One driver took to Reddit to complain about the percent of their customers’ fare that Uber took. But, you have to admit, his earnings for the week were pretty stellar.
What He Did
u/RoamAntarctica has obviously met the minimum qualifications for Uber, so he’s currently reaping those benefits. Here’s how his details break down for the screenshot he shared of his earnings.
Screenshot shared by u/RoamAntarctica on r/uberdrivers in a post titled I am crying right now.
This is one week’s worth of earnings for him in his market of Bakersfield, California. For the shown week, he drove his Toyota Camry Hybrid, accepting Uber X and Comfort rides. There are other weeks when he decides to use his Highlander instead of his Camry.
He said that for the week, he paid $215 for gas. He owns his car outright, so he doesn’t take a car payment into consideration when calculating his take-home or expenses.
How He Did It
He was averaging about 350 to 400 miles per day for a total of 2,700 miles, drove 78 hours, and didn’t accept “shitty” rides. Cherry-picking is a big practice among the most successful Uber drivers. This means they typically have a set amount that they want to earn per trip, and they will not accept offers for any less.
Including cash tips, he claims to have made $3.9k, but was upset at the 37% service fees applied by Uber on his customers’ fares. While he agrees that his take should be around 50%, he wants Uber’s Take Rate to be no more than 30%, while the remaining 20% would go toward the government fees.
It all averages out, but he gave one example of a ride where his take was significantly less than the 52% in the screenshot. He said his customer paid a total of $102 for a ride, and he received only $37.
The Good
Whatever his metrics for accepting good rides are, they are working for him. To be able to earn almost $4,000 in a week is huge, no matter which market you are in.
Including cash tips, his tips were around $800 total. That’s about $10.25 an hour in tips alone.
The Bad
He apparently makes it a habit to talk on the phone while driving his passengers. This is, at first glance, a bit off-putting. He does ask his passengers if it’s ok if he takes a phone call or makes a phone call.
His phone calls are in another language, and he says that his passengers actually tend to make a game out of it, trying to guess which language he’s speaking. As long as he’s being a safe driver, I’m sure most passengers wouldn’t mind.
Seventy-eight hours is a lot of time in a car in one week. Personally, I don’t find it sustainable long-term, but everyone is different. If others are looking to replicate his results, they may find that time frame to be difficult to meet.
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Tips and Strategies
One of the main takeaways from reading his comments was that as a driver, you have to do what works for you. He takes phone calls but clears it with his passengers first.
It’s unclear if these are personal calls or something else, but clearly, his passengers aren’t completely turned off by this idea since his tips are pretty high. Some commenters hinted that as passenger, they prefer it if their driver has a phone call so it’s less awkward for them. They don’t have to state that they don’t want to hold a conversation with their driver or just sit in awkward silence.
Cherry pick. As stated earlier, this is a big thing that seems to be a common factor among the most successful rideshare drivers. Don’t accept rides that won’t make you the minimum you’ve decided for yourself. This minimum should include the cost to operate your vehicle and depreciation, so you’re ensuring you’re making more than what it takes to upkeep your car.
Keep in mind that your earnings will vary depending on several factors, including your market, the types of rides you can accept based on your vehicle, the time of day, and if you cherry-pick or simply accept every ride that comes your way.
He also makes a decision on a regular basis for which vehicle works best for him at any given time. He said that the week there was a big event in his area, he chose to use his Highlander so he could take larger groups of people, earning Uber XL rates.
Final Thoughts
He got results. He may not be happy with his portion compared to what Uber took, but he made a solid amount for one week’s worth of driving.
And despite what Uber took, this is a friendly reminder that Uber’s service fees are a tax write-off for drivers. Be sure to take full advantage of all the write-offs you can take as a driver.
Between Uber’s service fees and the IRS mileage rate you can claim, you can significantly lower your taxable income.
