I went to the phone store to check on my account. While I waited my turn I talked to the Uber people who had a table set up. I don't know if it varies depending on location but suspect it might. In the greater Houston area if you Uber and accept a fare you get $1 for picking them up. You get 87 cents per mile for the distance of the trip. You get 11 cents per minute for the duration of the trip. So if you pick someone up and take them 10 miles and it takes 20 minutes you get $1, plus $8.70, plus $2.20 for $11.90 total. Oops, but Uber gets 28% so you actually get $8.57 out of which you pay fuel, tires, oil, brakes, etc. etc. plus the entire expense from wherever you were to the point of pickup and from the point of delivery back to wherever you want to be afterward. So it's better than a poke in the nose but not as much as they want you to believe. Oh, and you need background checks, permits, drug test, etc. that costs about $225 before you start. They will reimburse up to $125 right now.
Yes, it's better than a poke in the nose for sure but just not as lucrative as they want you to think.
no question. and now, they've upped the hyperbole in the competition with lyft. certainly, the lower the coo of the car you're using, the higher the profit.
Bottom line, only for the trip distance, you clear $3.37, using the $0.52 IRS rate. If you do three per hour, you are making $10.11 per hour. And likely, particularly in California where the insurance companies have caught on, your insurance will be much higher. Not much of a bargain, if you ask me.
Most driving for Uber and Lyft likely haven't let their insurance companies know how they are using their cars. That and avoiding background checks and any other expenses that traditional cars for hire have is these companies' business plan.
