By StationClosed · Published
An extra $11 in block pay can disappear on a longer drive. Compare the money left after driving and the time each offer would take out of your day.
Why the bigger offer can leave you with less
Consider two offers. Offer A pays $75 for three scheduled hours and Offer B pays $64 for two and a half hours. Assume gas costs $3.50 per gallon, your car gets 28 miles per gallon and you budget 18 cents per mile for maintenance and wear. The 18 cents is an example you can replace with your own estimate. At those inputs, fuel adds 12.5 cents per mile, bringing the modeled driving cost to 30.5 cents per mile.
Offer A's 86 miles cost about $26.23, leaving $48.77. Add 20 minutes outside the block and the estimate comes to $14.63 per hour. Offer B's 48 miles cost $14.64, leaving $49.36. With 15 extra minutes, it comes to $17.95 per hour. The smaller offer leaves slightly more money after driving and takes less time. If B turns into a longer route, the comparison can change, so it is worth trying a second mileage estimate before you decide.
Start with the miles you would actually drive
Count the drive to pickup, the route itself and the drive from the final stop to wherever you are headed next. The last leg can be hard to estimate before pickup. Try a route ending near home and another ending farther away. When you plan two blocks on the same day, count the trip between stations once. If you go home between them, count those additional trips in the offers they affect. A mileage assumption that makes sense for one station may be too low for a station on the other side of town.
Use your own observed fuel economy when you have it. For a starting point, look up your year, make and model. A route with short stops and idling can use more fuel than a steady highway drive. If you keep fuel receipts and odometer readings, compare the worksheet's assumption with your actual miles per gallon after a few fill-ups. Compare official U.S. fuel economy ratings.
Use your time outside the block
The scheduled block length is a starting point. Add time you expect to spend driving to pickup, waiting before check-in or driving home when that time falls outside the scheduled hours. Avoid counting a loading delay twice if it already falls within the block. For a day with several offers, include a gap only if you would treat it as time committed to working. You can compare the hourly figure with the pay you would need to make that part of your day worthwhile.
See how sensitive the comparison is
Try changing one number at a time. Add 15 miles to the offer that looks better, then try another 20 minutes outside the block. If a small change swaps the result, the two offers are close given the uncertainty. If you usually drive a particular station, keep a few actual mileage and time totals to improve your starting assumptions. Note weather, toll roads or a distant final stop separately when they explain an unusually expensive route.
The worksheet estimates gas, maintenance and wear. Budget separately for any tolls, parking and taxes. For electric charging, station-area fuel prices, delivery-zone estimates or a saved record of your actual payouts, open the Block Earnings Calculator with your account. If weather is part of your decision, check the 6 Hour Outlook and the live map before leaving.
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