Like airlines that reward loyal customers, Uber and Lyft offer some goodies to frequent riders. Uber declined to comment, citing a quiet period before its I.P.O. In addition, because Uber is generally more popular in most cities, in my experience its surge markup is often significantly higher than Lyft’s, meaning riders are typically better off summoning a Lyft when cars are in high demand. The vagueness can make things more confusing, especially when prices are higher because of unexpected circumstances like heavy traffic. In its receipts, Uber does not show the length and duration of the trip it shows a fare price. Its receipts break out details like the duration of the trip and the distance traveled, which helps riders better understand overall costs. The verdict: Lyft wins, in part for greater transparency. Lyft marks up its Prime Time pricing with a percentage: If the rate is 50 percent, a fare that would normally be $10 costs $15. When prices surge now, Uber does not show a multiplier and instead quotes only the higher price up front. In the past, when Uber fares “surged,” the app showed a multiplier - for example, 3X, meaning the fare was triple the normal cost. Uber calls its practice surge pricing, and Lyft’s version is labeled Prime Time. So if you’re outside a popular museum and dozens of others are trying to summon cars, Uber and Lyft will raise prices to nudge additional drivers to come to the area. When not enough cars are available in an area with high demand, both companies use a system known as dynamic pricing, which scales up costs in accordance with supply and demand. It’s when the companies raise prices that things get more confusing. And Lyft’s lack of fare splitting makes Uber the app of choice for group outings.įundamentally, Uber and Lyft charge roughly the same rates: Riders pay a fare based on the duration and distance of a ride. Its broader wheelchair-accessibility feature is similar to the option offered by traditional taxicabs. The verdict: In terms of ride-summoning features, Uber wins hands down. Lyft, which declined to comment for this column, has a very limited wheelchair-accessibility program I wasn’t able to summon one here. ![]() In my tests in San Francisco, wheelchair-accessible cars were available in many areas. Most important, Uber lets people request wheelchair-accessible cars in about 15 of its top cities. (This isn’t a game-changing feature: In my tests, Uber’s Express Pool option was not available in many locations.) Lyft is currently testing a similar feature in three cities. In other words, you save money by walking a bit to make the route more efficient for the driver. In addition to UberPool, Uber includes a car-sharing feature called Express Pool, where you agree to walk a short distance from your actual location, like to a street corner, and be dropped off somewhere close to your destination. Lyft discontinued its fare-splitting feature last year and said it planned to release an improved version this year. Uber includes a button to let you split the cost of the fare with multiple riders, which is handy when you’re out with a group. When a trip is complete, payment happens through the app, and you get an emailed receipt documenting the route.īut that’s where the similarities end. And to lower costs, both apps let you hail a car to share with a stranger who is going somewhere along your route: Uber calls its feature UberPool, and Lyft calls it a Shared ride. They both also let you add multiple drop-off points if you are sharing a car with a couple of friends. To streamline requests, both apps let you save frequently used locations, like your home or office. Then you choose the type of car you want: economy, luxury or larger vehicles with more seats like S.U.V.s. ![]() To summon a car, you tap the app on your smartphone and enter a destination and pickup location. ![]() Uber and Lyft are, for the most part, neck and neck in terms of their core features. ![]() Here’s a rundown of how the apps compare. In the end, I concluded that Uber had an edge, though the best app for you will depend largely on where you live and how often you need rides.
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