The online food delivery industry is easily one of the most competitive markets around today.
With millions of consumers looking for convenient options, hundreds of look-alike startups are looking to cash in on the prize.
Among those startups are brands like Grubhub that continue leading the food delivery war, and companies like OrderUp that cash out big.
There is a third type of winner within this fierce competition: delivery drivers like you.
The demand for these fast, in-app services from all sides of the race means that you are always guaranteed a chance to make money on the platform of your choosing.
When one door shuts, another one opens — and the same applies to on-demand food companies.
In this article, we’ll explain what happened to OrderUp and provide a complete list of all the companies Grubhub has acquired.
We’ll also delve into how you can keep benefiting from your favorite local platforms post-acquisition.
What Was OrderUp?
The food delivery service OrderUp was founded in 2009 to connect consumers to local restaurants and delivery drivers.
Much like other food delivery giants that would later arise, including Uber Eats and DoorDash, the platform allowed drivers to receive requests when users chose to order food through the OrderUp website or app.
OrderUp soon began to dominate its primary market in Baltimore, Maryland — where the brand was founded — and became a big force in Washington, D.C., too.
By 2014, they received $7 million in funding that launched the company into New York and Colorado, offering chances for drivers in new markets to earn.
Perhaps the highlight of this success story occurred when Groupon, the online shopping deals website, took notice of OrderUp’s success in its markets among compared to other food delivery apps.
In 2015, founders Chris Jeffery and Jason Kwicien agreed with Groupon on an acquisition worth a whopping $69 million — with potential for $20 million more.
OrderUp Is Now Grubhub
If you head to OrderUp.com today, you may be wondering why you’re redirected to a Grubhub.com page that announces, “OrderUp has joined Grubhub!”
Two years after Groupon acquired OrderUp, they began a partnership with massive food delivery company Grubhub.
Their partnership allowed Grubhub to take over the majority of OrderUp’s markets (including Baltimore) during a time when Grubhub aggressively acquired a handful of competing brands, including Yelp’s Eat24.
By 2018, Grubhub had acquired all of OrderUp’s markets.
Today, OrderUp has fully migrated into Grubhub and the separate platform no longer exists.
Keep reading to learn how you can continue making money by delivering food to customers later in this article.
A Complete List of Grubhub‘s Acquisitions
As we hinted at in the previous section, Grubhub has made a large amount of progress in acquiring many of its smaller competitors.
Many of these companies had already developed brand loyalty from both hungry users and hustling drivers, which means Grubhub was able to quickly get a strong hold on a huge market in no time.
However, a huge part of Grubhub’s business model has evidently been shutting down companies soon after their acquisitions, or when they prove unable to garner a unique customer base, as was the case with Eat 24.
These are a list of all acquired brands that had the same fate as OrderUp:
- Dashed — acquired in 2017
- Delivered Dish — acquired in 2015, feeding into Grubhub for Work
- DiningIn — acquired in 2015
- Dotmenu — acquired in 2011 as Grubhub’s first acquisition
- Eat24 — acquired in 2017
- Foodler — acquired in 2017
- LAbite — acquired in 2016, feeding into Grubhub for Work
- OrderUp — fully acquired in 2018
- Restaurants on the Run — acquired in 2015
- Tapingo — acquired in 2018, allowing Grubhub Campus Dining to launch
Grubhub has also acquired Bask Labs, which helped the company boost its user experience through data, as well as LevelUp, which is still active as a customer loyalty service today.
How to Continue Earning Post-Acquisition
Today, the delivery options that were available on the aforementioned platforms have all migrated onto Grubhub.
In order to continue receiving delivery requests from former users in your area as a part-time or full-time driver, you’ll need to migrate over to the Grubhub platform, too.
To do so:
- Head to driver.grubhub.com
- Complete the form at the top of the page.
- Once directed to, provide your personal information and required documents, including your driver’s license and proof of car insurance.
- Once you pass the Grubhub background check (this may take a few days), you’ll be able to access your onboarding process and soon set your own schedule to drive.
Reading up on Grubhub driver requirements before you start this sign-up process can help you prepare the information you need.
Doing so will also help you avoid wasted time if you’re not eligible.
Driving for Grubhub is a great way to continue picking up and delivering from your favorite restaurants that were on the platform you originally drove for.
Your Grubhub driving experience will be fairly similar, with the benefit of more requests than you originally received, thanks to the popularity of the brand.
The biggest difference is that you may receive requests from both Grubhub and Seamless users on the Grubhub for Drivers app.
This is because Grubhub and Seamless merged in 2013 and have since shared drivers and restaurant partners in cities where both services are available.
Frequently Asked Questions
The acquisition of OrderUp, LAbite, Tapingo, and more online platforms by Grubhub doesn’t spell out a decline in demand for food delivery.
Rather, it shows the major success of leading food delivery startups like Grubhub — which means every delivery driver has the power to pick any platform they want to join.
To help you decide if Grubhub and Seamless are the best alternatives for you, here are our answers to four frequently asked questions:
1. Can I use my OrderUp driver account to log in to Grubhub for Drivers?
While customers can still use their OrderUp logins and transfer their account information into a Grubhub account, OrderUp drivers do not have the same luxury.
Since you’ll be driving for and representing Grubhub and Seamless, the company needs to take precautions and ensure you pass their unique driver requirements.
That said, you’ll need to sign up to drive for Grubhub through the process we described earlier to get requests from former OrderUp users and restaurants.
2. How much do Grubhub drivers make?
Grubhub drivers make an average of $20.48 per hour, which is actually quite impressive compared to its top competitors, DoorDash and Uber Eats.
Compared to the estimate pay of OrderUp drivers, which averaged out at about $13 per hour, this is a huge boost in income that is certainly an upgrade.
3. Will my pay be affected if I receive a Seamless request instead of a Grubhub request?
Regardless of which platform your request comes from, the amount you earn will be based on the same pay rate.
This means that you won’t have to worry about getting too many requests from either platform, and instead focus on driving to your assigned drop-off location.
4. In what cities can I drive for Grubhub?
You can drive for Grubhub in all markets in which OrderUp was available, including Baltimore and New York City.
You can also become a Grubhub driver in over 2,400 cities across the United States and in London, England.
You can head to this page to find out if Grubhub is available in your area.
If you live in one of 16 major metropolitan areas that Seamless serves, you’re bound to get even more requests, as locals will be ordering online from both services.
Moving on From OrderUp
While OrderUp, along with many other online food ordering services, may be a thing of the past, your earning opportunities are far from over.
As long as consumers are looking for the most convenient food delivery options in the market, delivery drivers will be in high demand.
Over time, Grubhub has become a powerful brand that’s basically made up of all the most successful brands in each region.
This makes it a great, stable gig for any independent contractor.
If you’re seeking a flexible work opportunity that connects you to a huge amount of loyal customers and restaurants in your area, get to know the pros and cons of driving for Grubhub.
