Rideshare (Uber/Lyft) Driver

In general, rideshare drivers get $10–$15 per ride, which translates to between $20–$30 per hour.

When we spoke with Matt Miller, who told us how much Uber drivers usually make in his market, he corroborated these figures, as did Aaron Lawrence for Lyft.

Is driving part-time for Uber or Lyft worth it?

You may think that only working part-time for an Uber or Lyft won’t get you as much as doing full-time, but the truth is that you can still make a profit from a ridesharing side hustle.

Many user reports suggest that by driving part-time, you can target Uber or Lyft’s peak hours of demand or work when there are more bonuses or promotions available.

While each market is different and there are multiple variables that affect your earnings, Uber and Lyft are still good side hustles.

What affects your earning potential on Uber or Lyft?

Determining an average hourly rate for rideshare drivers is also difficult due to several factors that influence your potential earnings, such as:

• Expenses: You’re responsible for all expenses incurred while ridesharing.
• Location: Not all areas have as many rides available and pay rates vary from city to city.
• Time: Certain times of day or days of the week have higher demand. If you’re driving part-time for Uber or Lyft, choosing the right hours is particularly important.
• Competition: Some areas, particularly big cities, are oversaturated with drivers, making it harder to find as many available rides.
• Tips: Tips can boost your earnings, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get tips.
• Promotions: Uber and Lyft both run promotions to incentivize drivers to log on, and you earn higher rates or bonuses by driving at certain times or completing tasks within a given timeframe.
• Surge pricing: During periods of high demand, rideshare apps implement surge pricing, which raises their base rates and lets you earn more per ride.

How much do expenses affect your earnings?

Your expenses as a rideshare driver also have a big impact on how much you can realistically make since rideshare platforms don’t cover your expenses.

Lyft even states on its site that the estimated expenses for its drivers work out to $0.31 per mile.

So before you can determine your profits, you’ll need to factor the following expenses into your earnings:

Fuel

Plan to budget: 10% of your earnings

Uber and Lyft don’t cover gas expenses for most drivers—only those who reach a high enough usage tier qualify. As a new rideshare driver, you’ll be responsible for all your gas costs, and you can expect to burn through a lot of it. (Not to mention, if you’re only driving part time, it’ll be that much harder to reach the usage tiers.)

Gas prices aren’t fixed, of course, and vary from state to state, but as a rule of thumb, you should set aside at least 10% of your earnings for gas.

You can save a lot of money on fuel if you drive an electric or hybrid vehicle—Miller told us that he drives a Ford Fusion Hybrid, and averages 500–615 miles on a full tank.

Tax

Plan to budget: 15% of your earnings

The only things certain in life are death and taxes, and this adage applies to rideshare drivers too. Rideshare apps employ drivers as independent contractors, meaning they won’t withhold your taxes.

You’re responsible for reporting and paying your taxes, and while it is possible to get expenses deducted, you should still budget a minimum of 15% of your earnings for taxes.

Miller told us that filing taxes was one of the most stressful parts of being an Uber driver, and also stated that he puts aside 25% of his earnings for taxes.

Before filing your taxes and deciding what percentage of your wages to set aside for taxes, speak to a qualified tax professional or use a self-employment tax calculator.

Vehicle maintenance

Plan to budget: 10% of your earnings

Driving constantly means your vehicle will suffer inevitable wear and tear, even if you are only doing it part time, so you’ll need to regularly get your car checked out and keep it in good condition.

If you’re renting through Uber or Lyft, they’ll cover basic maintenance, but for those driving their personal vehicles, you can expect to spend 10% of your earnings on maintenance.

How much are you left with after expenses?

Going off of our calculations, you’ll need to budget at least 35% of your earnings, leaving you with only 65% in profit.

Say you’re earning $20 per hour as a driver, the lower end of the earnings spectrum—once you take off 35% for expenses, you’re left with $13 per hour.

While $13 is still above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, it may be much less than you expected.

Deciding which rideshare app is objectively better for drivers is no easy task—both Uber and Lyft have their pros and cons, which you can check out below:

Ultimately, the rideshare app that is best for you depends on your location. Each area is different and has more users of one particular app, and pay rates for both apps depend on your location.

Being a part-time driver, it may be smart to drive for both and choose the one that has more jobs on any given day. Matt Miller drove for both Uber and Lyft and told us that Uber has more rides available in his market (Pittsburgh, PA).

Conversely, Aaron Lawrence said that Lyft’s rates were a little better than Uber’s in his market (Chicago, IL).

The drivers we’ve spoken with have had positive experiences working for Uber and Lyft in their respective markets, but other drivers are less enthusiastic about it, claiming that ridesharing is no longer profitable.

Though it’s important to take negative reports with a grain of salt, being a rideshare driver has a few caveats:

• Work can be unstable: Miller said “[Uber] isn’t a traditional 9-to-5 job where you know which hours you are going to work,” meaning your earnings aren’t fixed either.  If you’re doing rideshare as a side hustle, you’ll be even more at the mercy of unstable work hours, and potentially end up working during dead hours.
• You’ll spend a lot of time in traffic: During peak hours of demand, traffic is brutal. If you’re driving part time, it’s especially critical not to get locked into horrible congestion that eats away at the time you put aside.
• Competition is fierce: Since you’ll be driving part-time for your ridesharing side hustle, you’ll want to target the most profitable hours, and it’s likely other drivers will have the same idea. More drivers also means rideshare apps don’t have an incentive to run promotions.
• You’ll invite strangers into your car: While Miller and Lawerence enjoy meeting and talking to new people, those with lower social batteries might not feel comfortable dealing with strangers every day. If you’re an introvert, you may want to consider delivery driving instead.
• Tips aren’t a given: Customers can tip you on both Uber and Lyft, but it’s not mandatory, and there’s no guarantee you’ll get tips. Miller told us, in his experience, “tourists and businesspeople headed to and from the airport are the ones that tip the most.”
• Your vehicle’s lifespan will decrease: Even if you do your best to keep your car well-maintained, ridesharing will shorten its lifespan. If you don’t want to take the risk, you could look into renting a car with Uber or Lyft.

If the average rate for rideshare drivers is lower than you expected, you may be wondering if there are any ways you can boost your earnings as an Uber or Lyft driver.

Fortunately, our rideshare experts shared tips for how to make more money with Uber or Lyft, that we’ve summarized below:

• Do your own vehicle maintenance: Learning how to fix small issues with your car, like changing oil or rotating tires, cuts back your costs and keeps your vehicle running smoothly.
• Make your rides as pleasant as possible: Making your customers feel safe, keeping your car clean, and, above all, getting them safely to their destinations means you’ll get better ratings and possibly tips.
• Keep trash bags in the back seat: Having trash bags on hand is important if you’re driving at night and picking up drunk customers from bars. There’s a good chance someone will have an “accident” at some point, and while Uber or Lyft do pay for cleaning, it might not cover the full costs.
• Consider asking passengers to rate you: Many customers forget to open the Uber or Lyft apps again once they’ve finished their rides, so if you feel comfortable asking customers to rate you, they’re more likely to do so.
• Buy a multi-view dashcam: In case of any accidents, get a multi-view dashcam for your car to ensure you’re covered if anything does happen.
• Don’t mindlessly chase surge pricing: While surge pricing can help boost your earnings, it’s only worth it if it’s in your area. Driving to other areas just to take advantage of surge pricing could end up costing you more in the end.