Postmates For Living On The Road?

[FloridaNomad]

Has anyone tried postmates? I have been hanging out in Florida only so far, but if I roll into a city that has postmates I just turn on the app and I can start taking orders. Door dash, waitr, bitesquad et al do not allow that You have to set a city and a schedule.

 

[speedhighway46]

Based upon your posting, I’m not sure what you are talking about. Could you maybe provide a clearer description of the point of your post. Thanks.

 

[maki2]

its an app. some what along the lines of door dash. You pick up door to door delivery orders. It will rack up the mileage on your vehicle. It is easier if you live in a particular place that if you are always in a strange city. But of course there are apps for driving directions.

 

[user 423]

What type of vehicle are you living in? If you're in a full-size van I'd think that fuel would be a huge hit on any profits you might make.

Also, do these apps have insurance programs like Uber or Lyft that protect you while you're working for them? If not, collecting on a claim with your insurance might be tough. Or your premiums might be pretty high since you'd be 'commercial'.

As with Uber and Lyft I'm sure there are forums that cover the delivery apps, so you might ask questions there about moving from state to state.

 

[FloridaNomad]

Has anyone tried postmates? I have been hanging out in Florida only so far, but if I roll into a city that has postmates I just turn on the app and I can start taking orders. Door dash, waitr, bitesquad et al do not allow that You have to set a city and a schedule.

Just throwing a money making idea out there in case others need to make money while on the road. I do drive an E150 with a 300 Straight 6 and an AOD transmission. USAA offers "ride share gap" insurance that is pretty cheap. I pay just over $50/month total. As for gas, I make more than I spend and for mileage; if I were worried about that I wouldn't be travelling so much. It isn't for everybody, but it is "easy" money compared to some other stuff I have done.

 

[crofter]

How do you get paid for that. Is it a tip or paid online, or some other way? How large and how heavy are the packages? The mileage I drove for the forest service was not a money maker, break even at best.   -crofter

 

[travelaround]

My daughter drives for Door Dash and says it will work for nomadic life. Makes good money. Has Skoolie, Jeep, and Ford Taurus.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

I want to recommend a great youtube channel if you are interested in gig jobs like postmates/door dash etc. The guy actually tries them all out and lays out what it cost/paid him to do it.

Here is the link for Postmates (i think it was Halloween so hes dressed funny in hopes of getting tips):

 

[maki2]

I suspect the drivers are thrilled when they get cash for a tip.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

Who wouldn't be? ?

I met a friend at the rtr a couple years ago who does ubereats and grubhub and makes a living doing it. I think ubereats pays less. But he does mostly new york/jersey area and has a fuel sipper. The take away is you can do multiple ones at once so you have a steady stream of jobs.

I think the approval process is more involved, but instacart appears to be one of the more profitable ones the guy above tried (groceries), tho id assume they all depend on the area.

 

[SLB_SA]

Also, do these apps have insurance programs like Uber or Lyft that protect you while you're working for them?  If not, collecting on a claim with your insurance might be tough. Or your premiums might be pretty high since you'd be 'commercial'.

This Steve Lehto video Will Ridesharing Void Your Warranty? is interesting.

 

[gourdgirl]

I currently do Uber and Lyft to supplement social security and make a fairly good income at it (average $20/hr before paying for gas, etc).  I have wondered about doing UberEats and Postmates on the road and I did do delivery for a short period of time.  It doesn't pay as much as rideshare but it's not bad.  How do you manage where you stay after you are done delivering?  Do you stealth camp?  The best money can be had during the dinner rush but in some locations lunch time can be decent.  If you're doing the dinner rush, it would be dark by the time you need to get to your camp location, if you found one that is near a populated city.  My thought would be to deliver maybe twice a month on a Friday and Saturday between when I'm changing camps.  Stealth camp those two nights after finishing work.  Before paying for gas, I estimate I could make approximately $250/mo doing this.  The good thing about delivery vs. rideshare is that your trips are shorter so you spend less on gas.  I think if I find I need money, this will be one stream of income for me to supplement social security and make things a little less tight financially.

 

[JerryJ]

I decided to give Postmates a try. Sign up was quick and easy. You sign up online, download their fleet app, then wait for your Postmates debit card to arrive (it's used to pay at locations that don't accept payments through the Postmates app). Once you receive the debit card, you activate it online, then submit to a background check (takes 10 minutes, and they send you a copy of it). Then you can log into the fleet app and start making deliveries. The entire process is very easy!

I worked 4 hours, and took a half hour off to eat, so actually 3.5 hours. I made just over $55 dollars, including tips paid to me in the app. I drive a Prius, so my gas usage was less than $5. So I earned about $14.25 per hour. This was on a Tuesday evening from 5 to 9, I imagine some other days of the week would be better.

Pros - I can set my own hours, though best earning times will of course be lunch and dinner hours - I can dress how I like (in today's heat I wore shorts and a T-shirt) - I'm in the ac in my car or a restaurant 99% of the time - I can work where I want - I can accept or turn down any order - I can get paid via direct deposit weekly on Mondays, or pay 50 cents to get paid instantly to my debit card - I don't have to worry about my belongings in the car like I would if I tried doing Uber or Lyft!

Cons - it will put miles on my car, but I drive a Prius, and it's actually good to put daily miles on a Prius, but I'll need to set aside 5% for tires since they will wear out faster - I have to pay my own taxes quarterly - hmm not sure of any other cons at this moment, I'll report back if I discover any!

I may try Door Dash as well, I've read you just have to call them to switch to a different city. I could conceivably work 5 or 6 days a month and cover most of my expenses, and put money aside for future vehicle replacement, all without touching my emergency fund. If I need more money any particular month, I could work more days. I think this could work out!

 

[Firebuild]

Postmates was just bought by Uber. Not sure if that will change anything or not.

 

[JerryJ]

Postmates was just bought by Uber. Not sure if that will change anything or not.

I'll let you know if it affects anything.

So, Wednesday lunch was not nearly as profitable, made $25 in three hours.  Amazing what some people order, my last order before signing off for the mid-afternoon lull was 6 sprites from Sonic, talk about expensive drinks!

 

[CRBSOUL]

I have done playmates and it is aggravating as all get out. It does pay a little better than uber eats but is a pain in the rump. Door dash seems to be pretty good.

 

[JerryJ]

Yeah, any job can get aggravating, and covid restrictions aren't making things any easier. But for the most part, I'm enjoying it. If I do get aggravated, I remind myself of all the advantages I can think of: setting my own hours and taking breaks when I want, listening to my choice of music in my car instead of Corp approved muzac, no stupid dress code, not stuck indoors or sweltering outside in the heat but instead enjoying my car's AC, getting paid when I want (for a 50 cent fee, or free on Mondays), making ok money considering the small time and effort invested.

I made $400 over 5 days working 4-5 hours (2 hours at lunch, and 2-3 at diner) a day that included a $100 bonus for making my first 45 deliveries. I could cover my monthly expenses working one week of 5-7 days 5-8 hours each, and not be digging into my retirement savings! That gives me the other three weeks per month to explore each state I visit, and I plan to visit each over the next 4-5 years!

I'm on the waiting list with Door Dash, hope to try them out soon! I'll probably sign up for any of the delivery gigs I can work in various cities and states, since my prius is so economical.

 

[JerryJ]

Just an update. I am still doing Postmates, and I added Door Dash too. I'm mostly doing Postmates because I seem to get better tips on it than on Door Dash, and Door Dash has scheduling issues that make it more difficult to work when you want. I'm currently in Vegas visiting friends/family, and I've worked 4 days 5-6 hours a day, averaging $90 per day (about $15/hr). At that rate, I can stick with my plan of working one week a month while stealth camping in the city, then spend three weeks camping/exploring the state I'm in at the time. If I need a bit more, I can either work a longer during a day, or add a day or two. This should keep me out of my savings, and allow me to be semi-retired while travelling the country. I love it when a plan comes together!

 

[highdesertranger]

cool Jerry thanks for the update. highdesertranger