Driving for Uber Eats, DoorDash, Instacart or Grubhub looks like easy money on the earnings screen, but that number is gross. Before tips and after every order, you are paying for gas, mileage, maintenance, insurance and the steady depreciation of your own car. This delivery driver earnings calculator converts the numbers you actually see in the driver app into a true net hourly wage — then scales it to weekly, monthly and annual take-home so you can compare gig work against a regular hourly job.
Slide the inputs and every figure updates instantly. The result card separates what you earn from what your car costs, so you can see exactly how much of that "per delivery" payout survives the trip home.
How to Use
- Enter Deliveries per Hour — the average number of completed drop-offs you finish in one hour on shift. Check your weekly app summary and divide total deliveries by active hours for the most accurate number.
- Set Pay per Delivery — the base pay plus any boost, surge or challenge bonus per completed order. Do not include tips here; tips go in their own field.
- Add Tips per Hour if you track them. If you want a conservative floor, set this to 0 and see how low your true wage goes.
- Enter Miles Driven per Hour. This is the quiet killer: a run that pays $5 but involves 10 miles of highway may net you close to nothing. Use 10–15 miles/hour as a starting guess for urban driving.
- Set Gas Cost per Mile. The default $0.67 mirrors the IRS standard business mileage rate, which already bundles fuel, maintenance and depreciation. If you drive a fuel-efficient commuter, you can lower it; if you drive a truck, raise it.
- Use Other Car Costs per Hour for anything not captured by the mileage rate — extra rideshare insurance, new tires, or an oil change you paid for this month. The default $1.50/hour is a reasonable middle estimate.
- Set Hours per Week to your typical shift volume. The calculator then multiplies your net hourly wage into weekly, monthly (52 ÷ 12 weeks) and annual earnings.
The result card first shows your gross hourly earnings (deliveries times pay plus tips), then subtracts the gas cost per hour and other car costs to land on the highlighted net hourly earnings. From there it projects weekly, monthly and annual take-home.
The Net-Hourly Formula
Most drivers stop at gross. The fair comparison requires subtracting vehicle costs:
Net Hourly = (Deliveries/Hour × Pay/Delivery + Tips/Hour) − (Miles/Hour × Cost/Mile) − Other Car Costs/Hour
Here is why that matters. Suppose you complete 2.5 deliveries per hour at $4.50 each and earn $3/hour in tips. Your gross is $14.25/hour — which looks like a decent wage. But if you drive 12 miles per hour at $0.67 per mile, gas and car costs take $8.04, and another $1.50 goes to maintenance and insurance. Your real net wage is $4.71/hour, not $14.25. That gap between the app screen and your bank account is the whole point of this tool.
The IRS mileage rate is not just a tax trick; it is a realistic estimate of what driving actually costs. It assumes an average car, average fuel price, and average wear and tear. Your own number will vary with MPG, local gas prices, and how new your vehicle is — which is exactly why the field is editable rather than fixed.
Why Gross Hourly Misleads Gig Drivers
Platforms advertise "earn up to $25 per hour," but that headline mixes several things together:
- Base pay varies by order and distance and is set by the app, not by you.
- Tips are unpredictable and region-dependent; tip rates in wealthy suburbs can double your hourly take, while downtown apartment runs often tip poorly.
- Miles are the hidden cost. Every order forces you to drive to the restaurant, wait, and then drive to the customer — and the app only pays for the last leg in many cases.
- Car depreciation hits silently. A car used heavily for gig work ages fast, and the lost resale value is a real expense even when no bill arrives.
Running these numbers before you commit to a market or a schedule prevents two mistakes: thinking a poor-paying zone is profitable, and leaving a genuinely good zone over one bad week.
Examples
Example 1 — A typical urban dasher. You finish 2.5 deliveries/hour at $4.50 each, average $3/hour in tips, drive 12 miles/hour at $0.67/mile, and add $1.50/hour in other car costs, working 40 hours a week. Gross is $14.25, but gas and car costs eat $9.54, leaving a net hourly of $4.71. Over 40 hours that is about $188/week, $816/month, and $9,797/year. The app would have shown you roughly three times that amount.
Example 2 — A no-tips, low-mileage week. You complete 2 deliveries/hour at $5 each, tip $0, and because you work a dense downtown zone you drive only 0 miles/hour of deadhead. With no gas or other costs, your net hourly is the full $10.00, scaling to $400/week and $20,800/year at 40 hours. This is the best case: high density, short distances, no car drag.
Example 3 — A high-volume, high-mileage reality. Three deliveries per hour at $5 each, $4/hour in tips, but 15 miles/hour across a sprawling suburb at $0.67/mile plus $2/hour other costs. Gross is $19.00, but vehicle costs take $12.05, leaving $6.95/hour. At 45 hours a week that is about $313/week and $16,263/year. More orders did not mean more money — the long miles swallowed it.
FAQ
How much do delivery drivers actually make per hour?
After gas, mileage and car costs, most gig delivery drivers net somewhere between $5 and $12 per hour, even when the app shows $15–$25. Your true net wage depends almost entirely on deliveries per hour and miles per order — the denser the zone, the less deadhead and the higher your real pay.
Should I count tips separately?
Yes. Put tips in their own field. Platform earnings screens often bundle base pay and tips together, but tips are volatile — one large order can double a slow night. Tracking them separately lets you see what your base pay alone is worth, and lets you stress-test a worst-case week with tips set to zero.
Why is the gas cost set to $0.67 per mile?
That figure mirrors the IRS standard business mileage rate, which is designed to capture the full cost of operating a car for work: fuel, maintenance, tires, insurance and depreciation. It is a reasonable average. If you drive a very fuel-efficient car with low maintenance, you can lower it; if you drive a truck or SUV, raise it.
Does this calculator account for taxes?
No. This calculator shows your net after car expenses but before income and self-employment taxes. As a 1099 gig worker you will also owe roughly 15.3% in self-employment tax plus income tax, so set aside 25–30% of everything you earn. Pair this tool with a self-employment tax calculator for your full picture.
Is driving for DoorDash or Uber Eats worth it?
It depends on your numbers. In dense, short-distance zones with good tips, net pay can reach $15–$20/hour. In sprawling, low-tip suburbs with long deadhead miles, it can fall to $4–$6/hour. Enter your own real averages here before you decide — never compare the platform's advertised rate to a paycheck, compare your net hourly to a paycheck.
How many miles do delivery drivers actually drive per hour?
Most drivers average 10–15 miles of driving per active hour, though this swings widely with geography. Urban cores with clustered restaurants can be under 5 miles/hour, while suburban and rural zones can exceed 20. Because miles directly subtract from your wage, this single number often decides whether a market is profitable.
What happens if I enter a negative number of deliveries?
The calculator rejects negative inputs rather than returning a meaningless result. Deliveries, pay, tips and hours cannot be negative; entering a negative value surfaces an error so you can correct the input instead of trusting a flipped sign.
Disclaimer
This delivery driver earnings calculator is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, or legal advice. All estimates depend on the inputs you enter and are approximations; actual platform pay, tips, fuel prices, vehicle costs and tax obligations vary by market, vehicle, and individual situation. The $0.67-per-mile default reflects the IRS standard business mileage rate for a given tax year and is not a personalized figure. Always track your own real earnings and miles, and consult a qualified tax or financial professional before making major income decisions.