How Much Do Uber/Lyft Drivers Make?

If you’ve ever contemplated the idea of becoming an Uber and/or Lyft driver, I’m about to give you a realistic look at how much you can expect to earn (figures are from the D.C. Metro area). As a side hustle / learning experience, I signed up to be an Uber and Lyft driver in the Northern Virginia / D.C. Metro area. I drove for a little less than 30 days on a very part-time basis. I’ve decided to end this side hustle now, but I may still drive occasionally just for fun.

Let’s take a look at the numbers. These are from March 2016.

Lyft earnings

  • Earnings from driving: $320.73 giving 40 rides in 23h 31m ($13.64/hr driving only)
  • Earnings from bonuses*: $550
  • Total Earnings as a Lyft Driver: $870.73 ($37.03/hr driving+bonus)

Uber earnings

  • Earnings from driving: $410.20 giving 58 rides in 24h 19m ($16.87/hr driving only)
  • Earnings from bonuses*: $150
  • Total Earnings as an Uber Driver: $560.20 ($23.04/hr driving+bonus)

 Total Uber and Lyft earnings

  • Earnings from driving: $730.93 giving 98 rides in 47h 50m ($15.28/hr driving only)
  • Earnings from bonuses*: $700
  • Total Earnings as a Lyft/Uber Driver: $1,430.93 ($29.91/hr driving+bonus)
*bonuses came either from referring another driver who met the requirement for a certain number of rides or from being referred by another driver and meeting the requirement for a certain number or rides. I got a $350 bonus for giving 40 rides in 30 days for Lyft when I was referred by another driver. I also got a $150 bonus from Uber and $200 from Lyft for referring another driver in the NY/NJ area who met the bonus requirements for both Uber and Lyft.

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Anaylsis

As you can see, the hourly rate for a ridesharing driver isn’t great. On top of that, you have to factor in the cost of gas, maintenance, and depreciation on your car. I earned about $3 more per hour driving for Uber than for Lyft, but Lyft had much more generous bonuses. Uber seems to be slightly more prevalent in the DC/NoVA area, so there will generally be more downtime between rides with Lyft unless you drive during peak hours. There are many strategies to increase earnings, and many drivers turn on both apps at the same time when waiting for a ride, but I won’t get into that now.

In the end, I earned a total of $1,430.93 while being in driver mode for about 48 hours. I drove mostly from about 9pm-1am on Thursday-Saturday nights. It was advantageous to drive closer to Arlington and D.C., but there were still plenty of people needing rides in the Fairfax area.

I met a lot of interesting people and a few shady people (dealing drugs on their phone in my back seat). I became a little bit more comfortable talking to strangers, and I had great conversations with some people. Financially speaking, it may be worth the time to drive enough to get a bonus, but it’s not so great after that.

Thinking about becoming a rideshare driver?

If you’re thinking about trying it out, Lyft is currently offering a $1400 bonus (as of 5/18/17) for giving 480 rides in your first 60 days as a driver if another driver refers you (referral link). My estimate is that 480 rides will take about 200-280 hours of your time, and you will earn a total of $5,000-$6,000 in that time if you include the $1400 bonus.

Here is a referral link for Uber if you decide to try driving for Uber.

(Featured image source)

6 thoughts on “How Much Do Uber/Lyft Drivers Make?”

  1. I like uber. Tried out lyft for the first time with a friend but the dude that picked us up could not read his gps and was making us nervous. Plus he had really bad BO so we decided to get off early and walk the rest of the way. Haha haven’t used either much personally but is there a section on the app where drivers get reviewed?

    Reply
  2. Sorry you didn’t have a great experience. Yes, you can rate the drivers (5 point/star scale). Many drivers drive for both Uber and Lyft. One company isn’t necessarily going to have a nicer, smarter, or faster driver. It just depends on who you get that day.

    Reply

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