Uber’s next ride: taking your returns to the post office

Uber is rolling out a new courier pickup feature targeting consumers who dread making trips to the post office to return or ship packages.

The “Return a Package” feature allows for Uber’s gig workers to pick up prepaid and sealed packages and drop them off at the post office, UPS, or FedEx. Each package (there’s a limit of five) has to weigh less than 30 pounds and be valued at less than $100, the company said. Consumers can either attach a shipping label directly to the package or they can send a prepaid QR code in the app to their courier.

Uber is charging a flat $5 fee for the majority of consumers; subscription members are charged $3. The feature is available in the core rides and Eats apps starting Wednesday in nearly 5,000 cities throughout the U.S., including Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Houston, Dallas, and San Francisco.

The hope is that the new feature will attract busy people and the chronic online shoppers who are looking for some relief. One report from the National Retail Federation and Appriss Retail found that 16.5% of online purchases in 2022 were returned.

Uber’s rollout follows DoorDash, which in January launched its own $5 package pickup service to take items to the post office, UPS, and FedEx.