Which Grubhub offers are worth accepting?
Accept a Grubhub offer when it clears both your minimum dollars per total mile (including the empty drive back) and your minimum dollars per hour; decline it before accepting if it does not. Many drivers use about $1.50–$2 per mile as a floor, but the right number comes from your own costs and market. Declining costs you Offer Commitment Rate; unassigning after accepting costs more, so decide on the offer screen.
The 4-step offer check
- Total miles: to the restaurant + to the customer + the drive back to a busy area. The last leg is unpaid but real.
- Dollars per mile: offer amount ÷ total miles.
- Dollars per hour: offer amount ÷ (estimated time + typical restaurant wait). Fast-food counters are quick; busy sit-down restaurants often are not.
- Flags: multi-order bundles, large orders (over $150 before tip), Shop + Pay with the Driver Card, apartment complexes and campuses all add time.
Grubhub sets time and mileage estimates when the offer arrives, and multi-order offers are estimated together. Its driver site says the tip is shown after you accept, under Tasks, so check how your offer card presents the estimated total in your app.
Worked examples (illustrative)
| Offer | Total miles | Est. minutes | $/mile | $/hour | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $9.50, short city trip | 4.5 | 22 | $2.11 | $25.91 | Accept |
| $7.25, suburb, no way back | 9 | 30 | $0.81 | $14.50 | Decline |
| $18.00, catering, 2 bags | 12 | 45 | $1.50 | $24.00 | Accept if equipped |
| Two bundled offers, $6.00 + $8.50 | 7 | 35 | $2.07 | $24.86 | Accept as a pair |
These are made-up examples to show the math, not typical Grubhub pay.
Set your own floor
Your floor has to cover the cost of driving plus what your time is worth. The IRS standard mileage rate (72.5¢ a mile January–June 2026, 76¢ July–December 2026) is a full-cost estimate including depreciation; gas and repairs alone are usually lower. A simple floor:
Minimum $/mile ≈ your cost per mile × 2 to 3 and minimum $/hour ≈ the hourly rate you would accept elsewhere
In California, NYC and Seattle the legal floors raise the bottom of the range for engaged time; see how Grubhub driver pay works.
The commitment-rate trade-off
- Declining lowers your Offer Commitment Rate, which drives your level and the contribution criteria during blocks.
- Unassigning after accepting also lowers it and can be an account violation if it delays or cancels a delivery. Never accept "to look" and drop later.
- During a block you may need to accept more to protect the contribution. On open time there is no contribution, so being selective costs less.
- Auto-Accept fills your queue automatically. Turn it off if you plan to screen offers.
The level thresholds are in Grubhub driver levels.
Watch: testing a $2-per-mile rule
Mr Hustle 3000 challenges himself to make more than $2 per mile across Uber Eats, Grubhub and Shipt, tracking his income, mileage and hours as he goes and sharing the tactics he used. Whether he hits the target is his own result in his own market.
8:08
Running a second app
Many drivers keep Grubhub and another app on together and pause the second app after accepting an order, so a detour never makes a Grubhub delivery late. The same rules are in our multi-apping guide. Never use auto-accept bots or tools that tap offers for you; they break platform terms and can get an account deactivated.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good dollars per mile on Grubhub?
Many drivers use about $1.50 to $2 per total mile, counting the drive back, as a floor. Your own floor should come from your vehicle cost per mile and your market.
Does declining Grubhub offers hurt you?
It lowers your Offer Commitment Rate, which affects your driver level and, during blocks, eligibility for the contribution top-up. Declining is not an account violation.
Is unassigning a Grubhub order worse than declining?
Yes. Unassigning also lowers your Offer Commitment Rate, reassigned orders are not paid, and unassigning that delays or cancels a delivery is listed as an account violation.
Can you see the tip before accepting a Grubhub order?
Grubhub's driver site says the tip is visible after you accept, under Tasks. Check how the estimated total is shown on the offer card in your app.
Go deeper. Chapter 4 of the Grubhub Driver Playbook turns this into a 10-second offer routine with your own cost per mile, stacked orders and Auto-Accept settings. Get the Grubhub e-book or read chapters 1–2 free.
Related guides
- How does Grubhub pay drivers in 2026?
- How do Grubhub Partner, Pro and Premier levels work?
- Should you schedule Grubhub blocks or just toggle on "Taking offers"?