DoorDash vs. Uber Eats: Which One is Best For Drivers?

DoorDash and Uber Eats are the two delivery gigs most people try first, and they’re closer than the internet makes them sound. Same basic deal: you take an order, pick it up, drop it off, and get paid base pay plus promos plus tips.

The differences are in the details nobody reads until week two. Who lets you drive at 18. What you see before you hit accept. And what it costs to get your money today instead of next week.

DoorDash vs Uber Eats at a glance

Which one pays more?

Honest answer: nobody can tell you, and anyone quoting a flat hourly number for either app is guessing. DoorDash doesn’t publish an average. Neither does Uber.

What you can compare is how each one shows you the money. On DoorDash, base pay runs $2 to $10+ per offer, and the number on the offer screen is the minimum you’re guaranteed. Peak Pay, Challenges, Delivery Streaks and Boosts stack on top when they’re running. And if you hate guessing, DoorDash has a time-based mode that pays a guaranteed minimum hourly rate for your active time (it doesn’t say how much on its pay page, so check the rate in the app before you switch).

Uber Eats pays a base fare plus promotions plus tips, and it shows you the fare, upfront tip included, before you accept. Uber Pro tiers add perks the more you deliver.

So the real question is which app sends you better offers where you live. You only find that out by running both for a week and screenshotting what you get.

Tips matter more than base pay on both apps, so it’s worth knowing how DoorDash tipping works from the customer side too. Caviar orders go to Dashers as well, and here’s how much to tip on Caviar.

Getting your money out (and what it costs)

This is where they really split.

DoorDash pays weekly by direct deposit for Monday to Sunday, usually landing by Wednesday night. Want it sooner? Fast Pay works once a day and costs $1.99, and it needs a linked debit card (not prepaid).

Uber Eats pays weekly by automatic transfer, or you can use Instant Pay up to 6 times a day at $1.25 per cash-out to a personal debit card.

Those small charges add up. Cash out with Fast Pay five days a week and that’s $9.95 a week, or about $517 a year. Five Uber Instant Pays a week is $6.25, about $325 a year. If you’re going to cash out daily, get the free card: the DoorDash Crimson debit card does instant deposits after every dash at no cost, and the Uber Pro Card gets free automatic payouts after every trip.

Who can sign up

DoorDash takes you at 18 in most states (19 in 13 states, 21 in California). You’ll need a valid driver’s license and insurance for a car, scooter or motorcycle, an ID if you bike, and a Social Security number for the background check.

Uber Eats splits it by how you deliver. Bike or on foot: 18+, a government ID and an SSN. Motorbike or scooter: 19+ with a valid license. Car: 19+ (21 in California and New York State), a 2-door or 4-door vehicle and a valid license. Everyone in the US passes a background screening, and some cities ask for proof of residency.

So if you’re 18 and want to drive a car, DoorDash is usually your only option of the two. If you don’t have a car at all, Uber Eats is the easier yes.

Is DoorDash or Uber Eats worth it?

DoorDash

Best for: drivers 18+ and anyone who wants an hourly mode

What it is

DoorDash’s delivery gig. You’re a Dasher, an independent contractor delivering restaurant, grocery, convenience and pet store orders.

What you do

Accept offers in the Dasher app, pick up, drop off. Car, scooter or motorcycle, or a bike in select cities.

How much it pays

Base pay of $2 to $10+ per offer, plus Peak Pay, Challenges, Delivery Streaks and Boosts, plus 100% of tips. Or switch to time mode for a guaranteed minimum hourly rate on active time. Paid weekly, or Fast Pay once a day for $1.99, or free instant deposits with the Crimson card.

The catch

Base pay can be as low as $2 an offer, and there’s no published average, so your market and your tips decide everything.

Worth it? Yes if you’re 18 and want to deliver by car, or you want the option to get paid by the hour instead of by the offer.

Try DoorDash

Uber Eats

Best for: bikes, walkers and same-day cash-outs

What it is

Delivering food, groceries and packages through the Uber Driver app.

What you do

Accept delivery requests and drop them off by car, motorbike or scooter, bike, or on foot, depending on your city.

How much it pays

Base fare plus promotions plus 100% of tips, and you see the fare (upfront tip included) before you accept. Weekly automatic transfer, or Instant Pay up to 6 times a day at $1.25 each, free with the Uber Pro Card.

The catch

You need to be 19 to deliver by car (21 in California and New York State), and what you make swings with demand in your city.

Worth it? Yes if you’re delivering on a bike or on foot, or you want to cash out more than once a day.

Try Uber Eats

Bottom line: who should pick which

Pick DoorDash if you’re 18 and have a car, you want to see a guaranteed minimum on every offer, or you’d rather be paid by the hour on slow nights.

Pick Uber Eats if you don’t have a car, you want to cash out several times a day, or you already drive for Uber and want everything in one app.

Run both if you drive a car in a city where both apps are busy. It costs nothing to sign up, and having two apps open means fewer dead minutes sitting in a parking lot. Want a third? Here are more apps like DoorDash, plus a deeper look at driving for Uber Eats.

Not into food at all? Package gigs work the same way, with fewer restaurant waits. See these jobs like Amazon Flex, or check what’s paying right now across every kind of side gig.

FAQ

More gigs you can run from your phone are in the app-based gigs hub, and if you’d rather earn from the couch between deliveries, these apps that pay you real money are worth a look.