Driver Earnings, Payout & Take-home

How much do Uber and other Rideshare Drivers Earn?

With rideshares, drivers set their own hours and can work as much or as little as they want, as long as it is permitted by law.  Hence, how much drivers make depends on how much they drive.  Drivers keep the majority of the fare and the rest goes to the rideshare company that collects commissions and booking fees.

In the United States, Uber drivers make $16.02 per hour before expenses on a national average, according to a survey of 995 drivers (source).  When considering expenses, as a rule-of-thumb, many drivers use $1.00 a mile as their net profit. This can, of course, vary; for example, due to a flat-rate booking fee, the take-home would be less for shorter rides and more for longer rides.

Commissions and Fees - Typically rideshare drivers earn between 75% - 85% of the total fare (minus fees and tolls) of the trip. The remaining 15% - 25% is paid out to the rideshare company such as Uber, Lyft, and Didi. The commission rate can vary by the rideshare company, geographical area, and even when drivers sign up.

Booking Fees - “Booking fees” or “service fees” are also collected by the rideshare companies for every ride a driver takes on a flat-rate basis. This is on top of the commissions collected.

Driving Expenses - The majority of expenses incurred to drive are typically covered by the drivers who work as independent contractors.  These expenses can include gasoline, insurance policies, owning and maintaining the vehicles, etc., and are important part of how much drivers collect.

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What is RideGuru's Driver Payout & Take-Home feature?

At RideGuru, we believe in transparency between riders and drivers.  In the new sharing economy, users have a right to know where their money is going.

Our Driver Payout & Take-Home feature breaks down how much of the total goes directly to the drivers and how much goes to the rideshare companies. The fees and commissions can vary greatly, and this is why we have incorporated this information into our RideGuru Comparison Calculator.  The figures are displayed on each fare card.

Many benefits come from this feature, including:

• Riders can chose their ride based on how much the drivers are being rewarded.
• Drivers can see which company will maximize their profits.

How is it calculated?

RideGuru calculates, for each rideshare company and each service option, different fees and commissions that are taken from the total fare paid by the customer.  This includes booking fees (taken out directly upfront), commissions (that drivers must pay), other adjustments and special fees, and discrepancies applied due to surge pricing and upfront pricing.  

We research the structure for each rideshare/ridehail company and apply them to our fare estimates.  See the section below for rules and breakdowns for each rideshare/ridehail company.

Harry the RideShareGuy has excellent articles explaining the actual take-home of rideshare drivers.  While the rideshare companies do not always share publicly the logic and reasoning behind some of the fees and how they are applied, Harry has done research while looking at real-world prices. Uber’s Upfront Pricing is Secretly Overcharging Passengers Without Paying Drivers

What else do drivers pay? How is "take-home" calculated?

It isn't just fees and commissions that are taken out of drivers' pockets. Drivers incur other expenses such as:

• Fuel / gasoline
• Insurance, registration, licensing costs, etc.
• Wear, tear, and depreciation of vehicles
• Potential wasted trip for return trip

Uber has two different commission structures based on when drivers signed up to drive for Uber. For drivers who applied before the summer of 2014, Uber takes 20% Commission and for drivers who applied after the summer of 2014, Uber takes 25% Commission. We calculate our payout based on the after summer of 2014 structure (Uber takes 25% Commission). Keep in mind that some Uber drivers might be keeping 5% more than we are projecting on RideGuru if they signed up before the summer of 2014. Also, more recently Uber has started taking 30% from some drivers in some markets so this payout could be even less for certain Uber drivers. Uber also takes their booking fee which varies from city to city.

Overall, we calculate Uber drivers to make about 75% of each fare minus the booking fee.

Note: Uber is also trying out a new tiered system in San Francisco and San Diego which works like this – First 20 trips they take 30%, trips 21-40 they take 25%, and on trips after 40 they take 20%. This is to encourage drivers to drive on a more full-time schedule.

Lyft has two different commission structures based on when drivers signed up to drive for Lyft. For drivers who applied before midnight, January 1, 2016, Lyft takes 20% Commission and for drivers who applied after midnight, January 1, 2016, Lyft takes 25% Commission. We calculate our payout based on the after midnight, January 1, 2016, structure (Lyft takes 25% Commission). Keep in mind that some Lyft drivers might be keeping 5% more than we are projecting on RideGuru if they signed up in 2015 or earlier. Lyft also takes their Trust and Service fee which varies from city to city.

Overall, we calculate Lyft drivers to make about 75% of each fare minus the Service fee.

Note: Lyft's Commission in New York City is 36.4%, the drivers take home 63.6% in this area.

Ola takes 15% of every fare from the driver. The driver makes 85% of each fare.

Didi takes 20% of every fare from the driver. The driver makes 80% of each fare.

Go-Jek takes 20% of every fare from the driver. The driver makes 80% of each fare.

Sitbaq drivers earn 85% of every fare.

As Curb drivers are traditional taxi drivers that are hailed through the Curb app, their payout is based on the standard average taxi cab driver payout. On average Taxi drivers keep about 67% of their fares and give around 33% to the parent taxi company for leasing the cab. Curb (the app) then takes their $2 for using the app. Overall, Curb drivers make around 67% of their fares minus the $2 Curb fee.

Bolt's commission structure depends on location but on average the company takes 15% commission from each ride.

As FREE NOW drivers are traditional taxi drivers that are hailed through the FREE NOW app, their payout is based on the standard average taxi cab driver payout. On average Taxi drivers keep about 67% of their fares and give around 33% to the parent taxi company for leasing the cab. FREE NOW does not have any further fees that they take for using the app.

Shebah takes 15% of all fares and the driver keeps 85%.

JoziBear takes 10% of every fare from the driver. The driver makes 90% of each fare.

As Hailo drivers are traditional taxi drivers that are hailed through the Hailo app, their payout is based on the standard average taxi cab driver payout. On average Taxi drivers keep about 67% of their fares and give around 33% to the parent taxi company for leasing the cab. Hailo (the app) then takes their $0.99 for using the app. Overall, Hailo drivers make around 67% of their fares minus the $0.99 Hailo fee.

GoCatch takes 15% of every fare from the driver. The driver makes 85% of each fare.

TappCar takes 20% of every fare from the driver. The driver makes 80% of each fare.

For Standard Car drivers TappCar also takes a $2.15 Tech Fee.

As RideYellow drivers are traditional taxi drivers that are hailed through the RideYellow app, their payout is based on the standard average taxi cab driver payout. On average Taxi drivers keep about 67% of their fares and give around 33% to the parent taxi company for leasing the cab.

Fare takes 20% of every fare from the driver plus their Fare $2 app charge. The driver makes 80% of each fare minus the $2 Fare charge.

InstaRyde takes a flat rate of $0.99 of every fare from the driver plus their InstaRyde $1 app charge. 

Flywheel's driver payout is based on two different commission structures. As Flywheel drivers are traditional taxi drivers that are hailed through the Flywheel app, we have to first take out the average amount that a taxi driver must pay back to their parent company for leasing the taxicab. This amount averages around 33%. Then Flywheel (the app) takes an additional cut on top of that, Flywheel's cut is 13.2%. This totals 46.2% that is getting taken out of the drivers pocket and going to either Flywheel or the taxi corporation they work under. In other words, the driver makes about 53.8% of each fare.

Bounce drivers receive 75-80% of the base fare from each ride depending on the driver's activity level within the company. Bounce has an achievement scale that awards drivers for completing more rides. The acheivement scale is broken down into multiple goals (such as hitting 100 overall rides), when drivers hit these goals they are awarded with a higher compensation percentage.

Fasten only takes $1 per ride from each driver plus their $2 ride fee. The rest goes to the drivers!

RideAustin takes a $1.5 Safe Rides fee from the all fares. For their SUV and Premium services they also take a 20% commission. Drivers of their regular service take home the entire fare minus the $1.5 Safe Rides Fee and drivers of their SUV and Premium service take home 80% of the fare minus the $1.5 Safe Rides Fee.

As Cab Hound drivers are traditional taxi drivers that are hailed through the Cab Hound app, their payout is based on the standard average taxi cab driver payout. On average Taxi drivers keep about 67% of their fares and give around 33% to the parent taxi company for leasing the cab.

Juno takes a 10 percent commission from their drivers.

Yoweby drivers make about 80% of every fare. Yoweby takes 20% plus a $1.55 fee from every completed ride.

Zoomy takes 15% commission from every ride and Zoomy drivers get to keep the other 85%.

Little Cab will take no more than 15% per ride from it's drivers.

Stroll Guam takes 30% of every fare from the driver plus a $1.15 Service Fee. The driver makes 70% of each fare minus the $1.15 Service Fee.

Executesla drivers make 50% of the total fare and gratuity.

Gett takes a 10% commission from all fares their drivers complete.

Kango claims on their website that drivers make $35 an hour.

ReachNow drivers are paid $14.25 per hour and have set shifts. They are eligible for benefits, and can even bring in a 5 percent bonus each week if their rating stays between 4.8 and 5 stars. ReachNow drivers also use ReachNow’s cars, so they don’t have to shell out for gas, maintenance and upkeep, or insurance.

RipeRides drivers are paid employees who make a salary plus a small commission from each ride they give. It is unclear what the commission structure or salary range is for these drivers.

Talixo's commission structure is on a case by case basis but usually Talixo takes anywhere from 10-13% of each fare.

Currently Toodooloo drivers make 100% of the fare.