Every gig-economy article ever written ends with "it depends on your city." That''s true and also useless — riders need to pick an app this afternoon. Here''s what the five major UK delivery platforms actually pay in 2026, ranked by hourly take-home after the obvious costs (fuel, phone data, the platform''s cut). Numbers are averaged from rider surveys, public payout dashboards, and the platforms'' own published rates.
The headline: Stuart pays the highest base rate, Deliveroo has the busiest queue, and Amazon Flex is the only one where you can predict next week''s income before Sunday.
1. Stuart — £14–£18/hr, the best-kept secret
Stuart is the only major UK courier platform where base pay alone beats minimum wage by a meaningful margin. £8–£9 per delivery for a 15-minute job in London, less in smaller cities but still ahead of the competition.
- What it''s for: parcel + restaurant + same-day retail. The mix means the queue rarely runs dry mid-shift.
- Vehicle: e-bike, scooter, or car. Bike couriers earn slightly less but keep more after fuel.
- Payout: weekly, direct bank transfer.
- Catch: signup waitlist in saturated cities. London is open most weeks; Manchester and Bristol have rolling pauses.
Stuart''s ceiling is also higher because of bundling — if two deliveries are going the same way they pay both, often £14 for one trip.
2. Amazon Flex — £13–£18/hr, predictable
Amazon Flex is structurally different from the rest: you book a block (usually 3 or 4 hours) at a fixed rate, then deliver however many parcels fit in that block. £45 for 3 hours = £15/hr, paid regardless of how many parcels arrive.
- What it''s for: Amazon parcels only. From a Flex depot near you.
- Vehicle: your own car (or hired). Mileage isn''t reimbursed — fuel comes out of the £45.
- Payout: weekly.
- Catch: blocks are competitive. You need the app open the second they release. There are unofficial third-party tools that grab them faster; using them risks account suspension.
The reason it lands at #2 instead of #1 is the fuel cost. A 50-mile suburban round burns £8 in petrol, dropping a £45 block to £37 net.
3. Deliveroo — £10–£15/hr, the always-busy default
Deliveroo is the platform with the most orders, full stop. You will be busy. The trade-off is that average per-delivery pay is lower than Stuart — £4–£6 base for a typical 10-minute trip, before tips.
- What it''s for: restaurant + grocery delivery.
- Vehicle: bike, e-bike, scooter, car. Bike riders are dispatched faster in city centres.
- Payout: weekly.
- Boost zones: in busy areas at peak times, base rate multiplies 1.2x–2x. Friday and Saturday evenings can hit £18+/hr in city centres.
Deliveroo earns its #3 slot because of volume reliability — even an average shift produces decent income. New riders should start here while they wait for Stuart.
4. Uber Eats — £9–£14/hr, very city-dependent
Uber Eats sits behind Deliveroo on most measures: similar delivery volume in big cities, lower base rates per trip, but typically faster onboarding (sign up Tuesday, ride Thursday).
- What it''s for: restaurant delivery.
- Vehicle: same as Deliveroo.
- Payout: weekly (or instant via Uber Pro for a £0.50 fee per cash-out).
- Boost zones: smaller multipliers than Deliveroo''s, but Quest bonuses (do 30 deliveries this week, get £50) can lift weekly take-home significantly.
Uber Eats is the safe second app when Deliveroo is quiet.
5. Just Eat Couriers — £10–£12/hr, mixed reviews
Just Eat used to be the budget rival to Deliveroo. In 2025 it restructured its rider contracts and pay model multiple times, and the courier subreddit shows wide variation in earnings — some cities pay similarly to Deliveroo, others noticeably less.
- What it''s for: restaurant delivery, particularly outside the M25 (Just Eat covers more small towns than its rivals).
- Vehicle: same as Deliveroo.
- Payout: weekly.
- Catch: pay transparency is worse than competitors. Riders report base rates changing without notice.
Worth signing up if you''re in a region where Deliveroo and Uber Eats are quiet — but not your first app.
Stack two or three to hit £16/hr consistently
Most British couriers earning real money don''t pick one app — they run two or three open at once, accepting whichever offers the best per-order rate. The standard combo:
- Stuart for base (highest per-delivery rate)
- Deliveroo for fill-ins (highest volume during peaks)
- Amazon Flex for guaranteed blocks on weekends when restaurant volume is low
Switching between them mid-shift is allowed by all five platforms, though "multi-apping" can affect your Deliveroo or Uber Eats rating if you reject too many orders.
The hidden costs nobody warns you about
Headline pay numbers don''t survive contact with reality. Subtract:
- Fuel — £8–£15 a shift if you''re driving; £0 if you''re cycling.
- Phone data + battery wear — about £5/week for power users.
- Vehicle insurance — most personal car insurance excludes "delivery work." You need a food delivery insurance add-on (£300–£500/year extra) or a hire-and-reward policy.
- Self-employment tax — gig workers are self-employed. National Insurance + income tax apply once you cross the £12,570 personal allowance. Track every shift.
A "£15/hr" Deliveroo shift becomes £11/hr after fuel and £9/hr after tax. Cycling instead of driving recovers most of that gap.
The tier list, if you only have time to install one
- Stuart — highest pay if you can sign up
- Amazon Flex — most predictable income
- Deliveroo — always work available
- Uber Eats — fastest onboarding
- Just Eat — only if the others are quiet in your area
Sign up in that order. Run two simultaneously after week one. Cycle if you''re fit and live in a city; drive only if you''re booking Flex blocks where the maths actually works.
The best UK delivery app isn''t a platform — it''s the right combination, run at the right time, in your specific town.