If you are a Deliveroo rider waiting for orders and wondering why its so quiet, you are not alone. Many of our customers have reported the same thing at certain periods of the day, week or month.

In this article we explore why there are no Deliveroo orders, and look at the impact of seasonal demand, weather conditions and the number of drivers available.

Why is Deliveroo not busy?

1. Customers are spending less.

If you are sat at the side of the road and wondering why is Deliveroo quiet today one reason is that people are spending less.

With the cost of living, fuel costs, household bills and everyday expenses being high, people are choosing to maybe cook food at home which is why Deliveroo order demand is lower than normal.

People may also;

Choose to buy food from the supermarket
Collect takeaway order themselves
Reduce how frequently they use delivery apps

2. To many Deliveroo riders in one area

The popularity of working for Deliveroo has increased significantly as people look for a side hustles to make a bit of extra money on the side.

This can be why Deliveroo orders are slow as the number of available drivers in a local area is high. As a result you may find:

Longer waiting times between deliveries
Lower earnings during normally busy periods
Increased competition for available orders
fewer order during a shift

This is highlighted by Deliveroo UK rider support that explains how the hexigons on the app change colour depending on the demand for orders – the stronger the hexagon colour, the more orders available in the area.

3. Off peak times

Weekends are typically very busy periods of the week for food delivery. However, in a recent article we posted about Deliveroo rider pay, and how much can you earn on weekends, three of our clients in the article explain that Deliveroo order demand is slow between the hours of 2-4pm on Saturday.

This is because after the busy lunch time rush, demand drops off a lot, until orders pick up from 5pm again on a Saturday.

Other off peak times when Deliveroo rider demand is going to be low is:

Weekday mornings between 10-12pm
Monday – Sunday between 10-12pm and 2-5pm

4. Seasonal Changes affect Deliveroo rider earnings

Another factor that can result in Deliveroo riders waiting for orders, is the time of year.

The UK food delivery market does not remain constant throughout the year, with some months busier than others, and are affected by things such as weather, holidays, school schedules and customer routines.

Factors affecting Deliveroo rider earnings:

Period	Possible effect on orders
January	Customers may reduce spending after christmas
February	Valentines day can see an increase in demand
March-April	Weather and easter holiday can influence orders
May-June	Increases in milder weather see people outside more, leading to Deliveroo order demand being reduced.
July-August	Sunny weather and holidays can mean fewer orders, resulting in lower Deliveroo pay than in earlier and later months of the year.
September	Customers may return to more normal routines. If you work in University towns and cities there may be an increase in demand as students return back to uni.
October-November	Colder, wetter weather may encourage people to stay in more and order food.
December	Festive events and house parties can see an increase in demand

Deliveroo bicycle Rider in London waiting for orders

What can Deliveroo riders do when there are no orders?

One way that Deliveroo rider earnings can be increased is to follow Ehsans’ advise from our recent article about Deliveroo rider pay at weekends. Ehsan explains how during quieter periods at the weekend, he will wait outside Zapp stores, in order to get more orders from the Deliveroo app.

Adonay from the same article also says that he moves between Chelsea and South Kensington, and occasionally in South London as these areas typically can have less traffic allowing him to complete more orders.

Conclusions: why is Deliveroo not busy?

As you can see, there is no single reason as to why Deliveroo is not busy. The most likely reasons include seasonal changes for example slow down in demand during the warmer months, the number of riders available at the time you might be working and of course spending habits of customers during time of the month.

So if Deliveroo slow days are impacting your earnings, it may be worth moving areas, monitoring the heat map which is visible on the Deliveroo app or focusing on working peak times during the week.

Frequently Asked Questions about why Deliveroo order demand is low

Why are there no Deliveroo orders?

Some of the reason you may not be getting any Deliveroo orders could be that customer orders are low in your area, the number of other riders in the area could be high meaning greater competition or restaurants are receiving fewer orders.

Why is Deliveroo quiet during the day?

If you work in a business district or locations where there is lots of people working, you will see an increase in demand during breakfast and lunchtimes.

Whereas Deliveroo quiet hours can be residential areas when people are at work, with increasing demand in the evening as people return.

What time is Deliveroo busiest?

Our recent article about Deliveroo rider pay interviewed riders who said that weekends are the busiest time of the week, and allowed Oghenetega to earn £150-170 per day as a scooter rider. Adonay also said that that he could earn between £280-£300 over the entire weekend (friday-sunday).

Is Deliveroo loosing popularity in the UK?

When is feels like Deliveroo order demand is low you may wonder if it is loosing its popularity.

This is not necessarily the case and may be due to increases in the number of riders looking to make a bit of extra money, and increases in the number of food delivery apps such as Just Eats and Uber Eats, increasing competition.