What: Waitr, which operates primarily in the South, hires full-and part-time drivers to deliver food and check on their equipment in restaurants

Expected pay: $5 to $15 per hour

Husl $core: $$$

Where: Birmingham, Hoover, Mobile, Montgomery and Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Little Rock and Northwest Arkansas; Pensacola, Florida; Alexandria, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, Lake Charles, Monroe, New Orleans and Shreveport, Louisiana; Gulf Port, Mississippi; Beaumont, Houston, Longview, Tyler and Waco, Texas

Requirements:

  • Valid driver’s license
  • reliable car
  • clean driving record
  • pass background screening
  • valid insurance
  • smartphone.

Review:

Waitr, which operates primarily in the South, hires full-and part-time drivers to deliver food and check on their equipment in restaurants. The fact that Waitr’s drivers are employees differentiates the site from other driving apps, where workers are independent contractors. As an employee, you are entitled to earn at least minimum wage, plus overtime, and you can qualify for benefits, such as paid time off and medical insurance.

Still, the trouble with most driving jobs is that you use your own car — paying for gas, insurance and maintenance — and get few guarantees. In this case, Waitr apparently pays $5 per hour, plus tips. Once you subtract your costs, the pay is pretty paltry.

That said, by hiring drivers, Waitr does take on the cost of paying the employer’s half of Social Security and Medicare taxes, which saves workers 7.65% of their wages. And, the chance to get benefits can also be significant. The company says that its drivers often get promoted to other corporate positions that would pay more and require less out-of-pocket costs. 

You can find better paying driving and delivery jobs with Amazon Flex (deliver packages), Wingz (drive people to the airport) and Ride Zum (drive kids to soccer/school). 

What their drivers say: 

Be aware that, while the advertised rate of $14-15 per hour isn’t inaccurate, it is GROSS income, not NET income. It is critical to meticulously track mileage and fuel expenses in order to maximize tax returns and understand operating costs. The job will put an extraordinary amount of mileage on your personal vehicle (I averaged ~17 miles per hour worked, or ~2000 miles per month); it is strongly recommended that some portion of your earnings be set aside to defray the costs of replacing the vehicle eventually. 

You work 5hr shifts at 5.00 per hour plus tips. I have gone the entire shift with no deliveries. But would see on message board where drivers were allowed to drive from other areas because it was busy. I feel like the Dash workers in charge dispatch sent deliveries to favorites. Doesn’t appear to be fair at all.

“For the first few months, Waitr is paying $10/hour. After that, it goes down to $5/hour plus tips. It’s supposed to get busier but I can’t imagine it getting busy enough to take enough deliveries per shift to make enough in tips to pay my bills. It’s okay for now but it will be too unreliable to budget. In my experience, managers and dispatchers have been good. They have answered all my questions, though not necessarily as quickly as I would have liked. This might be a good side gig or a part-time deal for college students but I don’t see it as a profitable main job.”

Money is good as long as you make good tips! 

If you work full time, oh let me tell you about that money. lol. I make, on average, about $430 a WEEK!!! And I make my own schedule. So do NOT listen to what others have said about Waitr. Listen to someone who cares about their job. Listen to someone who loves his company and is proud to be a Waitr driver.”

Try Waitr