DoorDash has added a pop-up in its app this week warning customers that orders with no tip might take longer to get delivered. Upon seeing the prompt in a since-deleted tweet on X, formerly Twitter, The Verge confirmed that if you enter $0 in the tip amount in the DoorDash app while placing an order, an alert appears with the below warning, prompting you to add a tip or continue without a tip:
Orders without tips included ahead of time look less lucrative to drivers, meaning you might be waiting longer.
Orders without tips included ahead of time look less lucrative to drivers, meaning you might be waiting longer.
Orders with no tip might take longer to get delivered — are you sure you want to continue? Dashers can pick and choose which orders they want to do. Orders that take longer to be accepted by Dashers tend to result in slower delivery.
The move appears to be an effort by DoorDash to show customers that drivers are likely going to prioritize more profitable work. According to DoorDash spokesperson Jenn Rosenberg, the prompt is “something that we’re currently testing to help create the best possible experience for all members of our community.”
If they don’t see a tip, they may choose not to take the job. It appears the pilot is not live in every locale; one Verge colleague in New Jersey got it, while another in South Carolina didn’t. (Neither proceeded to place an order without a tip, however!)
When consumers leave a tip, Dashers are more likely to accept their order because of the value they find in it. This drives positive delivery experiences for consumers, which in turn drives satisfied, repeat consumers for merchants.
On the flipside, orders without a tip are less appealing to Dashers and thus are more likely to be rejected by them, which may result in a consumer’s food sitting longer at a merchant’s restaurant. That leads to consumers experiencing longer wait times as Dashers potentially decline their orders and in turn, a lower quality experience for all members of the DoorDash community.