April 9, 2024
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Experts in this article:
Aaron started his rideshare journey in 2014 and hasn't looked back since. He has completed nearly 20k rides with both Uber and...
Alba is a writer for SideHustles.com. In addition to writing, she has done work as an independent graphic designer and has...
If you’re interested in driving for a ridesharing gig app, you’ve almost certainly thought of working for Uber, but have you considered Lyft?
Lyft is the second-largest ridesharing platform on the market after Uber, as well as its main competitor. Keep reading to find out how it works, how it compares to Uber, and whether it’s worth your time.
Lyft is a ridesharing gig app that you can use to find work and make extra money. As a Lyft driver, you’ll pick up passengers in your personal vehicle and take them to their next destination.
Almost anyone can sign up for Lyft. The company recommends that new drivers take a ride as a passenger first to understand what it’s like from the customer’s perspective, but this isn’t required.
As a Lyft driver, you can work on your own schedule and drive any time you want. You just have to open the app and press the “Go Online” prompt (a purple button with a steering wheel icon) to begin your shift.
You can pause or end your shift at any time.
When your shift begins, Lyft will try to connect you to passengers in your area. Depending on the number of requests and drivers available, your first request could come quickly or take a while.
Each request will display:
Below all of this, you’ll see an “Accept” button. You have a few seconds to click this after receiving a ride request.
When we created this review, we interviewed Aaron Lawrence, an experienced Lyft driver who’s been ridesharing on a full-time basis since 2017. He told us that in general, the information that Lyft shows you is enough to let you make an informed decision about whether to accept the offer.
However, he noted that in some neighborhoods (referred to in ridesharing lingo as “markets”), you won’t be able to see your fare for the ride before accepting it. This makes it difficult to evaluate whether or not any given offer is worth it.
Once you accept a ride, Lyft will direct you to the passenger’s location.
Passengers have 5 minutes to meet you. If they take longer, you can cancel the ride (and you’ll receive a “no-show” fee as compensation).
Once the passenger is in your car, Lyft will direct you to their destination. When you arrive, you’ll be prompted to click a button in the app and the ride will be complete.
After the passenger departs, Lyft will ask you whether you’d be willing to drive them again. It will prompt you to give them a score of up to 5 stars.
The “default” rating is 5 stars, so scores in the Lyft app tend to skew fairly high
Lyft operates in cities in all 50 states in the US, as well as the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Ontario in Canada.
You can check if Lyft is available in your city here. Note that this list isn’t exhaustive, so if you don’t see your hometown, that doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t be able to drive where you live. The easiest way to check is to try to sign up.
According to online estimates, the average pay on Lyft is $17 to $20 per hour. Lawrence said that his average (in Chicago) is slightly higher, at $20–$25 per hour.
Note that fares are generally higher in major cities (where the cost of living is also higher). They may also be boosted during busy periods (i.e., rush hour) and when the weather is bad.
As a Lyft driver, you won’t actually be paid on an hourly basis. You’ll be paid per ride. Several factors determine how much you’ll make on each one:
This is the base fare you’ll be paid, which will make up the most significant portion of your income. The amount is determined by several factors of its own, such as:
As mentioned, in many markets (but not all), you can view the upfront pay before you accept the ride.
Your base fare may increase if your ride takes significantly longer than expected due to unforeseen circumstances, like traffic or the weather.
Lawrence told us that Lyft’s definition of what constitutes “longer” is ambiguous, but that in his experience, it usually amounts to 10 minutes or more. He cautioned against trying to game this feature, noting that Lyft “can tell if there is traffic, and they will detect potential fraudulent activity” if you routinely take longer than they think you should.
Your fare may also decrease if the passenger changes their final destination to somewhere closer or ends the ride abruptly.
There’s a tipping feature built into the Lyft app. Passengers can tip you during or after each ride. You keep 100% of your tips, although tipping is optional and not all passengers will do it.
When bonuses are available, they’ll appear in the app, either in real time or as “scheduled” (upcoming) bonuses. There are five types of bonuses on Lyft:
Lyft usually includes its bonuses in the estimated fare you see before accepting a ride. Bonus Hours are the exception; they’ll be applied to your earnings after you complete (or decline) each ride.
Lawrence favorably compared Lyft’s bonus interface to what you’ll find in similar apps, such as Uber, which is less transparent about how its promotions will affect your earnings.
There are three ways you can get paid for your work on Lyft:
| Option | When you’ll get paid | Associated fees |
|---|---|---|
| Lyft’s Direct debit card and associated bank account | Get paid instantly after each ride is complete. This option also includes other benefits, such as cash back and rewards | None |
| Express Pay | Have your earnings transferred to your account within a short time | $0.85 (tax deductible) |
| Weekly Pay | Have your earnings transferred to your bank account every Tuesday morning (they’ll arrive within two business days) | None |
We asked Lawrence which payment option he prefers. He said he “only does the weekly pay.”
“I don’t trust the debit card,” he said. “I’ve heard too many drivers complain about issues transferring the money into their regular bank account.”
He went on to note that he doesn’t find that the convenience of the Express Pay feature justifies the fee, although people in other situations might need it, such as anyone with substantial bills coming up that they need money for immediately.
If you’d like to drive for Lyft, you’ll need to meet several eligibility requirements. These will vary slightly depending on your city and state.
Your age: You need to be at least 21–25 years old (depending on your state) in order to drive for Lyft.
Your vehicle: Your car must have at least 4 doors and 5 seatbelts. Taxis and stretch limousines are not accepted.
If you don’t have a suitable vehicle of your own, you can rent one through Lyft’s Express Drive program, although this costs money.
Your driving history: In the following states, you need at least one year of licensed driving experience:
You’ll need to give Lyft consent to run a criminal background check as part of your application. They’ll rerun it on a regular basis after you become a driver. You’ll need to provide a valid Social Security number for them to complete this check.
The process usually takes a few days, but it can take several weeks.
Lyft may reject your application if:
Most applicants pass this background check (which is conducted by a third-party company, Checkr, and not by Lyft itself). That said, we’ve read anecdotal reports of Checkr making mistakes, such as mistaking applicants for other people with similar names. Lawrence told us this had repeatedly happened to him, although it had never barred him from driving for Lyft.
“There’s another person with my name who keeps showing up on my background report in Virginia,” he said. “[Checkr] won’t remove him, and I’ve asked many times over the last few years to have my report corrected … He better be a good driver and an upstanding citizen.”
You’ll also need to undergo a driving record check, which will be assessed against Lyft’s internal safety criteria.
You may be disqualified from driving if you have four or more moving violations or a single major moving violation in the past 3 years. You may also be disqualified if you have a serious driving conviction, DUI, or drug-related driving offense in the past 7 years.
When you apply to be a Lyft driver, ensure you have the following documents on hand:
If you’d like to sign up as a driver, go to Lyft’s driver page, enter your phone number, and click “Apply to drive.” The application should take less than 30 minutes to complete if you have all of your documents ready.
You’ll need to install the Lyft driver app, which you can download from the App Store (for iOS devices) or the Google Play store (for Android). Use the buttons below:
Lyft will prompt you to upload the documents we mentioned above. Once you’ve done so, you’ll need to wait for the results of your background check, which can take a few days. In some markets, Lyft may also require you to get a vehicle inspection (described below).
Once the process is complete and you’ve been approved, you can start driving.
If you’re considering picking up Lyft as a side hustle, you’re probably wondering what the work is like on a day-to-day basis.
We posed that question to Lawrence. The picture he painted was fairly pleasant, although your experience may differ depending both on your market and when you work (many Lyft drivers prefer to drive in the evening, whereas Lawrence prefers mornings).
Lawrence said that he normally starts his day around 6 or 7 am, and that after “making a large pot of coffee,” he tries to make it out of the house by the time the morning rush starts. He turns the app on immediately after getting in the car and waits for rides to come in. If they take a while, he’ll drive to a busier area, like a university campus.
He went on to share a few insider details about Lyft driving:
Your passengers can make or break your experience as a rideshare driver. Fortunately, Lawrence told us he’d rarely had any problems with them.
“The majority of them are great,” he said. “I’m talking 99%. It’s extremely rare that I run into any issues.”
He mentioned that it’s important to be able to “read the room” and tell when somebody doesn’t want to chat (something that he said he usually picks up on in the first few seconds of the ride). He advised avoiding discussing politics, religion, and other sensitive issues.
As a rideshare driver, you have to constantly keep traffic conditions in the back of your mind. Lawrence said that downtown traffic in his market is congested most of the time, so he tries to select trips that won’t take him down “any of the problematic main arteries or into areas … where there is a ton of construction and gridlock.”
“If I do decide to accept requires that take me on those routes, I’ll do some calculations and see if there are any shortcuts or a different way that might take the same amount of time,” he said, with the caveat that he always checks with the passenger first to see if they mind him going off the suggested route.
Lawrence told us that his biggest frustration with Lyft was its cancellation policy.
Lyft allows drivers to cancel a ride when there’s a good reason—but unless you reach the pickup spot and wait for five minutes, you won’t be eligible for a cancellation fee. If you have to cancel en route (due to traffic or an inaccessible pickup address), you won’t receive any compensation for the time you spent.
Moreover, when you cancel rides, Lyft requires you to indicate why (e.g., nowhere to stop, underage riders, etc.), but the reasons you can select from are limited and don’t cover all the situations you’re likely to encounter.
Even if you do have a good reason for canceling, Lyft may still penalize your account.
“This past summer I had a trifecta in one day,” Lawrence told us. “Two underage passenger requests in a row, and then later on that same day, someone without a car seat. My account was at risk for suspension for a few days until I did enough trips to knock that notice off my history.”
By now, you probably have a good understanding of what driving for Lyft is like and how much you can make—but to figure out whether this side hustle is really worth your time, you need to take a careful look at what your expenses will be.
As a Lyft driver, you won’t be a traditional employee of the company. You’ll be an independent contractor, which means you’ll need to account for your expenses.
These may add up to 35% of your income, leaving you with about 65% of your earnings as your final take-home amount.
As a Lyft driver, here are the main expenses you should account for:
Budget: 10% of your earnings
Lyft won’t pay for your gas; you’ll need to buy it yourself. The amount you’ll spend will vary based on your vehicle and current gas prices, but budgeting around 10% of your income should be enough to cover it.
Budget: 10% of your earnings
You’ll need to keep your vehicle in good condition, getting check-ups and oil changes regularly. Set aside a further 10% of your income in case you need repairs.
Budget: 15% of your earnings
As an independent contractor, Lyft won’t withhold your taxes for you. You’ll need to set money aside and be ready to report and pay them yourself.
You can use this tax calculator to get an estimate of how much you’ll need to pay. If you’re unsure, saving about 15% of your income to cover your taxes is a good starting point.
Again, all told, the expenses we listed above will cut into your profits by about 35%, leaving you with 65% of what you made. This means that you earned $25 per hour on paper, your actual profits will be about $16.25 per hour.
That isn’t terrible by any means—it’s well above the federal minimum wage of $7.25, and it’s comparable to what you’ll make with Lyft’s competitors (who all have similar expense ratios). That said, it may be less than what you were expecting.
Ultimately, it’s up to you whether you think it’s worth it to drive for Lyft at an effective rate of $16.25 per hour. There’s no right or wrong answer—it’s a personal decision.
Lawrence told us that while he appreciates the flexibility of Lyft and the ability to make money on his terms, this side hustle isn’t for everyone.
“The best drivers are the ones that not only can navigate traffic and be ready for anything but [have] a strong emphasis on customer service and a calm demeanor,” he said.
He singled out people with prior customer service experience (e.g., in restaurants, hotels, etc.) as having solid potential as Lyft drivers.
Lawrence shared some of his dos and don’ts when trying to maximize your earnings on Lyft. Here are his suggestions:
Anything that pays under $1 per mile just isn’t worth it, especially after you account for gas. Don’t be afraid to reject offers like that.
On a related note, Lawrence said that he prefers short trips, which tend to pay more per mile than longer ones.
“It might seem harsh, but I try not to pick anyone up on Lyft under a 4.9,” Lawrence said. He noted that if the trip is short, it’s “not from a bar,” and there’s a bonus attached or he’s on a streak, he may be willing to go as low as 4.8, although he said he’ll do it “while gritting my teeth.”
“Anything lower than that, I’ll take the loss.”
Lawrence said that he prefers driving on weekday mornings between 7 am and 10 am, as well as Sunday afternoons and evenings.
“People are nice, quiet, and just starting their day,” he said. “It’s a completely different vibe from the weekend chaos. And most people will tip. I get most of my cash tips in the mornings for some reason.”
He said Sunday shifts are usually worthwhile. “Traffic is smooth, people are friendly and chatty, and I always make great money in tips that day.”
Doing your taxes as a Lyft driver can be complicated. There are a lot of deductions you may qualify for, and it requires a certain amount of strategy (and tax know-how) to ensure you take the right ones and save as much money as you can.
“It is important to consult a tax professional, and I wish more drivers would do that,” said Lawrence, noting that you write off the cost of your appointment itself. “Pay good money for a great accountant that knows what they’re doing.”
When you evaluate Lyft, it makes sense to compare it to other, similar gigs—both its direct competitors and other app-based gigs that are accessible with no formal qualifications.
We asked Lawrence, who’s driven extensively for both Lyft and Uber, which app he preferred. He said that overall, he prefers Lyft, although it isn’t better in every respect.
Lawrence told us that despite its flaws, he’s been prioritizing Lyft over Uber for about six months. However, many drivers combine both apps and freely switch between the two depending on which is paying more at any particular time. This is perfectly legal and doesn’t violate either platform’s terms of service.
Of course, there are other side hustles you can try that don’t involve driving people around. We’ve included a table with some of the most well-known options below:
| Side Hustle | Popular Apps | Base Pay (Hourly) |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery driving | Uber Eats DoorDash Grubhub Instacart Postmates | $20 |
| Ridesharing (providing taxi services) | Uber Lyft | $20–$44 |
| Helping people move | Dolly Bellhops Lugg | $30–$50 |
| Lawn care | LawnGuru Handy TaskRabbit | $40–$50 |
| Microtasking (taking online surveys, etc) | Swagbucks | Under minimum wage |
| Mystery shopping | iSecretShop | $15 |
| Pet sitting | Wag! Rover Care.com | $12–$19 |
| Teaching or tutoring online | Wyzant Preply | $10–15+ |
| Walking dogs | Wag! Rover | $10–$17 |
As you can see, Lyft (and Uber) are on the higher end of the pay scale as far as app-based work goes. Notably, ridesharing pays more than delivery driving (e.g., DoorDash, Uber Eats, etc.). This is because fewer people are willing to do it—not everyone is okay with accepting strangers into their car.
Lawrence told us that while he’s also tried delivery driving, he rarely does it anymore. In his opinion, the pay used to be competitive, but it’s dropped sharply in the past few years.
“I’ll do food delivery once in a blue moon,” he said, adding that it’s only worth it if he’s in an open area with no traffic, ample street parking, and if rides are scarce. “To put it simply, the money I need to make isn’t on the food delivery apps anymore.”
If you’re on the fence about driving for Lyft, you can always give it a try. There’s no upfront investment (assuming you already have a car), and signing up doesn’t require making any kind of commitment; you can take as many or as few rides as you like and stop driving entirely any time you want to, so ultimately, you have very little to lose.
August 28, 2023
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