Online grocery delivery services are a luxury that we sometimes take for granted—after all, it wasn’t that long ago that these services didn’t even exist. Now, between DoorDash, Instacart, Walmart+, and many others, you can order your groceries and have them delivered to your door in just hours—forgoing the traffic to get to the store and all the chaos inside.
However, someone is still shopping for your groceries, bagging them, driving them to you, and leaving them at your door. With tipping culture being a hot topic, the question arises—should you tip your grocery delivery driver? We tapped an etiquette expert to determine if, when, and how much you should leave gratuity.
- Jo Hayes is an etiquette expert and the founder of Etiquette Expert. She is the only university-qualified etiquette expert in the world, with a Master’s research thesis on manners and modern etiquette.
Should You Tip Your Grocery Delivery Driver?
Etiquette expert Jo Hayes says that first, you must consider location. Tipping is a common part of American culture, unlike in countries like Australia or Japan. Hayes says American service workers typically have lower wages, so they’re likely more reliant on tips. She also notes that not all delivery services divide the work the same way.
“Remember that unless you’re ordering groceries through a delivery service app, such as Uber Eats or DoorDash, the grocery delivery driver is not the one packing your order. When ordering groceries through an actual grocery store, the staff at the store does that, so they are doing more of the heavy lifting (in terms of physical work) than the grocery delivery driver,” Hayes says.
Consider All Factors
No matter if your grocery delivery driver does the actual shopping at the store, they will likely still pack the vehicle, carry the bags to the door, and, in many cases, kindly deliver them straight to the kitchen—all notable actions that earn them the standard 10-20% tip.
“If one lives in an apartment without an elevator, the delivery driver often has to lug loads of heavy groceries up many flights of stairs. It’s a big job,” Hayes says. “In such a case, and especially if the delivery is on time, and accompanied by a smile, and a kind word of greeting, it would be appropriate to give the driver a tip.”
Hayes adds that if you order groceries through third-party platforms, such as Uber Eats and DoorDash, there is even more of a case to tip the driver. She says that this person most likely does everything on their own. They will drive to the store, scour the aisles for your specific items, take them through the checkout line, and then drive and deliver them to your front door. If the service is prompt (or at least delivered within the promised time frame) and has all the correct items you ordered (unless they were unavailable at the store), it would be worthy of a tip, even if you already paid a delivery fee. If the driver traveled a significant distance or if you have a sizable order, there’s even more of a reason to tip, Hayes says.
The Power of Gratitude
Hayes says a tip is not necessarily required if the service is poor, the driver is late delivering the items, doesn’t get all the items, or gets the wrong ones.
“Remember, we tip to show our appreciation for a job done well. Let us remember in life we all reap what we sow. Generous people, who make it a lifestyle practice of expressing appreciation, including by way of tipping service workers, always reap a harvest on their generosity,” Hayes says. “Similarly, workers who genuinely strive to deliver a top service for their customers, and employers, will reap a harvest for their diligence and work ethic. Some call this ‘karma’ or ‘manifestation’. I call it the rewards of being a decent human.”
