Doordash Vs Uber: Food Delivery Vs Rideshare
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If you're looking for ways to earn extra money with a side hustle, Rideshare and Delivery driver jobs are an awesome opportunity. No matter where you're from or what skills you have, making money is no longer a struggle with DoorDash or Uber.
Today, the gig economy is attracting more and more people. Among all the advantages of self-employment, there is first of all the flexibility that only working for delivery or ridesharing companies can offer. These job opportunities are even more interesting now because these companies are all looking for drivers and offering incentives to persuade more people.
So, how to decide if you should deliver for DoorDash or drive for Uber (or both…)? Do you really know who doordash dashers or ridesharing drivers really are, and what they actually do?
In this article, we focus on two companies that offer very similar jobs at first glance: DoorDash and Uber. At the end of this article, you will know everything you need to know, including the pay, to make your final choice and decide who among DoorDash and Uber is right for you.
Doordash and Uber are both headquartered in San Francisco, CA.
Uber is one of the main Doordash's competitors. It started as a ride hailing company and expanded its business to provide more services. It actually operates with more than 10 subsidiaries.
DoorDash is the fastest growing food delivery service in the United states. With 55% of market share, Doordash dominates the market of online food delivery, curbside pickup and is expanding offers to grocery delivery services to their customers.
As for September 2021, DoorDash crossed Uber in market cap:
The first thing to understand is that we are not talking about a full-time job nor a part-time job. DoorDash and Uber, as well as their competitors, do not offer a fixed salary nor a fixed number of hours you must work.
You will not be eligible for most employee benefits such as a guaranteed minimum wage, workers’ compensation and sick days. This is because you will work as an independent contractor.
This means that you have to pay taxes based on your total income . As an independent contractor, you can also deduct personal expenses.
Precisely for this reason they are the right solution for those who want some extra money at the end of the month or for students who want a flexible job. Working as a rideshare or delivery driver , is a good opportunity to maximize your earnings and have more money in your pocket. Finally, if you're looking for a job that doesn't require a lot of commitment and qualifications, these jobs are for you.
Meeting all the requirements for DoorDash and Uber is not difficult. Both companies are looking for safe drivers. So, you have to pass a background check during the application process. Additionally, you will undergo permanent screenings.
This means that you are not eligible to work for one of these companies and your account will be permanently and immediately deactivated in the case of serious convictions, including:
The main difference between DoorDash and Uber is the age requirement. Indeed, the minimum age to become a DoorDash driver is 18 years old, while you need to be at least 21 years old to drive for Uber. If you are under 21 years old, you have no choice, you can only sign up for DoorDash.
Since with Uber you will provide people transportation, you need a minimum of driver experience. You can always improve your driving skills and become a better driver.
The second key difference between delivery and rideshare jobs are the vehicle requirements. If you want to become an Uber driver your car needs to meet age requirements and you need to schedule a vehicle inspection yearly.
There are no car requirements for DoorDash, you can also deliver using a bike, a scooter or even walk in some markets.
When working for DoorDash, you can even increase your earnings with car advertising.
Winner: DoorDash
Some important things to know before becoming a food delivery driver or a Rideshare Driver job.
One of the principal benefits of a delivery job compared to rideshare is that you do not really have to deal with people. You will not drive people in your car or need to interact much, except for the delivery. The one disadvantage to that is that DoorDash drivers have to pick up the order to the restaurant/merchant. Dealing with parking can be difficult in crowded areas.
Delivery companies allow workers to work in pairs. You can bring someone with you while dashing who can help you do the job. It is safer, it is fun and you do not get bored. Of course, you cannot have someone with you while driving with Uber.
In addition to not having specific car requirements, most delivery drivers will mention that they would not feel safe carrying unknown people in their cars, especially during COVID.
While Uber has worked on a series of safety features, a lot of drivers install dash cams on their cars to increase safety.
On the other hand, if you drive your car to deliver food in large cities, parking might become your worst nightmare.
Becoming a rideshare driver is a demanding job that can also be very rewarding if you like interacting with people and spending time on the road. My key advice is to acknowledge that, like in any other business, experience makes a big difference.
Both companies allow gig workers to get paid daily respectively, with DoorDash fast pay and Uber Instant pay.
Let’s compare the average hourly pay reported by other jobs websites. According to Indeed, an Uber driver earns an average of $14.43 per hour while a Doordash driver earnings may differ and depend on factors like number of deliveries you accept and complete, time of day, location, and any costs. Hourly pay is calculated using average Dasher payouts while on a deliver (from the time you accept an order until the time you drop it off) over a 90 day period and includes compensation from tips, peak pay, and other incentives.
At Bestreferraldriver we are professional gig workers. While considering the earnings, you need to take a few more things into account.
First of all, your expenses will usually be lower in food delivery, since you don’t need a specific and recent car model. You also don’t need to go through expensive annual vehicle inspections.
You can even bike or walk. Under some circumstances, food delivery apps also offer opportunities to batch orders so you can process multiple orders at once. Last but not least, tips as a percentage of your total earnings tend to be higher in food and grocery deliveries since customers would expect you to earn less than ridesharing.
Rideshare platforms work with a system of dynamic prices and earnings. This means that how much a rider pays and how much a driver makes depends on demand and offer.
The Uber fare rates increase when the ride's demand is higher than drivers around you.
Right now, demand for ridesharing is picking up faster than availability of drivers. The driver shortage results in higher prices and earnings, especially in some parts of the country and at certain times of the day.
*For Illustrative purposes only, actual earnings may differ and depend on expenses. Hourly pay is calculated using average Dasher payouts while on a delivery (from the time you accept an order until the time you drop it off) and includes compensation from peak pay, tips, and other incentives.
Important Reminder: Earnings when working as a DoorDash or Uber driver vary based on the number of deliveries/rides you make. The more hours you spend on this activity, the greater your chances of earning. In fact, every driver can freely decide how many hours to work and on which days of the week they wish to be active.
If you want to make more money by driving with DoorDash, you need to deliver during the peak hours.
As in any business, experience also matters a lot. If you want to earn more as a Dasher, our guide to make more is a good starting point. However, the more you drive the better you will understand how demand evolves in your area.
In other terms, frequent and experienced drivers can make average hourly earnings that are twice as much as occasional drivers because they know the right time of the day and the best areas to work. Of course, the best places are where the supply of drivers is low and customer demand is high.
One driver recently told me he earned just below $150 with Lyft for a 51 mile drive from a large airport at 1am in addition to an additional $46 tip (this was a 2 and a half hours drive including his way to the airport). These are of course not typical earnings but it shows how being in the right place at the right time can have a big impact on your earnings.
If you are an early bird or want to work at night, ridesharing will usually be the highest paying option.
Indeed, there will typically be less demand from customers at night or very early in the morning but definitely less competition. With less drivers and the surge pricing, you will typically get longer and higher paying rides.
Of course, when working at night make sure you avoid unsafe areas!
If your car qualifies for both jobs, it is definitely worth doing both. Indeed, demand for ridesharing and food delivery varies depending on the time of the day and the day of the week. As we saw during the COVID pandemic, there can also be big swings in demand because of external causes. All in all, doing both jobs will maximize your opportunities to work when you are available and to choose the most rewarding option according to the specific time you are working.
You can approach the DoorDash vs Uber question from all kinds of angles. Doordash definitely is one of our favorite side hustles. They didn’t become the market leader by chance. They typically are respectful towards drivers and can offer better incentives to drivers compared to other food delivery apps.
Uber has the broadest offer since they offer both ridesharing and food delivery through UberEats. One of the benefits is you will not go through multiple background checks and your earnings will be combined. However, they have grown into a large corporation, and, since their IPO, they seem to care more about general expenses than driver satisfaction.
On the other hand, I like Lyft’s culture since it has remained a challenger very much focused on customer and driver satisfaction. Additionally, in the current environment, their incentives to new drivers are amongst the best on the market.
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