Food delivery or parcel delivery: which is better?

People talk about "delivery driving" as one job. In practice food and parcel work differ in almost every way that affects your income, and the right answer depends far more on your circumstances than on which platform pays more.

Side by side

Where the money differs

Food delivery has more variance in both directions. A wet Friday evening in a dense city can pay very well; a dry Tuesday afternoon can pay almost nothing. Parcel work smooths that out: you know what a block pays before you accept it, and you are rarely idle inside it.

The cost side runs the other way. Parcel rounds cover far more miles, so fuel and wear take a larger bite - and that is precisely the cost most drivers underestimate. Food delivery burns less fuel but spends more time waiting, unpaid, for a restaurant.

Which suits you

• Choose food delivery if you want to work irregular hours, can target the peaks, live somewhere with dense restaurants, or want to try the work with a low commitment.
• Choose parcel delivery if you want predictable daytime hours and a known figure per shift, have a car with a decent boot, and do not mind the lifting.
• Choose neither exclusively if you can do both - parcel blocks in the day, food in the evening is a common and effective pattern.

The comparison that actually settles it

Not gross pay per hour. Earnings after fuel, insurance and tax, per hour of your actual time including travel and waiting. Parcel work often looks better on gross and closer on net because of the mileage; food work often looks worse on gross and better on net in a dense area.

Track a fortnight of each on the same basis and the answer for your city, your car and your hours becomes obvious. That is the number JoltMile produces per shift.