What is DeliverThat and how is it different from DoorDash?

DeliverThat is a catering-specific delivery platform connecting restaurants and caterers with drivers for large corporate and event orders. Unlike DoorDash where orders are typically $20–40 for individual meals, DeliverThat orders are often $150–500+ for groups of 10–30 people. This produces dramatically higher per-order pay ($30–70+) but requires more time per delivery and appropriate vehicle capacity for large orders.

What equipment do I need for DeliverThat?

Quality insulated catering bags ($60–120), a clean vehicle with adequate cargo space (SUV or crossover preferred), and professional presentation. Catering delivery requires maintaining food temperature and presentation for quantities 5–10x larger than standard delivery. Drivers with higher equipment ratings on DeliverThat receive priority dispatch, making the investment pay back quickly.

What hours does DeliverThat primarily operate?

Corporate catering delivery peaks during the weekday lunch window: orders pick up between 10:30am and 12:30pm for 12:00–1:00pm office deliveries. This makes DeliverThat naturally suited to drivers who want to earn during morning/midday hours. Weekend volume is much lower than standard food delivery, which relies heavily on weekend restaurant traffic.

How important is loading time in DeliverThat earnings?

Loading time is the most important factor that most DeliverThat pay comparisons ignore. A 45-minute loading time on a $50 order represents $66/hr just for the pickup portion — which sounds great. But if loading takes 35 minutes and driving takes 40 minutes, your total time per order is 75 minutes, making the effective gross rate $40/hr before costs. Always count loading time.

⚡Side Hustle Profit

DeliverThat Profitability Calculator

Is catering delivery worth the loading time and equipment cost?

What This Does

DeliverThat specializes in corporate catering delivery — the opposite end of the gig delivery market from DoorDash and Uber Eats. Where standard food delivery pays $8–14 per order, catering delivery pays $30–70. The economics are compelling on paper. But the per-hour math requires honest accounting for loading time, which is the biggest difference between catering and standard delivery. A corporate catering pickup for 20 people involves loading multiple large insulated bags, confirming order accuracy, and potentially setting up at the delivery location. That process takes 20–45 minutes per order — time that comes directly out of your effective hourly rate. A driver reporting "$50/order" without counting 35 minutes of loading time at pickup is overstating their hourly by 30–40%. Tip income is the other major variable. Corporate clients who regularly order catering treat the gratuity as a line item on an expense report rather than a discretionary decision — $15–25 tips on $200+ orders are common with established accounts. Building relationships with consistent corporate clients is the primary income optimization strategy on DeliverThat. This calculator accounts for all these factors: loading time, deadhead miles, vehicle depreciation on larger loads, equipment costs, SE tax, and income tax.

When Should You Use This?

→Deciding whether catering delivery pays better than standard food delivery in your market
→Calculating real hourly including loading and setup time per corporate order
→Evaluating whether the equipment investment for catering delivery is justified
→Comparing DeliverThat income to DoorDash, Uber Eats, or Spark on a per-hour basis
→Tax planning — estimating SE tax and deductible equipment and mileage costs

Example Scenario

Angela delivers 8 catering orders per week on DeliverThat, averaging $35 base pay and $14 tip per order. Each order takes 35 minutes of pickup and loading plus 40 minutes of driving, with 8 delivery miles and 4 deadhead miles. After vehicle costs, catering equipment, SE tax, and income tax, her real hourly is $21.60. On the same hours, her DoorDash equivalent would be $13.40/hr — DeliverThat generates $8.20/hr more despite fewer total orders.

DeliverThat Catering Earnings Calculator

Real Hourly After Costs · Annual Net · Volume Scenarios · Platform Comparison

Results update in real time. All estimates include vehicle costs, SE tax, and loading time.

Catering Deliveries & Earnings

Deliveries/Week

del

Typical: 5–15/wk

Avg Base Pay

Avg Tip

Active Weeks/Year

wks

Delivery Miles

Deadhead Miles

Drive Time/Order

hrs

Loading Time/Order

hrs

Pickup + setup

Vehicle & Fixed Costs

Fuel Cost/Mile

Depreciation/Mile

Maintenance/Mile

Insurance Extra/mo

Phone Plan/mo

Equipment/mo

Hot bags, carriers

Income Tax Rate

About This Calculator

This DeliverThat earnings calculator computes real take-home hourly in real time across 15 inputs. Gross = (base pay + tip) × deliveries/week × weeks/year. Total vehicle costs = (fuel + depreciation + maintenance) per mile × total miles + monthly fixed costs × 12. Total miles = (delivery miles + deadhead miles) × deliveries/week × weeks/year. Net before tax = gross - total costs. SE tax = net × 0.9235 × 0.153. Income tax = (net - SE/2) × tax rate. Net after tax = net - SE tax - income tax. Real hourly = net after tax / (drive time + loading time) × deliveries/week × weeks/year. IRS mileage deduction = total miles × $0.67 (2024 rate). Score: real hourly (35pts), per-order total (25pts), tip amount (20pts), deadhead ratio (20pts).

The Breakdown tab renders a donut PieChart showing where gross annual earnings go (net take-home, taxes, fuel, depreciation, maintenance, fixed costs) with a custom legend showing name, %, and dollar amount, plus a stacked BarChart of annual vehicle costs by delivery volume (fuel/depreciation/maintenance stacked, showing cost scaling). The Volume tab renders a BarChart of annual net by weekly delivery volume (current pace highlighted in accent, others in indigo at 60% opacity, LabelList dollar amounts), then a LineChart of real hourly by volume with two ReferenceLine thresholds ($25/hr target, $15/hr minimum), current pace marked with a larger dot. The Compare tab renders a horizontal BarChart comparing DeliverThat's current per-order rate vs 4 other platforms, plus a platform trade-offs card. The Insights tab shows 4 insights (earnings summary, per-order economics, tax advantage, volume leverage) and 4 conditional What To Do Next steps based on score tier.

Results are estimates only. Actual earnings vary by platform, market conditions, and individual effort. Not financial advice.