A UC Berkeley study found DoorDash drivers averaged just $14 per hour gross before expenses, the lowest of any major gig platform, with typical net earnings of 40 cents per hour after costs in most cities studied. DoorDash agreed to pay $18 million in 2025 to settle a Chicago lawsuit for hiding fees, marking up restaurant menu prices without disclosure, and diverting customer tips to subsidize driver base pay.

Why are people boycotting DoorDash?

Driver pay and tip manipulation are the most common drivers. DoorDash was fined $375,000 by California in 2024 for selling customers' personal information including home addresses and transaction histories to marketing co-ops without notice or opt-out rights. Many independent restaurants also report that DoorDash commission rates threaten their viability.

What are the best ethical alternatives to DoorDash?

Ordering directly from restaurants by phone or through their own website avoids platform fees entirely and puts more money in the restaurant's hands. Grubhub is an alternative delivery marketplace. Cooking at home is the most affordable and sustainable option for everyday meals.

DoorDash

Flagged · Avoid

America's dominant food delivery platform, connecting tens of millions of customers with restaurants through a gig-worker courier network, while extracting commissions high enough to threaten the viability of the independent restaurants it depends on.

Last updated May 13, 2026

Reasons to avoid

Issues span:LaborConsumer

A UC Berkeley Labor Center study published in May 2024 found that DoorDash delivery drivers averaged just $14 per hour in gross earnings before expenses, the lowest of any major gig platform studied. Outside California, the typical DoorDash delivery driver earned 40 cents per hour net after accounting for expenses like gas and vehicle wear, below the minimum wage in all five metro areas studied.laborcenter.berkeley.edu2024-05-20
DoorDash agreed in November 2025 to pay $18 million to settle a City of Chicago lawsuit alleging it hid fees by grouping them with taxes to imply they were government charges, marked up restaurant menu prices on its app without disclosure, and diverted customer tips to subsidize driver base pay rather than passing them directly to workers.axios.com2025-11-14
California Attorney General Rob Bonta fined DoorDash $375,000 in February 2024 after finding the company had sold customers' personal information, including names, home addresses, and transaction histories, to marketing co-ops without notice or the right to opt out, starting in 2018. Even after being notified of the violation in 2020, DoorDash could not locate or recover all of the data it had distributed to third parties.oag.ca.gov2024-02-21

Ethical alternatives

Food Delivery

Grubhub

Food‑delivery marketplace with a transparent fee structure for restaurants.

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DIY

Cook at Home

Save money and eat healthier by preparing meals at home. Find easy, affordable recipes.

♻️ Sustainable🌿 Natural

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Common Questions

Is DoorDash ethical?: A UC Berkeley study found DoorDash drivers averaged just $14 per hour gross before expenses, the lowest of any major gig platform, with typical net earnings of 40 cents per hour after costs in most cities studied. DoorDash agreed to pay $18 million in 2025 to settle a Chicago lawsuit for hiding fees, marking up restaurant menu prices without disclosure, and diverting customer tips to subsidize driver base pay.
Why are people boycotting DoorDash?: Driver pay and tip manipulation are the most common drivers. DoorDash was fined $375,000 by California in 2024 for selling customers' personal information including home addresses and transaction histories to marketing co-ops without notice or opt-out rights. Many independent restaurants also report that DoorDash commission rates threaten their viability.
What are the best ethical alternatives to DoorDash?: Ordering directly from restaurants by phone or through their own website avoids platform fees entirely and puts more money in the restaurant's hands. Grubhub is an alternative delivery marketplace. Cooking at home is the most affordable and sustainable option for everyday meals.