the order
If an order takes seven minutes to prepare and is six miles away and it takes five minutes to ride on a scooter, then the income will be:
$1.35 + $0.70 + $0.78 + $0.50 = $3.33
The overheads of this ride are the scooter fuel, insurance and mobile phone cost per minute. Taxes do apply, but they are calculated at the end of the year and depend on all the other income and expense factors.
DoorDash
DoorDash is also a delivery service, but this one only delivers food. The DoorDash system of work is quite simple. Drivers for DoorDash open their app and start to receive requests. Unlike Postmates, DoorDash requires their drivers to prepare some schedule six days ahead, and drivers can enter a shift If another driver does not appear online for work. Usually, the customer places the order with the restaurant, and all you must do is collect it. Other times the order is in the app, and the driver must place it with the restaurant and pay for it with the company credit card, the "Red Card" provided to all drivers by DoorDash. There are instances that DoorDash support will place the order and the driver only needs to pay for it at pick up with the "Red Card." Approximately one hour before a shift starts you will have to select the area you want to work in, all the requests and deliveries will be limited to the area you choose.
DoorDash requirements for applicants are:
- The applicant is 18 years or older
- Has a vehicle or bicycle, car, truck, motorcycle, or scooter
- Owns an iPhone or Android smartphone
- Valid US Driver's license
- Insurance card with name on policy
- A social security number (background check)
- Pass the background and driving record check
- Pass an orientation interview online or in person
There is a mandatory background check that covers the last seven years. If you have any prior offenses or driving offenses, Checkr, who performs all the background checks, will find them.
DoorDash Earnings
- Drivers get paid a flat fee only of around $6.00 to $8.00 per delivery.
- Drivers get all the tip amounts tipped by a customer through the app after the delivery has been completed.
- The earnings made from deliveries are paid on a weekly basis.
DoorDash or Postmates
Both these companies offer flexible working conditions, and drivers can work for both, in fact, a lot of UberX and Lyft drivers are registered to these services as well, it fills in slow hours during the day and night.
What is Good
- Quick and easy hiring process
- Basic vehicle requirements that do not require special cars or car age limits
- Usually, generates good tips and they supplement the per hour income by a further $15 to $20.
- The work hours are flexible
- If you cannot work for Uber or Lyft, you will be able to work for these companies, unless your background check is problematic.
What is Bad
- There is no guarantee of income; some days can be slow.
- The expenses of driving a car are high in comparison to the income generated by deliveries