How Much to Tip for Food Delivery (Uber Eats, Postmates, and More)

With on-demand apps, you can place your food delivery order and make your payment (including the tip) directly through your smartphone. But how much to tip?

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Getting food delivered is easier than ever with food delivery services that now offer no-contact delivery. In fact, people are ordering more food deliveries in 2024, mainly because they don’t even need to dial a restaurant’s phone number to order food.

With all the incredible and on-demand food delivery apps available today you can get food straight to your door in minutes.

It all happens with on-demand apps where you can place your order and make your payment (including the tip) directly through your smartphone. Keep in mind that none of the delivery apps compensate drivers enough to where it’s even remotely worth it without tips.

Which unfortunately makes tipping from customers inconsistent –so we wanted to discuss tipping etiquette for these on-demand services. 

Our Instacart tipping article received a bunch of feedback — so next we are covering Postmates tipping, Uber Eats tipping, Grubhub tipping, and other popular delivery services.

How Much to Tip Delivery Drivers?

How much do you tip food delivery drivers on Postmates, Doordash, Uber Eats, and Seamless? Do you think tips are required?

Need a tipping guide to figure out how much to tip delivery drivers? Here are the most common food delivery apps and tipping etiquettes. 

“If everything goes smoothly with your delivery and the weather is good, 20% is the standard cost of having the mealtime brought to your doorstep. Never tip less than five bucks, though,” said the Grubhub staff.

Tipping on different apps can very — click to learn about tips for your favorite on-demand app:

Here are the company’s policies on tipping and what we think.

How does to tip on Postmates?

How does tipping work with Postmates? According to Postmates’ website, they do not have an official stance on tipping etiquette. They do state the Postmates’ system is completely cashless. If you would like to tip your Postmate driver, feel free to do so once the order has been completed using the digital tipping feature in the app or on the website. Contrary to popular belief, tips are not automatically included in the fare for your Postmates driver. Therefore, it is common courtesy to leave your Postmates driver a tip of 10% to 20% of your total bill, depending on how well they did. So how much should you tip on Postmates? The app suggests a 20% tip for each order, though you have complete control over what you end up tipping your delivery driver.

How much to tip on Uber Eats?

According to Uber Eat’s website, tipping is not required on Uber Eats, but you can tip if you want to in the app with your credit card. You can do so while rating your delivery partner. Should you decide you’d like to offer a cash tip, your delivery partner is welcome to accept or decline. Contrary to popular belief, tips are not automatically included in the fare for your Uber Eats driver. Therefore, it is common courtesy to leave your Uber Eats driver a tip of 10 to 20 percent of your pre-tax bill, depending on how well they did. 

How much to tip on Grubhub?

According to Grubhub’s website, if everything goes smoothly with your delivery and the weather is good, 20% is the standard cost of having the mealtime brought to your doorstep. Never tip less than five bucks, though. We can’t explain it any better than Grubhub themselves, 20 percent is the standard if all went well.

How much to tip on DoorDash?

According to DoorDash website, DoorDash delivery drivers get paid consistent earnings whether they get a tip or not. The company gives its drivers a guaranteed minimum, even if you choose not to tip. Even though the driver will be compensated if you tip or tip a smaller amount, in the US, the general rule for food delivery services is to tip 15 to 20 percent of the pre-tax bill.

How much to tip on Delivery.com?

According to Delivery.com’s website, Gratuity (also referred to as a tip) is always optional. As a courtesy, the Site and/or the Delivery.com apps may display an option to add a tip to the sub-total of an eligible order at checkout. However, certain orders may not be eligible for such option (for example when a third party delivery services provider is being used for the delivery of such orders). It is common courtesy to leave your Delivery.com driver a tip of 10 to 20 percent of your total bill, depending on how well they did. 

How much to tip on Seamless?

Both sites, Seamless and GrubHub (they’re the same company) make it really easy to figure out the percentage based on the order total, and offer the choice to either tip in cash or credit. Therefore, according to Grubhub’s website, if everything goes smoothly with your delivery and the weather is good, 20% is the standard cost of having the mealtime brought to your doorstep. Never tip less than five bucks, though. We can’t explain it any better than Grubhub themselves, 20 percent is the standard if all went well.

Postmates Tipping

Postmates offers on-demand delivery of everything you need, whenever you need it. The website claims they offer food delivery, grocery delivery, alcohol delivery, and more—they bring the best of your city to you, in minutes. They get the good stuff delivered to your door, in minutes. It’s as simple as placing your food order online or through their food delivery app and leave the rest to Postmates.

Tipping on Postmates

So how does tipping work on Postmates? How does tipping work with Postmates? According to Postmates’ website, they do not have an official stance on tipping etiquette. They do state the Postmates’ system is completely cashless. If you would like to tip your Postmate driver, feel free to do so once the order has been completed using the digital tipping feature in the app or on the website.

How much to tip on Postmates? Contrary to popular belief, tips are not automatically included in the fare for your Postmates driver. Therefore, it is common courtesy to leave your Postmates driver a tip of 10% to 20% of your total bill, depending on how well they did. So how much should you tip on Postmates? The app suggests a 20% tip for each order, though you have complete control over what you end up tipping your delivery driver.

Food delivery from your favorite restaurants, 24/7, 365 days a year. Postmates gets you what you want, when you want it. Just Postmate it.
  • Fee: The Postmates delivery fee is $0.99–$3.99 for Partner Merchants and $5.99–$9.99 for all other merchants. 
  • Availability: Postmates is currently available in all 50 states (and Washington, D.C.)!
  • Promo: Get $5 off your next 5 Postmates orders through this link or use UQH4P during sign-up.

Download Postmates: iPhone | Android |  More »

Uber Eats Tipping

Uber Eats is an American online food ordering and delivery platform launched by Uber in 2014 and based in San Francisco, California. Uber Eats partners with restaurants in dozens of cities around the world. Ordering can be done on their website or with a smartphone/tablet application (only iOS and Android). The website claims a delivery time of 30 minutes or less. Use your Uber account to order food you crave from restaurants you love, delivered right to your door.

Tipping on Uber Eats

Official Tipping Policy for Uber Eats: According to Uber Eat’s website, tipping is not required on Uber Eats, but you can tip if you want to in the app with your credit card. You can do so while rating your delivery partner. Should you decide you’d like to offer a cash tip, your delivery partner is welcome to accept or decline.

Tips for Tipping: Contrary to popular belief, tips are not automatically included in the fare for your Uber Eats driver. Therefore, it is common courtesy to leave your Uber Eats driver a tip of 10 to 20 percent of your pre-tax bill, depending on how well they did. 

  • Fee: UberEats charges a $5 delivery fee.
  • Availability: Uber Eats is available in hundreds of cities around the world.
uber eats delivery
Get food delivered fast with Uber Eats

Download Uber Eats: iPhone | Android |  More »

Grubhub Tipping

Grubhub is an online and mobile food-ordering company that connects diners with local restaurants. Based in Chicago, the company has more than 14 million active diners and approximately 80,000 restaurant partners in over 1,600 cities across the United States and the United Kingdom, food delivery or takeout is just a click away.

You can filter restaurants by hours open, average customer reviews, best coupon deals and much more. You can save your food delivering order details to your favorites for future orders too.

Tipping on Grubhub

Official Tipping Policy for Grubhub: According to Grubhub’s website, if everything goes smoothly with your delivery and the weather is good, 20% is the standard cost of having the mealtime brought to your doorstep. Never tip less than five bucks, though.

How Much to Tip for Grubhub? We can’t explain it any better than Grubhub themselves, 20 percent is the standard if all went well.

how much to tip
Grubhub can get food delivered right to your door
  • Fee: Grubhub is free to use, though some restaurants near you may charge a delivery fee (typically $1.99 – $3.99) and have a minimum order amount.
  • Availability: Grubhub is available in more than 900 cities.
  • Promo: Get $12 off your entire first-time Grubhub order of $15+ when you sign-up through this promotional offer and make your first order.

Download GrubHub: iPhone | Android |  More »

DoorDash Tipping

Did you know that the best local restaurants now deliver? Get breakfast, lunch, dinner and more delivered from your favorite restaurants right to your doorstep with one easy click with DoorDash. All types of foods are available too, if you wanted Chinese food delivery near me, then you’re in luck. Burger and fries? Yep, that too.

DoorDash launched in San Francisco and has since expanded to 56 markets and more than 600 cities across North America and will deliver your food from hundreds of great local restaurants in your area in 45 minutes or less.

Tipping on DoorDash

Official Tipping Policy: According to DoorDash website, DoorDash delivery drivers get paid consistent earnings whether they get a tip or not. The company gives its drivers a guaranteed minimum, even if you choose not to tip.

How Much to Tip for DoorDash? Even though the driver will be compensated if you tip or tip a smaller amount, in the US, the general rule for food delivery services is to tip 15 to 20 percent of the pre-tax bill.

Get your favorite restaurants, delivered with DoorDash
  • Fee: Fees vary for each restaurant on the DoorDash platform.
  • Availability: DoorDash is currently available in over 850 cities across North America and is growing fast!
  • Promo: Get $7 off your first DoorDash order over $10 when you sign-up on this page (new customers only).

Download DoorDash: iPhone | Android |  More »

Delivery.com Tipping

Similar to Postmates, Delivery.com is another popular food delivery app that offers others additional services such as alcohol, groceries, dry cleaning and laundry delivered as well.

It’s simple to use, just enter your address to check what is around you, and use the sorting feature to filter by food choice, average reviews, or the shortest delivery time.

Tipping on Delivery.com

Official Tipping Policy for Delivery.com: According to Delivery.com’s website, Gratuity (also referred to as a tip) is always optional. As a courtesy, the Site and/or the Delivery.com apps may display an option to add a tip to the sub-total of an eligible order at checkout. However, certain orders may not be eligible for such option (for example when a third party delivery services provider is being used for the delivery of such orders).

How Much to Tip for Delivery.com? It is common courtesy to leave your Delivery.com driver a tip of 10 to 20 percent of your total bill, depending on how well they did. 

how much to tip
With Delivery.com you can get delivery and takeout from your favorite restaurants
  • Fee: The Postmates delivery fee is $0.99–$3.99 for Partner Merchants and $5.99–$9.99 for all other merchants.
  • Availability: Postmates is currently available in all 50 states (and Washington, D.C.).
  • Promo: Get your $7 in free Delivery.com credit through this link.

Download Delivery.com: iPhone | Android |  More »

Seamless Tipping

seamless

With Seamless, you guessed it — you can order food delivery online from restaurants near you. Browse local menus to find the food you’re craving for delivery or pickup. Read reviews to see what’s popular in your neighborhood. Anywhere, anytime, order delivery to your door from places you love.

Tipping on Seamless

Official Tipping Policy for Seamless: Both sites, Seamless and GrubHub (they’re the same company) make it really easy to figure out the percentage based on the order total, and offer the choice to either tip in cash or credit. Therefore, according to Grubhub’s website, if everything goes smoothly with your delivery and the weather is good, 20% is the standard cost of having the mealtime brought to your doorstep. Never tip less than five bucks, though.

How Much to Tip for Seamless? We can’t explain it any better than Grubhub themselves, 20 percent is the standard if all went well.

how much to tip seamless
Order delivery or pickup with Seamless
  • Fee: There is absolutely no fee for using Seamless, but you may encounter order minimums based on the restaurant.
  • Availability: Seamless is available in more 600 cities in the United States.
  • Promo: N/A

Download Seamless: iPhone | Android |  More »

How Much to Tip for Pizza Delivery?

So how much should you tip for pizza delivery? According to Balance, for pizza delivery orders of $20 or less, it is customary to offer a minimum tip of $3. For any amount over $20, tip 10 to 15% but never less than $5. Before opting for that $3 tip on small orders, consider whether you would make the same trip for a mere three bucks.

Tipping Guide for Common Services

According to a tipping guide from BankRate, here are some common recommendations:

  • Restaurant server: 15 to 18 percent, 20 percent for good service, 10 percent for poor service
  • Bartender: $1 per drink or 15 percent of the tab, whichever is greater
  • Valet: $2 to return your car
  • Restroom attendant: 50 cents to $1
  • Taxi driver: 15 percent
  • Barber or hairdresser: 15 – 20 percent
  • Hotel doorman: $1-2 per bag, $2 minimum
  • Hotel concierge: $5 for getting reservations, no tip for directions
  • Hotel housekeeper: $2-5 per night

What Are the Best Food Delivery Near Me Apps?

Most food delivery apps are similar, a courier delivers food to others in their car or bike and gets paid. You will pay a delivery fee and also are prompted to tip them within the app, but overall each service provides a similar experience.

In summary, the best food delivery apps in 2024 are:

  • Uber Eats
  • GrubHub
  • DoorDash
  • PostMates
  • Delivery.com
  • Seamless
  • Eat24
  • OrderUp

The largest food delbivery apps by market share, according to Morgan Stanley are:

digital delivery order market share
Source: Morgan Stanley Research

If you wanted to order food right now, what are you waiting for? You can literally get local eats from all across your city in minutes.

Want to Order Food with Food Delivery Apps?

Whether you are feeding yourself or your entire family, all of these companies offer online ordering, great on-time ratings and reviews, and insanely helpful 5-star customer service make it easy to find and order catering anywhere in the U.S.

If you wanted to order food right now with the food delivery apps near me, check out our top 5 picks.

Details
best food delivery apps Uber Eats partners with restaurants in dozens of cities around the world. Ordering can be done on their website or with a smartphone/tablet application (only iOS and Android).

ORDER NOW

Uber Eats Promo: Get $15 off your entire first-time Uber Eats order when applying the code eats-ubersignupfree
Grubhub is an online and mobile food-ordering company that connects diners with local restaurants.

ORDER NOW

Grubhub Promo: Get $12 off your entire first-time Grubhub order of $15+
Get breakfast, lunch, dinner and more delivered from your favorite restaurants right to your doorstep with one easy click with DoorDash.

ORDER NOW

DoorDash Promo: Get $7 off your first DoorDash order over $10 when you sign-up on this page (new customers only). 
how much do i tip Postmates offers on-demand delivery of everything you need, whenever you need it. The website claims they offer food delivery, grocery delivery, alcohol delivery, and more—they bring the best of your city to you, in minutes.

ORDER NOW
how much do i tip Delivery.com is another popular food delivery app that offers others additional services such as alcohol, groceries, dry cleaning and laundry delivered as well.

ORDER NOW

How much do you tip on-demand drivers like Postmates, Doordash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub? Do you think tips are required? Let us know below!

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Brian Meiggs
Brian Meiggs
Brian is the founder of Gigs Done Right and has tried every side hustle under the sun. His mission with Gigs Done Right is to share valuable information regarding the gig economy to everyone from beginners looking to start a side hustle, to veteran gig workers trying to expand their empire. He teaches people just like you how to make money in the gig economy and has been featured in Business Insider, Yahoo! Finance, NASDAQ, Discover, and more. He normally shares the latest news, videos, and topics for gig workers so they can earn more money in the gig economy.
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