DoorDash hotspots are another one of those DoorDash topics that people have differing opinions about. Some Dashers swear they matter a lot and base their Dashing decisions around where the hotspots are on the map. Others don’t care about them at all and go wherever they feel like.Â
I’m firmly in the latter camp – I never even look at the DoorDash hotspots. Fortunately, I live in a city, so I’m able to get orders wherever I happen to be. There are certain neighborhoods that I know are better than others. But whether they are hotspots or not doesn’t matter to me.Â
In this post, I’ll go over what DoorDash hotspots are, whether you need to go to them, and why I don’t chase after DoorDash hotspots when I’m dashing.
What Are DoorDash Hotspots?Â
DoorDash hotspots is the name that DoorDash uses for busy areas in a city. When you log into the DoorDash app, you’ll see flames in certain areas. These flames indicate areas of the city where customers are placing a lot of orders.Â
In the above screenshot, you can see there are several hotspots throughout my city. In theory, if I’m looking for DoorDash orders, most of them will come from restaurants in those areas.
It’s important to note that these flames don’t represent where the order is going (i.e. where the customers live). It’s just telling you areas that have restaurants that people are ordering from. When you’re in a hotspot, you may get order requests that take you outside of the hotspot area.
How Do DoorDash Hotspots WorkÂ
DoorDash has two types of hotspots – dynamic hotspots and historical hotspots.
Dynamic hotspots show areas that are currently busy. When you see a dynamic hotspot, you’ll also see red circles around that area. This shows you areas where customers have placed DoorDash orders. You’ll typically see dynamic hotspots during peak hours (i.e. lunch and dinner hours).
Historical hotspots, by contrast, show areas that are historically busy. A historical hotspot is represented by a flame but without the red circles around the area where the flame is located. You’ll mainly see historical hotspots only during times when it’s not busy. The idea is that during slow times, you’ll want to go to areas where customers have typically placed orders. That way, when orders do start heating up, you’ll get more orders if you’re in those historically busy areas.Â
Hotspots update every 10 minutes, so you may see slight changes in where hotspots are located based on the ordering patterns in your city. I personally never notice the changes, but maybe I would if I were paying more attention to them.
Do You Have To Go To DoorDash Hotspots?Â
You don’t have to go to a hotspot to receive orders, but doing so generally increases your chances of getting more delivery requests.Â
On the DoorDash website, they specifically state the following:Â
“We built Hotspots to help Dashers find deliveries quickly while on the road. A Hotspot is an area within your Dashing starting point that indicates the busiest areas for orders. You will generally see Hotspots near areas with many restaurants. To increase your chances to receive more orders, simply position yourself closer to a Hotspot. Hotspots are meant to guide you to busy areas and they are consistently refreshed throughout the day, but they do not guarantee orders.”Â
In short, while you don’t need to go to a hotspot to receive orders, doing so can improve your chances of getting orders.
Why I Don’t Chase HotspotsÂ
There’s some debate about the importance of hotspots. I think that they aren’t a big deal. What’s more important is Dashing at the right times. If you’re Dashing during peak hours, it really won’t matter where you are – you’ll get delivery requests. Conversely, if you dash during off-hours, things will be slow, no matter where you are. Chasing hotspots won’t make a difference.Â
Besides Dashing at the right times, you also need to have a good understanding of where you should be working in your city. Certain places will always be busier than others. You need to understand where restaurants are located in your city and the ordering patterns in your city. You also want to know where people live in your city. Areas that have restaurants and housing nearby are great since you can pick up a lot of orders and avoid traveling long distances.
I’ve been Dashing for a long time, so I know exactly where people order from in my city. In Minneapolis, where I live, I know that the best places to do deliveries are in Downtown Minneapolis during the day, around the University of Minnesota campus, and in Uptown Minneapolis. I’m fortunate to live and work in all of those areas, so I don’t have to go out of my way to be in a busy area.Â
With practice, you’ll learn which areas are busy. Go to those areas when you want to get orders. Most likely, they’ll coincide with hotspots anyway.
Final ThoughtsÂ
DoorDash hotspots show you the areas that are currently busy or tend to be busy. If you need a general idea of where to go, the hotspots can provide a good road map.Â
However, I don’t recommend basing all of your decisions on the hotspots. Instead, get out there and start doing deliveries. You’ll begin to get a feel of which areas work best for you and which areas you want to avoid. More important than hotspots is working efficiently and Dashing at the right times.Â
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:
- GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
- Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($100) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Moomoo (15 free stocks, $100 cash reward, 1 stock of Tesla or Google) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 3 different referral bonuses if you open an account using a referral link. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (24 free stock shares) – Webull's current promotion gives you 24 free shares valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free shares using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- GO2Bank ($100) - GO2Bank is an easy bank bonus that I recommend people take advantage of if they have an easy way of meeting the direct deposit requirement. I like that it’s easy to open the account and that the bonus pays out quickly. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your GO2Bank $100 referral bonus.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- US Bank Business ($750) – This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, since there are no direct deposit requirements. In addition, you can open the Silver Business Checking account, which comes with no monthly fees. Check out how to earn this big bonus here.
- SoFi Money ($275) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $250 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Fifth Third Bank ($225) – This offer is limited to customers in the following states: Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, and South Carolina. If you don’t live in one of those states, you won’t be able to open an account online but you can still open an account in-branch if you happen to be visiting a city that has a branch. This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, especially since there are plenty of data points showing what will trigger the direct deposit requirement. In addition, you can open the Fifth Third Momentum Checking bank account, which comes with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Read my guide on this bonus here.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- Netspend ($40 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $40 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $40 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- Digital Federal Credit Union ($20) – Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a saving account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000. Check out my in-depth post on how to set this account up.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Varo ($35) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $35 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $250 if you complete a direct deposit.
- US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $750 signup bonus after opening a new account and meeting certain requirements.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $100 for opening an account.
- DCU. Digital Federal Credit Union (DCU) is a free, nationwide credit union that I recommend to readers for two reasons. First, DCU has a $20 referral bonus if you open a free DCU checking account with a referral link. Second, DCU has a savings account that gives you 6.17% interest on your first $1,000.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
Thanks Kevin. I always enjoy your blogs. I plan to join Door Dash as a driver. Would it be possible to send me your referral link (to join as a driver). thanks.
Thanks for the kind words. Sure, here’s my link for DoorDash.