10 Legit Ways to Make Money Driving in 2023

Cars are depreciating assets overall, but they actually present you with the potential to make money driving. We're talking about more than just driving to and from work — we mean making extra cash with your car.

There have almost always been places hiring drivers, like pizza places and taxi services, but there are so many more ways to make money with your car. Having a reliable vehicle is key, but a clean driving record is also a must. With those things, you can earn hundreds of dollars extra each month with your car. 

10 Legit Ways to Make Money Driving in 2023

1. Get Paid to Deliver Food

Food delivery services are blowing up these days. Customers love the convenience and ease, and they’re willing to pay a premium for it. That’s good news if you want to make money driving because there is a growing list of food delivery services you can work for.

Food delivery services have very similar driver requirements, including:

• Meet the minimum age to drive in your state
• Reliable vehicle and insurance
• Smartphone able to download the delivery app
• Pass criminal background check

If you meet those requirements, here are some of the top delivery apps you can get paid to drive for:

Instacart is specifically for grocery delivery, and drivers shop for and deliver orders. You’re paid based on the size and difficulty of the order, plus how busy the app is. Shoppers will see their estimated earnings for each order before accepting them so they can see if it’s worth it or not.

DoorDash drivers get paid to deliver takeout from restaurants, pet supplies, and convenience store items. DoorDash drivers see their guaranteed base pay in the app before accepting orders based on time, distance, and desirability of the order. Base pay ranges from $2-$10/order, and drivers keep 100% of tips added to their order.

2. Rideshare Driving

If you’re a people person, rideshare driving would be a great way to make money driving. Drivers typically earn around $10-$15/hour, and drivers keep 100% of their tips. To make the most, you’ll need to drive during busier times of the day, which are the morning and evening rush hour, weekend nights, and around holidays. Also, if there are events in your area like concerts, baseball games, and conventions, those are also busier times to drive. 

I’ve met a lot of drivers who genuinely enjoy driving people around because they love meeting new people. One driver I met told me she loves helping people get home safely from bars and parties, and there’s the added perk of listening in on some wild late-night conversations.

3. Rent out your car

Peer-to-peer rental is a growing industry, and most of us are familiar with it from Airbnb, where homeowners rent out their homes on their own terms. That’s what it’s like to rent out your car. 

With a company like HyreCar, you can list your car, pick which dates it’s available to rent, and make around $35/day on average. As the car owner, you’ll need to choose a protection program for your vehicle, which supplements your insurance coverage. Depending on the plan you choose, HyreCar takes a 15%-25% commission.

Okay, I know you technically aren’t technically getting paid to drive with this one, but you are making money with your car. What car owners like about renting out their car is that the work is minimal. You list your car and get it ready for the renter; that’s about it. Who doesn’t love passive income?

4. Deliver for Amazon Flex

Amazon Flex is an Amazon service that outsources deliveries for Amazon.com, Prime Now, Amazon Fresh, and other store orders. You’ll need to be at least 21 years old and have a reliable mid-sized to large vehicle — the larger the vehicle the more orders you’ll be able to complete, and more orders = more money.

According to Amazon Flex, drivers average $18-$25/hour, and pay varies based on where you live.

Amazon Flex only recruits drivers when there is a need, and this is good because it means the market doesn’t get overly saturated. Fortunately, they’re currently recruiting in most major cities across the U.S..

5. Help People Move

Moving is no fun, and that’s why you can make money helping people move — anywhere from $25-$50/hour depending on your location and where you’re located. I’m not only talking about helping people move out of one place into another. There are always people looking for help moving a large piece of furniture they just bought or an appliance.

It’s best to have a large vehicle, like a pick-up truck, box truck, or cargo van. It’s recommended that you have moving blankets (old blankets work well) and straps for tying large items down.

Craigslist has always been a good place to look for one-off moving gigs, but I also highly recommend listing your service on TaskRabbit. You can specify the kinds of moving jobs you’re interested in, like junk removal, moving storage units, or furniture delivery. You set your own rates, and potential customers can find you on TaskRabbit’s database of local movers.

6. Be an After School Sitter

My kid isn’t even one yet, but I can already see how things get crazy once he starts school and has to make it to and from school, band practice, friends’ houses, and any other activities he has going on. It’s making my head spin already, and I work a job that will allow me to drive him around.

But for parents who work outside of the house, they occasionally need to rely on after school sitters to cart their kids around. 

You can make money driving kids too and from school, from after school activities, etc., and you can make upwards of $20/hour. Traditional babysitters average $10-$15/hour depending on location, but being able to drive kids around is an additional service that boosts your pay.

Parents will want referrals and a clean driving record is a must. Besides word-of-mouth and listing your services on local platforms like NextDoor, I recommend Care.com

Care.com is a platform designed for parents to find trusted caregivers. You can create a profile and list your services, and families can find you based on what they’re looking for in a babysitter.

7. Advertise With Your Car

If you’re already driving for Uber, Lyft, or DoorDash, you can make extra money driving by wrapping your car in ads with Carvertise. I already know what question you’re thinking about, so let me address them:

• Uhh, will my entire car be covered? Yes, your entire car will be wrapped in vinyl ads.
• Will it ruin my car’s paint? No, Carvertise pays to have your car professionally wrapped, and they pay to have the ads removed once that campaign is over. 
• How much will I make? Carvertise pays around $100/month.

You can learn more about Carvertise, including how it works and how to avoid car wrapping scams (unfortunately those are out there) in my Carvertise review.

Not everyone is going to want to make money driving around in a giant billboard, but it’s easy passive income. It’s also a great way to offset the costs associated with rideshare and food delivery driving, like gas and additional wear and tear on your vehicle.

8. Rent Out Your RV

Having an RV is a lot of fun, but the vast majority of RVs are sitting unused in a driveway. Why not capitalize on your unused RV and rent it out to a verified driver? Outdoorsy is an online peer-to-peer RV rental marketplace where you can make $100-$400/day renting your RV, camper, pull-along trailer, or camper van.

This is another one that isn’t exactly getting paid to drive, but you are making money with your vehicle. It’s also passive income that can offset the cost of RV ownership. 

It’s free to list your vehicle on Outdoorsy, and you determine your rates and schedule, which gives you the flexibility to keep using your RV whenever you want. Outdoorsy covers each trip with a $1 million liability insurance and free roadside assistance, and they keep 20% of every booking.

9. Get Paid for Carpooling

Rush hour traffic is the worst, and some areas are paying people to carpool to reduce that frustrating congestion. Besides making money driving, carpooling has additional environmental benefits because you and the other riders are using less fuel overall.

Washington, D.C. is one place that pays carpoolers — it’s about $2/day, up to a $130 incentive.

Drivers near Birmingham, Alabama can make up to $70 over 90 days for carpooling. 

In Colorado, if you drive the busy stretch of highway between Boulder and Denver, you can make $75 or more for carpooling.

To find out if your community offers incentives for carpooling, you can Google the name of your city + “carpooling incentive.” I also recommend asking your employer if they offer incentives. Some employers may offer free parking, weekly drawings, or preferred parking spots.

10. Make Money Driving Safely

Safe drivers reduce costs — it’s that simple. It saves money on injuries, lives, and property damage. Not seeing your insurance costs increase is typically how much most drivers see those savings passed on, but it might surprise you to learn that you can actually get paid for being a safe driver.

Allstate cuts drivers a check every six months if they’re enrolled in the Allstate Safe Driver Bonus Program and don’t have an accident. You can have money deposited directly into your bank account or as a credit on your account.

State Far, Drive Safe and Save program will give you up to a 30% discount off your policy if you download their app which collects data about how you drive. 

How to Make Money Driving - The Final Word

Having a car puts you in a great position to make extra money. Many possibilities are available from a flexible side hustle, like delivering for DoorDash to earning passive income renting out your car on HyreCar.

Depending on which option you choose, you may see additional costs like fuel, wear and tear on your car, special insurance, etc. There’s also the fact that your car will decrease in value over time. Make sure you account for all of those factors and budget accordingly.