5 Tips to Find a Delivery Driver Job that Pays the Bills

Finding a job is hard. But finding a job during a pandemic is even harder. It has been close to two years since the Covid-19 outbreak. Life has mostly been at a standstill, some could be having it worse. But thankfully, the Singapore Government has been providing all sorts of support to help us tide through this tough period. Whether you’re looking for a freelance job for an additional source of income or one that actually pays the bills, you’re at the right place! In this article, we will not only explain, but delve deep into the tips you should know before settling on a freelance delivery driver job in Singapore.

Being a freelance delivery driver means you are considered as a self-employed person and therefore may not receive any Central Provident Fund (CPF) contribution. However, there are other benefits or incentives available to freelance workers and in this post, we will share what a courier company can provide. There are many delivery companies in Singapore; Lalamove, Grab, Foodpanda, J&T Express and many more. But just settling for a company that gives the highest payout is not enough. You should check if the delivery company provides any additional welfare benefits, incentives or bonuses. Understanding their payout frequency is important as well, as you wouldn’t want to be receiving late payment. To help you decide which delivery company you should work for, we’ve listed down 5 useful tips to help you make an informed decision. After all, you probably wouldn’t be able to find out which company is the best unless you work for them all.

Indeed, high earnings are the number one factor that most people look out for. Nobody wants to get paid peanuts right?

Different companies have different fee structures. If you’re on the internet, you would probably have seen other courier companies advertising their fee payouts. Pickupp delivery agents can earn up to $25 per hour, sometimes even more if they can take up more orders each trip. Our top freelance car and van drivers can actually earn as much as $5000/month! Want to be like our top earners? Read on to find out more about the types of orders we have to help you optimise your earnings. Understanding the average earnings one can earn will help you to narrow down the list of courier companies you’re willing to work for. You wouldn’t want to shortchange yourself, would you?

Salary payout frequency is important especially when you have tight finances or require cash for immediate needs. If you are someone who may need cash on a higher frequency then perhaps, you might want to take note of this as some courier companies only allow their agents to cash out bi-weekly or monthly. For Pickupp, we allow a weekly cash out for our delivery agents as we understand the different needs of each individual. The minimum amount for cash out is $20 and you may request for cash out as many times as you want. However, earnings are automatically calculated on a weekly cycle and Pickupp will consolidate it into one transaction every Tuesday, 2359. The amount will be deposited into your bank on the same Friday by 2359 (subject to the bank’s processing time). Want to find out more? Feel free to read our detailed guide here.

It is important that you find a delivery company that has available orders for their delivery agents. Can you imagine joining a company only to be waiting for orders to come in? Think about the time wasted and if there aren’t any orders, it’ll affect your earnings for the day! With Pickupp, you don’t have to worry about the lack of demand for deliveries. We have orders all round the year, especially during peak seasons such as Christmas, New Year, and Valentines’ Day etc. Pickupp has different types of orders available throughout the day. You can plan your route the night before with our ‘Pre-Match Orders’, or simply accept an on-demand delivery order any time during the day.

Types of Orders: 1. Suggested Orders Use 'Suggested Orders' to view orders that are suggested to you based on your latest trip history. 2. Hot Orders Hot Orders are indicated with a fire icon. These are higher-priced orders that vary widely in location and are available to all. 3. All Orders A full list of orders that are customised based on your specific profile. 4. Projects A group of special orders that are only available to certain delivery agents. 5. Jobs If you're in the 'Super' or 'Hero' tier, you'll be able to pre-book your time up to 7 days in advance and accept a group of up to 30 multiple orders! 6. Dispatch Orders Dispatch Orders are recommended to you by the system based on your real-time location. You will be able to receive unique orders close to where you are. However, they are available for a limited period of time, so do accept them quickly! 7. Cash On Delivery Orders The recipient will pay you cash upon receiving the parcel. If your wallet balance is less than the cash on delivery amount, you will not be able to view or accept any COD orders. 8. Delivery Note Orders Some orders require a delivery note which is a physical invoice that will be given to you at the pick-up point. This invoice has to be signed by the recipient upon delivery. 9. Fragile Orders Fragile orders are orders that are meant to be handled with care. 10. Warehouse Orders These are orders meant to be pick-up in the warehouse. They are meant to be delivered by 6pm for offices and 10pm for residential addresses. ​​11. Pre-Match Orders Pre-match Orders are available from 11:00pm for delivery on the following day. With pre-match orders, you can schedule and manage your time more easily! Learn more about the ways to optimise your earnings as a Pickupp delivery agent.

We’re not sure about the exact rules for other delivery companies, but as a Pickupp driver, you can deliver for us AND other delivery companies at the same time. Yup, we’re that flexible! Here’s how a typical day as a Pickupp delivery driver will look like:

In the morning, you can start your route from Pickupp’s warehouses located in various parts of Singapore, i.e. Tampines, Yishun and Jurong East (we’re opening up more warehouses soon!) You will be able to take up to 30 parcels and earn up to $90 per day. This is especially beneficial for those looking for a van driver delivery job as you can fit more parcels in your vehicle. During the peak hours, you may deliver for other companies. And if you’re on the way, you can deliver for Pickupp too. Since Pickupp has a longer delivery time frame of up to 4hours, you can optimise your hours and plan your route such that you can deliver for both company X and Pickupp, as long as you are able to deliver promptly within the stipulated delivery time. At 11pm every night, Pickupp will release its delivery orders for the next day and you can start to plan your delivery route again. Yup, so this is how you can maximise your time and earn as much as you can in a day. At this rate, you won’t have to worry about unpaid bills anymore!

Most delivery companies do provide welfare benefits or incentives for their agents, and this varies from company to company. For instance, Deliveroo provides $100 for 50 completed trips within 30 days, while Grab provides $50 for 40 completed trips within 10 days. Such incentives are seasonal and it changes from time to time. Pickupp has its own range of incentives for its delivery agents as well. In the past few months, we’ve provided $200 bonus for 150 completed trips, $20 rush hour incentives, $18 for every 10 trips, $300 cash bonus for the top delivery agent of the month and many more. Check out Pickupp’s latest incentives here. In addition to monetary incentives, Pickupp has given out welfare packs on an occasional basis as well as partnered with several companies to provide exclusive deals and discounts for our delivery agents. Such benefits range from subsidised vehicle rental/servicing to attractive mobile plans to food discounts and more. Head over to Pickupp Delivery Agent Benefits page for more details.

In the 21st century, holding multiple jobs or having a side hustle has become the norm. There’s a saying, “Your 9-5 pays the bills, your 6-10 builds the empire.” So if you would like to enjoy the best of both worlds, you can always find a part time delivery job and deliver after your official working hours (assuming your 9-5 company allows you to have an additional source of income) Back in 2019, it was reported that people around the world received more than 100 billion packages. Do keep in mind that this statistic was before the pandemic outbreak. So this means that the numbers will only grow as the logistics industry grows, which further translates to more demand for delivery services and therefore more job opportunities for delivery agents. FYI, our top delivery drivers can earn up to $5000/month! So, what are you waiting for? Kickstart your journey and join us as a Pickupp delivery agent today! Hurry, join us as a delivery agent and you’ll get to enjoy these exclusive benefits! Read other related article: Side Hustle: 3 Ways to Earn Extra Income with Pickupp Have a question? Let us know here or check out Pickupp’s Delivery Agent FAQ page for more information.