【2020.10 Update】Uber Eats has recently undergone major changes. In addition to adding the Uber Pass benefit for AMEX "yellow/green/white" cards and the extra $10 monthly reimbursement on Gold cards, Uber Eats also made a small improvement to its refer system. In the past, after downloading the app we could only manually enter a referral code, but now it seems that may no longer be necessary. At the same time, the referral bonus has also been improved.

  • Uber Eats registration link (new users, $20 off a $25 order)
  • If you need to enter a code, enter: eats-jqof6v or eats-zhous106ue
  • You can download the app and then enter the above code under Promotion

To generate a referral link, go to: refer——more options——Message. The generated link will point to the app download and include the referral source; my guess is that it is tracked automatically.

Uber now only allows registration with a real mobile phone number. If you are a SIM-card pro, you can use the SIM cards you have on hand to register multiple Uber Eats accounts. In addition to enjoying new-user signup benefits, there are also many Uber codes you can use in everyday life, truly making every meal a deal-hunting opportunity. Our new contributing author Wangbo is an expert at this.

I believe everyone, like KUKU, has been passively conditioned by the evil AMEX into the habit of ordering takeout? Even though I have been in mainland China for years, I still have to order takeout regularly every month to "stop the bleeding." Most readers are already very familiar with Uber Eats (this article), Grubhub and Seamless. This article will additionally introduce some things to note and special uses, and also share experiences ordering takeout from another location or across countries.

There are many food delivery apps in the U.S. Our author Lizi previously introduced another ordering app——DoorDash

And there is also the "evil" AMEX Gold-related ordering app——Grubhub and Seamless

This article mainly introduces Uber Eats

Uber Eats registration and use;

  • Uber Eats registration link (if you can't find a better code or want to support us, feel free to use our referral code for $20 off your first order: eats-zhous106ue or eats-jqof6v). Note that Uber Eats is a separate app from Uber and needs to be downloaded separately; promotions usually don't apply between them.
  • Order types: currently Delivery and Pickup are available, and Dine-in is also being tested (eat in the restaurant, HT: Eater. Not sure what the point of this order type is; maybe it's to help everyone burn through Uber credits faster??)
  • Supported credit cards: Uber/Uber Eats supports major credit cards from all major countries (including UnionPay credit cards from mainland China) and PayPal, which is pretty solid. If you really like Uber/Uber Eats, you can make full use of the strong cashback offers on mainland China credit cards for overseas online purchases, see here;
  • Ordering process: choose your delivery location——choose the restaurant you want——place the order on the website or app——the restaurant accepts the order——Uber driver delivers the food (almost 99% chance it's a Black man or Black woman... especially in Texas)——receive the food, order complete

Before the restaurant accepts the order, you can cancel at any time. After it accepts, you can no longer cancel. Before ordering, make sure you or your friend can be reached, so the driver doesn't fail to find the delivery location, get the order canceled by Uber, and have to pay the full amount of the order.

If your delivery location is easy to find, you can also choose to have the driver leave the food at the door. Usually the proud Black drivers can't be bothered to deal with you either and would rather just leave it at the door. Just select delivering to door and leave a note below.

  • Remote ordering: It fully supports placing orders from another location (including mainland China) via the app or website. Since Uber Eats is an on-demand, non-reservation ordering model, as long as your ordering location is within the United States, it is fine (no need to switch to U.S. time zone or use a VPN, though having a VPN is even better~). If you're far away (or traveling), order something for your LD/roommate/buddy! If ordering remotely, it is recommended that you leave the recipient's phone number directly in the note. If you change your time zone before ordering, that will naturally be better. This is a bit better than Grubhub/Seamless, since G/S requires a VPN (outside the U.S.) and time zone settings, otherwise you either can't place the order or the delivery time will bug out.
  • We recommend Express VPN, click here for details;
  • When ordering remotely, the Uber Eats app will first prompt you: "Dear, it looks like you're pretty far away!" Just ignore it and keep ordering. Anyway, I've been ordering takeout for friends in the U.S. from mainland China all along.
  • How to pay: On the payment screen, choose the card you want to use. If you need to use Uber Credits (introduced below), just make sure there is a green box with "Credits" checked in the spot marked by the red arrow. That way Uber Credits will be deducted first. For example, I spent $14.72 here and didn't need to pay anything more with a credit card. In fact, sometimes the credit card will immediately alert us that we spent $14.72. Don't panic in that case. After the order is fully completed, the receipt emailed to you by the system will automatically correct it. If the card was charged earlier, it will be refunded to you later. At the same time, Uber will use up your AMEX Credits first.
  • Tracking system: Uber Eats' tracking system lets you check the food preparation status and the driver's location at any time and estimate the delivery time. Even without a VPN, you can still track your order from mainland China.
  • About tipping: Uber does not require you to tip. In fact, the Service fee and Delivery fee already include some service pay for the driver. You can have the driver leave it at the door, which saves you the awkwardness of meeting in person. If you think the driver did a great job or that life is not easy, you can give the driver a thumbs-up after the order is complete, or leave an extra tip.

About Uber Credits

  • Sources and uses of Uber Credits: mainly from Uber/Uber Eats gift cards, earned through Uber Visa Local offers, and "given" by the AMEX Platinum credit card.
  • AMEX Platinum Uber Credits: These come from the non-business AMEX Platinum card family (currently including AMEX personal platinum, Schwab, Ameriprise, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs versions of Platinum). The credits can be used for both Delivery and Pickup, and they are deducted immediately when the order is completed.
  • Credit amounts from the card: Each card gets $200 of Uber Credit per year, including $35 in December and $15 in the other months, but each credit is only valid for one month. These credits can be stacked. If you have N Platinum cards, you can just link them all to your Uber/Uber Eats account and use them together. You can also link the whole family’s Platinum cards and use them together—the so-called Platinum family bucket. The more family members, the better! The credits will appear under Payments-Credits. If you have multiple Platinum cards linked, you will see multiple separate $15 credits; just imagine how substantial the total is every December with this family bucket.

Because these cards come with painful annual fees, and the airline credit gift card trick is dead, most people only keep the card for the first year and then close it. So if you only hold one of the cards above for a year, the face value is only $200 in total, but in practice you can usually get $230–250 in credits. Here’s how to maximize those credits:

Simply put, apply in the early part of the month and apply again at year-end. There are three scenarios:

  • For example, if you open the card in early to mid-July, you should receive it before the end of July, assuming the annual fee posts that month (July X). Then you can receive credits from that month through the following July, for a total of 13 months of credits, worth $215. After the annual fee posts again on July X of the following year, you have 30 days to close the card. When August begins, use that month’s $15 credit and close the card after placing your order. In total, we used $15 + $200 + $15 = $230 in credits;
  • Likewise, if you open the card in early to mid-November, you will end up with $15 (first month) + $200 + $35 (the closing month in December of the following year) = $250;
  • Finally, if you open the card in early to mid-December, you will end up with $35 (first month) + $200 + $15 (the closing month in January of the third year) = $250

Considering that AMEX airline credit ($200) renews every January, and Saks credit ($50) renews every January and July, if you open the card in early December each year, you will span three calendar years. In addition to one extra $35 Uber credit, you can also get the new airline credit in January of the third year and the new Saks credit in January of the third year, for a total of three airline credits, four Saks credits, and $250 in total Uber credit. $200 + $200 + $200 + $50 + $50 + $50 + $50 + $250 = $1,050, isn’t that exciting? Trust KUKU—if there isn’t a big offer, let’s wait until early December and apply for the various Platinum versions together again!

[Note: The benefits across the various AMEX Platinum versions are pretty similar, but the annual fee is expensive, and airline credit is harder to reimburse now. If you don’t have a strong reason, it’s better to keep just one and take it slow.]

These credits can be used for Uber rides and Uber Eats (US only). Uber rides may not be a must-have for everyone, but ordering food through Uber is still a regular need for many people (though it’s not exactly a great deal), and it feels like being squeezed by AMEX.

Stacking offers

Uber Eats currently doesn’t seem to have a good shopping portal for stacking cashback offers (many are only for first orders);

Uber Eats often has targeted or non-targeted offers, such as free delivery fee or $5 off. These are usually in the form of a code, and sometimes you can see them directly on the app home page. If you’re not in a hurry, you can wait until the end of each month to order food. If you have a usable code, go to Promotions and add the code under Add promotion; once it shows up normally, you can use it. We’ll also update related offers in a timely manner.

Other Uber Eats promotions and offers roundup: we update this regularly, please refer here

Other notes

Uber Eats delivery cannot be scheduled for a specific time; you can only order and eat right away, and you also can’t place an order before the restaurant opens. That’s a big downside. Grubhub/Seamless has none of these concerns.

Uber Eats earns AMEX Gold 1X 4X, 4X on the Barclays Uber card, and Chase and Citi also code it as dining; with the Apple Card, purchases earn 3% cash back;

With the AMEX Platinum card, as long as you link Uber or Uber Eats, $15 in credit will be added to the app automatically every month. If you need to link multiple cards, you need to remove that card from someone else’s app first, then link it to your own app; you’ll get the credit on the 1st of the next month;

Uber customer service says that if a card is linked properly and you still haven’t received the credit by the 5th of the month, you can ask them for it; you can also ask AMEX at the same time. AMEX usually just issues a $15 or $35 statement credit to your card without hesitation. If you contact Uber or AMEX, you may end up getting 2–3 credits in a month; the extra credit they give you usually won’t be clawed back. (Usually you’ll receive the credit smoothly on the 1st of each month, so there aren’t many chances to game the system.)

If you missed last month’s credit and forgot to use it, you can try asking AMEX to give it back. Say, in tears, that you’re very sorry you didn’t cherish the opportunity, and maybe customer service will issue a statement credit without saying a word!

If, while you’re maxing out the Uber credit and preparing to close the card, your own auto-pay unexpectedly paid the AMEX annual fee early, after closing the card you can contact customer service online and have the annual fee refunded directly to your payment account (arrives in 2 biz days) or sent to you by check;

You can use Uber Eats to order local food in other countries or regions, but you can’t use Uber Credits (except in certain countries or regions, such as mainland China, where the business has been sold to Didi Chuxing);

You can register Uber and Uber Eats with a mainland China mobile number, but you won’t be able to request rides or place orders (the account will be frozen immediately). If you really need to, you can use Google Voice instead;

Food ordering app roundup

Food ordering app stacking offers and promotions roundup

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