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How Much do you Tip for Food Delivery?
Tipping at Restaurants: The Standards for Tipping Waiters or Waitresses
The number that keeps getting thrown out as a standard tipping percentage at restaurants is 15%. I usually stick to that, but go up to 20% if the waiter/waitress is likable and does a good job. I go down to 10% if I get below standard service. Most restaurants that add in the gratuity for large parties factor in 18% as a standard.
As a side note, if you’ve ever been out to eat with a former waitstaff, you’ll often see them go higher than 20%, because they empathize with how difficult the job is for the money.
But…. do the same rules apply to food delivery tipping?
Tipping for Food Delivery: Not as Clear Cut
While most people have heard the general guidelines for tipping waitstaff in restaurants, it’s not as clear cut for food delivery, most commonly – the pizza delivery guy. CNN suggests this for how much to tip on food delivery:
10% of the bill (excl. tax), at least $1 for bills up to $10. Should tip 15%-20% for a difficult delivery.
Tipthepizzaguy.com has a pizza delivery tip calculator, and offers the general guideline:
15% for normal service, with a $2 minimum; 20% for excellent service; 10% or less for poor service; at least 10% for orders of $50 or more.
My take on How Much to Tip the Delivery Guy/Gal:
There are so many factors that go into it. If you have a decent size order and the place is within a mile or two of your house, I can see 10% being enough – but I’d never go under that. And if it is more than a few miles and a small order, under $10 or so, I’d probably go up to 20% (but probably not more than that).
How Much Tip Discussion:
- What are the rules you follow when tipping food delivery people?
- How much do you tip restaurant waitstaff?
Related Posts:
My name is G.E. Miller and 
Well you have to take into account delivery fees. Some delivery folks rely on tipping, others get a flat fee per delivery. If I am charged $4 for delivery, i am not going to throw more than a buck at the delivery guy.
Other things to take into account, if the person is driving their own car or a company vehicle.
i also take into account weather conditions and joviality of the delivery person.
I am not too sure that the size of the order should be a big factor though. While it takes a waitress considerable more effort to attend to and serve a $75 meal vs a $20 meal, the delivery person just puts it all in the front seat and makes a single trip, no matter how large the order is.
I always tip waitstaff more.
@ Jess – agreed on the delivery charge that’s factored in already. If it is, I don’t even know that you should tip at all. In fact, I’d love to see some standard in the industry where they just worked delivery charge in and took the guesswork out of tipping.
I agree with Jess on this one, I don’t really take into account the size of the order because it’s pretty much the same work to deliver something that is $5 or $50.
I usually just give them $3 as a flat fee regardless of what the amount is. That being said, I’m usually ordering for 1-2 people so the bill isn’t really expensive to begin with (typically under $30). So, my tips usually end up being a little over 10%.
Also, I do believe you have to take into account any delivery charge that is added to your bill by the store. I usually just add $2 if there is a delivery fee added.
One thing that I’ve heard in the past, (sorry I don’t have any facts to prove this) is that the deliverer does not get the fee. Because of this, I’ve always tried to tip at least 10% of the meal on top of whatever the delivery fee is. It’d be great if someone could confirm or deny this, because if the deliverer does not get the fee, then I would hate to stiff them on tip because I didn’t know any better.
@ Ace – I don’t think there are any set rules on whether or not the deliverer gets the fee – which is what makes it a guessing game for everyone.
I always tip MORE when I get food delivered. An average server walks your food from the kitchen to your table. The delivery person drives it to your house! (or apartment). I guess I only get delivery once or twice a year, so I consider it a Lazy Tax on myself that I am unwilling to go get food myself. I try to tip between 20% – 30%.
Being in Australia, I don’t tip at all.
I already paid for delivery so why would I pay for them completing their job.
They usually get a flat rate per hour for sitting around + $$ for every delivery they make.
I have seen some rates of $12 per hour + $2 for each delivery made.
I know of some people that used to take their University assignments with them to work while they sit around waiting being paid.
Its not bad for someone studying.
1. I take into account the actual pizza place too. If it’s a local business, I tip more because I want to support my neighborhood. If it’s a chain, I tip $1-2.
2. I’d be interested to know how much drivers actually get paid, because I have a feeling that the tip is not nearly as necessary to their wages as it is for a server.
3. Why does my tip go to the driver anyway? Other people took my order and made my pizza — why does the driver get a bonus?
Well I work at a local shop and here’s my take on your points
1- Awesome, like I said I work at a local business
2- I think most chains get min. wage, but some drivers get less, like waitresses and whatnot, I get about 5-ish an hour(on salary, weird right?
) and plus, unlike waitresses, we do dish out gas, maintenance, etc. so I’d say it’s more necessary
3- While I DO see your point, they get minimum wage or more, for still easy work, and aren’t driving their own car to bring you your food. So ultimately I’d say a tip isn’t necessary, but it’s the polite thing to do, for doing something so you don’t have to.
P.S. Regarding the “delivery fee,” I don’t know about local shops, but chains only give about $1-1.25 of the fee per delivery to the driver. We don’t have one but I still get a buck per, good for everyone
While I can’t speak for pizza, I have worked at several restaurants that deliver food.
delivery fees were never paid to the driver. They don’t tell customers, because that would be considered asking for a tip. No one seemed sure where the money went. Some managers said it paid for insurance for the store, some said it compensated the store for the time the driver is out of the store.
@ Jess – a more expensive meal doesn’t necessarily require more work for a waitperson. A steak is not harder to carry than a burger.
@ John – I would love to work as a driver in Australia! I’ve never worked at a restaurant where anyone was allowed to sit around. Drivers started out at minimum wage, and did not receive payment per delivery.
pay schemes certainly vary from company to company. Please ask. Your driver will be happy to tell you what part, if any, of the delivery charge they receive.
Tips are a important part of a driver’s compensation. Without a tip, the driver is paying(in gas and wear and tear) for the privilege of bringing food.
With restaurants or any sort of food deliver I would generally tip between 20-25% Here is why:
A) They are generally young students (either college or high school) and are probably using this job as a stepping stone to a better life and could undoubtedly use the excess cash.
and…
B) They are almost always using their own vehicles for these deliveries. When I was in college we would get stipend for gas mileage on deliveries, however, this wouldn’t take into consideration the depreciation of the car’s value, necessary repairs etc, etc…
@ This is a side note – but has anyone else noticed a correlation between pizza delivery drivers and drug abusers? I’m just saying – I’ve encountered it time and time again. Not saying they all are… but compared to the rest of the general public…. there seems to be a high correlation there.
I have been around the pizza delivery business for some time and can positively confirm that drivers absolutely do not receive any portion of the delivery charge. The delivery charge is nothing more than a price increase, the money goes directly to the store.
In most states, drivers are paid subminimum wages and must rely on tips to bring them up to minimum wage level.
Pizza delivery drivers are not waiters. Drivers use their personal vehicles to deliver food and incur expenses for vehicle maintenance/insurance that waitstaff do not.
@G.E. Miller-I don’t know or care what your location is, but any correlation between delivery drivers and drug abuse is unique to your area. Most drivers are decent, hard working individuals.
@Jared – Agreed – not generalizing – It’s just that I’ve known 4 drivers personally who abused drugs. Didn’t know if it was a trend or just a personal experience.
You are incorrect about the pizza deliervery man not receiving the fee from delivery charges. It must be a local thing, because the driver himself told me that he does get the delivery fee, so anything he gets beyond that is his also. That said, if it is delivered hot and timely, I tip about $3.00 per order no matter how small or a little more than $15 percent.
Generally $5 for a 1 or 2 pizza delivery order ($20-30), and 20% standard for tips in-restaurant, more if the service was extraordinarily good.
I eyeball it…a $15 pizza delivery usually gets $1-$2 if it was more than 45 minutes or $3-$5 if it was faster…
The delivery charge pays for my gas because there are so many cheap assholes who won’t tip. Since the boss has to collect it this way h e nicks part of it to put in his beer fund.
Tip me or die, asshole. It’s how I make a living.
@Jess – First of all, delivery fees are not tips — they go straight into the stores back pocket. Secondly (and I’m not trying to minimize what waitresses do, I think they have respectable jobs) — but what makes it right to tip your waitress more than you tip the delivery driver, with all else equal?
Did the waitress use her gas and put wear and tear on her own vehicle to bring the food to your table? No – she walked. Did she risk her life to bring the food to your table? No – unless she was handling dangerous cutting utensils on a slippery floor. Does your waitress have to endure snow and rain to bring food to your table, at a time when EVERYONE wants food delivered? No. Please don’t snub us delivery drivers like that. We put just as much work, if not more, into delivering your food as a waitress does in bringing the food to your table.
Third, and I think someone pointed this out already…what’s the difference between bringing a steak to your table as opposed to a hamburger?
Pizza delivery is hard work (my husband was once one.) That said, my mom was a waitress for 50 years (right, 50!), and let me tell you they work much harder than pizza delivery service. You say they “walk” not drive? And you think that’s is harder than walking? Walking is damn tough on your feet, back, legss, etc. The wait person has to make a ton of trips to your table to serve you, keep your coffee, tea, hot and plentyful. Deal with more of this and that, take your insults or whatever. Get a kid’s seat for your child, pick up your dirty dishes, sometimes pick up your check, take it to the cash register, return your change. And be very pleasant, too boot. Then, if the cook doesn’t do the order right, the wait person catches hell. Try dealing with an ornery cook! If you complain to them, often they will slow down your order, etc., just to show you whose running the show. Come on now, food drivers work hard, but it’s not nearly the same as what a wait person has to do.
@G.E. Miller – Delivery fees are not tips. Plain and simple. You should always tip for food delivery, regardless of any fees that go along with it.
The delivery fees were implemented in order to hide menu price increases in order to make everything else look artificially low. A good example of this is the Pizza Hut promotion in which you can get any pizza for $10.00. If you request it for delivery it suddenly turns into a $13.50 pizza. Bait and switch at its finest.
@G.E. Miller — And I had previously mentioned this in another response, but the delivery drivers DO NOT get the delivery fee. It all goes back to the store as an extra source of revenue.
@ Josh – I don’t doubt you. If I were a driver, I would not want to work for a company that charged a delivery fee – b/c ultimately, think I would get lower tips. If the business is going to charge the consumer more, they should just factor it in to their prices (especially delivery only pizza providers).
thats why I got a job at a mom and pop shop, a lil less than min. wage, but hey, not gettin stiffed by that “delivery” charge.
I think it’s a little crazy to tip the same percentage to a delivery person as I would to the server in a full-service restaurant. 10% is reasonable and what I also tip at buffet restaurants.
no its crazy to tip less. think about it like this at my restaurant we have to deliver out as far as 10 miles(20 miles round trip) and we only get a dollar. which means at the price of gas at 4 a gallon. we lose 3 dollars if we were to be stiffed….(and thats not including maitanence) and we are risking our safety… i suggest u tip atleast 5 bucks for delivery or 3 minimum
@G.E.Miller–The companies decided that adding a delivery charge, instead of raising their prices, would be more positive for their image. By doing so, they could legally advertise (what appear to be) lower prices on their menus. The customers believe they are getting a great deal. Problem is, customers are confused about tipping the driver because of the delivery charge. (Which, in reality, is really a price increase.)
Again, drivers do not receive ONE PENNY of the delivery charge.
@Bucksome Boomer—Delivery drivers ARE NOT WAITSTAFF. Pizza delivery is unique and most servers could never do the job. To outside observers, the job seems pretty simple, but that is simply not the case. However, if you tip, you are a valued customer. The drivers thank you!
I worked as a pizza delivery girl one summer during college, and I would hardly say the job is not “simple.” In my experience, any one who can drive and has some sense of direction can do it. Have you seen the prices for gas, insurance, etc. these days?! Tipping a few bucks barely covers that! If you’re so cheap that you can’t tip properly then just go pick up your own pizza. Yes, you pay for the pizza itself, but you also need to pay for the service that brings it to you… or you need to go get it yourself.
Domino’s records in their computer how much people tip, I guess so that low tippers get cold pizza? I tip 3-4$ everytime.
I worked as a pizza delivery driver for 2 1/2 years. Then I worked inside for 2 years as a shift manager & a server(waitress).
Yes its true, the drivers do NOT get any of the delivery fee. What you are paying for is the box & supplies to deliver your food. It all goes to the company.
This was my biggest thing, no one knows about tipping for the delivery driver. The worst is the young & the old. The delivery driver does not get paid minimum wage. Its a tip paying job so the food companys pay them less per hour figuring they will make it up in tips. Then you have to report your tips so the tax man can have his share. Also everything is in the computer system.
None of the jobs were simple, & if it was busy & if anyone seen anyone standing around, they were in trouble. There is always something to do. Every hand is needed when it is busy.
Everyone takes orders on the phone, mostly the drivers. Your driver could take your order, deliver another order & be back to deliver your order. Servers are suppose to answer the phone too, but if their to busy with many tables they won’t. Which is kind of understandable because then they lose their good tips.
You don’t know what any job entails unless you actually do it yourself.
Its all been pretty much said in other responses, delivery drivers don’t just deliver the food. They are responsible for many things, they are the last one to double check your order, to make sure they have everything. They help in other areas. They count on your tip to add to their wages. Because they have to pay for everything on their car as, gas, insurance, maintenance, tires. If their car is not working & they don’t have another one to use, they are not working either.
So please tip your delivery driver, they appreicate it more than you know, because so much more comes out of their pocket. With gas prices as bad as they are, if you gave 15% or more, they would treat you well next time too.
The base wage of the driver varies from state to state. Food workers get at least minimum wage in California (which is higher than the federal).
That being said I do agree with tipping the delivery driver but tip $2 or 10% if more than that amount.
My dad taught me $1 for every $5 of the tab . . . .and always round up first! Example . . .Tab is $21 . . round up to $25 and leave a $5 tip . . . .Keeps it simple . . .and I can always leave more . . ..
@James. Stores DO NOT record customer tips. By law, tips are strictly the business between the driver and the customer. Trolling is ignorant and you are being a buffoon.
As a former delivery driver, I ask you (or most of you) to please tip more. I echo the sentiments of the other drivers regarding the delivery fee. At my company, the delivery fee was $5.99 per order. I received $1.99 per order and NO salary per hour. So the tips meant everything.
All that, and we were fortunate to receive any of the delivery fee!
The delivery fee is NOT a tip nor is it for the driver – plus the driver uses their OWN car and gas and their reimbursement rate is PALTRY – much lower than the standard IRS rate of .50 cents a mile. Our store it usually adds up to .20 -.34 cents a mile which is RIDICULOUS – this is stop and start driving and leaving your car running which much harder on your car than highway driving. This is 2010 NOT 1980 a minimum of $3.00 tip should be added or 20 percent whichever is greater. Larger orders are heavier expecially when it involves drinks. Delivery drivers don’t just deliver they do all duties in the store as well. No pizza place is going to be able to afford to hire one person for each task – all employees must multitask so labor can be kept to a minimum. ALSO, MOST PIZZA PLACES PAY LESS THAN MINIMUM WAGE NOW AND SOMETIMES NO WAGES AT ALL – DRIVERS RELY ON TIPS. No one would do this thankless job if not for tips – try finding a waitrer/waitress or bartender to work for minimum wage only.
Why should I tip the pizza driver? I tip the waitresses for their service, but what does the driver actually do? He doesn’t interact with me, refill my drinks, or ANYTHING that a waitress does. All he does is move my pizza from point A to point B, which a freaking kindergartner could do. Seriously, why would anybody tip that?
I don’t care what reimbursement the store gives the driver BTW. Tips are NOT REQUIRED. If your reimbursement doesn’t cover your gas and repairs, that’s something you take up with your boss. If you don’t like it, tough. Better go find a new job pal. Don’t expect me to fix your car for you, that’s YOUR responsibility. I only tip for service that DESERVES to be tipped.
That’s a fine mentality to have, as long as you don’t mind not having the convenience of delivery. If not, then don’t tip. If you get everyone not to tip, then you will no longer have the convenience. Local shops can’t afford to keep up cars themselves, and chains just wont do it. Either that or prices will skyrocket. Either or.
@Why Tip?-
You should tip because the service we provide is a conenience for you. If you don’t wish to tip, why not pick up your order? When you stiff us, you’re not only abusing the delivery service and screwing the driver over, you’re taking us away from customers who do tip. In conclusion, stop being a cheap twat and make the effort, a few buck won’t kill you and it will make drivers happy to take your order. Otherwise, I hop you like your pizza cold and your service crappy.
It is cruel that the staff (waiters/waitresses and delivery persons) have to depend on tips. A tip should be for exceptional service only and the staff should be properly compensated by their employer and those costs should be reflected in the price of the food. The current system leaves everything to the whims of the owner and customer.
What do you tip your waitress if she only showed up at your table 25 minutes after you got there and every bucket of beer took 20 minutes to come by after your having asked for it? My roommate and I paid 10% as we did not want to risk receiving equally bad service the next time or worse yet…
In Texas, our taxes are 8.25% and usually I just double that (16.5% of the bill and 15¼% of the bill with taxes). I do it so do not have to ferry around tip cards or even do any multiplication, just add the tip to itself and you’re done). But this means my $10 sandwich w/ drink and fries is actually costing me $12.48, i.e. I pay a 25% premium to eat out all the time.
What would you have to tip if you had a simple order that was just expensive and cost $150 for two people, it required the waitstaff to ask you what you wanted, bring it to you and fill up your glasses 2 times and you were in and out of the restaurant in 30 minutes? $23 seems excessive to me and I would dial down to wards 8-10% at this time ($12-$15). Is this unfair?
I’d say no, for a waitress. A delivery driver however, I guess it still wouldn’t be unfair, but we’re lucky to get a few bucks usually anyway, so even 12 dollars would make us dance down your driveway.
First of all, for “Why Tip”, I just stated the delivery driver does all that a waitress and does and more. Check out http://www.tipthepizzaguy.com. The drivers do EVERYTHING in the the store before they leave it. That means take your order, make it, deliver it and then clean up afterwards. Second, to “fool” and every other person – try working a tipped profession and then do the math for what you suggest is a “fair” tip.
@Vittoria
You’re right I have never worked a tipped profession, and to be fair, I did say that it is atrocious (I said cruel) that someone low down on the wage scale would have to deal with the uncertainties of tips.
In the current social setup, doctors and some lawyers make hundreds an hour, as an engineer I make ~$35/hour with a Master’s degree and 5 years of experience and CEOs make thousands of dollars an hour. Accordingly, a relatively low skill and low entry barrier job would be paid lower. If I were to tip someone $25 for a $150 product (mind you, the person receiving the tip did not add anything of value to the product, the service yes but not the product) and their labour was distributed over say 3 customers during the 30 minutes, the effective rate of tip would be $150/hour!!!
Does one tip the UPS/FedEx/USPS delivery person too? I guess not because they have a salary and gas is paid for by the company… If these other employers can do it (pay decent enough wages), what prevents restaurants from doing it and pricing it in the cost of food? I’d be willing to add a few percent as tip for good service. The onus for paying the salary/wages lies not with the customer but with the employer. If my employer (engineering is considered part of the services sector) said I should depend on tips from the clients, I wonder how things would be…
The incentive is set up such that eating at home will be about 40% the cost of eating out not considering the waiting period and travelling costs… I have not included the rent and wages of the employees who will cook and serve either… But then again, the staff at the grocery stores probably have not been paid well enough. The responsibility is being transferred down to the consumer at all levels and that is not right.
@fool-
It is a rarity in this business that any driver pulls down $150/hour. Even if the stars align and a driver gets a huge tip, it’s a once in maybe six months to a year that something that good happens.
If you believe that the onus should be on the employer, then I encourage you to support efforts to ban “tip-credit” in states where it’s practiced. Tip-credit is the law that allows employers to pay people in tipped occupations less than minimum wage. It used to be half the federal minimum, but in 1991 that wage was frozen in the law, so now waitstaff, bartenders, dealers at casinos, and drivers could legally be paid as little as $2.13 per hour.
You are bringing forth the mindset that it’s OK to punish the server because the industry doesn’t pay us adequately, because you feel a $25 tip on a $150 order translates into more money that you make with a master’s degree. Again, I echo Vittoria, drive a few miles in my car, do what I do, and it will disabuse you of the notions that we make too much money and that we don’t add value to the transaction.
@fool.figures you are an engineer-way to live up to the sterotype. I have know many engineers over the years and only one was an *OK* tipper and that was because she waited tables in thbe past. They are hard jobs(serving, & driving) that you obviously are not willing to do otherwise you would be eating a frozen pizza on your couch or drive to pick up your order…so STFU & tip at a minimum of $3 for a small order or 20-25% for larger orders. Or, here’s a novel idea:go get it yourself!
As others have said: driver never gets any of delivery fee, usually just a very small amt. for gas that does not go anywhere near the added wear put on their cars and in many cases does not even cover fuel. They work in the crappiest of weather, and do a lot more than drive your order. Please, show some appreciation if you are going to order delivery. I have not done the job for years now, but after a few years of it I can tell you that most would not last a week. They earn every bit of their tips! Don’t be a cheapskate please….
I personally don’t order delivery very often because I can’t afford the extra fee + tip….so I go get it most of the time.
If you cannot tip more than 2.50, go get the damn pizza yourself. I get minimum wage, don’t get any of the delivery fee and my car is being ripped to the ground. Some nights all my tip money goes to fill up my tank. Its hotter than hell in the shop busting our ass prepping food and cleaning everything for crap minimum wage and then have to go out in the crap weather drive all the way to your house and wait outside and put the pizza right in your hands then mosey on back to slave in the kitchen. Bottom line, we get paid nothing, if you cant tip go get it yourself. We dont get delivery fee
@ Current Drive – well spoken. Hard to argue against that.
whoa!
I did not say I do not tip or do not want to tip. I agree with Frost, but the momentum for removal of tip-credit has to come from those directly affected by it, at least the beginning. I will stand by those people when they do fight.
In Australia, the service charge is included to pay for the services and a tip is just that, a tip for a job well done. Tips should not be a replacement of just wages.
I am not saying that wait staff makes $150/hr either, but I would be paying them at that rate… kinda similar to the $200/hr for the plumber… also, higher wages encourage middle class people like me to do it myself and thereby reduce the amount of business available for the plumbers/electricians/carpenters and further drive up the cost of hiring one… but that is another topic…
Sorry for bruising anyone’s feelings… I just asked what an appropriate tip be for a fancy hotel, did not mean to rile y’all up…
I was very confused about service charge, so i thought it went to the driver. I called the restaurant and they told me it goes to the house, that charge is misleading. Poor delivery drivers, they must not be getting tipped much, I told the guy to come back and I will give him a tip. They should give the service charge to the drivers, because if you have to pay 2.50 for service charge plus tips it makes it not worth getting a delivery, when you can make the short drive to pick it up.
You should know that dine-in waiters and waitresses are only paid $2.01 an hour. They must submit their total sales to the government and the gov’t will automaticaly assume that the waiter received 15% in tips and now the waiter is taxed on that income. A driver does not have this same rule. They simply drive and drop off. I have Lunch & Learns for clients and sometimes the food bill is $200. No way am I going to pay $35 or $40 for delivery. $5-$10 max. The restaurant already pays this guy.
For anyone curious as to what the mysterious “delivery fee” is for, I actually decided to ask around about it. Apparently the general “explanation” is that it is to cover rising fuel costs for the delivery of ingredients etc etc to the store, not for the delivery of your pizza to your door. You’d think they could come up with a better name, but then people would throw a hissy fit about it, instead of thinking of it as an “insta-tip” if you will.
Its Customary to tip your driver 15% to 18%. really though it’s all about how Thankful you are for getting your food!!
15% is NOT a good rate for a tipping a server!!! 18% is used as the minimum tip, because that is what an average tip should be! For great service, 20%, for exceptional service above 20%, for not so great service, under 18%. Speaking as a server myself, this is what is understood by those who serve tables. Keep in mind, our wages are a fraction of normal hourly wages. Minimum wage for servers in Ohio, for instance, is 3.70 an hour. Not really making bank with that….
We always tip 20% minimum and then depending on service we tip more or less. Obviously if the server isn’t good we don’t tip as much, but when we find really good service we tip more, 25%.
The standard tip rate is still 15%. 25 years ago it was 10%. Now restaurants will charge 18% on large parties to make sure the server does not get stiffed. As for tipping drivers, 2-3 bucks; the bill total is irrelevant.
I used to work in the restaurant biz years ago so I understand the servers wanting to push the tip rate higher. But with restaurants continually raising their prices, to keep raising the tip fee will only force patrons to go to the drive thru restaurants and do away with the tip all together.
I work part time as a pizza delivery driver. It is absolutely Horrible. I have been doing it since May, and the only reason that I still do it is because I need the extra money. All and all especially within the last few months, I doubt I have even made minimum wage. They pay us something like 5.50 an hour, and we get 1.50 per delivery (which is also taxed) They charge a 2.50 delivery charge, but we don’t get any of that at the end of the night. The guy who runs the place is a Bipolar asshat. To begin with the guy schedules way to many drivers per shift. He puts like 6 drivers on a Wed night?? His thoughts are that the more driveries he has, the more people will order from us. I don’t know what planet he’s living on. Let’s take last night for instance. I was scheduled to work from 5-9, but it was so slow (as it’s been for the last couple months), that I ended up getting off at 7:30. I took 3 deliveries, and they totaled to almost 10 dollars. I drive a 1999 Ford Explorer, so it takes me about .25 cents to drive each mile. A lot of times, we get people that live 7 miles ordering pizza from us. So if someone lives 7 miles there, and I have to drive 7 miles back, thats 14 miles (3.50) is what that costs me. Now, when they only give me 2 dollars, that means it costs me to deliver pizza to them. Yep, I actually have to PAY to go to work. It really pisses me off because the owner doesn’t even care. Also, within the last 3 months, I have had to put about $2,000.00 dollars worth of work in my truck. New Radiator, COMPLETE brake job including rotors, brake lines, freeze plugs, alternator, tune up, oil changes. They don’t pay for any of that, and my truck never needed any of these things before I started delivering Pizza, and I’ve had it for four years. Anyway, If I could find a better Part time job than I would, but it’s real slim pickings around here. Sorry about the long post, but I needed to let off a little steam to some of these people I see writing about how it’s “wrong” to tip the pizza guy. Thank You for listening.
I’ve been a delivery driver now for approximately six months, and I want to clear up a few misconceptions:
1.) The “delivery fee”. Some places charge a fee. Others do not. Of those who do charge a fee the percentage of that fee that goes into a driver’s pocket will range anywhere from 0% – 100%. I work for a company that contracts with dozens of other restaurants to provide drivers for their establishments in exchange for a cut of their sales. My employer charges a $5.75 standard minimum delivery fee (higher for larger-ticket and/or far-flung orders) . Of that we drivers receive $3.00, and the balance goes to the business owner to cover other costs. I was aghast to see someone upthread say they don’t tip their drivers because “that’s what the delivery fee is for.” Not necessarily. That driver you stiffed could very well receive NOTHING, meaning they were out-of-pocket to make your delivery when you factor in fuel and wear/tear on their vehicle.
2.) Not every delivery driver receives an hourly wage. Not every delivery driver receives fuel or mileage reimbursement. In my case I receive that $3.00 per delivery and then rely upon tips alone. I’m not considered an “employee” (no W-2) but rather am an independent contractor. 100% of my income needs to reported for tax purposes. Fortunately we deliver generally to upper-middle-class neighborhoods, and many of our order totals exceed $50. With that being the case I average $5/delivery in tips—some people tip less (generally no less than $2) and some people tip more (generally no more than $8). Given our wide delivery area I typically average two deliveries per hour. If I were to have two average tips, then I’d be making $16/hr., on average ($3 delivery fee x 2 deliveries = $6) + ($5 tip per delivery x two deliveries). Out of that $16/hr. will come taxes, maintenance/depreciation of my vehicle, and gasoline. I’m lucky in that I still come out ahead of most generic pizza delivery personnel, but it’s not like I’m becoming affluent from this.
3.) It’s difficult to compare servers and delivery drivers. BOTH work very fastidiously to serve their clientele in the most expeditious manner possible. Servers have to clean up after patrons, refresh beverages, and feign interest in idle banter to built a better rapport to yield a higher gratuity. Delivery drivers are subjected to inclement weather, risk of accident/personal injury, wear/tear of their vehicles, and even the potential for being the victims of crime. In September 2011 I was broad-sided by a woman in an SUV who sped through a red light. She totaled my vehicle, and to this day I still have neck pain that’s unresolved because I didn’t seek follow-up medical treatment because I can’t afford health insurance. Last night I had a mentally unstable man accost me for parking in “his” own personal on-street parking space while making a delivery. I genuinely felt threatened. There have been numerous muggings in one neighborhood we consistently deliver to as well. This isn’t factoring in how many times I’ve nearly been bitten/trampled by customer’s dogs on their front porches, either. To imply that servers are hard workers while delivery drivers are lazy is quite erroneous. We BOTH bust our tails—just in different ways.
I’m always happy to receive a tip—ANY tip. I’m just beyond flabbergasted that there are so many morons within this thread who don’t tip because:
a.) It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to bring me food.
b.) I already paid a delivery fee.
c.) It’s not MY responsibility to compensate someone for something their employer should already be compensating them for anyways.
d.) Delivery personnel don’t work as hard as servers.
How many of you who selected one or more of those options above have ever actually worked for tips? Just curious. I’m a college-educated male who has been unable to establish himself in his career of study due to this recession. I may not love what I do, but I always do it to the best of my ability (and then some). Working this job, though, has taught me how ugly so many people can be on the inside.
Basically if you decide to go out to eat, drink or get your food delivered you should usually pay upwards of 20% or more if necessary. I generally tip that much even if I order something to go, no doubt someone has already stiffed them that day. If you don’t have money to tip then go to the grocery store!