Uber Eats and DoorDash workers in New York City have missed out on hundreds of millions of dollars due to how the apps collect tips, according to a new report released by the city on Tuesday.
The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) estimated that the app’s tipping processes in the city have deprived gig delivery workers of $550 million since December 2023. That was the month that New York City’s minimum pay law for delivery workers took effect.
Around the same time, Uber Eats and DoorDash shifted the option for New York City customers to leave a tip only after placing an order.
The average tip for delivery workers on the apps dropped 75%, or from $3.66 to $0.93, one week after the apps made the changes, the DCWP found. The figure has since declined to $0.76 per delivery, according to the report.
On apps that have retained the option to tip at checkout, by contrast, the average tip is $2.17.
The report’s findings are based on the agency’s analysis of data from July 2023 through June 2025, which delivery apps are required to submit. The agency enforces the minimum pay rate.
Spokespeople for Uber and DoorDash did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report from Business Insider.
The new tipping process for New York City customers is “easy to miss and difficult to navigate,” the DCWP said in a summary of its report. “Prior to these changes, Uber Eats and DoorDash provided conspicuous and convenient options for NYC consumers to leave a tip.”
The report comes ahead of a new city law that requires the apps to offer customers the option to tip before or during checkout. Both Uber and DoorDash have sued the City over the law, which is set to take effect on January 26.
Uber and DoorDash have argued that the tipping requirement violates both federal and state law, including the US Constitution’s First Amendment.
DoorDash has called the requirement “essentially an added tax” in a statement published in December.
The DCWP said it would “enforce this law vigorously to ensure workers earn the pay they deserve,” the report reads.
Tips are a key source of income for gig workers. A report from data analytics company Gridwise found that food delivery workers made most of their earnings on the job from tips in 2024.
Have a tip? Contact this reporter at [email protected] or via encrypted messaging app Signal at 808-854-4501. Use a personal email address, a nonwork WiFi network, and a nonwork device; here’s our guide to sharing information securely.
