How does Grubhub pay drivers in 2026?
Grubhub pays drivers per order: delivery pay based on mileage, time, delivery type and your market, plus 100% of customer tips and any mission bonuses. On slow days Grubhub may add a "contribution" that tops you up to a local minimum rate, but only when you are toggled on during a scheduled block and meet the Offer Commitment Rate criteria. California (Prop 22), New York City and Seattle add legal pay floors on top of that. Drivers pay their own gas, maintenance and insurance, so the number on the offer is not take-home pay.
The pieces of a Grubhub paycheck
| Pay piece | What it is | When you get it |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery pay | Base pay for mileage, delivery type, time spent delivering and your local market. Estimates are set when the offer arrives. | Every completed order |
| Tips | Customer tips. Grubhub says drivers keep 100% of tips on completed deliveries. | Every completed order with a tip |
| Missions and special offers | Extra pay for reaching a goal (for example a number of deliveries) in a set time window. | Only when offered in your market |
| Grubhub contribution | A top-up to "a minimum guaranteed rate for your local market" on slow days. | Only during a scheduled block, toggled on, meeting Offer Commitment Rate criteria |
| Legal pay floors | Prop 22 (California), NYC minimum pay, Seattle PayUp. | Only in those places |
Grubhub has stopped publishing a per-mile or per-minute example, and the formula behind delivery pay is not disclosed. In the app, the total for mileage, time and promotions for the day shows as Delivery Pay at the top of your Pay Summary. Grubhub's driver site says you can see the tip after you accept an order, under Tasks.
The contribution only protects block time
The contribution is the closest thing Grubhub has to a guarantee outside the pay-law cities, and it has conditions:
- You must have a scheduled block and be toggled on for it. Time spent on "Taking offers" without a block does not qualify.
- You must meet the Offer Commitment Rate criteria for that block. Drivers report that declining or unassigning too many offers during a block can cost the top-up; Grubhub says criteria vary by market and period, so check the terms shown in the app.
- The minimum rate is set per market and is not published on the driver site.
More on blocks in scheduled blocks vs. taking offers.
Cancellations and reassignments
- Canceled before pickup: may still pay a portion of the offer, based on your progress toward the merchant.
- Canceled after pickup: Grubhub says you receive the full offer amount.
- You ask for reassignment: allowed, but the order is not paid, and unassigning lowers your Offer Commitment Rate.
Getting paid
- Weekly direct deposit: your balance goes to your bank every Thursday.
- Instant Cash Out: up to $500 a day. Free for Chase customers; $0.50 per transfer for other banks or a debit card. Earnings become available about 15 minutes after a delivery.
Pay laws that override the offer screen
| Where | 2026 floor | What counts |
|---|---|---|
| California (Prop 22) | 120% of minimum wage ($20.28/hr statewide) + $0.37/mile | Engaged time and engaged miles, from accepting an order to completing it. Tips on top. Higher local minimum wage raises the floor. |
| New York City (DCWP) | $22.13/hr before tips | Time spent preparing and making deliveries; rate applies from the first pay period on or after April 1, 2026 (was $21.44). |
| Seattle (PayUp) | $0.47/min + $0.80/mile, or $5.34 per offer, whichever is greater | Time and miles on an offer, per the 2026 rates published by the Office of Labor Standards. |
Grubhub's pay page confirms that NYC has guaranteed pay, Seattle has guaranteed minimum pay and California drivers are covered by Prop 22. Compare your pay statements with these floors; adjustment pay should appear if offers alone fall short. The Prop 22 math is worked through, with an example, in how Prop 22 pay works; the rules are the same for food delivery drivers. In NYC, Grubhub may also temporarily limit access to "Taking offers" when there are more drivers than orders, which is one reason NYC drivers lean on blocks.
Who owns Grubhub, and why it matters to drivers
Grubhub has been owned by Wonder, the food-hall company led by Marc Lore, since January 2025, when Just Eat Takeaway completed the sale. Amazon Prime members can still activate a free Grubhub+ membership through Amazon ($0 delivery fees on eligible orders), which keeps a steady flow of Prime customers on the platform. Neither change has come with a published change to the driver pay formula; check the app for your market's current terms.
In August 2026 the FTC began sending more than $23.8 million to Grubhub drivers and diners under a $25 million settlement. The FTC and Illinois had alleged that Grubhub's driver ads used inflated hourly pay figures. The lesson for any app: judge pay by your own records, not by advertised hourly rates. The FTC never asks you to pay or share account details to receive a refund.
Watch: a full Grubhub day in New York City
Adrian McPherson films a day of Grubhub deliveries in NYC; the "$200 daily" in the title is his own claim for his own shift, in a city with a legal pay floor. His description lists the gear he works with (U-lock, phone mount, touchscreen gloves, food backpack, rain fender).
20:59
What you actually keep (illustrative)
Say a driver makes $120 in delivery pay and tips over 5 hours and drives 70 miles, including the miles back home. At an assumed $0.30 per mile in gas and wear (your own figure will differ), costs are $21, leaving $99, or about $19.80 an hour before taxes. This is an illustration, not an earnings promise. The full method is in your real hourly pay, and offer screening is in which Grubhub offers to accept.
Frequently asked questions
How is Grubhub delivery pay calculated?
Grubhub says delivery pay accounts for mileage, delivery type, time spent delivering and your local market. It does not publish the exact formula or per-mile rate. Tips and any mission bonuses are added on top.
Do Grubhub drivers keep 100% of tips?
Yes. Grubhub states that drivers keep 100% of tips from completed deliveries. The tip is visible after you accept an order, under Tasks in the app.
What is Grubhub contribution pay?
A top-up to a local minimum rate on slow days. It only applies when you are toggled on for a scheduled block and meet the Offer Commitment Rate criteria for your market.
How fast can Grubhub drivers get paid?
Earnings are available about 15 minutes after a delivery. Instant Cash Out sends up to $500 a day, free for Chase customers and $0.50 per transfer otherwise; weekly direct deposit lands on Thursdays.
What is the NYC minimum pay for Grubhub drivers in 2026?
$22.13 per hour before tips for time spent preparing and making deliveries, from the first pay period on or after April 1, 2026, according to the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.
Go deeper. Chapter 1 of the Grubhub Driver Playbook breaks down every piece of a Grubhub paycheck, and chapter 10 shows how to check your statements against the Prop 22, NYC and Seattle floors. Get the Grubhub e-book or read chapters 1–2 free.
Related guides
- Should you schedule Grubhub blocks or just toggle on "Taking offers"?
- Which Grubhub offers are worth accepting?
- How do Grubhub drivers handle taxes and mileage in 2026?
Sources
- Grubhub for Drivers: Pay
- Grubhub for Drivers: FAQ
- NYC DCWP: Notice of Rights for NYC Restaurant Delivery Workers
- Seattle Office of Labor Standards: App-Based Worker Minimum Payment Ordinance
- California State Treasurer: Prop 22 per-mile compensation
- California Business and Professions Code § 7453 (Prop 22 earnings guarantee)
- FTC: Grubhub refunds (payments to drivers and diners, 2026)
- FTC and Illinois Attorney General: action against Grubhub (December 2024)
- TechCrunch: Just Eat Takeaway completes Grubhub sale to Wonder (January 2025)
- About Amazon: Grubhub+ for Prime members