New NYC Tipping Rules For Food Delivery Apps Go Into Effect: What To Know

NEW YORK CITY — New Yorkers will now be able to tip delivery workers up front when they place their order after a new law went into effect on Monday.

DoorDash and Uber Eats had filed a lawsuit to keep New York City from enacting new legislation, but a federal judge on Friday denied their request.

The companies argued that the city would violate their free speech by requiring “a government-mandated message in a prescribed manner and at a prescribed time.”

U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels wrote in his decision that the delivery apps did not successfully demonstrate "that the balance of equities weigh in their favor and that a preliminary injunction is in the public interest.”

According to the city's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, the previous system made it hard for consumers to tip and reduced worker compensation by more than $550 million.

Platforms must offer customers a clear tip option before or at checkout, including a suggested tip of at least 10% of the purchase price or a custom amount. This directly counters practices that hid or delayed tip prompts, according to the DCWP.

Other laws protecting delivery workers also went into effect, on Monday.

Expanded minimum pay protections: Grocery delivery apps (including Instacart) must now pay workers at least $21.44 an hour (excluding tips) with annual increases, matching the rate for food delivery workers.

Timely payments and transparency: Apps must pay workers no later than seven calendar days after the end of a pay period and provide detailed, itemized written statements with compensation calculations.

“Our administration has zero tolerance for corporate abuse, deceptive practices, or an economy that leaves working New Yorkers behind,” Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani said. “These laws move us closer to a city delivery workers can afford — a city where their labor is respected, their pay is fair and transparent, and they can earn tips without limitations. That’s what economic justice looks like in practice.”

The minimum pay rate (MPR) for app-based delivery workers will be adjusted for inflation each year. The MPR will increase to $22.13 the first pay period on or after April 1, 2026. The $22.13 rate reflects a 3.2% adjustment for inflation between December 2024 and December 2025.