Surprisingly, the temperature played zero part in getting tips — I worked for 4 hours on a -6C night (it wasn’t raining) and received ZERO tips all night. However on a relatively warm night when it was raining I received a lot of tips! People pity the rain, but they’re used to the cold.

How much did I get paid?

The base rate as a freelancer was €5 per delivery.

I found on average I could manage 3 deliveries per hour.

On top of the base there were also incentives — for example in winter I was paid €1 extra per delivery as well as bonuses for delivering certain amounts of orders i.e. do 75 orders this pay cycle (2 weeks) and get an extra €70.

So it was possible to make €15~ per hour. In reality I was making between €12.06/hr — €15.20/hr.

What about tips?

I only tracked the tips given through the app — I got about the same again, give or take, in cash. Tips from the app were paid at the end of each pay cycle with your pay packet. Every 2 weeks.

Since starting I got €551 in tips. Which is about €3~ per shift on average. Including cash tips it’s probably double that.

The most I got in tips from one shift was €13 (plus cash). The most I received from 1 customer was €7.

Overall thoughts and experience

My wife and I only had 12 months to explore and get to know Amsterdam. After working in an underground kitchen for a few weeks, I realised I wanted to spend my time outdoors, exploring, and meeting people. I wanted to really see Amsterdam. I also wanted to be able to drop everything and travel at a moments notice, because all of Europe was finally at our doorstep — a welcome change from Australia.

So I joined Deliveroo and it turned out to be an amazing decision. I got to explore and memorise all corners of the city. Every day I visited workplaces of every kind. I visited different suburbs observing peoples living arrangements and lifestyles.

I know Amsterdam now. I’ve seen the touristy centre, and its outer edges. I loved every moment of my time there and I’m grateful that I was able to work and be paid while exploring.