Are you a delivery driver looking for a new role, or interested in becoming one? We’ve ranked companies that hire delivery drivers from best to worst, based on the real experiences of people who work for them.
Why do you want to be a delivery driver: freedom and flexibility
Delivery driver jobs are well suited to anyone who likes a flexible workload and being out on the road.
There are options to work directly for a company, or go self employed and pick up jobs as-and-when they suit your schedule.
It's important to know that some companies provide vehicles, whilst you'll need to drive your own to work for others.
To get started, you'll need a clean driver's licence. If you'd like to drive vehicles beyond a certain size (3.5 tonnes), you'll need to have a specialist drivers licence.
We’re going to touch on the most important things to learn when starting out as a delivery driver:
The Breakroom rating given to each company comes from pay, hours, benefits and how happy workers are in their jobs. This can help you narrow down which place would be a best fit for you. We've rated these from best to worst.
And if you’re already working in the industry, join Breakroom to find out how your job compares.
The top 10 delivery companies to work for in the UK
Seen a delivery company in this list you like the look of, but not sure how to get a job with them? Read on.
How to become a delivery driver
The first thing to know is that there are lots of different types of delivery driver jobs: some require certain qualifications, some require your own vehicle, some are self-employed. Here are the basics you need to know:
| Type of delivery driver | What you need to get started | How far you’ll need to travel | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-drop driver (also called: delivery driver, courier, collection and delivery driver) | A full UK driving license (known as a category B license). This allows you to drive vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes. | Locally | You may be delivering to:
|
| Large goods vehicle driver (also called: LGV, HGV, Lorry driver) |
| Long distance |
|
If you’re a self-employed delivery driver you should be aware that:
you may have to use your own vehicle. It’ll need to be insured for business use
you might be expected to rent a vehicle and uniform from your client (the company you’re working for). Be prepared to pay a deposit
| Type of delivery driver | Employed or self-employed? | Companies that hire this type of driver |
|---|---|---|
| Multi-drop driver | Employed |
|
| Multi-drop driver | Self-employed |
|
| Large goods vehicle driver | Mostly employed |
|
We’ve covered the basics, but what else do you need to know? Another important part of delivery driver jobs is customer service. This might involve collecting signatures, dealing with unwanted packages, answering questions or conversing with customers.
The customer service expectations of delivery driver jobs will vary on which company you are working for. For example, if you’re working for Ocado, you’ll be expected to offer friendly customer service alongside your delivery driver work. In fact, Ocado thinks it’s so important to emphasise this that the job title for their delivery drivers is “customer service team member”.
If you aren’t keen on the idea of something customer-facing, it’s worth looking into the customer service expectations of different delivery companies. It may be that a lorry driver job, rather than a local delivery job, is more suited to you. Longer journeys mean more time on the road and less interaction with customers.
Employed or self-employed: which is best?
When choosing what type of delivery driver job is right for you, there’s another thing to consider: go self-employed or employed? it’s helpful to look at the pros and cons that each of these offer:
| Do you have to rent or supply your own equipment? | Do you have to do your own taxes? | Is the job flexible? | Does the job offer regular and stable income? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed | No | No | No | Yes |
| Self-employed | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
As an employed delivery driver, you’ll also be legally entitled to the following:
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)
annual leave (holiday entitlement)
minimum hours to work per week
contracts can’t be terminated without a notice period
redundancy pay (after working over 2 years on a fixed contract)
legal protections for unfair dismissal
Delivery driver jobs where you’re directly employed by the company have more job security and a better legal safety net.
The flexibility of self-employment can be appealing, but you need to beware of the hidden costs. If you’re just starting up you’ll need to purchase or hire a vehicle, take training courses, get insurance, and pay for your own fuel and accounting. It can all add up. It’s worth double-checking if what you’ll get paid per job will cover your operating costs.
We use the responses from the 480,000+ people like you who've told us about their jobs when they've taken the Breakroom Quiz. We include an estimated pay range for all jobs, even if the pay isn’t in the job advert you'll still have an idea of what you'll be earning.
You can search for delivery driver jobs by visiting HERE. Find the right job by filtering jobs by what matters to you 🫵 Things like do they pay breaks? Are all ages are paid the same? and how much notice do you get for your shifts?
* Our rankings are based on employers with over 30 Breakroom Quiz responses from employees at that employer.
** All reviews, ratings, rankings and job postings are accurate as of the 7th of March 2023
Published on 7 March 2023