Our Favorite Bike Delivery Jobs

Is it possible to be a delivery driver for Grubhub or DoorDash if your only means of transportation is a bike?

Yes! There are plenty of bike delivery jobs to be found online.

Though mainly limited to large metro areas, many delivery apps permit bicycle deliveries by e-bike, scooter, moped, and other two-wheel vehicles. It’s a great way to earn part-time income (or even full-time income).

Ready to learn where you can deliver food, meals, and products on a bike?

Here are six bike delivery job apps to check out, plus what each job entails and how much money you can earn.

1. DoorDash

From NYC to LA, DoorDash allows bike riders to make deliveries in metro cities across the country. In some locations, they even let their couriers deliver on foot.

The official job title for a delivery driver at DoorDash is “dasher.” As a dasher, you must log onto the app, see what orders are available nearby, and select the order you want.

Most DoorDash orders are for local restaurants, though convenience stores, pharmacies, and select retail stores are also a part of the mix in certain cities.

As a dasher, you act as your boss. However, that doesn’t mean you should expect to make big boss bucks.

DoorDash says that dashers earn $25 per hour, but most say it’s more like anywhere between $15 and $25 per hour. How much you make depends on where and when you work, the time length and distance of each order, and your tips.

There is a guaranteed base pay for every order that you deliver. This fee can range from as little as $2 to about $10. Drivers earn that base pay plus 100% of customer tips.

You can increase your average hourly earnings by delivering during peak hours, usually from 10 am to 1 pm and 5 pm to 9 pm (lunchtime and dinnertime).

Bike deliveries are not available in all locations, so you’ll need to sign up as a dasher in your city to see if bike deliveries are an option in your town.

Related: How to Find DoorDash Pay Stubs (+ Other Tax-time Questions Answered)

2. Caviar

DoorDash acquired Caviar in 2019 but still operates independently as its service (at least for now).

So, if you sign up as a food delivery driver with Caviar, you technically become a dasher. But you might pick up and deliver orders from more upscale restaurants than the local pizza joints and fast-food restaurants that fill the DoorDash site.

Caviar delivers food from all sorts of local restaurants. What makes it unique is that, in some cities, more upscale restaurants partner only with this service.

The more upscale the restaurant, the more expensive the order will likely be. The more the customer pays for the order, the more they tip. So snagging a high-priced order request through Caviar could pay off with a sizable tip!

Sign up to deliver with Caviar, and you’ll be eligible to pay for both Caviar and DoorDash simultaneously.

3. Uber Eats

Want to drive for Uber but don’t have a vehicle that meets Uber’s car requirements?

Like DoorDash, you can be a delivery rider for Uber Eats in several major metro areas, including:

• San Francisco
• Washington D.C.
• New York City
• Los Angeles
• Philadelphia
• Houston
• Seattle
• Dallas

Cities that permit bike deliveries are subject to change, so you’ll have to sign up to deliver with Uber Eats to know if bike deliveries are an option in your town.

Like being a Rideshare driver with Uber, you must sign up and pass a background check to deliver for Uber Eats. But since you’re not driving a vehicle, there’s no need to hold a valid driver’s license, insurance, or registration.

As long as you’re at least 18, all you need to sign up is a government-issued ID and a social security number.

Like other delivery apps, Uber Eats notifies drivers when a new order arrives. You’ll see the base pay for that order (based on time, distance, and mileage) and where the order is going.

The orders you select are entirely up to you, so you only have to bike as far as you want to, when you want to. How much you make is variable, as it depends on the orders you accept, how far they are, and how much the customer tips.

So, you can make more money on Uber Eats by delivering at busy times.

The highest demand for food delivery is at lunchtime, from 11 am to 2 pm. Then dinnertime from around 5 pm to 9:30 pm, with weekends, usually being the busiest days of the week.

4. Instacart

As a delivery biker, picking up and dropping meals is pretty straightforward. But what about dropping off groceries?

That can be a bit trickier.

Instacart is primarily a grocery delivery service, offering shopping and delivery services for some retail stores (including Target).

Instacart differs because instead of biking to a restaurant and picking up a meal, you can shop the store for the customer’s order. Then, your bag, carry and deliver it all in one shot. Instacart calls these team members “full-service shoppers.”

As an Instacart delivery driver and shopper, you can select the orders you want to fulfill and deny the ones you don’t. For example, some people place small orders for household staples such as bread, milk, and eggs. This type of work makes for a possible bike delivery that you could easily accept.

But if someone orders two cases of soda and a week’s worth of groceries?

That’s far more than anyone would expect you to handle on two wheels.

If a bicycle is your only means of transportation and bike deliveries aren’t available in your area, consider signing up as an Instacart in-store shopper instead of a delivery driver.

In-store shoppers fulfill and pack the orders — they don’t deliver them. They earn an average of $13 per hour, with some making as much as $24 per hour just for pulling and packing groceries.

Suggested reading: Freelance Payment Methods: A Breakdown for Freelancers, Contractors, and the Self-Employed

5. GrubHub

The best part about being in the food service biz is the opportunity to have a flexible schedule. GrubHub allows you to work when and where you want, like other delivery apps.

GrubHub operates in much the same way as other delivery apps. When a customer orders, you accept the order request, go to the restaurant to pick up the meal, and drop it off. Easy peasy and possible to do if your mode of transportation is a bike.

GrubHub only permits bike couriers to operate in a few major cities, such as NYC and San Francisco (one downside of working for them). But if your bike happens to be a motorcycle, you can deliver in any town where GrubHub operates.

GrubHub drivers get paid based on the mileage for the order, the time spent driving to pick up the order and drop it off to the customer, plus customer tips. Like all delivery apps, earnings are not guaranteed; how much you make depends on when, where, and how often you work.

Drivers earn an average of $12 to $15 per hour. But as with all delivery gigs, you can maximize your GrubHub income by working at peak times and providing excellent customer service.

6. GoPuff

GoPuff isn’t your typical meal delivery service. Instead, GoPuff sells snacks and candy, beverages, beer, cleaning products, OTC medications, and all sorts of household products, all of which they stock at a micro fulfillment center.

What does that mean?

You’ll never have to drive to a restaurant or shop at a retail store to pick up or pack orders; instead, you’ll pick up everything you need at a local fulfillment center and drop it off to the customer making no annoying or time-consuming stops in between.

GoPuff delivery drivers earn a commission on each order, plus any customer tips.

Sign up as a GoPuff delivery partner to learn if bike deliveries are available in your town.

Increase Your Earnings by Delivery for Two Bike Delivery Jobs at the Same Time

One of the biggest perks of being an independent contractor is flexible hours. You get to work when you want, rest when you want, and schedule work shifts around your life rather than scheduling your life around your work.

Another perk is the opportunity to maximize how much you earn per hour. Sometimes, you can increase your earnings by delivering two apps simultaneously.

Depending on the app, your location, and the time of day, there may be times when there are no deliveries to make. By logging into two apps simultaneously, you can bounce back and forth between the two so that when one doesn’t have any delivery requests, you can snag a delivery order on the other app.

Using multiple apps is a great way to make money and keep you busier throughout your shift.

How to Deliver Two Bike Delivery Jobs at Once

Before you juggle two apps at a time, know the rules for each app and how pausing requests or logging off may affect your ability to log back on or receive another bid. Every app works differently, so it’s essential to understand the details.

Why?

Because you’ll need to pause requests or log off of app A when you accept an order on app B. Delivery drivers get rated by the customer, and trying to deliver two orders for two different services simultaneously can set you up for failure. It can cause negative ratings, limit future earning potential, or even get kicked off the app.

Without previous delivery experience, working with two apps at a time can be tricky. Therefore, it’s best to have some experience delivering one service before attempting to juggle two at a time.

Tips for Finding Bike Delivery Jobs

Don’t waste your time searching for job postings or setting up job alerts on online job boards when looking for a freelance gig as a delivery driver. Instead, apply directly to the company’s website or app.

Once they approve you as a delivery driver, all you have to do is log onto the app when you’re in the mood to deliver and see what delivery requests are available in your area.

Some apps onboard new drivers consistently, while others only bring new drivers in when there is a short supply of couriers in a particular area.

To maximize your chances of getting the proper gig and making the most money possible, apply to multiple apps simultaneously. The more apps you work for, the more money you can make and the more flexibility you can have.

You may also like: How to Start a Freelance Business. Whether You’re Just Starting Out or Just Getting Serious.

Conclusion – Bike Delivery Jobs

If your only means of transportation is a bike, you can’t deliver packages for Amazon Flex. Likewise, you can’t be a rideshare driver unless you rent a car meeting the service’s requirements. But you can deliver meals from various delivery apps if you live in a city that allows its couriers to deliver on two wheels.

So if you’re ready to make extra cash on your bike, get online now and submit your applications for delivery services available in your town. The sooner you sign up, the better.

Delivery drivers are in constant demand, but the more independent contractors sign up to work, the more likely an app could brake on bringing in new delivery partners.

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