Uber or Lyft? A Complete Comparative Guide for New Riders
As you may be aware, Uber and Lyft are the two biggest and most well-known rideshare apps in the world!
They directly compete in just about every market, and both of them have their supporters and detractors.
In this article, we’ll examine Uber vs Lyft to establish the pros and cons of these giants in the rideshare market. We will also fully explore these services for those who haven’t yet taken the rideshare plunge.
Company Overviews
Before we dive into the details, it’s worth having a look at the basics of these two rideshare companies:
Uber
Uber is the largest rideshare app in America and has been moving from strength to strength since its inception in 2010.
Uber operates in over 40 countries around the world and delivers on average 25 million trips per day.
However, there’s more to how Uber works.
Uber also runs a series of subsidiary services, including the much-vaunted Uber Eats which offers food delivery by Uber’s trained and vetted drivers.
Uber drivers are independent contractors and set their own hours.
Lyft
Lyft was established in 2012, two years after Uber. Since then, it has been snapping at Uber’s heels and is the second-largest rideshare app in America.
But how does Lyft work? Lyft is known for its dynamic pricing models which mean that the cost of a ride can vary from location to location to match the market. Much like Uber, Lyft drivers are independent contractors.
Service Offerings and Availability
Both Lyft and Uber have expanded their offerings since their beginnings in the 2010s.
They both offer their classic individual ride service where a user sets out a trip they want to make and the app connects them with a driver who will take them there.
Beyond that standard, various Uber services include:
Uber Eats
Uber Eats is a food delivery service that connects local restaurants and eateries with diners at home.
You order through the Uber Eats app from a business that has an Uber Eats account, and then an Uber Driver collects the meal and delivers it to wherever you are.
Uber Share
Uber Share is a classic carpooling ride where, for a discount, you can join somebody else’s ride to be dropped off at a nearby location!
This feature is great for those who want to commute at a lower price.
Uber Green
Uber Green is a sustainability feature of Uber that focuses on electric and hybrid vehicles to provide a more environmentally friendly ride.
Lyft also overs:
Lyft Bikes and Scooters
Lyft allows you to book and use e-bikes and scooters to get about under your own steam!
These bikes and scooters are scattered all over a city to allow you to get about however and wherever you want.
Lyft XL Lyft car types
Among Lyft car types, Lyft’s XL service allows you to book a ride in a larger vehicle such as an SUV for larger groups or if you have a lot of luggage!
Lyft Transit
A neat feature of Lyft is that you can also track public transport services nearby to plan your trips.
The data is provided by the transport service itself and you can track the arrival and departure times for trains, trams, buses, ferries, and just about anything else.
Uber is available in over 4,000 cities in the United States, so there is unlikely to be anywhere you would normally go that you can’t catch an Uber ride.
In contrast, Lyft runs a more targeted model and operates out of 656 cities in America.
Pricing and Payment Methods
Uber and Lyft are paid services and they both go about determining the price of a ride their own way.
Uber’s upfront pricing is an estimated cost of using an Uber ride. Upfront fares take into account a base rate, length and distance of the ride, and surge pricing.
Surge pricing is the extra cost of a ride associated with current demand. The more people looking for a ride, the higher the surge pricing!
Lyft operates much on the same model, but the cost of every Lyft ride varies for different regions to match local economies.
Further, Lyft allows you to set your payment period to daily so that rather than paying for each ride one by one, you get charged a single fee for your accumulated rides throughout the day.
Uber and Lyft both allow you to pay by credit card or direct debit. With both apps, your payment information is attached to your account and the payment is automatic.
This means that the driver always gets paid after your trip and that you don’t have to authorize the payment each time!
App Interface and User Experience
App interface and user experience are something of a question of personal taste, and both Lyft and Uber have developed app layouts that are easy to use and straightforward.
With both apps, you simply select a location that you want to travel to and set your departure location. The app then connects you with nearby drivers who will take you to your destination.
Both of the apps allow you to track previous trips, manage your account and payment, tip and rate drivers, and select the type of ride you want.
Functionality for both is as good as can be expected from a large tech firm; they are both easy to navigate and both operate on all major operating systems!
Safety Features and Protocols
Safety is a major feature for both Uber and Lyft because you are, after all, getting into somebody else’s car and having them drive you to your destination!
Uber and Lyft have similar methods of vetting drivers to ensure rider and driver safety so you can travel with peace of mind.
Firstly, all Uber drivers and Lyft drivers are screened and vetted by the companies to ensure that they have the appropriate licenses and that their vehicle is up to reasonable safety and efficiency standards.
Both drivers and riders have their own accounts too, which means there is a form of social vetting that ensures safety.
Riders and drivers can rate one another based on their behavior, promptness, politeness, and anything else that another rider or driver may need to know.
Lyft and Uber both have red-line rating levels beneath which you can’t drop if you want to continue using the app.
This means it pays to be a safe passenger and a safe driver if you want to continue using Lyft or Uber!
Other safety features include the ability to share your location with trusted contacts so that they can see if you arrive where you wanted to, and both Uber and Lyft’s security services monitor your ride for unusual activity.
You can contact Lyft’s security team secretly if your ride begins to make you uncomfortable, and Uber allows you to record audio on your ride should your driver or passenger say something untoward or threatening.
There’s no need to wonder about whether Lyft or Uber is safer, as both take safety very seriously.
Both platforms even have special safety protocols for women and marginalized groups to ensure that everyone can ride in comfort and safety.
Customer Service and Support
Uber and Lyft both have robust customer support services that include live chat for riders and phone comms for drivers.
There are a number of FAQs both in their apps and online, but for faster dispute resolution, you can contact Uber customer service or Lyft customer service to raise your complaints!
Environmental Initiatives
Uber and Lyft are both fundamentally private vehicle-centered services that use vast, energy-consuming technical infrastructure to facilitate their services.
While they do effectively reduce the number of trips being taken in private vehicles by giving people the opportunity to ride in a car instead of taking their own, they are not nearly as environmentally sound as public transit or people-powered transport such as cycling or walking.
Nevertheless, Uber and Lyft both offer green rides that focus on using hybrid or electric vehicles, and they have both invested in a number of environmental initiatives that may have some positive environmental impacts.
These include initiatives like Uber’s commitment to transition to completely electric services by 2040 – a long-term goal that offers $800 million worth of assets to drivers to help them transition to electric.
In contrast, Lyft has committed to reaching 100% electric by 2030 – a more urgent and ambitious goal since everyone who drives for Lyft is an independent contractor.
Lyft’s focus on micro-mobility in the form of bikes and scooters has also seen it take its environmental impact more seriously.
Rider and Community Feedback
Lyft and Uber both have generally positive feedback.
Given that they dominate the market and are very convenient, it’s not surprising that there is a range of different reviews of these apps simply because so many people use them!
You can see some example reviews here from Trustpilot:
“Lyft made an error and refuse to acknowldege it. keep feeding me scripted answers and avoiding the actual issue which was thier map was incorrect and sent us and a driver to the wrong place, in a city we didnt know, at night. I’ll never use them again – they were ok til this point.” https://www.trustpilot.com/reviews/657b689ac8c8166cae48c282
“I know some people have complaints but for me theyve been mostly better than expected or at least as expected. They’re reliable and no problems for me in my area or on a few vacations to different states too.”
https://www.trustpilot.com/reviews/6547dad91c8cb87a113ce85d
“I had the best Lyft ride EVER! My Driver was Tamiko in Las Vegas. Her blinged out Infinity SUV was a beautiful vehicle and the minute I stepped into the car she was friendly and welcoming. Her personal interaction skills were STELLAR and I hope I get the chance to have her be my Driver again. THIS is what a personalized transport ride should be like. A clean amazing vehicle with a personable Driver that’s genuinely happy to take you where you need to be while you are enjoying the entire experience! Brooklyn salutes you Tamiko for you’re unique and welcomed transportation service! You ROCK!!!⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐”
https://www.trustpilot.com/reviews/64dbd4f129322c3915bd0a52
“A scam. The incompetence is astonishing. I paid for a booking – 100% clear that I paid for one reservation – then had a call from another unknown driver claiming he had the reservation. Then had to pay a canx fee – while sat in the car I’d booked.. who then couldn’t take us as he wasn’t the car selected when I had to rebook – his car wasn’t selected even tho I was actually sat in it..Never, never again.”
https://www.trustpilot.com/reviews/657ba40f593648098e5155d6
“I used Uber for the first time a few days ago, partly because I was horrified by the prices charged by ordinary taxis and partly because my daughter-in-law used Uber for the first time a couple of weeks ago and was very impressed. The pick-ups were so prompt and my journeys to and from my destination were absolutely brilliant – and the charges were very reasonable. The Uber app was just so good and both drivers were very friendly. I could not have asked for anything better and will use nothing else but Uber in the future,”
https://www.trustpilot.com/reviews/657c7a031ddc4fd321302e86
Choosing Between Uber and Lyft
The major difference between Uber and Lyft really comes down to geographical constraints.
Uber is simply more widely available, which means in most places there probably won’t be an opportunity to use anything other than Uber.
Realistically, comparison between the two companies relies on both of them being available – and more often than not, it is truly based on the drivers working with them.
For that reason, we recommend having both apps on your phone and comparing prices and availability so you can decide which one works best for you at the moment!
New Lyft users, for example, can take advantage of a free ride credit by using a Lyft promo code. Why commit to only one service when you can pick and choose as suits?
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Doing Better – Uber or Lyft?
Uber holds a greater market share than Lyft, over 70% vs Lyft’s 25%. However, Uber has only ever posted a profit once in its lifetime.
Why Do More People Use Uber Than Lyft?
This could be for any number of reasons: greater marketing, first-to-market advantage, faster expansion, more newer features. Uber has dominated the rideshare space since its inception in 2010.
Wrapping Up
As you can see, comparisons between Uber and Lyft tend to reveal more similarities than differences.
With that in mind, don’t stress about picking one over the other!
After all, it’s not much trouble at all to download both apps to your phone and use whatever one suits you better at any given time. Happy riding!
