Is Uber Eats worth it? What does Uber Eats driver pay look like? For many drivers, Uber Eats is a staple of their gig business. Others use Eats as part of a multi-apping system, where they toggle back and forth with other rideshare or delivery apps.
There are many factors that make driving for Uber Eats worth the effort. The earnings for 2022 show that there is definitely money to be made by delivering food for Uber. In this blog post we’ll do some delivering, too.
Here's what we cover:
How much do Uber Eats drivers make?
How much does Uber Eats pay? Like all answers to questions about driver earnings, it depends on a few different things. Gridwise data show us that while Uber Eats isn’t the highest paying delivery service, it is still very stable and very convenient.
How much can you make with Uber Eats? The fairest way to answer that is to look at actual earnings, directly from the results of Uber Eats drivers who use Gridwise. The first thing worth noting is that total hourly earnings (basic pay + tips) have remained stable for the first three quarters of 2022, at around $13.50. Then, in Q4, the median gross hourly earnings came in at $14.01. That means Uber Eats is sustaining its popularity, holding on to its market share, and paying well for drivers.
How much do Uber Eats drivers make a week? This answer rides on how many hours a week a person drives for Uber Eats. It’s not easy for drivers to put in a full 30 or 40 hours delivering meals, but it isn’t impossible. You’d have to be willing to dig into the demographics in your area and find out where the chow orders are coming from, even when it isn’t peak meal time.
If a driver were to deliver for 30 hours a week, they’d pull in around $405. Keep in mind, though, that many Uber Eats drivers don’t use Eats as their only gig. Drivers, if they’re qualified, can switch back and forth between Eats and rideshare, depending on how busy they might be with each type of driving at different times of day.
That could be part of the explanation for Uber Eats monthly earnings coming in between $200 and $260 per month. This is on par with other delivery apps, such as Instacart and Grubhub, where drivers appear to work only part time.
Tips are very high with Uber Eats, around $6.50 per hour. Customers tend to tip delivery drivers more. Could it be because they’re hungry? Maybe so. As an Uber Eats driver, you’ll want to encourage customers to notice the careful and efficient way you bring them what they want. We’ll say more about that in a later section.
Uber Eats driver pay is just one good reason to work with the Uber Eats app.The flexibility of going between Uber rideshare driving and delivering for Uber Eats is unique, and a good feature for Uber drivers.
What does it take to drive for Uber Eats?
If you choose to do Uber Eats delivery only (that is, unless you’re already a rideshare driver for Uber) there are some requirements. To do delivery by car, you will need to
- be at least 19 years old
- drive a 2-door or 4-door car
- have a valid driver’s license in your name
- submit your Social Security number so Uber can run a background screening
You can also deliver, in some areas, on a scooter or bicycle, and even on foot. See the Uber website for specific requirements for these modes of transportation, and check what the site has to say about your city for any special considerations there might be.
Read this Gridwise blog post for more about what it takes to drive for Uber Eats.
Want to deliver with Uber Eats as an Uber driver?
If you’re an Uber driver, you already qualify to deliver for Uber Eats. All you need to do is turn on the option to receive delivery requests in the Uber driver app. This is extremely convenient if you want to mix up your driving activity and capitalize on the opportunity to make more money when delivery is in demand. Then you can switch back to rideshare when more people need you to take them from one place to another.
The requirements for rideshare drivers are a bit harder to meet than the ones for Uber Eats delivery only, but not by much. See the Uber website if you’re not yet an Uber rideshare driver, and want to learn more about the requirements in your city.
What are the perks and considerations of delivering for Uber Eats?
What reasons might you have for choosing to drive for Uber Eats, or not? If you’re looking for delivery only, Uber Eats is a very easy gig to work. It’s popular and can be found in most locations. If you’re thinking of mixing Eats with Uber rideshare, you’ll find food delivery to be a pleasant diversion from your usual work, and it can also be a lucrative one.
This table lists some pros and cons you can consider, in either case.
| Uber Eats Perks | Uber Eats Considerations |
| App is easy to use and toggle back and forth from rideshare to delivery | For rideshare drivers, the mix of rideshare and delivery requests can be distracting |
| Good pay for food delivery | Might not be as lucrative as rideshare |
| Easy to qualify | You may need to clock in a lot of mileage to make good money |
| No scheduling necessary, drive anytime | You may have lots of competition from other drivers |
There are many factors you need to take into account when you choose which service or services to drive for. Uber Eats is very popular among drivers, so it seems the pros must outweigh the cons. Of course, you can always increase your chances of making more money when you learn how to strategize wisely.
What’s the best Uber Eats driver advice for maximizing earnings?
This Gridwise post tells you how it’s possible to earn $1000 a week with Uber Eats, and it contains a lot of wise advice. The core point of the article is that you have to treat your Uber Eats gig like the serious business that it is. That means you need to
- track your earnings. To properly manage your business, you need to know how much you’re making. Sync your Uber Eats activity to Gridwise, and the earnings data will seamlessly be tabulated and displayed in easy to read and useful graphs.
- track your mileage. Your tax-deductible mileage is recorded for each app you sync with Gridwise, making it easy to find at tax crunch time.
- record your expenses. Gridwise makes it easy to keep track of your expenses, tax-deductible and otherwise. Just enter them as they come in.
- cut your operating expenses. Once you record your expenses, and see how high they are, you might want to look for ways to cut them down. Check out the amazing deals and discounts from Gridwise on everything from gas and car maintenance to life insurance and healthcare.
- know when and where the best deliveries will take place. Gridwise driver data informs the features Where to Drive and When to Drive, so you can avoid playing “trial and error” with your driving patterns.
- get familiar with the areas and patterns in your town. You can learn a lot about your area when you do gig driving. Know where offices, universities, hospitals, and high-delivery neighborhoods are, and be alert to what’s happening, when shifts change and people get home from work.
- set up a schedule and stick to it. Making a good living as a gig driver requires you to drive at times when you might not really feel like it. You are your own boss, so apply the necessary discipline and get your job done. A schedule is a huge help.
- use multi-apping: You can go from one app to another, within the rules, of course, and bring more earning opportunities your way. Read this Gridwise post on multi-apping to get more ideas that will increase your income.
- be aware of events, weather, and traffic. You can always know what’s going on in your town with Gridwise event alerts, weather advisories, and traffic information.
These are just a few of the things you need to do to make the maximum as an Uber Eats driver. And, as you can see, Gridwise can be a big part of your success..
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One Response
Your article gave me a lot of inspiration, I hope you can explain your point of view in more detail, because I have some doubts, thank you.