DoorDash vs Postmates Review 2019

DoorDash vs Postmates Review 2019

Here is my DoorDash vs Postmates Review 2019, based off using both for admittedly only a week. What do I have to think? Read on.

DoorDash – Review

• Sign up: you can sign up to be a dasher here: https://drd.sh/VOuOdd/. Referral Link. Non-referral link: https://www.doordash.com/dasher/signup/.
• Application process: submit some information about you and there will likely be a background check.
  • Read their terms on that and what may or may not disqualify you.
  • For me, it did not take long at all for the background check to come back to me with a copy of it (maybe 12 hours).
• Vehicles: these range based off of your area – car, scooter, motorcycle, bike, or walking can be options. But note that bike and walking are not always options based off of your area.
  • So what does this mean? For one, you need appropriate insurance for your vehicle that you choose to use. This will be based off what your local area requires.
  • Also, you need to consider whether you are okay with the expenses that will come with using any of these modes of transport. Because there will be some – either monetary or timewise.
• Next Steps to Begin Dashing on Doordash:
  • Once you are accepted, you can start taking orders and dashing. However, you will be mailed a start up kit. What does this come with? A hot-bag (which is really great at keeping things hot) and a red card.
  • What is the DoorDash red card? It is a preloaded debit card that you use when you need to place or pay for a customer’s order.
  • Note that even though you are told you can start right away (before receiving the welcome kit), I personally was unable to start until I linked my red card to my DoorDash Dasher App. You can get this here: https://dasherhelp.doordash.com/download-app.
  • You may be able to start before receiving your welcome kit. But I would recommend having an insulated bag at least.
• What is the cost of the welcome kit? $0. YAY!

Doing a Dash

• You can either schedule a dash in advance or do “Dash Now”. Note that the latter option will not always be available in your area. This happens if there is not enough demand. You can tell by looking at the map in your Dasher app and seeing if there is any red/pink areas.
  • If they are grey, you likely cannot do a “Dash Now” and may need to schedule a time in advance if your area is typically grey.
  • You will see a “Dash Now” option in the Dasher app if it is available.
  • I have only used Dash Now so I cannot speak much about the scheduling.
• For Dash Now you choose an ending time which must be at least 30 minutes from your start time. Check that you have your phone charged, your red card, your delivery bags, and are ready to go.
• Then you can see hot spots. These are suggested locations based off where deliveries have recently been coming in. Good to pay attention to, but do not assume that is where you will get orders from.
• Orders come in via mobile notifications and texts. For my area, they can be very frequent.
  • If the customer is too far or you otherwise need to decline, then you have about 90 seconds to review and decline or accept.

Delivering a DoorDash Order

• After accepting, it gives you the store address. Go to the restaurant venue and swipe once you get there.
  • Note: it shows you a time for which you should arrive at the restaurant venue.
• Once you arrive at the restaurant venue, you then have another step – pick up the order.
  • Confirm that everything is there and check off each item.
  • Then swipe in the app to confirm you have picked it up.
• Next step is the app will show you to deliver to the customer.
  • You have options to pull up directions via Google Maps or your phone’s map.
  • Also, if you run into issues, you can contact DoorDash support or the customer via text or call.
• Deliver the order!
  • Then swipe in the app to tell DoorDash you have delivered it.
• You will see how much you earned at the end of the Dash.

Earnings

• How much do you earn on DoorDash? $1 plus customer tip OR the guaranteed amount, whichever is greater. So when you see an order request pop up, if it says guaranteed payout of $6, then you get $6 or you get $1+the customer’s tip IF that customer’s tip is more than $5. If it is less than that, you get the $6.
• You will see your earnings per dash slot you complete once it is over.
  • Note that this is not per delivery. So, if you are scheduled for an hour and complete one order in 20 minutes, you will not see your earnings until that hour is over.
• It is not easy, although certainly not impossible, to see which customers tipped you.
• Note though that it may not impact your earnings if the tip is less than the guaranteed amount from DoorDash that you see when you accept an order.

How Can You Make More on DoorDash?

• Make enough deliveries during your first month using a referral code to get a guaranteed amount which can be about a $100 bonus for 200 deliveries. Sign-up using mine here: https://drd.sh/VOuOdd/.
• Stack deliveries – aka pick up more at the same restaurant or along the route.
  • Try to still deliver excellent customer service though.
• Keep customers happy.
  • If the restaurant is out of an item, contact the customer. Check for items such as utensils, sauces, etc. Consider what you would want if you were ordering this food for yourself. Communication is also key.
• Dash during heavy times. DoorDash will sometimes send you notifications, or you can see these in your app. There are times that in some areas you can get an extra amount per delivery, so long as you meet the conditions (which may be 80% acceptance and at least 2 deliveries during that time slot).

Payout Method

• Get paid via direct deposit to your bank account weekly on Monday for the dashes completed the prior week through that Sunday.
• Option for faster pay once you complete 25 deliveries.

Other Resources

• https://dasherhelp.doordash.com/how-to-dash
• https://www.reddit.com/r/doordash/

Postmates – Fleet by Postmates Review

• Rundown: Apply to be a Postmate here – https://fleet.postmates.com/. My referral code for postmates fleet is FL-clauren. Complete 70 deliveries in the Washington DC area for a bonus. Guarantee of $1000 for completing 70 earnings in first 30 days in DC area.
  • Note that referral bonuses are location specific, and can change, so check on your area at the time you sign up for more.
• Welcome kit: similar to DoorDash, Postmates will send you a free insulated delivery bag and a card that can be used to pay for deliveries that were not paid for already on the app.
  • It took me less than a week to receive mine.
• Service Map: when you go onto the Fleet App, you can see pink and red zones. These signal more orders are likely. And so there is a greater chance you will get a ping to accept one.
• Delivering: Hit Go Online in your app. Then, orders pop up for you to accept in about a minute (similar to DoorDash). Unlike DoorDash, you do not really have an idea of the customer’s location until you pick up the food from the restaurant. When you pick it up and note in the app that you have, then it will give you the customer’s address and directions.
  • This is a bit frustrating because they may be far off. Also, you may end up at a further restaurant than one that could have been closer to your location and the customer.
  • Again, you want to communicate with the customer. Also, contact support with any issues. And first off, confirm with the restaurant and yourself that the order is correct. Grab any extras such as utensils, napkins, and sauces/condiments.
• Earnings: This differs from DoorDash a bit. You get an amount for picking up the order; a small amount per minute you have to wait for the order to be ready; another amount for delivering the order; and one for the travel distance. All of these depend on your location. But, when you accept an order, it will show you at least a guaranteed amount. If these get exceeded, then you will get more.
• Tips: you do get tips directly in addition to the guaranteed amount you see when accepting a delivery. This is a huge difference in DoorDash vs Postmates.
  • Also, another DoorDash vs Postmates comparison with tips: In DoorDash, customers tip at the beginning when they place their order. They can possibly provide a cash tip, but that seems uncommon. So, you could deliver great service, but the tip amount is already decided. And if it is lower than the guaranteed minimum plus $1 delivery base that DoorDash promises, then you won’t really see it.
  • For Postmates, customers can tip after the delivery is complete. The app will prompt customers to rate their past delivery and give them an option to tip the Postmate when they next open it up. So, tips may come in later. They also may not ever come in. Do not take it personally.
    • [Honestly, I can see how easy it was to forget about this aspect as a consumer if I only used a specific delivery service on a one off occasion. But now feel a bit bad for forgetting. Good lesson to learn from trying these out. Some Postmates will be looking for those tips.]
• Payment Method: Get paid directly to your bank account weekly or opt to pay a small fee to get paid now for any earnings you accumulated so far (which show up at the end of you being signed in to deliver as a Postmate).
• Extras: What I think is great about Postmates is that they will offer a guaranteed amount if you complete a certain number of deliveries that week or weekend when they are busy. This can be awesome if you need money fast. Also, they offer some nice perks! Sign up and check out the website for more on those.
• Other resources:
  • https://fleet.postmates.com/. This is where you sign up, but it has some very helpful information that you can view beforehand.
  • https://www.reddit.com/r/postmates/

DoorDash vs Postmates Review 2019 – My Initial Thoughts

• Trying these out has first off given me a very different perspective on using delivery services from a consumer standpoint. It is a lot of work and I wish I had done this earlier to appreciate the efforts drivers go through.
• In my area, I can easily get a bunch of DoorDash order requests if I select Dash Now. They come in practically every minute during peak times. Postmates I get much less requests from. It can be the arrangements restaurants have with both platforms, so do not assume this will be the same for you.
• I like that Postmates does give you the tip on top of the guaranteed amount. I think this is a better reward for good service. However, with DoorDash you may get a higher guaranteed amount. Also you can see if you got more because of tips at the end of your dash. Whereas with Postmates, tips may come in way later because of when the customer next uses the delivery platform.
• While the earnings model differs for these two, I personally think it is worth it to try them both and get a gist of the feel for the platforms.
  • Then, look at who you are earning more with and think about why. It will depend on your location for a lot of it, but many other factors outside of the earnings arrangement. So, you may as well try them out at least a few times and get an idea for what works for you.
  • Decide for yourself after trying which is better in earning money through DoorDash vs Postmates.
• Am I glad I tried them out? YES! Do I recommend both? Definitely. You get what you put in.
• Both are worth a try and are great side jobs, part-time jobs, or temp jobs. Possibly even full time jobs.
• You can really control your hours with both DoorDash and Postmates. Of course, there is no guarantee in how much you will make since it is based off of consumer demand in that area and those times. Take that all in with a grain of salt and give it a try.
• SIGNING UP IS SUPER FAST. You can get started with both of these delivery platforms within a week. I did. So can you!

Final Thoughts

Trying things out are the best way to find out if something is going to work for you. I had been considering trying both of these delivery platforms as a way to make extra money for a long time. Personally, I am glad I finally went ahead and just did so.

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Contact me if you have any questions or comments. OR if you have some experience that you think would be relevant for me to share! I would love to hear about any DoorDash vs Postmates experiences.

For more ideas on making money via temp jobs, side jobs, etc., see this post on 5 part-time job ideas. and my master list of ways to make money post.