I cycled for Deliveroo in Amsterdam
Here’s how much I was paid and how far I cycled.
I cycled over 4090km for Deliveroo in Amsterdam from Sep 2017 — Jul 2018.
How much cycling did I actually do?
Since day one I completed 1405 deliveries. The most I did in one shift was 14.
I used Google timeline to track distance cycled while working.
I cycled 4090km since starting — an average of 22km per shift, and 3km per delivery.
The most I cycled in one shift was 44.6km, the shortest was 7.7km.
What was the weather like?
Out of 184 shifts … 72 it rained. That’s about 40% of the time.
Most of my shifts were at peak times between 5pm-10pm too so that means I usually got the coldest time of day. Here are the stats I have on weather while working:
- Rain days: 72
- Snow days: 8
- Warmest day: 14C
- Coldest day: -9C
- Subzero days: 21
Rain and snow are actually a blessing in disguise. It means there are less people out on the road to get in your way.
Surprisingly, the temperature played zero part in getting tips — I worked for 4 hours on a -6C night (it wasn’t raining) and received ZERO tips all night. However on a relatively warm night when it was raining I received a lot of tips! People pity the rain, but they’re used to the cold.
How much did I get paid?
The base rate as a freelancer was €5 per delivery.
I found on average I could manage 3 deliveries per hour.
On top of the base there were also incentives — for example in winter I was paid €1 extra per delivery as well as bonuses for delivering certain amounts of orders i.e. do 75 orders this pay cycle (2 weeks) and get an extra €70.
So it was possible to make €15~ per hour. In reality I was making between €12.06/hr — €15.20/hr.
What about tips?
I only tracked the tips given through the app — I got about the same again, give or take, in cash. Tips from the app were paid at the end of each pay cycle with your pay packet. Every 2 weeks.
Since starting I got €551 in tips. Which is about €3~ per shift on average. Including cash tips it’s probably double that.
The most I got in tips from one shift was €13 (plus cash). The most I received from 1 customer was €7.
Overall thoughts and experience
My wife and I only had 12 months to explore and get to know Amsterdam. After working in an underground kitchen for a few weeks, I realised I wanted to spend my time outdoors, exploring, and meeting people. I wanted to really see Amsterdam. I also wanted to be able to drop everything and travel at a moments notice, because all of Europe was finally at our doorstep — a welcome change from Australia.
So I joined Deliveroo and it turned out to be an amazing decision. I got to explore and memorise all corners of the city. Every day I visited workplaces of every kind. I visited different suburbs observing peoples living arrangements and lifestyles.
I know Amsterdam now. I’ve seen the touristy centre, and its outer edges. I loved every moment of my time there and I’m grateful that I was able to work and be paid while exploring.
