# I just did my first run last night



## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

I’m addicted, I had so much fun. I had 21 rides and I made around $100 (I left money on the table) I thought it would be extremely busy because last weekend before Thanksgiving but it want as crazy as I expected. I would have made a lot more but I couldn’t figure out how to enable tips. Two riders were like your tips isn’t enabled. I’m also sure more would have tipped if I figured it out lol. I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn’t accept those because I didn’t want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating. 

How do you enable tips?


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## Austin99 (Sep 30, 2018)

Call Uber and they will do it.


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## Over/Uber (Jan 2, 2017)

Not sure on enabling tips—never had to do it.

But, regarding pings while you have a passenger: hit the accept tab and stack your rides up. The rider knows you’re dropping someone and is aware of their wait time. If they don’t like it, they can cancel. And, you don’t have any dead wait time.

Stack those rides up!


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> How do you enable tips?


I didn't see it after reading your message. So I went to Google to see what it said. That's a useful habit, by the way.

Took me a while to figure out what they were saying. I haven't tried it, since it's not my problem. But they said turn off the app, then turn it back on.

But... I know that doesn't work. So try logging off the app (not just going off line) from within the app.

When you log back in, there are some things you can change, like which nav app you want to use. I hope you set your password to be something you can remember.

And good luck!

Christine


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Over/Uber said:


> Not sure on enabling tips-never had to do it.
> 
> But, regarding pings while you have a passenger: hit the accept tab and stack your rides up. The rider knows you're dropping someone and is aware of their wait time. If they don't like it, they can cancel. And, you don't have any dead wait time.
> 
> Stack those biatches up!


Ok, I'll do that tonight for sure


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> Ok, I'll do that tonight for sure


You can try it before then, just don't "go online." I open the app quite a few more times than I go online. For instance, if I want to check something, like how much I'm going to get paid.

Having the app open connects you to Uber. Going online means you're ready to accept trip requests.

Christine


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## Pax Collector (Feb 18, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted


We all were. Give it a month or two.


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Christinebitg said:


> You can try it before then, just don't "go online." I open the app quite a few more times than I go online. For instance, if I want to check something, like how much I'm going to get paid.
> 
> Having the app open connects you to Uber. Going online means you're ready to accept trip requests.
> 
> Christine


I signed out the app and logged back in, it didn't work. I didn't see anywhere the tips function. Why does uber make it so difficult? I'm gonna reach out to support.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

21 rides for $100???


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## vtcomics (Oct 9, 2018)

Coachman said:


> 21 rides for $100???


College kids extravaganza


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Christinebitg said:


> You can try it before then, just don't "go online." I open the app quite a few more times than I go online. For instance, if I want to check something, like how much I'm going to get paid.
> 
> Having the app open connects you to Uber. Going online means you're ready to accept trip requests.
> 
> Christine


I called support and he had to update the app, he said in 24 hours tips will be enabled.

Thanks for helping.



Coachman said:


> 21 rides for $100???


It would have been more but tips wasn't working, hence the thread. People wanted to tip but damn tip thing wasn't working. I called support, he said in 24 hours it will enabled. I could have easily made $125 at least. I was out for a few hours.


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## janewalch (Jan 8, 2016)

Coachman said:


> 21 rides for $100???


This is what caught my attention too. Here in Los Angeles 21 is usually $200+. Could be less at times and often close to $300.


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Austin99 said:


> Call Uber and they will do it.


I called them and it's fixed.

Thanks


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted, I had so much fun. I had 21 rides and I made around $100 (I left money on the table) I thought it would be extremely busy because last weekend before Thanksgiving but it want as crazy as I expected. I would have made a lot more but I couldn't figure out how to enable tips. Two riders were like your tips isn't enabled. I'm also sure more would have tipped if I figured it out lol. I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn't accept those because I didn't want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating.
> 
> How do you enable tips?


Hi CR, welcome!

It is a fun gig. Tips thing, my regain does not have the option to accept or decline so I am of no help there. Sorry. I was never even asked. It just showed up one day. When it first started, they made it hard all around. (not the only crazy, shoot them selves in the foot sorta thing they have done)

Glad your here and enjoying the gig. I do too. After about 2 years, getting a lil crispy on doing it but some passengers just make your day! Others make ya wanna climb a tower with a high powered rifle, LoL. But they are the minority.

Be well and please post how ya turn on tips so it helps others with the same problem.

Again, welcome!



ColumbusRides said:


> I called them and it's fixed.
> 
> Thanks


LoL, after all that typing! hehe


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

vtcomics said:


> College kids extravaganza


Yeah, a lot of short trips around campus. I'm gonna do longer runs, I just wanted to try to understand my market


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## vtcomics (Oct 9, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> Yeah, a lot of short trips around campus. I'm gonna do longer runs, I just wanted to try to understand my market


Absolutely and I did the same thing....still do occasionally. But you'll start to strategize some of your game as time goes on. The campus kids, at least over here, RARELY tip; although I've had a few that surprised me. $3-$4 trips is a slow slog. Although if they're only going a mile or so then sure. In and out quick. Until they rate you a 4 because....well just because they can.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

That's another thing. Don't let the first time you see below 5 stars bother you. More than likely it will have nothing to do with you at all. It just happens.


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Danny3xd said:


> That's another thing. Don't let the first time you see below 5 stars bother you. More than likely it will have nothing to do with you at all. It just happens.


I'll probably have a panic attack if and when I see a low star but I know it's part of it lol


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## Cableguynoe (Feb 14, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I could have easily made $125 at least.


21 rides/$100

Nah, with tips you would have made $108.


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## Uber's Guber (Oct 22, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted, I had so much fun.


Enjoy the honeymoon, it's always short-lived.



ColumbusRides said:


> I'll probably have a panic attack if and when I see a low star


Not a matter of _if_, but _when_....
And "when" always happens sooner, rather then later.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

How many miles for those 21 rides?


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Coachman said:


> How many miles for those 21 rides?


I didn't track the miles, I'll do that tonight. I used a half tank of gas which cost $20.00.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

ColumbusRides said:


> I didn't track the miles, I'll do that tonight. I used a half tank of gas which cost $20.00.


I got in the habit of setting my trip odometer at the start of each shift.


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## Jason Wilson (Oct 20, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'll probably have a panic attack if and when I see a low star but I know it's part of it lol


Try to avoid obsessing about ratings. I know it's tough. But your overall driver experience will be much better if you don't worry about ratings. Think of it like this. You as a driver have a job to do and so does the passenger. Your job is to arrive on time in a clean car and drive very safely and smoothly. The passengers job is to be on the curb, input their destination correctly, act like an adult, and not make a mess...then tip you and give you 5 stars if deserved. I focus on doing my job and if the pax doesn't do their job properly, it's out of your hands. You will get low ratings you can't avoid it. But if you do your job you will still have a high rating overall


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## Juggalo9er (Dec 7, 2017)

Welcome to uber, lube is on the left, puke bags on the right


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## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

Glad you enjoyed your first day. Sounds like it went well for you. 
But I would DEFINITELY get out of college kid land. lol. Short trips, low tips, and they tend to be pretty fluent in the language of downrating at times 
Best of luck!


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Juggalo9er said:


> Welcome to uber, lube is on the left, puke bags on the right


lmao


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## ANT 7 (Oct 14, 2018)

It's not about the number of rides.

It's about the revenue you generate at the end of the day.

For example, I did 22 rides yesterday in 12 hours, and made $267. A normal day for me......I do that Monday to Friday over and over.

I don't pickup at or near the universities we have in our city, nor do I at sporting events or concerts or grocery stores. Don't work the bar scene at night either. There is money out there, you've got to be smart, strategize, make rules and follow them, and you will soon figure out where it is.

Columbus has 825,000 people in the city. Get the demographic stats from the local real estate board, and the cities website. They have it. Find out where the highest density of apartment/condo units are, as it relates to only the mid to higher income levels and median age groups (you don't want student's remember ?)........now, where is the airport in relation to these areas as well as the downtown core. etc ? Start by farming 2 areas consistently, so the app starts to rematch you with regular riders. In the morning certain areas are busier than others in the afternoon, etc, it will come together, but you've got to be strategic and mine the data first.


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

ANT 7 said:


> It's not about the number of rides.
> 
> It's about the revenue you generate at the end of the day.
> 
> ...


Wow, brilliant post! You're right there's a smarter strategy out there and you gave me good ideas. I guess I have homework to do


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## ANT 7 (Oct 14, 2018)

There are 1.5MM people in my market. This will easily work with your population. You'll make mistakes at first, but you'll also learn where the good fishing holes are too. Once you know where to go and when, and what areas to avoid, it will get better. There is a lot more to it than this, because I have over 3,000 trips in one year of Ubering, however, it's enough to get you started.

Oh yeah......ignore surges.


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## JaredJ (Aug 7, 2015)

FaceToPalm, is it me or did anyone else think OP was trolling?

100 in 21 trips is abysmal. Do the math kid.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

ColumbusRides said:


> I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn't accept those because I didn't want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating.


Those could be two things -- one good and the other bad.

If they occur during Pool rides, they are a bad thing. Why? Because everything Pool is a bad thing, and also because they are giving you another pax to drive somewhere for the single fare. Bad.

If they occur during a regular ride, that is a "Stacked Ping," and it's a GOOD thing. Accept those, as long as it's not a Pool ping!

The pickup will be very close to the dropoff of your current rider, which means less down time for you. In fact, it will sometimes be *exactly* the same place as your current dropoff. At large Miami Beach hotels, we frequently have stacked ping pax opening doors for our current riders -- laughs all around!

*****
Keep an eye on your revenue per mile and/or per hour -- TOTAL mileage, and TOTAL time online.

I personally prefer to watch my $/hour. I go out for two hours, and if the number is not where it's supposed to be, I'm done for the day. Saves a lot of wasted time with crap earnings and helps decide when to drive on certain days.


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## reg barclay (Nov 3, 2015)

ANT 7 said:


> Oh yeah......ignore surges.


I assume you mean they shouldn't try driving to surges, not that they should ignore them if they're happening right where they are.


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## kc ub'ing! (May 27, 2016)

Having to opt in to receiving tips... unusual. If your rides were mainly college kids, rest assured you didn’t miss out. Tips from collegians are rare.

Oh speaking of tips. Everyone else getting the notification, “You received a tip!” each time it happens? Surprisingly annoying.


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## merryon2nd (Aug 31, 2016)

kc ub'ing! said:


> Oh speaking of tips. Everyone else getting the notification, "You received a tip!" each time it happens? Surprisingly annoying.


No fair 
I want to be notified instead of having to look for em. lmao


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## ANT 7 (Oct 14, 2018)

reg barclay said:


> I assume you mean they shouldn't try driving to surges, not that they should ignore them if they're happening right where they are.


That's it man......don't chase the bait. If you're in one that's great, or you were headed to the area anyways, but otherwise, no worries. I read that here, and it actually saved me grief when I was a newb.

We have a big one every workday first thing in the morning downtown for like an hour or so, as I imagine many large cities do. But doing 1.5 or 2x surge trips on base fares isn't my cup of tea at rush hour when it takes 5 minutes to go one block sometimes amongst the hordes of aggressively driven accordion buses and the crowd of distracted pedestrians staring at their phones while [email protected] $5 or 6 a trip........no thx.


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## Blingin (Feb 7, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> I didn't track the miles, I'll do that tonight. I used a half tank of gas which cost $20.00.


You will have to get a mile tracking app like Stride to get the mileage deduction too.


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## x100 (Dec 7, 2015)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted, I had so much fun. I had 21 rides and I made around $100 (I left money on the table) I thought it would be extremely busy because last weekend before Thanksgiving but it want as crazy as I expected. I would have made a lot more but I couldn't figure out how to enable tips. Two riders were like your tips isn't enabled. I'm also sure more would have tipped if I figured it out lol. I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn't accept those because I didn't want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating.
> 
> How do you enable tips?


wha'ts ur formula determining the actual pre tax profit?


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

x100 said:


> wha'ts ur formula determining the actual pre tax profit?


Any formula is only good until your next major repair.


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> I didn't track the miles, I'll do that tonight


Get in the habit of tracking ALL your miles. Not just the miles when you have a rider, and not just the miles when you're on-line in the app.

You also want to capture the miles (as a for instance) after you've driven a rider somewhere, and you've decided to call it quits for the day, but you still need to drive home. You'll almost certainly need that for your income tax return.

Christine


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## JJUberman (Nov 14, 2018)

ColumbusRides said:


> I didn't track the miles, I'll do that tonight. I used a half tank of gas which cost $20.00.


Download Everlance and let it track all your mileage. At the end of the year just DL the pdf report for the IRS and done


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

JJUberman said:


> Download Everlance and let it track all your mileage. At the end of the year just DL the pdf report for the IRS and done


I was just gonna say that, JJ.

CR, There are a bunch and this is just one. But it is simple and free. Most folks take standard mileage as a deduction. It's simple and easy to keep track of. Here is a link to everlance; https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.everlance But again, there are a bunch. I just like this one the most for the above.

There are other things like car washes that you need to track. It's important to keep records of this stuff from the beginning and a great habit to get in to. Really, start now. Keep a list of every penny you spend related to driving for rideshare. Not hard and you will be mega glad you did.

Most of us put it off and panic at the end of the year.

LoL, watch the soon to be flood of threads on "I never kept track and now..."

Oh, and everlance lets you put in other expenses manually. Great freebie!


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## NOXDriver (Aug 12, 2018)

Pax Collector said:


> We all were. Give it a month or two.


Or until you do your first Profit and Loss Statement and realize that you're losing money.


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

JJUberman said:


> Download Everlance and let it track all your mileage. At the end of the year just DL the pdf report for the IRS and done


Awesome, thanks


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## Spider-Man (Jul 7, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted, I had so much fun. I had 21 rides and I made around $100 (I left money on the table) I thought it would be extremely busy because last weekend before Thanksgiving but it want as crazy as I expected. I would have made a lot more but I couldn't figure out how to enable tips. Two riders were like your tips isn't enabled. I'm also sure more would have tipped if I figured it out lol. I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn't accept those because I didn't want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating.
> 
> How do you enable tips?


wait 500 rides...1k for sure. your thrill will be gone


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

JJUberman said:


> Download Everlance and let it track all your mileage. At the end of the year just DL the pdf report for the IRS and done


For new drivers, it's very easy to *underestimate the value* of tracking your mileage...so here's the math.

The IRS deduction for business use of your personal vehicle for 2018 is $0.545 per mile.

For tax purposes, ALL business miles count except commuting. So if you start and end near your home, almost all your Uber mileage will count for tax purposes *including when you are just cruising with the app on, and also your mileage TO pickups* -- which will NOT be included on your Uber reports.

So, say you drive 20,000 miles for business (I did that last year, driving PART-time.). Your mileage deduction would be $10,900...*which reduces your taxable income by $10,900. *

Needless to say, that is NOT a trivial deduction! The key to it, however, it to have very good records of your driving mileage. However you do it is fine -- but keep good, detailed records.

I record every mile I drive all year long, and then categorize my mileage as either personal or business. When I showed my accountant my .pdf detailing both personal and business mileage, he was drooling...and I had zero IRS problems.


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## vtcomics (Oct 9, 2018)

JimKE said:


> For new drivers, it's very easy to *underestimate the value* of tracking your mileage...so here's the math.
> 
> The IRS deduction for business use of your personal vehicle for 2018 is $0.545 per mile.
> 
> ...


Your method sounds great. Do you break down each trip with start/end locations? If you're using the standard 54.5 cent deduction then you really don't need to track personal use miles; just the business mile. You WOULD want to track personal miles if you AREN'T using the standard deduction, and are going to break out expenses by a percentage of personal versus business use. At least that is what my accountant told me. I also track app on miles and the trip to pick.up the pax miles on a spreadsheet; although I read on a thread somewhere on here that Uber includes those miles on the end of year report? Don't know if I trust that to be accurate though.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

vtcomics said:


> Your method sounds great. Do you break down each trip with start/end locations? If you're using the standard 54.5 cent deduction then you really don't need to track personal use miles; just the business mile. You WOULD want to track personal miles if you AREN'T using the standard deduction, and are going to break out expenses by a percentage of personal versus business use. At least that is what my accountant told me. I also track app on miles and the trip to pick.up the pax miles on a spreadsheet; although I read on a thread somewhere on here that Uber includes those miles on the end of year report? Don't know if I trust that to be accurate though.


I think however you do it is okay, as long as your records are believable. Personally, I use an app called MileIQ, which I really like. It costs me $60 per year and records EVERY drive I take. Once a month or so, I go into the desktop part of it and designate personal or business. I only drive part-time, so it's very simple and quick.

Is it necessary to log both? Probably not. But if you get audited, wouldn't it be nice to say, "Here are ALL of the miles I drove last year -- including personal." When I show them a .pdf that shows 20,593.2 miles for business and 8,469.9 miles personal, they know I didn't just make up a number.


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## FinerThings (Aug 13, 2018)

I enjoyed this when I first started driving about 4 months ago, and I still do. Have fun, it's a great job. 

1. Track every single expense
2. Don't wait for pax to go in a store and shop, not even for one thing
3. Stay away from colleges. Short rides and they don't tip much.
4. Don't wait in the airport queue
5. Don't accept every ride that comes your way
6. Pax don't like any negativity at all....always be positive, even if you're having a crappy day
7. Read these boards.
8. Download gasbuddy. It will tell where the cheap gas is and assess your driving for opportunities to improve fuel efficiency. I gained nearly 2 miles per gallon. And I'm a good driver already.

Enjoy and have fun!
Darrien


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## SirNomad (Nov 5, 2018)

Wow you made $100 on 21 trips??? You are lucky. 21 trips in Orlando is about $65.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

FinerThings said:


> I enjoyed this when I first started driving about 4 months ago, and I still do. Have fun, it's a great job.
> 
> 1. Track every single expense


Why would you track every single expense? Just track your miles and multiply by $0.545. If you're expenditures exceed $0.545 you've got a big problem.


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## FinerThings (Aug 13, 2018)

"Why would you track every single expense? Just track your miles and multiply by $0.545. If you're expenditures exceed $0.545 you've got a big problem."

I've tracked things like my dashcam, app purchases, car washes, phone holder thingy, lunch with another driver, etc. Lots of things


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

You don't write off the incidentals, Coach? Car wash, portion of cell phone, cleaning supplies etc? Adds up pretty quick and to a good amount.
------------------------------------------------------------------

The miles, if I am open to trips, on way to pick up or headed home. If the app is on, I declare those miles as an expense. My thinking I am bringing equipment to do a job. And the job is to transport. I've never been questioned on it. But have read here that many folks don't declare miles with no passengers or cargo.
(*not advice! *Just what I do)

But just found this from Turbo on the mater;

https://ttlc.intuit.com/questions/4...d-do-not-get-a-ride-can-i-deduct-the-50-miles

Well worth a quick read IMVHO

Edit; This is a great page on incidental or "common operating expenses"

https://www.hurdlr.com/blog/16-tax-deductions-uber-drivers-can-use-immediately


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

FinerThings said:


> I gained nearly 2 miles per gallon


How do you get Gas Buddy to do that?

I've had it for years and am a big fan. But I haven't seen that, so help me out with that.

Christine


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

May I be so bold as to offer an alternate to gas buddy?

AAA's notes if they offer "Top Tier" gas or not. It's also noted on a sticker on pumps. It is sold at lower priced stations as well as higher end. It just means it has certain additives that help deposits from collecting in the engine. It really makes a difference.

AAA's gas finder is a bit of a PITB. But it's the only one I have found with this feature. Android and Apple;

https://www.google.com/search?q=aaa...hrome.0.0l6.5959j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Edit. ya have to click on pin of gas station to find out if it has Top tier gas. Kinda the PIB I found. Just an extra step and ya can't just see it looking at app.


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

Danny3xd said:


> AAA's gas finder is a bit of a PITB.


Does the AAA app decide that it's going to stay on even after you turn it off? Gas Buddy does that now, which annoys me to no end. Waze does that too, and ditto for my reaction as well.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

Nope. Closes completely when X'ed out. Dunno about background but does not annoy ya like that.

It has a bunch of other stuff I have yet to play with. I only got it to find stations with top tier and have yet to play with it and find out if it does anything cool. Besides.


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## GT500KR (Jan 30, 2017)

Coachman said:


> 21 rides for $100???


He Using the 'SadUber" business software package.


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I didn't track the miles, I'll do that tonight. I used a half tank of gas which cost $20.00.


As a good rule of thumb, at least that I've used (to be conservative), take your gas cost and DOUBLE it to estimate your non gas costs. So in other words you netted about $40-50 or about $15/hr.

Don't go around thinking you "made" $25-30/hr.


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## TDR (Oct 15, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted, I had so much fun. I had 21 rides and I made around $100 (I left money on the table) I thought it would be extremely busy because last weekend before Thanksgiving but it want as crazy as I expected. I would have made a lot more but I couldn't figure out how to enable tips. Two riders were like your tips isn't enabled. I'm also sure more would have tipped if I figured it out lol. I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn't accept those because I didn't want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating.
> 
> How do you enable tips?


????


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## SatMan (Mar 20, 2017)

3 months and the honeymoon is over.


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Danny3xd said:


> You don't write off the incidentals, Coach? Car wash, portion of cell phone, cleaning supplies etc? Adds up pretty quick and to a good amount.


The standard mileage deduction is all I need. I wouldn't benefit from adding everything up separately.


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## Uber's Guber (Oct 22, 2017)

Coachman said:


> The standard mileage deduction is all I need. I wouldn't benefit from adding everything up separately.


You can take the standard mileage deduction and still write off the things that Danny3xd mentioned, such as the car washes and the portion of cell phone used for business. You just can't write off expenses like fuel, tires, and engine repairs when you take the standard mileage deduction.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

Coachman said:


> The standard mileage deduction is all I need. I wouldn't benefit from adding everything up separately.


Yes, standard mileage is best for most folks. It allows for other expenses to also be written off.

It does not mean that is your only write off. Others are allowed with it.



Uber's Guber said:


> You can take the standard mileage deduction and still write off the things that Danny3xd mentioned, such as the car washes and the portion of cell phone used for business. You just can't write off expenses like fuel, tires, and engine repairs when you take the standard mileage deduction.


Thanks Guber. How am I saying this wrong and people are thinking I am suggesting to use the other way of doing this?


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## ColumbusRides (Nov 10, 2018)

Uber's Guber said:


> You can take the standard mileage deduction and still write off the things that Danny3xd mentioned, such as the car washes and the portion of cell phone used for business. You just can't write off expenses like fuel, tires, and engine repairs when you take the standard mileage deduction.


I have other businesses so'll I put everything down in Excel and let my accountant figure out which is best.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

ColumbusRides said:


> I have other businesses so'll I put everything down in Excel and let my accountant figure out which is best.


Best answer yet! LoL

Accountants are worth their weight in gold.


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## Dan2miletripguy (Nov 3, 2018)

21 trips would most likely net you more than that in the future so as long as you can keep getting pings you should do great.....welcome!


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

Danny3xd said:


> Yes, standard mileage is best for most folks. It allows for other expenses to also be written off.
> 
> It does not mean that is your only write off. Others are allowed with it.


I guess what I meant was... by the time I take the standard deduction.. my taxes are such that I already don't owe anything on this income. There's literally no benefit to me to write anything else off.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

Coachman said:


> I guess what I meant was... by the time I take the standard deduction.. my taxes are such that I already don't owe anything on this income. There's literally no benefit to me to write anything else off.


That is awesome, Coach.

I was almost worried. On paper last year I lost $14k! And it was not a bad year, lol.


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Danny3xd said:


> That is awesome, Coach.
> 
> I was almost worried. On paper last year I lost $14k! And it was not a bad year, lol.


Coachman is one of my favorite Uber people!


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

Coachman said:


> There's literally no benefit to me to write anything else off.


You might want to examine your tax strategies more closely. You can show a loss for a number of years, potentially offsetting income from other sources.

And in some cases, you can carry forward losses into future years.


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## Mark James (Sep 21, 2017)

ColumbusRides said:


> I used a half tank of gas which cost $20.00.


The average car gets 350ish miles per tank. You drove about 175 miles. Your expenses were $95. You made $5 net for all your driving which includes the liability of driving people in your car.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

Got curious. In a brand new Toyota, driving 175 miles would cost you $28. All in. Less if the car was for personal use only. It'd never contribute because of sitting in a parking lot or driveway.

There are a ton of online calculators; https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1...1..gws-wiz.......0i71j35i39j33i10._wBAAllWsMo

Using my Prius. It was bought for use as a work tool costs .14 to 16 cents per mile to run. so that 175 miles would cost me, and thats an average day for me 175 x.15= $26

But again, I would still be paying for the car, insurance even if I didn't use it to generate income. So cutting that 50/50 = $13 for 175 miles.

I have been saying it cost me $10 a day. Does add up and I was wrong.

Costs go up a lot with luxury cars. Just my thing here. (And I want a Lexus! snork)


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## Fuzzyelvis (Dec 7, 2014)

Christinebitg said:


> You might want to examine your tax strategies more closely. You can show a loss for a number of years, potentially offsetting income from other sources.
> 
> And in some cases, you can carry forward losses into future years.


It's pretty sad that the best thing about this job is you can lose money doing it.


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Danny3xd said:


> But again, I would still be paying for the car, insurance even if I didn't use it to generate income. So cutting that 50/50 = $13 for 175 miles.


I love you man but I don't understand this logic. If all 175 miles were driven for Rideshare, you can't go cutting the costs in half because "you would still be paying for the car anyway". I also don't think it costs only $26 to go 175 miles...more like $50-75.

Even if the car is 100% paid for, every mile you put on the thing hastens its demise...which means you'll need to pay for another car sooner...unless you have an endless source of free/discount cars.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

I understand. But that is what it cost me to drive my gets 40/ 45 MPG Prius that cost $6000. I need a car for personal use and it would be sitting in the driveway if it were not being used as a tool. I would still have those costs and still would have paid for it. So cutting in half is conservative if anything.

I enjoy the hell outa you as well and know this annoys ya. Do any of those 3 calculators. Or just one. I honestly think most folks over estimate what per mile costs them.

At the end of the month, I normally have around an extra$1,000 or so in the bank. That is after every thing car cost. Not getting rich but thats not bad. I doubt I work 25 to 30 hrs doing this a week.

Do that calc! Might make ya feel better. If you really, really do the math and it's costing anywhere close to 75, no body would do this.

I know I ruffle your feathers with this stuff and hate that. I really do enjoy reading your thoughts and enjoy ya.


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Danny3xd said:


> I understand. But that is what it cost me to drive my gets 40/ 45 MPG Prius that cost $6000. I need a car for personal use and it would be sitting in the driveway if it were not being used as a tool. I would still have those costs and still would have paid for it. So cutting in half is conservative if anything.
> 
> I enjoy the hell outa you as well and know this annoys ya. Do any of those 3 calculators. Or just one. I honestly think most folks over estimate what per mile costs them.
> 
> ...


It's not ruffling my feathers...I just disagree.

I spent somewhere around $8000 on a Sonata in the past year (it's gone now) and drove it 30k miles. That's about $0.27 in non fuel costs...fuel costs brought it up to $0.35-40. While higher than I like it to be, I believe that cost per mile figure is realistic. I learned my lesson never to buy an old car with low miles!

I just bought an Elantra...it's only 5 years old but has 136k miles. The price was $8000 which I believe was fair because it's in pretty decent shape...good enough for Rideshare at least. If I drive it for another 70-100k miles over 2-3 years and have minimal repairs, I will be happy. Let's say I spend $6k over the next 3 years and drive it 100k miles...my non gas costs will be $0.14, and gas will bring them up to about $0.20-0.25. I'll be happy since doing Rideshare I like to collect at least $0.75-1.00.

It will be interesting to check back with you in a year or two when you have to replace your car or undergo a major repair.

But yes, you are correct that if you didn't do RS your car would be sitting in the driveway losing value. I just learned that lesson..age is a car's enemy! Goes against all the conventional wisdom I learned as a kid which said: buy old cars and fix them up. Well unless you have a nice garage to DIY repairs, it's not worth it!

I suppose $0.15 isn't totally outlandish for a Prius...I just think it may be unsustainable. Have you run this calculation over many years or just the past year? Ideally over the lifetime of the vehicle or at least the time you owned it.

"Hay MadTown, why don't you quit crying and just get a Prius?" you may ask. The answer is simple: it's not available in stick shift! That's right, I'm willing to pay more per mile for enjoyment. Makes the driving easier and less aggravating.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

Uber made me replace my last prius with this one. So POed, lol.

Seriously, think your over estimating costs. Try the calculators just for fun. Know it made me feel better. I'll find the link for you. It's a post starting with an off the showroom floor prius and I forget but like 3 years of RS. The final cost per mile with gas was .32 cents.

I don't normally offer thoughts on tax or costs cause they seem to get heated. But was so happy to see a new member saying first day and that they loved it. And then so much "happy? No your not" and "no, you lost money "
Just taking the wind outa sails thing. Or I wouldn't have annoyed everyone with ya can write off windex and miles or do the math and know for sure stuff, lol.


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

I did play with a couple of the calculators, but my own spreadsheet is the one I trust the most. The nice thing about my spreadsheet is it adjusts the gas- and non-gas costs up and down depending on displayed fuel economy during the "shift". I use the displayed fuel economy as an indicator of what type of driving I'm doing...worse fuel economy means downtown/city driving which has a higher cost per mile than smooth sailing on the highway.



Danny3xd said:


> Uber made me replace my last prius with this one. So POed, lol.
> 
> Seriously, think your over estimating costs. Try the calculators just for fun. Know it made me feel better. I'll find the link for you. It's a post starting with an off the showroom floor prius and I forget but like 3 years of RS. The final cost per mile with gas was .32 cents.
> 
> ...


I'd rather overestimate costs than underestimate them!!!

By the way, I've found that displayed fuel economy (i.e. in a car's gauge cluster) is usually highly optimistic, by at least 1 mpg! For example, last time I filled up the Elantra it said 31.5 ish MPG...well doing the calculation with the trip odometer vs the gallons measured by the gas pump revealed only 28.5 mpg! Have you ever done this "hard" calculation with your Prius, or do you just trust what it tells you it's getting?

And yes of course it's nice to be positive towards the new guy.


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## Danny3xd (Nov 7, 2016)

LoL! Missed your ending. 2 funny.

That's another advantage. I was setup as a courier before uber.

My cluster is off by 1.4. Drives me insane! Really, really annoying as my old Prii got better mileage, had more room and was just a better version. At 300k miles, had years left.

They have a stick shift. But only 2 gears. "This way" and "that way" Well, and park.....


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## Coachman (Sep 22, 2015)

MadTownUberD said:


> I love you man but I don't understand this logic. If all 175 miles were driven for Rideshare, you can't go cutting the costs in half because "you would still be paying for the car anyway". I also don't think it costs only $26 to go 175 miles...more like $50-75.
> 
> Even if the car is 100% paid for, every mile you put on the thing hastens its demise...which means you'll need to pay for another car sooner...unless you have an endless source of free/discount cars.


Here's the way I look at it. If I quit Ubering tomorrow, any fixed expenses I continue to incur (car payment, insurance, registration, etc.) were not uber expenses to begin with.

Only expenses I incur per Uber-mile driven are Uber expenses. (Gas, depreciation, maintenance.)


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## MadTownUberD (Mar 11, 2017)

Coachman said:


> Here's the way I look at it. If I quit Ubering tomorrow, any fixed expenses I continue to incur (car payment, insurance, registration, etc.) were not uber expenses.


B-b-but you will be putting more miles on your car driving RS, even 100% DF (because you have to go out of your way a little), than if you didn't. And miles kill cars!!!

Miles cost $$$!!!


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## Christinebitg (Jun 29, 2018)

Coachman said:


> Here's the way I look at it. If I quit Ubering tomorrow, any fixed expenses I continue to incur (car payment, insurance, registration, etc.) were not uber expenses to begin with.
> 
> Only expenses I incur per Uber-mile driven are Uber expenses. (Gas, depreciation, maintenance.)


Let's make a distinction between actual incurred costs, and costs for tax purposes.

If you're going to use your actual costs for your tax return, go ahead and deduct a percentage of a variety of things. Or use the 54.5 cents per mile figure plus some other stuff.

Determining if you *actually* made or lost money is a separate figure, which will include taking into account a variety of things, including your actual costs.

Christine


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## ANT 7 (Oct 14, 2018)

Miles and time cost money. Cars also rot and depreciate just by sitting around. None of is is doing Uber in a 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO.........so the only direction is down, whether or not you Uber.


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## KingSolemon213 (Sep 15, 2018)

Yeah the passenger knows but regardless they will complain. Trying to not get s bad rating is impossible customers are basically never happy



ColumbusRides said:


> I'm addicted, I had so much fun. I had 21 rides and I made around $100 (I left money on the table) I thought it would be extremely busy because last weekend before Thanksgiving but it want as crazy as I expected. I would have made a lot more but I couldn't figure out how to enable tips. Two riders were like your tips isn't enabled. I'm also sure more would have tipped if I figured it out lol. I also noticed I was getting pinged while I had pax, I didn't accept those because I didn't want them waiting while I was still doing drop offs and potentially getting a bad rating.
> 
> How do you enable tips?


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