Do you tip Grubhub drivers?
Grubhub Tipping
Most people automatically tip their server at a restaurant, but many people often forget to tip their delivery drivers.
Delivery drivers (just like servers/waiters at restaurants), make it their mission to deliver your food on time. They hit the streets, battling traffic, avoiding pedestrians, and racing against the clock to delivery your food on time, while it’s still hot.
That’s why – for delivery drivers working for food delivery apps – it’s recommended that users show their appreciation by tipping. A driver’s pay is sometimes much lower than common food service jobs, so gratuity is essential when it comes to supplement salaries & earning a decent wage.
This article will go over the key protocols and essential knowledge for tipping your food delivery drivers. Specifically, we will go over tipping procedures and information for tipping food delivery drivers through the food delivery app Grubhub.
Tipping Grubhub Drivers
The average and appropriate tipping amount for Grubhub delivery is considered to be 20% (provided that your meal it brought to you in a timely manner, and the weather outside is good).
If there is inclement weather outside, even the most prompt delivery driver may have reasonable difficulty getting to you on time – so it’s generally seen as standard-practice to factor weather conditions into your evaluation of their performance.
Delivery performance + weather conditions are generally considered the two most important variables when it comes to calculating gratuity.
It’s also worth noting that – while 20% gratuity is the standard – it is still a general rule of thumb.
Grubhub also discusses this on their website, and recommends that users never tip less than five dollars.
Complex Grubhub Orders
While 20% is the average, take into account the level of difficulty your driver may have had to go through to get you your food. If you order thirty pizzas for your office Christmas party, or live at the top of a tenth floor apartment with a broken elevator, considerer adding additional money on top of the 20% for the extra effort your Grubhub delivery driver had to put in to get you your meal. Even if they are in a car, cramming the excess food in, and then carrying it to your doorstep, is a lot of work for only one person…and, as such, a tip should (ideally) reflect that extra effort.
How Weather affects Grubhub Tips
Speaking of extra effort, always, always remember the weather adds to the effort (as mentioned above). If you are ordering in because it’s raining buckets and you don’t want to get soaked, or the roads are so covered in ice you don’t want to risk the dangers of the road, remember that you are making the delivery driver do that in your place.
So – according to Grubhub – it is generally expected that )and greatly appreciated if) you tip an additional $3-5 on top of the usual 20% for a driver who is ‘braving the elements’.
Grubhub Tips go Directly to the Driver
When you tip on the Grubhub app, the money for the tip goes directly to the Grubhub delivery drivers (just like it should).
However, the delivery fee is not the same thing as the tip. For some orders, an additional “delivery fee” may be applied to your order total, but the ”delivery fee” is not a tip and the drivers do not receive any of this money. So, it is very important that you do not deduct the delivery fee from your tip amount (*unfortunately, this is still a common misconception when it comes to tipping & delivery services).
While you can tip on the Grubhub app, you can also tip the driver in cash. Usually those are the only two options – so do not expect a receipt that you can sign a tip on to.
Tip your driver
Remember, whether it’s cash or on your delivery app, always tip a minimum of 20% (and a little extra for good service – depending on how much effort it took for your food to arrive at your location).
Now that you know the tipping protocol, order up, tip your driver, and enjoy a great meal!
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