How much does Uber Cost? Uber Upfront Pricing, Estimate, Fees and Rates Explained

Riders Advice, Experiences
#1

This is one of the main questions that surrounds Uber and all rideshare driving. What does an Uber ride cost? It should be easy to answers since it is not rocket science, it is straightforward mathematics in an accountancy situation. So, I decided to review this question in depth for you and provide you with a competing answer.

What factors affect Uber cost?

Uber cost varies depending on what part of the country do you live in. Chances are if you live in a metropolitan city or close to it, your Uber cost will be higher compared to someone living 30 - 40 miles away. The difference in fare cost could be as large as 20% - 30%.

Other factors that influence the Uber ride cost are the time of the day, weekends, events, driver availability. These type of costs shows up in “surge pricing” charge because of these factors are influenced by the demand and supply at the time of Uber ride request.

How does Uber calculate the fare?

An Uber fare consists of base fare, long pickup fee (after certain time threshold, approx. 10 minutes, per minute and mile fees are added to the fare), booking fee, per minute and per mile rate. Uber also sets a minimum fare in each region, that means that if the total cost of the trip drops below the minimum set fare then minimum fare is charged to the riders.

What is Base Fare/Cost?

Base fare is similar to the taxi meter drop rate.

Here is the calculation:

[(base fare + per minute rate * total time + per mile rate * total distance) * surge multiplier] + booking fees + toll

These fares will different based on the Uber category you choose, so if you opt for UberX you will get the lowest private car fee, if you go for ExpressPOOL you will pay the lowest public ride type and if you live in a city with UberLux you will pay a fortune to ride in a fancy car.

The main factor in a ride is the mileage; this is what costs you more than time. Drivers prefer long rides that are traffic free to maximize income and dread slow drives with short distances due to traffic.

Uber Booking fee

Booking fee usually covers insurance, background checks, credit card fee and other misc. charges.

Is Uber cheaper than a Taxi?

Yes, the base fare for taxi's always starts out higher than Uber's since Uber makes sure that their base fare is lower in every city. The rates are also lower; however, this is only true for UberX and UberPOOL, all the rest are the same or more expensive, especially the more luxurious rides such as UberBlack or UberSUV.

Here is an updated quote for a ride of 18.7 mi, 42 mins from Brooklyn, NY, USA to Bronx, NY, USA

  • UberX $58.08
  • Lyft $53.35
  • Taxi $66.70
  • UberBlack $112.56

As you can see, UberX and Lyft are both cheaper than a taxi. However, the UberBlack is more expensive.

Is there a difference between Uber and Lyft?

Generally, there is a slight difference in favor of Lyft. I found that LyftLine is the cheapest option available for a door to door ride.

#2

It don’t matter how much Uber costs, they will always be cheaper than taxis cos the pricing is subsidized. However, just wait and watch as prices start to creep up in value over time. I expect that by the end of 2018 Uber prices will not be so far from Taxi prices, and Lyft will still be the cheapest of all.
Lyfts current subscription plan is a big scam, its so damaging to profits, but its so cheap for a company with billions to spend, that they can really push the subscriptions and all to try and overtake Uber.
Isn’t it great to have a pricing war in a two horse race.

#3

The upfront pricing is something asked FROM the costumers so as long as an airport ride will cost $29 for a costumer and cost $50 via a taxi, who’s gonna care about how much they pay their contractor?

The pricing will be always cheaper than a cab (except when there’s a surge) and more convenient than a bus, so go ahead, drive and try to compare your receipt and the costumer one and let us know how many of them care about that?

#4

You seem to be missing the point. WE DRIVERS should all tell the passengers that they might be getting overcharged due to the upfront pricing. We tell them how much the fare is on our end and they can see if Uber charged them more when they get their receipt. If there is a difference then they ask Uber to adjust the fare to what the driver got paid. Word gets out that Uber is scamming the passengers.

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#5

They do understand, and they also understand this is how every contractor/company works. the contractor doing the electrical install doesn’t get paid 5k for his work from the customer, he gets paid 5k for his work from the company which signed him to the contract. That company has already told the customer they owe 7k for the electric work. SAME/SAME except the electric worker probably does not know all the customer’s billing details like we do, AND are not new to the job. They bid it for 5k, that’s what they get paid.

#6

This is exactly why businesses like this need MORE regulation. Taxicabs fare were always approved and limited by local and state regulators. A company as arrogant as Uber needs to be stopped from doing what they want whenever they want. . The fact is that they are calculating the total advertised fare and padding the trips, making the brain-dead riders pay whatever Uncle Uber decides, while paying the drivers only on what the trip actually registers in mileage and pocketing the difference. This need to be brought to the attention of state and local governments, the media and most importantly, the passengers who are really the ones getting ripped off.