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You all know what Uber is. It introduced and popularized the concept of an online ridesharing service to the world. If you haven’t heard of Lyft yet, it is also an online ridesharing service, accessed via mobile app, that has emerged as the second strongest contender in the game. At their cores the two ridesharing services are very similar products. Both were founded in San Francisco, and both applications connect people via a mobile online application in need of a ride to (certified) drivers willing to give it to them. Both are paid services.
I’m not going to provide a whole lot of information here because we want this to be written by you guys. If you have used both Lyft and Uber, please share your experiences in the comments so we can build a crowdsourced comparison of the two services. We welcome comments from both customers as well as drivers.
Biggest Outright Differences Between Uber and Lyft
In a practical sense, the biggest difference between Uber and Lyft is that Uber is still far more widespread. While Lyft is growing rapidly, the span isn’t to the level of Uber yet.
- Lyft is in 220 cities within the United States
- Uber is 66 countries and 449 cities worldwide
Uber’s brand is more focused on formal professionalism, and Lyft’s company culture encourages friendliness.
- Uber drivers open doors for the riders, passengers sit in the backseat chauffeur-style, and there are a variety of luxury vehicles you can choose from to ride in for various prices
- Lyft drivers have pink mustaches on their cars and have been seen fist-bumping customers; they are even encouraged to urge the customer to sit next to them
Prices seem to be more or less the same. With Lyft you have the option to tip, and with Uber you do not.
$50 in Free Lyft Credit
If you haven’t signed up already, sign up through this referral link to receive $50 in free Lyft credit. Feel free to share you promo codes and sign-up links in the comments as well.
Bottom Line
If you have used Uber and/or Lyft, please share your thoughts, opinions, and experiences below so other MileValue readers can become educated about their options.
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I’ve used both Uber and Lyft in New York, however I use Lyft more often because they don’t surge as much. There are more Lyft drivers available when I need a cab and I’ve never had a problem with Lyft drivers. I find that they charge less for the same route, which is always a better deal.
I’ve used both in the US. The synopsis above accurately describes the 2. Although I’ve had some very laid back Uber Drivers, not quite the “professionalism” Uber shoots for. Not bad experiences at all, just not typical Uber. Both apps are super easy to use. I’ll be using Uber in Rio tomorrow so we’ll see how that goes
Many drivers drive for both and just flip their signs around.
I always ask the drivers which they prefer to work for.
Most of them say Lyft.
I prefer Lyft as both a rider and a driver. But I will say, Uber’s technology is all-around much better and more reliable than Lyft. Not to mention as a driver, there is simply much more demand on Uber than there is on Lyft. Uber ride requests are almost non-stop, whereas Lyft requests can be few at times.
Another app to consider is Gett, the fair-trade version of Uber/Lyft (b/c they take a fair commission from drivers). Unfortunately it’s only available in NYC atm.
https://easyjourneys.wordpress.com/2016/06/26/forget-uberlyft-use-this-fair-trade-app-on-your-next-trip-to-nyc/
I’m in L.A. and I’m done with Uber. I find their obnoxious money-grab scheme called “surge pricing” to be more and more of a problem, and after I got hit for a 50% increase on a recent trip to LAX for no apparent reason (other than they calculated they could get away with it), I downloaded Lyft. I’ve used Lyft 5 times since and I find the pricing more reliable and the app interface more user friendly. I’ve had no problems with availability. Interestingly, each Lyft driver has said that he was a former Uber driver. They weren’t too fond of Uber.
I’ve only tried Lyft once but have used Uber several times. Lyft worked fine and I wish i had tried it earlier. The Lyft car was more of a day to day car, while I usually select higher-end cars on Uber. All depends on what you need at the time…space and luxury vs functionality and lower cost.
Here is my Lyft referral code if anyone wants the $50 credit: https://www.lyft.com/invite/LUIS589093
I used the above link but it only credited me $5. I am a new user.. any ideas?
It probably gave you $5 credit on 10 different rides.
I prefer Lyft over Uber because you can add a tip in the Lyft app. Uber you need to tip with cash which is incongruous with the idea that Uber is a simple,cash free transaction. Even when i take an NYC taxi I can tip on the credit card and don’t need to have cash on me.
[…] month ago I wrote about ridesharing apps Uber and Lyft. If you aren’t familiar with Lyft yet, it is very similar to Uber in that it is a mobile […]
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