For the 12+ million Americans who drive, deliver, and hustle across gig platforms, hourly earnings are volatile aren't just a number — they're the foundation of an entire financial life. Solo tracked 2024-to-2025 earnings shifts across 15 major metropolitan areas. The picture is nuanced: some cities posted meaningful gains, while others saw compression that workers felt in real time.

Overall, the cross-metro average hourly rate for combined rideshare and food delivery work slipped from $17.41 in 2024 to $17.06 in 2025. But averages obscure a stark geographic divide. Seattle workers earning $25.73/hr still lead the country by a wide margin — thanks in part to Washington state's stronger gig worker protections — while Miami sits at the bottom of the range at $14.89/hr.

* Data includes earnings from ridesharing and food delivery app-based work. Earnings data reflects work completed within each MSA.

Denver and Houston stand out as the sharpest decliners. Denver's combined hourly rate fell nearly 8% year-over-year — the steepest drop among all metros tracked. Houston saw a roughly 4% decline. In contrast, Philadelphia led all markets in gains (+2.1%), with Atlanta and Chicago also posting modest increases.

Rideshare work pays noticeably more per hour — the 2025 cross-metro average of $19.93 is roughly $5.75 more than food delivery's $14.19. But food delivery saw smaller losses overall, and cities like San Francisco (+4.8%), Boston (+3.4%), and Philadelphia (+2.5%) actually posted food delivery gains. Rideshare told a harsher story in several of those same markets.

Here's how all 15 metros performed year-over-year on the combined metric:

The data underscores why Solo's suite of financial tools matters for gig workers: earnings volatility is real, and the difference between a city that moved up 2% and one that dropped 8% can mean thousands of dollars annually for a full-time driver or Dasher. Knowing where your city sits — and tracking it over time — is a first step toward making smarter decisions about when, where, and how much to work.

As we enter 2026, multiple new factors are contributing to earnings on major job platforms. First, the impact of autonomous vehicles, which are slowly becoming more prevalent in places like Arizona, California, and Texas, is starting to become clearer. Second, net take home earnings for Solopreneurs are being heavily impacted by the fallout from the Iran war as gas has risen by more than $1 across the country. We'll dive into more detail on these factors as we release the first half earnings for 2026.

Check back in with us as we release the first half earnings for 2026 and go deeper on the impact of this year's major contributors to Solopreneur earnings.