If you are craving a cigarette but don’t want to bother leaving your home, you may wish to order a Marlboro cigarette or your favorite nicotine product from Uber Eats.
However, will Uber deliver cigarettes? What about DoorDash? Read on to learn all about cigarette deliveries from Uber Eats.
Key Takeaways
- Uber does not deliver cigarettes, due to a variety of reasons – mainly red tape and legal headaches.
- They do, however, deliver alcohol and many other items.
- If you’d like cigarettes delivered, there are popular Uber alternatives that do deliver them, including GoPuff and 7NOW.
Will Uber Deliver Cigarettes?
No. Uber does not deliver cigarettes to customers. You also can’t order an electronic cigarette.
However, alcohol delivery is available on Uber. You can order products like liquor, wine, and other alcoholic beverages. You must present a valid ID confirming your legal age to order alcohol.
Will Uber Deliver Other Forms of Tobacco?
No. Uber will not deliver any tobacco or nicotine products, including rolling tobacco, nicotine gum, smokeless tobacco, chewing tobacco, JUUL pods, or tobacco leaves.
Why Won’t Uber Deliver Cigarettes or Tobacco?
Offering tobacco delivery can be problematic for Uber. Regulations regarding selling tobacco and related products vary from country to country and may even be different depending on where in your country you are.
In the United States, the sale of tobacco is a little controversial.
In 2019, the president signed legislation raising the minimum legal age to buy tobacco from 18 to 21, according to the FDA. That includes cigarettes and cigars.
Forty-nine states plus D.C. have laws restricting public smoking in some or all public places. In addition to federal regulations, states and cities often have specific rules that make it even more difficult to sell tobacco products.
For example, in New York City, it is prohibited to offer the delivery of tobacco products or electronic cigarettes to any consumer.
Even for a large company like Uber, selling tobacco on its platform can be challenging. It would have to navigate a maze of legal requirements and regulations.
It also wouldn’t be able to offer a consistent tobacco delivery service across all countries, states, and cities in which it operates, as tobacco delivery is illegal in some places.
So, Uber had a choice. It could deal with those problems to earn some extra revenue by allowing tobacco delivery on its platform. Or it could avoid all of those headaches altogether by simply not offering tobacco delivery.
While some apps decided to offer tobacco delivery, Uber went with the latter option.
What Does Uber Deliver?
Uber delivers a wide range of products from a variety of stores.
Unfortunately, tobacco delivery is not available on Uber Eats.
Here is what you can order from Uber.
1. Food From Restaurants
Restaurant food is Uber Eats’ bread and butter.
You can get a burger from your local fast food joint or a delicious meal from your favorite five-star restaurant for a small delivery fee.
From coffee to steaks, all kinds of meals are available on Uber Eats.
However, many people don’t know that restaurants are not the only stores available on Uber.
2. Groceries
You can also place a grocery order on Uber.
If you need a few household items, like cleaning supplies or milk, you can place an order with a nearby convenience store on Uber.
Your Uber driver will deliver those products straight to your delivery address.
3. Prescriptions
In 2020, Uber added prescriptions to its delivery service in a service they call Uber Pharmacy.
Customers can connect their NimbleRx accounts to upload their prescriptions and have a local pharmacy fill them.
They can even have their insurance pay for their medications.
Prescription refills come with a $0 delivery fee.
What Delivery Apps Deliver Cigarettes?
Fortunately, though, other delivery apps do deliver tobacco.
If you frequently crave a cigarette and would like to order a pack, download those apps ASAP.
1. DoorDash
DoorDash does not allow merchants to sell tobacco and nicotine products on the DoorDash app.
That includes vape pens and JUUL devices.
DoorDash is very clear that while merchants may add alcoholic beverages to their DoorDash menus, the sale of tobacco is not available.
However, DoorDash still delivers tobacco products for merchants who signed up for the Drive or Whitelabel services.
Such merchants can sell tobacco products on their proprietary websites or apps.
DoorDash then uses its drivers to fulfill those orders.
According to DoorDash’s tobacco delivery guidelines, DoorDash drivers must be 21 years old or older and have a valid ID confirming their identity to pick up tobacco orders.
In addition, they must verify the customer’s age, who must also be at least 21 years old and have a valid ID.
Nevertheless, tobacco delivery is not available to specific locations like college campuses, hospitals, and schools.
2. Gopuff
Gopuff is one of the few delivery apps that allows the sale of tobacco products.
Its “Smoke Shop Delivery” service allows you to order products such as:
- Vapes
- Cigars
- Cigarillos
- Cigarettes
- E-juices
- Hookah products
- Chewing tobacco
- Smokeless pouches
Head to the app’s smoke shop for more information.
Gopuff operates in over 1,000 cities across the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.
You’ll need to enter your zip code to confirm availability in your area.
Note that while Gopuff may operate in your area, cigarette delivery may not be available, even though they do deliver alcohol.
Over 4,000 products are available on Gopuff.
You can order groceries, medicine, and other essentials in addition to cigarettes.
Gopuff operates out of micro-fulfillment centers instead of going to third-party stores, which is how it can deliver orders so quickly.
Gopuff aims to fulfill all orders within 30 minutes or less.
It is open 24/7 in some cities.
In other cities, it is open until late at night.
The order minimum varies by location, but the delivery fee is always $2.95.
However, you will have to pay an extra fee of an additional $2.95 when ordering regulated products like tobacco, vapes, and alcohol, according to Gopuff’s FAQs page.
Final Thoughts
While Uber doesn’t allow the sale of tobacco, other apps do.
Gopuff should be your top choice, although certain local retailers may also sell cigarettes on their apps and have DoorDash deliver them.
You should also check out 7NOW, which is 7-11’s delivery app that also allows the sale of tobacco.
