To start delivering with Uber Eats, you need to be at least 19 years old (for car deliveries), pass a background check, and sign up through the Uber Driver app. The whole process from application to your first delivery typically takes one to two weeks, depending on how quickly your documents and background check clear.
What You Need to Qualify
Uber Eats lets you deliver by car, bike, or scooter, and the requirements differ slightly depending on your vehicle. For car deliveries, you must be at least 19 and can use either a two-door or four-door vehicle. Bike couriers can start at 18. Regardless of vehicle type, you’ll need a valid driver’s license or government-issued photo ID, proof of vehicle insurance (for car and scooter deliveries), and your Social Security number.
Every delivery person must also pass a background check conducted by third-party providers such as Checkr, Samba Safety, or HireRight. This check typically takes three to five business days, though it can stretch to two weeks in some cases. You don’t need any prior delivery experience, and there’s no interview or in-person orientation.
How to Sign Up
Download the Uber Driver app (the same app used by rideshare drivers) and create an account. The signup process has a few stages:
- Enter your personal details. You’ll provide your full name, birth date, Social Security number, and select your vehicle type.
- Upload your documents. Submit a clear photo of your driver’s license (not a scanned image), a profile photo of yourself, and proof of vehicle insurance. All four corners of each document need to be visible, the text must be readable, and the name on the documents has to match your account. Allow up to five business days for Uber to review them.
- Complete the background check. Once your documents are approved, Uber will email you to start the background check. You can’t skip this step even if you’ve completed one for another company before.
After everything clears, your account goes active and you can start accepting delivery requests immediately.
How a Delivery Works
Open the Driver app and go online. When a delivery request comes in, you’ll see the restaurant name, the estimated payout, and the distance. You can accept or decline. There’s no penalty for declining, though consistently ignoring requests may reduce the number you’re offered.
Once you accept, the app shows the order number, order details, the customer’s name, and turn-by-turn directions to the restaurant. You can set your preferred navigation app (Google Maps, Waze, or Apple Maps) under Account, then App Settings, then Navigation. At the restaurant, verify that the order receipt matches what the app shows before you leave.
For the drop-off, customers choose one of three options: leave at door, meet outside, or meet at door. The app tells you which one the customer selected. For “leave at door” orders, you place the food at the doorstep, take a photo through the app as confirmation, and move on. For “meet” orders, the customer gets a notification when you arrive, and you hand off the food directly.
How You Get Paid
Uber Eats pay comes from a few components. Each delivery has a base fare calculated from factors like trip distance, estimated duration, and how far you have to drive to reach the restaurant. In some cities, you’ll instead earn a per-minute and per-mile rate that’s calculated after the trip ends. On top of the base fare, Uber adds trip supplements during busy periods.
Two main promotions can increase your earnings:
- Quest: Bonus pay for completing a set number of deliveries within a specific time window, like 10 deliveries between Friday and Sunday.
- Boost+: Extra money on top of base fares for trips that start in a designated area during certain hours.
Tips go directly to you, and Uber does not take a cut. They show up in your earnings after each delivery. Tolls you pay during a delivery are charged to the customer and reimbursed to you. If a customer cancels after you’ve already started driving toward the restaurant (generally after two minutes), you receive a cancellation fee.
Earnings are deposited weekly into your linked bank account. You can also cash out instantly for a small fee using Uber’s Instant Pay feature, which sends money to your debit card.
Taxes as a Delivery Driver
Uber classifies you as an independent contractor, not an employee. That means no taxes are withheld from your pay. You’re responsible for reporting your income and may need to make quarterly estimated tax payments to the IRS throughout the year rather than waiting until April.
You’ll receive a 1099-K and possibly a 1099-NEC from Uber at tax time. The good news is you can deduct business expenses to lower your taxable income. The simplest approach is the standard mileage deduction: for 2025, the IRS rate is 70.5 cents per mile driven for work. Track every mile from the moment you go online in the app until you finish your last delivery.
Alternatively, you can deduct actual vehicle expenses like gas, insurance, registration fees, maintenance, and depreciation. You pick one method or the other for any given tax year. Beyond vehicle costs, you can also deduct your phone bill (the portion used for work), parking fees, tolls, and even supplies like insulated delivery bags.
Tips for Getting Started
Your first few deliveries will feel slower as you learn how restaurants handle pickups. Some have a dedicated shelf for delivery orders, others require you to check in at a counter. Arrive, look for the order name or number, and ask staff if you’re unsure.
An insulated food bag is worth the small investment. Uber may send you one for free, but if not, any insulated bag large enough to hold a pizza box works. Keeping food hot improves your ratings and your tips. A phone mount for your car dashboard is equally useful so you can follow navigation hands-free.
Lunch (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) and dinner (5 p.m. to 9 p.m.) are the busiest windows, and weekends tend to be more active than weekdays. If you’re trying to maximize earnings, focus your hours on those peaks and look for Quest and Boost+ promotions in the app. Rainy or cold days also tend to spike demand since fewer people want to leave their homes.
Keep a simple mileage log from day one, either a notebook or an app like Stride or Everlance. Tracking miles consistently throughout the year is far easier than trying to reconstruct them at tax time, and the deduction can meaningfully reduce what you owe.