One of the things that I think this pandemic has taught us is just how important it is to have a lot of backup plans. When times are good, many people have this assumption that the good times will never come to an end, and as a result, they don’t prepare for any contingencies, instead, riding the one plan they have or relying on that one income source or assuming that nothing can go wrong with whatever it is they’re doing. I believe that the future is bright, but I always have my Plan Bs, Cs, and Ds too.
The area of my life where I have a lot of contingency plans in place is with my income. Over the years, I’ve continued to add different sources of income to my life, to the point where, in any given month, I have income coming in from 10 or more different sources. The benefit of this approach is that I’m generally not dependent on any single thing to make ends meet. And when one income source sees a decline, another income source might be able to cover the difference.
Nowhere is the benefit of this diversification more apparent than in the current demand between the different sharing economy and gig economy apps. Apps like Airbnb, Rover, and Wag – all of which rely on people traveling and being out of their homes – have seen a massive decrease in demand to the point where I wonder if some of these companies will even survive the pandemic. By contrast, food delivery and grocery delivery apps – think Postmates, DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub, Instacart, Shipt, and Amazon Flex – have seen an increase in demand as people are staying at home and relying on gig workers to get food and groceries to them.
Since the pandemic officially broke out in Mid-March, I’ve been spending about an hour or so each day doing deliveries using all of the different food delivery apps. Food deliveries have always been my favorite gig economy side hustle because of how well they fit into my life and the fact that doing deliveries allows me to get paid to exercise and/or be outside. And deliveries in the current environment, at least in my area, have been particularly lucrative to the point where I really couldn’t pass up the opportunity.
People still need to get food brought to them. And delivering food during a pandemic is very different compared to what it’s like delivering food in normal times. I thought I’d share what it’s been like out there so you can get a sense of what people like me are doing when you order food from your phone.
How I Gear Up And Do Deliveries During A Pandemic
My state shut down restaurants for dine-in back in mid-March, making it so that restaurants can only offer carry-out and delivery. With the Coronavirus pandemic keeping most people indoors, I’ve found that demand for delivery services has increased. During lunch or dinner hours, the orders basically come nonstop. This has remained true in my area, even as, I assume, more people are signing up for these gigs.
My delivery method has always differed from the vast majority of delivery people because I do all of my deliveries using a bike. This means I have zero fuel costs and minimal maintenance costs to worry about. I also live in a dense area, so I’m able to get a lot of deliveries done in a short amount of time.
In a pre-pandemic world, my delivery equipment consisted of just a few things:
- A bike, electric scooter, or e-bike.
- A delivery bag (I have a delivery backpack that I got for free from Uber Eats back in the day).
- My phone, wallet, keys, Airpods, and a bike lock.
Doing deliveries during a pandemic has required the addition of another piece of gear – a homemade cloth facemask. I put on this facemask before I leave my house and it doesn’t come off my face until I’m back home and have fully washed my hands with soap and water.
The actual delivery process has changed dramatically compared to how it used to be – in most cases, for the better. Because all of the restaurants are only able to offer carry-out right now, food is getting prepared much faster. I’ve rarely had to wait for the food when I arrive at the restaurant. In most cases, I don’t even have to interact with any staff, instead simply walking into the restaurant and picking up the food from a table (usually at the entrance).
Here’s a recent order I did as an example. The food was ready when I arrived and sitting on a table for me at the entrance. The staff was safely inside and away from me and I didn’t have to interact with anyone when I picked up the food.
The way restaurants are handling the pickup process differs, with some restaurants handling the pickup process better than others. One Chipotle near my house has added automatic hand sanitizer dispensers at the entrance. When I walk into this Chipotle, I quickly run my hands under the hand sanitizer dispensers, then pick up the food from a table. The restaurant is spaced out enough that I’m easily able to social distance from others.
While some restaurants are doing things really well, I think others are doing things – well, pretty stupidly. For example, there’s another Chipotle near my house that isn’t allowing people into the restaurant. Instead, you have to knock on the door, tell them who the order is for, and then they bring out the order to you. This wouldn’t be a problem in itself, but the problem is that this Chipotle is always busy, which means that a lot of the time, you arrive and find a group of people milling about outside. It defeats the purpose of social distancing when you’re cramming a bunch of customers and delivery people near a single door.
Once picked up, the last step is to drop off the order. This process has been pretty favorable these days. The apps have all added no-contact delivery, which means that instead of handing the food directly to the customer, I’m able to simply leave the food at the door and then tell the customer to come and grab it. This saves me a lot of time since I don’t have to wait for the customer and it has the obvious benefit of allowing me to avoid unnecessary contact.
Of course, I assume some risk by doing deliveries – doing these deliveries means I’m in public and touching things that others have touched too. However, I’m fairly comfortable with the steps I’ve taken on these food deliveries. Wearing a mask mainly helps me avoid touching my face. The drop-off process generally has no risk of coronavirus transmission for myself, since I don’t get near anyone (for people ordering food, move the food out of the container when you get it and wash your hands before you eat). The riskiest part for me is the pick-up process, where, depending on the restaurant, I have the highest chance of being in close proximity to someone and I have to touch door handles and other surfaces. Restaurants that have hand sanitizing dispensers are very helpful to reduce potential spread of the virus.
How Much Have I Been Making?
I’ve always felt that I make more than the average person when it comes to doing deliveries. There are a few reasons for this:
- I live in a dense area where I can do a lot of deliveries in a short period of time.
- I run multiple delivery apps at once, which allows me to complete even more deliveries.
- I’m more experienced and know which orders to accept and which to reject.
- I use a bike, so I have few to no overhead expenses.
In normal times, I typically make between $20 and $25 per hour. But during this pandemic, I’ve found that my delivery income has been hovering in the $30 or more range. Take my earnings for this past week, for example. I calculated my time working by looking at when I left my house and when I returned to my house via my Ring doorbell.
- April 12th: $30.19 per hour
- April 13th: Didn’t do any deliveries on this day
- April 14th: $51.25 per hour
- April 15th: $31.98 per hour
- April 16th: $35.42 per hour
Of course, I’m only spending about an hour or so doing deliveries since these aren’t my main job, but rather are a side hustle that I do because I think they’re fun. I doubt I could keep up that hourly rate if I worked all day long. It’s why the delivery game is much better suited as a side hustle, rather than as a full-fledged job.
All that said, $33 per day comes out to $1,000 per month of income. And right now, I can earn this amount in about an hour a day. I’m basically creating my own stimulus check by working an hour a day.
Note that the delivery game is very location-dependent, and I’m sure that it’s not this lucrative in many areas. I can say that I know my earnings aren’t completely crazy. My brother lives in a completely different city and recently sent me a screenshot of his earnings from doing deliveries on Uber Eats for a little over an hour. When you do the math, he made about $50 per hour. And he did all of those deliveries on an electric scooter.
My Thoughts About The Delivery Game
Taking Advantage of My Advantages. I need to absolutely address the fact that I am privileged enough where I made enough money that I was able to set up a big savings buffer – right now I easily have enough cash in the bank to last me a year or more. I don’t have to work long hours doing deliveries because of this buffer. Indeed, I’ve even opted not to do grocery deliveries because I don’t feel comfortable spending extended periods of time in a grocery store. A lot of people don’t have that luxury.
I’m also young and don’t have any underlying health conditions, which makes the risk analysis here a little different. I know that a lot of people aren’t as fortunate.
That said, I recognize these advantages. I can work during prime earning hours and while I do risk contracting Coronavirus by being out there, my underlying health risk is ultimately pretty low and I’m in a position where I can take steps to reduce the risk of contracting the virus.
Restaurants Are Hurting – And I’m Not Sure If These Apps Are Helping Them. It’s fairly well-publicized that these delivery apps price-gouge restaurants, especially independent restaurants that don’t have many other options. Restaurant margins are already low as it is, and my understanding is that many of these delivery apps charge commissions as high as 30%, which doesn’t leave much profit for the restaurant. I don’t know what the solution is though – people want food delivered to them and most restaurants are not in a position to set up their own delivery service.
There’s Money To Be Made Out There. If you’re in trouble right now because you didn’t create an emergency fund and you don’t know what to do next, you need to sign up for any delivery apps you can get on right now. I’ve always believed in the power of the Side Hustle Emergency Fund – it can stretch any cash you have even longer if you can just bring in a little bit of extra cash each month. The time to get signed up with these apps is when others aren’t signing up for them – it’s why I signed up for all of these apps during the boom times when the demand to work on these apps was lower. Right now, you could face a waiting list. But, if you’re in a position to work, there’s money to be made.
Appreciate Your Delivery People And All The Other “Low-Level” Workers Out There. This hopefully goes without saying, but be sure to show your appreciation to the people out there still working and keeping the world running. Try to get in their shoes and don’t be a jerk. I know I’ve always done this type of low-level work because I appreciated how it humbled me. When I was a big-shot lawyer, it was hard for me to get too high on myself when I was also out doing the low-level gigs that most people felt were beneath them. Right now, it’s these workers that are keeping the world running.
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More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes and scooters I've reviewed:
- Urban Arrow Ebike – Last year, I made one of the largest purchases I’ve ever made – I bought a $9,000 electric cargo bike from Urban Arrow. In my Urban Arrow review, I will discuss what it is and why I decided to buy this bike, as well as discuss how impactful a bike like this can be on your journey to financial independence.
- Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Ebike – The Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is a fat-tire ebike that I’ve had the pleasure of riding for a while now. It has amazing power, great looks, and awesome range. If you’re looking for a great fat-tire ebike that offers a lot for the price, the Troxus Explorer Step-Thru is definitely one for you to consider. Check out my Troxus Explorer Step-Thru Review.
- Hovsco HovBeta Ebike – The HovBeta is a folding ebike with great specs and a lot of interesting features, and importantly, it’s sold at a good price point. I’ve had a blast commuting with it and using it to do deliveries with DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. Check out my Hovsco HovBeta Ebike Review.
- Vanpowers Manidae Ebike – The Vanpowers Manidae is a fat tire ebike that I’ve been riding as my primary winter commuting bike and have also been using it to do food delivery with apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. After clocking in a decent number of miles with this ebike, I wanted to write a post sharing what my experience with the Vanpowers Manidae ebike has been like. Check out my Vanpowers Manidae Review.
- Sohamo S3 Step-Thru Folding EBike Review – A Great Value Folding Ebike – The Sohamo S3 Step-Thru Folding Ebike is an entry-level folding ebike that offers a lot of value for the price point. I’ve been riding the Sohamo S3 for a while now, putting the bike through its paces, and I have to say, this bike has exceeded all of my expectations. Check out my Sohamo Review.
- KBO Flip Ebike – The KBO Flip is an excellent bike. I’ve had a great time riding it and think it’s a versatile bike that can be used for a lot of purposes and can fit a variety of lifestyles. It’s worked out great for me as a general commuter bike and as a food delivery bike. Check out my KBO Flip Review.
- Hiboy P7 Commuter Ebike – The Hiboy P7 is an excellent electric commuter bike that’s offered at an affordable price point. The range and speed of this bike are both very good, so you won’t have any trouble getting anywhere you need to go with it. As a food delivery vehicle, this is also good – with how much range it offers, you’ll be able to work all day on a single charge. Check out my Hiboy P7 Commuter Electric Bike Review.
- Himiway Escape Ebike – 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 Ebike – 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.
- Varla Falcon Scooter – The Varla Falcon is an excellent scooter that offers a good amount of power at a lower price point compared to more powerful scooters. It’s not exactly an entry-level scooter, nor is it a high-powered scooter. I think it fits somewhere in-between those two categories – an intermediate scooter if I had to give it a category. Check out my Varla Falcon Review.
- Hiboy S2 Scooter – The Hiboy S2 is an excellent entry-level commuter scooter that's perfect for someone looking to save some money in transportation costs and improve their commute. Check out my Hiboy S2 Review.
- Hiboy S2R Scooter – The Hiboy S2R is one of the more interesting electric scooters I’ve been able to test out. It’s not a high-powered scooter, but for an everyday transport option, it’s very useful, especially given some of the unique features that it has. Indeed, for the price, the Hiboy S2R might be the best value scooter I’ve used. Check out my Hiboy S2R 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 just $10 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Webull (20 free stock shares) – Webull's current promotion gives you 20 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.
- Moomoo (15 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 2 different referral bonuses if you open an account using a referral link. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- 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.
- SoFi Money ($325) – 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 $300 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.
- Upgrade ($300) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $300 referral bonus if you open an account and complete a direct deposit. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $300 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($175) – 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.
- 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 ($800) – 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.
- Fifth Third Bank ($200) – 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.
- GO2Bank ($50) - 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 $50 referral bonus.
- 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.
- 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 ($25) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $25 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 $300 if you complete a direct deposit.
- 5% Savings Accounts. I'm currently getting 5.24% interest on my savings through a company called Raisin. Opening a Raisin account takes minutes to complete, it's free, and all of your funds are FDIC-insured. I explain how it works, why I'm now using it to store my emergency fund and any other cash savings I have, and why I recommend everyone check it out in this review.
- US Bank Business. US Bank is currently offering new business customers a $800 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.
- Empower. 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.
Panther,
I enjoyed reading about your food delivery experience. $30+ per hour is great money. I’m curious, is that mostly from tips? Or does the app company pay you more? What’s the breakdown?
-RBD
It’s about 50% from the app companies, 25% from tips, and 25% from bonuses. If people don’t tip, it really hurts the earnings. Luckily, in the current pandemic, people are tipping more now.
Thank you for sharing! Stay healthy and well!
Thanks! You as well!
this is inspiring – $33 a day makes $1,000 a month and that on an hour a day. I need to gear up as well.
When you break it down, 33 bucks per day of income is not hard. Most of us can do it and that maxes out two Roth IRAs by the end of the year.
My hubby lost all income as an audio engineer late feb. Because I’ve been reading your blog for about a year, I signed both f us up for Uber eats immediately knowing the 1k a month I bring in as a guitar instructor wouldn’t keep us afloat. We’ve been making 30 an hr just working the dfw market and it has been a godsend. Thank you!
That’s great! That’s the side hustle emergency fund in action right there!