Do you want to make some extra money? If so, then it’s time to start looking at your options.
One of the best ways to do this is by starting a side hustle that doesn’t take up too much of your time and can bring extra dough.
In today’s blog post, we will discuss food and grocery delivery services and how they might be worth your time!
What Is the Food & Grocery Delivery Service Industry About?
Let’s face it, no one in this world does not know the word “delivery” by now.
After all, this service has been quite popular since 2014, and due to the pandemic for COVID-19, it is more than just a way to save time and effort: it is 100% necessary.
Since people cannot go out freely or are a bit limited in buying food from their favorite restaurants or maybe just buying some groceries, they decided that deliveries could be a better option.
We were not fans of deliveries. We loved doing our shopping and just going out to eat (call us crazy).
However, the idea of delivery services was too tempting, and we ended up succumbing for two reasons: necessity and a bit of laziness.
Thus, the Reality: not only did this help us save time, but it also saved money!
Why are we telling you all this? Because it is the opportunity to make some money with this side hustle.
Due to the high demand and the number of businesses and shops that have to offer delivery, you do not necessarily have to own one in order to offer it.
Instead, the idea of food and grocery delivery services is focused on offering the delivery alone, nothing else.
For this, the idea brings many options:
- You can be independent and offer the services to some restaurants and local stores (be their delivery man/woman!).
- Start a small business with friends or partners to offer a local delivery service like Uber Eats.
- Use platforms and companies like Instacart that allow you to be a bit more independent without struggling to find clients that require your services.
How Can You Start Making Money?
The best part with this side hustle lies in what you need to get started: yourself, a car/bicycle/motorcycle, and a cellphone.
There is no talent required for it regardless of how you choose to approach this opportunity. After all, delivery is just that by the end of the day.
Therefore, you need to think carefully about what you want to do with this alternative and start organizing yourself.
One of the steps you can take is to determine all your free hours and then work around them to know when to handle deliveries without any issues.
As for how much you have to invest, you usually do not have to worry about this aspect.
You can start food and grocery delivery services with little investment, and the idea is more focused on time, effort, and skills.
If you decide to use platforms to work in the field or offer your services directly, you only need the previous items and enough to cover the initial expenses like gas.
When going for this option, you need to determine what app is more profitable in your case or works better in your city and area.
Nowadays, you will find a wide variety of them, and instead of not having options at all, you will find yourself with too many options to handle.
One of the most popular (and safe) we can recommend are:
- DoorDash: they are pretty famous among people looking for a side hustle and those trying to get their things delivered. After all, restaurants in it are sometimes available 24/7.
- GrubHub: it is another on-demand delivery service due to the large variety in restaurants and food delivery overall. It is also known for paying its workers according to the number of hours they invest and is fair about it.
- Uber Eats: many people are already familiar with Uber, and this food delivery option is not any different from it. You are bound to earn the money you need without worrying about having people to deliver to.
- Postmates: among all the delivery apps, it is one of the most complete. The previous ones tend to focus on restaurants, but deliverers in Postmate work with groceries, shops, and other alternatives that expand your opportunities to earn money.
If you find yourself attracted to other options like Delivery.com, Instacart, Eat 24, or any other, go over the terms and conditions for those working with them.
The apps above are known for offering excellent conditions regardless of what you are using to work with them (car, bicycle, or motorcycle).
And they all work with hourly payments that can help you determine who you should choose based on how much you are earning.
Now, the idea of a food and grocery delivery business or service of your own does require more investment, and you need to know that it is not for everyone, and some people are indeed more suited to this than others.
Keep in mind that this last option for delivery is more a business than a side hustle, which is why we would not recommend it as one despite the early mention.
How Much Can You Earn with Delivery?
One of the advantages of this side hustle lies in the payment method: per hour.
This means you earn the time you work and based on what you are using to offer these delivery services.
Most people make around $11 to $12 an hour in the USA, and the weekly or monthly payment lies entirely on how much time they worked.
However, an estimate shows that food or grocery delivery makes $2k+ every month.
As a side hustle in which you plan to invest less time, you can quickly get to $1k a month, depending on how you organize your time.
Now, going for this option can be a bit exhausting if you are not used to driving or going from one place to another.
Also, you have to consider the general expenses and how much you will earn in the end.
Does this mean we do not recommend it? That’s not it. We encourage you to give it a try if you are interested in the idea.
The decision is yours and, as we have mentioned so far, it will depend on your time, effort, and skills.
The specific amount of money you can earn will depend entirely on what app you choose to work with or how you decide to approach this side hustle.
The previous mention of $11 and $12 is quite an average, and you might earn less or more depending on the contract and how many hours you are working a week.
However, we believe that as a side hustle, you will be earning much more than what you expected.
Just take your time to think about it before making the decision.
What’s the Difference with Courier Delivery Services?
In our opinion (and experience), food and grocery delivery services are much more manageable than handling packages and, usually, heavyweight.
Don’t get us wrong, working with delivery companies like FedEx or UPS is not a bad option. However, you have to be prepared for how much time and effort this will take.
When you are handling packages, the most important thing to be aware of is confidentiality. You need to keep them safe at all costs while delivering on time so that they can make it on time before deadlines expire, for example, with e-commerce packages.
As a result, you can’t just decide to start working as one but rather compromise yourself as a part-timer, take some training, and knowing how the company’s system and structure work is also crucial.
In other words, it is not that simple to start.
Meanwhile, you do not need training or exceptional food and grocery delivery skills.
After all, food and grocery delivery services are just that: deliveries by the end of the day and only require the person to pick the order once you arrive at their place—nothing special nor complicated about it.
If you ask us, we will choose food and groceries a hundred times before handling packages at a courier (heavy work is not our thing).
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