On the job

One courier run, from accept to the next order

A top-down map of one delivery: accept the offer, ride to the restaurant, wait, ride to the door, photograph the handoff, then take the next order.

Drawn in 7 stages, the way an illustrator fills a field sketchbook. Press play to watch it drawn.

One courier run, from accept to the next orderFreelanceSites sketchbook

Finished sketch: 7 stages, 283 pencil marks

Blocking in the streets and the stops
Streets, kitchen and the outlines
The dashed route and the six stops
Labels, the wait and the photo
Steam, grain and the photo frame
Shading from the upper left
Caption

What the sketch shows

A delivery shift is not one long trip. It is a loop, and the app pays you for the loops you finish. The page is one loop, drawn as a map.

It starts on the phone. An offer names a restaurant, a drop-off and a payout. You accept, and the first half of the route appears. You ride to the pickup. Sometimes the order is already on the counter with a name on it. Often the kitchen is still cooking, and the wait begins. Those minutes belong to the job even though the wheels do not move. A long wait is riding time you do not get back, which is why couriers learn which counters are quick and which ones always say "two minutes".

Once the food is in the insulated bag, you ride to the pin. The pin is a door, not a dot in the middle of the street. Many apps will not let you complete the job until you photograph the handoff there. Take the photo, confirm, and that offer is done.

The next offer is already the work. Couriers who last look at the distance, the likely wait and whether two orders share a road, and they let a bad offer go. Tapping accept on everything feels busy. It is not always better paid.

The wait at the restaurant is part of the run.
A photo at the door is how a lot of apps finish the job.
Read the offer before you accept it. The map is a guess until you are on the street.

DoorDash, Deliveroo, Grubhub, Wolt and Glovo all use this shape. What a trip pays, and whether tips or busy-hour boosts are added, differs on each one. The live figures sit beside this sketch.

Key points

A shift is a loop: accept, pickup, wait, door, photo, then the next offer.
The wait at the restaurant is part of the job, even while the bike is still.
Many apps will not close the delivery until you photograph the handoff at the door.
Distance on the offer is an estimate. Stairs, gates and one-way streets add minutes.

Real numbers, from our listings

DoorDash Fees: Paid per offer: $2-10+ base + 100% tips Minimum payout: No minimum for weekly direct deposit Payout speed: Weekly direct deposit (arrives about Wednesday), daily with Fast Pay ($1.99), or… See it sketched
Deliveroo Fees: Paid per delivery ~GBP 2.90-6 + tips Payout speed: Weekly See it sketched
Grubhub Fees: Paid per delivery (mileage + time) + tips Payout speed: Weekly direct deposit on Thursdays, Instant Cashout up to $500/day See it sketched
Wolt Fees: Paid per delivery by distance/complexity + tips Payout speed: Early payout of 50 to 70 percent can be transferred within minutes in listed cou… See it sketched
Glovo Fees: Paid per delivery (base + distance + waiting) Payout speed: Varies by country, often weekly or every two weeks by bank transfer See it sketched

Figures in the drawing are examples. These are the platforms' own listed terms, checked by our editors.

Keep exploring

Delivery platforms, sketched Type sketch
Every sketch The sketchbook

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