by on Leave a Comment

Calculating How Much Uber Takes from Drivers

Have you ever wondered how much Uber makes from drivers? It’s difficult to know exactly how much Uber makes in profit vs. drivers’ profits, but senior RSG contributor Will Preston tackles this challenging question and shares his analysis below.

I made a little over $200 driving 400 miles last weekend in about 12 hours of driving. But the question I wanted to answer is how much did I actually make – and how much did Uber make – after we take all expenses into consideration.

Drive with Uber 1

How much Uber makes from you will depend on when and where you drive, and how much you make in tips will also factor in to your calculations. For the purposes of this article, I’ll break down some key concepts to understand before getting into the spreadsheet I created to determine how much money Uber makes off of my driving. I’ve included a copy of the spreadsheet for you to run your numbers as well – let us know what you come up with in the comments.

Have you ever wondered how much Uber makes from drivers? It’s difficult to know exactly how much Uber makes in profit vs. drivers’ profits, but senior RSG contributor Will Preston tackles this challenging question and shares his analysis below.

Find your next ride with FarePilot

FarePilot shows you hotspots to help you get more rides. Download it here.

[Read more…]

by on Leave a Comment

Battle of the Dash Cams: VanTrue N2 Pro vs Falcon Zero F360

Join us for our May YouTube live on Tuesday May 8 at 5pm PT!  You can subscribe to our Youtube channel here and be sure to turn on notifications (instructions here) so you know when we go live.

If you’ve been driving for any period of time, you know how important it is to have a dash camera. But how do you know which one to choose without testing it out? Senior RSG contributor Will Preston tests out two of the heavyweights and shares his results below.

Can the VanTrue N2 Pro unseat the Falcon Zero F360 as the best dash camera (dash cam) for rideshare drivers?  Like a lot of things, the answer is it depends on what you’re looking for. Here, I’ll explain the difference between the VanTrue N2 Pro and the Falcon Zero F360 and whether or not the VanTrue N2 Pro is really better than the Falcon Zero F360.

If you’ve been driving for any period of time, you know how important it is to have a dash camera. But how do you know which one to choose without testing it out? Senior RSG contributor Will Preston tests out two of the heavyweights and shares his results below.

[Read more…]

by on Leave a Comment

Uber is Ripping Off Frequent Riders and Here’s How to Avoid It

Drivers already know upfront pricing typically doesn’t work in our favor. But what is upfront pricing, or variations of it, looking like for passengers? We had frequent traveler and senior RSG contributor Will Preston analyze how Uber charges different passengers and whether more frequent Uber-users are charged more than their less-frequent counterparts. Here’s what we found – let us know if you’ve seen something similar in the comments!

Uber appears to have the opposite of a rewards program. That is, it appears the more you use Uber as a passenger, the more they’re going to charge you per mile. We know Uber said they were going to experiment on charging different customers different rate, based on a variety of unpublished factors. My current belief is the more you use the service in a way that suggests you can afford more, the more they will charge you.

Drivers already know upfront pricing typically doesn't work in our favor. But what is upfront pricing, or variations of it, looking like for passengers? We had frequent traveler and senior RSG contributor Will Preston analyze how Uber charges different passengers and whether more frequent Uber-users are charged more than their less-frequent counterparts.

[Read more…]

by on Leave a Comment

What Does Uber’s Long Pickup Fee Look Like for Drivers?

Have you seen a ‘long pickup fee’ in your city? Not every city has these fees yet, but if you’ve driven very far to pick up a passenger lately, you may have seen the additional money in your driver account. So what is this long pickup fee, what triggers a ‘long’ pick up and how much extra can drivers make? Senior RSG contributor Will Preston answers these questions, plus what drivers need to know about the pickup fee below.

Like seemingly everything with Uber, long pick-up fees sound good at first but aren’t always what they seem. Yes, you can now be compensated when you drive more than a certain number of minutes to a destination. But depending on what happens once you get there, you might be in for a surprise.

Have you seen a ‘long pickup fee’ in your city? Not every city has these fees yet, but if you’ve driven very far to pick up a passenger lately, you may have seen the additional money in your driver account. So what is this long pickup fee, what triggers a ‘long’ pick up and how much extra can drivers make? Senior RSG contributor Will Preston answers these questions, plus what drivers need to know about the pickup fee below.

[Read more…]

by on 15 Comments

Can a Part Time Driver Get the Lyft Power Driver Bonus in 2018?

In some markets, driving to get Lyft’s Power Driver Bonus (PDB) is a good strategy to earn more. But does it work in all markets, and would it work for part-time drivers? Senior RSG contributor Will Preston outlines his strategy to get the Lyft PDB as a part-time driver in a medium-sized market.

As a part-time rideshare driver who drives for both Uber and Lyft, I have always found Lyft’s Power Driver Bonus to be out of reach.  I never even got close to some of the metrics needed to qualify, so I never even considered it. However, as Lyft’s popularity appears to increasing, particularly among the younger crowd, I decided to try to qualify for the bonus one weekend and see what happens.

In some markets, driving to get Lyft’s Power Driver Bonus (PDB) is a good strategy to earn more. But does it work in all markets, and would it work for part-time drivers?

[Read more…]