Openai/69358ee4-4684-800b-9a8d-f494370b20b0

This conversation was exported from ChatGPT

gpt-5-1

User: How is a trip like this profitable?

How is a trip like this profitable?

Assistant: Short answer: it isn’t — at least not for most drivers.

Short answer: it isn’t — at least not for most drivers.

Let’s break this down using the numbers on the screen:

📉 What You’d Earn vs. What You’d Spend

Pay: $64.32 Miles: 110 miles minimum Time estimate: 4 hr 46 min Deliveries: 15 stops (lots of start/stop inefficiency)

But the real miles will likely be closer to 130–150 miles when you include:

✓ Driving to pick-up ✓ Deadhead after last drop ✓ Missed turns / routing corrections ✓ Local roads vs. highways

🚗 Cost to You (rough estimate)

Using standard IRS costs:

• $0.67 per mile × 140 miles ≈ $93.80 in operating cost (Includes fuel, depreciation, tires, repairs, insurance, etc.)

Even if we lowball cost down to $0.35/mile:

• $0.35 × 140 = $49.00 in cost

⏱️ Profitability per Hour

| Scenario | Profit | Earnings per Hour | | -------------------- | ------------- | ----------------- | | Real cost ($0.67/mi) | –$29.48 loss | –$6.17/hr | | Low cost ($0.35/mi) | $15.32 profit | $3.20/hr |

And that’s before taxes.

After self-employment tax? Basically paying to work.

🔍 Why Platforms Offer These

Because somebody will take it — often new drivers who see:

• Big miles
• Lots of deliveries
• “Guaranteed pay”
• Tolls reimbursed

But they aren’t doing the math.

🧠 Better Way to Evaluate Gigs

Here’s the quick rule used by profitable drivers:

Hourly rate must be ≥ $25/hr + fuel costs covered

AND the route must end near where you want to finish your day.

This gig fails:

• Low hourly
• Far-away ending location (Conyers)
• High number of stops (more time, risk, effort)

🚫 Why Multi-Stop Retail Routes Suck

• Constant stopping kills efficiency
• No tips (unlike food/people delivery)
• You act like a mini-UPS driver but get 1/10th the pay
• Wear & tear skyrockets
• Routes can run longer than estimated

💡 When Could It Make Sense?

Only if: ✔ You live near the final stop ✔ You stack another gig that starts nearby ✔ You need tax write-offs and are OK barely breaking even ✔ You track mileage efficiently and have very low operating costs

For someone running surplus-funds errands or scouting neighborhoods, you could treat this as paid recon — but even then, low value.

Final Verdict

This is a terrible gig financially.

You’d make more per hour delivering 3 Uber Eats orders in 45 minutes in a good zone. Or one airport ride in your Suburban.

If you want, I’ll help you build a gig calculator that:

✔ Estimates total real mileage ✔ Shows your true hourly profit ✔ Factors tax + wear & tear ✔ Helps you instantly reject bad gigs

Would you like a mobile version you can use before accepting any job?

User: Yes

Yes

Assistant: Perfect — I’ll build you a gig profit calculator tailored to how you drive and what your real costs are.

Perfect — I’ll build you a gig profit calculator tailored to how you drive and what your real costs are.

Before I generate it, I need a few quick inputs from you — just reply with your answers:

🚗 Vehicle & Cost Info

1️⃣ What vehicle will you mostly use? (Year + model — e.g., “2022 Corolla Hybrid”)

2️⃣ Your real fuel cost per gallon right now?

3️⃣ Your actual MPG in gig driving? (real city/mixed mileage — not the sticker rating)

4️⃣ Do you want to include:

• Tire wear + brakes + maintenance + depreciation? - A) Yes full real cost per IRS rate (recommended) - B) Just fuel cost - C) Custom cost per mile (optional — tell me number)

👔 Your Income Target

5️⃣ What is the minimum net pay you want per hour after expenses? (Example: $25/hr)

6️⃣ What tax estimate should we use? Options:

• A) Full self-employment 30%
• B) Lower tax rate? (Tell me %)
• C) Ignore taxes in the calculator

📍 Routing Info

7️⃣ Should the calculator auto add:

• +10% extra miles (for routing inefficiency)
• +30 minutes per 5 stops (for parking, stairs, apartments, etc.)
• End-of-route deadhead miles?

Tell me: A) Yes include all of those B) Only add deadhead miles C) No extra mileage/time added D) Custom?

Reply with your picks like this:

2022 Corolla Hybrid

$2.99

48 mpg

A

$28/hr

A

A

Once you send those 7 answers, I’ll generate:

✔ Mobile-friendly version ✔ Google Sheets version ✔ A quick Accept/Reject Score that instantly tells you if a gig is worth it ✔ And a simplified rule-of-thumb chart (so you don’t even need the tool sometimes)

Take your time — I’ll wait for your 7 responses!