
Stephanie Achtar
Professional writer, editor, researcher, and educator for more than 10 years. I love helping businesses and brands develop their content stories and communicate messages.
Multi-drop route planner with postcodes: how UK couriers plan 100+ drops
What free multi-drop planners really give you for nothing and what they cost after that, why a postcode on its own is not a door, and how to plan a round of 100 or more drops step by step.
Stephanie Achtar · Is it 45p or 55p a mile? What a self-employed courier's mile really costs
The HMRC flat rate is 55p a mile from 6 April 2026 and 25p after 10,000 miles. What it covers, and how it compares with the real cost of a mile in an older car, a new car and a van.
Stephanie Achtar · Google Maps more than 10 stops: the limit and 3 ways around it
Google Maps takes 9 stops plus your start and drives them in the order you type. How to add stops, what Google Maps won't do, and three ways around the limit.
Stephanie Achtar · Route planner apps compared: free stops, prices and stop limits
Most route planner apps cost $5 to $20 a month, and their free plans stop at 5 to 20 stops. What each one costs, what the cheap plans leave out, and which fits your route.
Stephanie Achtar · How many stops can you add in Google Maps, Apple Maps and Waze?
Google Maps takes 9 stops, Apple Maps 14 and Waze one. The limits side by side, why none of them puts your stops in the best order, and what to use when you have more stops.
Stephanie Achtar · Cost per stop for delivery drivers in the US: 2026 numbers
On a busy parcel day each stop costs you about $2.45, and gas is only 14 cents of it. What one stop really costs on four typical days, and how to make it cheaper.
Stephanie Achtar · How many stops do delivery drivers make a day? UPS, Amazon, USPS and FedEx
UPS drivers average 125 stops a day and Amazon routes usually have 120 to 180. What each carrier's drivers handle, how they manage it, and what a driver in their own car can take from it.
Stephanie Achtar · How to organize packages for Amazon Flex and plan your stop order
A simple loading system that saves minutes at every stop — number, sort, load in reverse — and how to tell whether the itinerary's stop order is worth changing.
Stephanie Achtar · How many packages are in an Amazon Flex block? What drivers report
Amazon doesn't say how many packages a block holds. Drivers report about 22 to 47 in a 3- to 4.5-hour block — here's why it varies so much and what each package actually pays.
Stephanie Achtar · How much do delivery drivers make per package after gas?
Gig delivery pays about $2.20 to $3.30 a package. After gas and wear on your car, you may keep as little as 85 cents — or $1.57. What makes the difference, and how to keep more.
Stephanie Achtar · How much to charge per mile for delivery as an independent courier
In a car, about $1.90 a mile plus a minimum of about $16 per job covers your car, your time and taxes. How to work out your own rate, and what other US couriers charge.
Stephanie Achtar · Why is route optimization so hard?
Each extra stop multiplies the number of possible orders: 10 stops have 3.6 million, 15 have 1.3 trillion, 20 more than 2 quintillion. Why no app checks them all, what real roads add, and how route planners still find a short route in seconds.
Stephanie Achtar · How much CO2 does route optimization save?
How much CO2 a delivery driver emits in a month and a year, and how much of it a route 10%, 20% or 30% shorter saves, calculated with the EPA's emission factor for gasoline.
Stephanie Achtar · Route planning vs route optimization: what's the difference?
Route planning is choosing your stops and putting them in order yourself; route optimization is software trying the possible orders and picking the shortest. When each one is enough, with a 15-stop example.
Stephanie Achtar · Which maps does MyWay Route Planner use?
MyWay uses different map services for three jobs: finding each address, putting the stops in order and driving each leg. Which providers it uses for each, and why it uses more than one.
Stephanie Achtar · Is a route planner app worth it?
What a route planner app costs against what a shorter route saves in gas and hours, at the official US gas price and labor cost. When it pays for itself, when the free plan is enough and when you don't need one at all.
Stephanie Achtar · How to save gas as a delivery driver
How much gas a shorter route, smoother driving, less idling and the right tire pressure save a delivery driver, in gallons and dollars at the official US gas price of 28 September 2026.
Stephanie Achtar · What to look for in a delivery route planner app
The price on a route planner's pricing page is the easy part. Nine limits to check before you pay, with examples of what we found in popular apps in October 2026, and how to test an app in its free trial.
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