# Ranking The Best Markets to Drive Uber



## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago

1: San Francisco
2: New York City
3: Chicago
4: Los Angeles
5: Miami

From what I have seen and read on here, it appears as if San Francisco and New York City are far and away the two best markets, in terms of earnings potential. For example, I have read stories of people driving for 100+ miles to work San Francisco. I will give San Francisco the nod here, because the city is very compact, and there are a lot of high tech types out there.

New York would be a close second. I am sure that Manhattan is [on] 24-7. The problem here would be the deadhead tolls on all of those crossings between the buroughs and New Jersey. Also, I am not sure what type of red tape that drivers would have to go through to work Uber between New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

Really, the only problem, is that these two cities are wildly expensive. The cost of living, taxes, and housing costs in SF and NY are outrageous. Uber drivers out there could be banking $1,000-$1,500 per week, working Uber on the side, and may still feel as if they are treading water.

Now, after SF and NY, I would like to figure out what cities would come next.

Chicago: Weather is terrible for most of the year. But, $500-$1,000/week is relatively easy through high season. Crime can be an issue and many Uber drivers outright avoid large swaths of the city -- to concentrate on The Loop and North Side. Chicago drivers can be a cynical bunch, but I don't know what market would be better in the Midwest. And I think that the cost of living in Chicago and the Midwest is cheaper than on the coasts, which should make up for a lot of things.

Los Angeles: Very spread out. And traffic is bonkers at all times.

Miami: I would assume the action would be very concentrated between Brickell, Downtown, and South Beach. There would also be a lot of long runs up and down I-95. No state income tax.

Thoughts?


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## unitxero (Jul 10, 2016)

NYC shouldn't even be on this list, we are all professionally licensed drivers with liability insurance for pax (300k per accident, 50k uninsured motorist) and we are regulated by a Taxi and Limousine Comission, you're trained to drive a yellow cab , green cab, wheel chair accessible cab at the same time you get your TLC license to drive for Uber. We aren't 'normal' Uber drivers in that sense and the cost to start up is extreme.

If you rent a vehicle, it ranges from 375-500 per week on a vehicle.

If you go owner-operater route (you need 2-4k on hand to start), you pay insurance,car note(if you have one) special TLC plates, annual drug exams, vehicle inspection every few months etc.

On top of Ubers 20-25% comission, we get almost another 8-11% in 'taxes' taken out too, almost/over 36% of each ride is taken from us.

Then you get all the TLC rules and stuff that other drivers don't have to worry about http://www.nyc.gov/html/tlc/downloads/pdf/rule_book_current_chapter_80.pdf

It's a full time experience.

I'd 100% say San Francisco is so far up in number one that New York is a very far distant 4th, you just have so much start up and running costs in NYC. I'm strictly looking at this as earnings potential, not cost of living or anything else.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

unitxero said:


> NYC shouldn't even be on this list, we are all professionally licensed drivers with liability insurance for pax (300k per accident, 50k uninsured motorist) and we are regulated by a Taxi and Limousine Comission, you're trained to drive a yellow cab , green cab, wheel chair accessible cab at the same time you get your TLC license to drive for Uber. We aren't 'normal' Uber drivers in that sense and the cost to start up is extreme.
> 
> If you rent a vehicle, it ranges from 375-500 per week on a vehicle.
> 
> ...


Wow!

Again, I had no idea about all of the red-tape involved. I did think that there would be red tape, as there is with everything NYC related, but I did not know that you guys had to jump through all of those hoops. I do think that Uber must be a full-time thing for New York drivers, just so that they can recover all of those fixed costs.

In Chicago, Uber is running a lot of ads about "getting your side hustle on." Now, I wonder if they are also running these ads in New York. By what you are saying, it would be almost impossible for this to be a side hustle out there.

On my end, I would imagine that New York would have non-stop demand, especially in Manhattan. Chicago can have a lot of peaks and valleys, and there are times when it can be dead. Here, I think it's best for drivers to work part-time, and concentrate on the peak hours. Also, our inspections last for one year, and drivers have to pass a background check before they can hit the road.

In Chicago, my personal best was a little more than $1,265 for the week. I can typically bank $800-$1,000 off 35+ hours per week. I met another Chicago guy who had a personal best of $1,500+, but this was some time ago, during the glory years, or whatever.


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## unitxero (Jul 10, 2016)

Manhattan is busy, but it is plagued with terrible traffic. Horrible bike lane additions, double parked tractor trailers and box trucks. Too many vehicles, too many events with street closures, too many bad drivers causing accidents on the highways in Manhattan and backing them up to 5mph crawls. We have peaks and valleys here too, I personally only drive in manhattan when a pax requires me to drop them off there, otherwise I'll stay in Brooklyn,Queens, The Bronx. Much bigger driving space so the miles for pick up / drop off are generally bigger since train service may be far between where some people live. 

If you're making 800-1000 in 35+ hours, you're making more money than us without all the overhead. Chicago would be above NYC.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

unitxero said:


> Manhattan is busy, but it is plagued with terrible traffic. Horrible bike lane additions, double parked tractor trailers and box trucks. Too many vehicles, too many events with street closures, too many bad drivers causing accidents on the highways in Manhattan and backing them up to 5mph crawls. We have peaks and valleys here too, I personally only drive in manhattan when a pax requires me to drop them off there, otherwise I'll stay in Brooklyn,Queens, The Bronx. Much bigger driving space so the miles for pick up / drop off are generally bigger since train service may be far between where some people live.


There was one time that I was in Manhattan, at about 2AM on the FDR, and traffic was not moving. At all.

For Chicago, the only area that really compares to Manhattan would be River North. The action there is almost non-stop, with the hotels, bars, condo towers, offices, etc. Our Downtown Loop is busy during the day, but pretty much dead after 5PM, Monday through Friday. And again, I feel as if large swaths of the city (South and West Sides) are practically no-go zones for a lot of Uber drivers. Taken together, this is probably 75% of the city, in terms of land area, where many Uber drivers just won't go. Chicago ants here are bunched up in a few neighborhoods at all times: River North, Lakeview-Wrigley Field, Wicker Park.

Besides that, we will get a lot of airport runs between The Loop/River North and O'Hare. Now, I think that I-90/94 Kennedy Expressway to O'Hare is the worst bottleneck in the country. Worse than the Cross Bronx. And I don't think Uber drivers in NYC would be using the Cross Bronx much. For us, The Kennedy is the only way in and the only way out of the high volume areas.

Last week, I did $855 in 38 hours. The week before that, I did $870 in 38 hours.

My weekend quest incentive had dropped from 55 rides for $125 to 55 rides for $85. My time was mostly concentrated over the weekend.


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


Scottsdale AZ from Sept 1 to May 31 is the best.
Four major sports, Fiesta Bowl, Nat'l Championship, Cactus Bowl, Super Bowl, Final Four, Waste Management/Phoenix Open, Barrett/Jackson Auto Auction, NHL All Star game, 14 MLB team Spring Training (Cubs sold out every game last year), NBA All Star Game, Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show, tourism and over 10,000 Canadians own winter homes here. And not to mention an avg winter temperature of 78.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Scottsdale AZ from Sept 1 to May 31 is the best.
> Four major sports, Fiesta Bowl, Nat'l Championship, Cactus Bowl, Super Bowl, Final Four, Waste Management/Phoenix Open, Barrett/Jackson Auto Auction, NHL All Star game, 14 MLB team Spring Training (Cubs sold out every game last year), NBA All Star Game, Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show, tourism and over 10,000 Canadians own winter homes here. And not to mention an avg winter temperature of 78.


Scottsdale?

O.K. What type of numbers can you guys expect to make?

And I think of Scottsdale as a large suburb of about 300,000 people.

So -- I will admit that Scottsdale was not even on my radar!


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> Scottsdale?
> 
> O.K. What type of numbers can you guys expect to make?
> 
> ...


Well Scottsdale is right next to Phoenix. Phoenix with its population of 1.4 million is a very very lucrative market in winter. The metro Phoenix area has a population of 4.7 million with 42 million overnight visitors spending $21 billion each year.








I wish I had a more current graph. This only goes to 2012. Look what the housing market crash caused us to lose in '09. Tourism is huge here. After the '09 crash we increase by a billion each year. 
By the way, driving in June, July and Aug sucks here.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

Chicago can surge like crazy through snow storms during the winter months. 

And, during those times, drivers will have to make the personal call as to whether it is even worth it. 

I usually shut it down through bad weather and stay home. 

I have gone several weeks and months without logging on to Uber -- mostly because I just don't feel like getting out here in awful weather.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

I'm not sure Miami is in the top 5 -- or top 10, for that matter. At 68 cents per mile for X, I don't see how we could be a prime venue. 

Great place to live, but not sure it's an Uber Mecca.

I would have put Vegas in there, but I don't know much about driving Uber there.


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## Cigars (Dec 8, 2016)

Boston should be considered a top market.

NYC is not a "part time" gig.
NYC means spending a lot of money on commercial insurance, NYC TLC commercial plates, hundreds of dollars and weeks of classes, etc to get on the road. In order to pay for that you need to be working all the time, not part time.

NJ, Connecticut and NY State cannot work in NYC. Your Uber app will not work there. (Although amusingly my Lyft app has illegally pinged me from NYC while I was in NJ)
But NYC TLC can work in Connecticut and NJ and upstate (Theoretically only if the destination is NYC, but Uber and Lyft will give NYC cars point to point in NJ. And many NYC cars will work there anyway. It seems to be a legal grey area. There is an insurance coverage question as TLC insurance will not cover a nonNYC destination and whether TLC allows a TLC car to operate nonNYC routes).
Some counties in NY operate like NYC with County TLC plates required and only pickups in that county legal (Westchester, nassau).

NJ and Connecticut can bring people to NYC, but many NJ drivers refuse. You want us to drive to Queens? Then pay a rate that justifies it. We don't make NYC rates and we have to deadhead back and fight over tolls coming back (NYC ezpass has discounts to NYC owned bridges, NJ pays full tolls. Both pay the same for Port Authority bridges and tunnels. Uber and Lyft screw the Jersey drivers)
Many customers have been surprised that NJ Uber drivers will refuse their ride to JFK or Manhattan. I refuse every NYC request unless it is very late at night or very, very early in the morning.

Uber tries to sort NYC rides at Newark airport to NYC cars and NJ rides to NJ cars. But they seem to be failing more than ever.

The numbers out of NYC are misleading (not about the cost of living but about the cost of tolls, insurance, licensing, traffic, gas, wear and tear, age of vehicle (NYC cars need to be relatively new, In NJ you can use a 15 year old car), etc.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Miami: I would assume the action would be very concentrated between Brickell


Brickell is under construction, gridlocked, and populated by entitled Millennials.


> Downtown


You mean Midtown, the Design District, and/or Wynwood -- or whatever we are calling it this week. It's an up and coming area (or transitional, or hip and cool with a generous helping of urban ghetto), but it's small and not gonna be big any time soon.


> andSouth Beach.


Home of minimum-fare rides, drunks on motor-scooters and longboards weaving in and out of gridlocked traffic, and $25 Margaritas. Good place to party -- driving, not so much. Becoming more ghetto by the hour -- and a place that experienced drivers avoid.


> There would also be a lot of long runs up and down I-95.


We do have some 30-40 mile trips occasionally, but not often.


> No state income tax.


And some GREAT schools for your kid.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

I get the feeling that this thread will soon degenerate into a race to the bottom!

Well, now I know that visiting a place is so very different than actually living in a place.

I had made assumptions about certain metro areas that have quickly been proven wrong.

New York City - Tri State seems to be a total mess of red-tape. I had assumed that Uber drivers could float between NY, NJ, and CT. For example, I thought you could cross state lines in that area, and then get a ping in the different state. In Chicago, I have done a few drop-offs into NW Indiana, and actually gotten pings in Indiana (I rejected, because I did not want to end up deeper in IN).

But now, it looks as if it is very difficult to go between NJ, NY, and CT. At first, I thought that this would just be to avoid the deadhead tolls. (Tolls in NY-NJ can be $10+, I think, to cross a bridge. Tolls in IL are usually $1.50). Now, I see that there are all types of legal ramifications. And, I feel as if this is very much inefficient. That Tri-State area is so enormous, and I am sure that a lot of money is being left on the table, with all of the red tape.

As for Miami, I thought of Downtown as that area between American Airlines arena and on down to those I-95 feeder ramps near that river. I think of Brickell as south of there, where U.S. 1 takes that sharp curve, and there are more of those condo towers. And everybody knows South Beach. I just imagined constant volume in those areas, between locals going to work and tourists hitting up Ocean Drive. I do know that Miami can change very quickly -- within 1-2 miles west of Biscayne Bay. It's a totally different world.

Now for entitled Millennials, hipsters, and drunks, we have that whole area by Wrigley Field and a little west into Wicker Park.

We also have some very wealthy areas, in Gold Coast, and North Shore suburbs, where the PAX love to order pool.

Besides that, I doubt anybody here would list Chicago as the top market. We are an extremely cynical bunch.


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## corniilius (Jan 27, 2017)

Not sharing.


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## rideshareMN (Jan 25, 2017)

hmmm....not sure where it would rank in a national poll, but there are some pluses to driving in the Twin Cities:

PLUSES
#1) no pool/line
#2) fairly low crime, mostly decent people
#3) decent winter surges with snow (weekly peak for me during snowy weather was about $1800 as a part-timer)
#4) quite a bit of travelers into the area, with those from surrounding states (Wisconsin, Dakotas, Illinois) typically being good tippers
#5) summer remains solid here with festivals and fairs keeping demand propped up despite loss of college kids

MINUSES
#1) centrally located airport THIS IS A HUGE MINUS (I actually got an airport pickup today that got me $5.06 after waiting 30 min in queue)
#2) tipping not a big part of the local culture for some reason (I would say 3 or 4 out of 10 tip, which seems odd since the area is heavily left wing)
#3) rush hour driving is a complete waste of time, and for some reason that is when Lyft insists you try to get an impossible number of rides; the surge/PT simply does not overcome the traffic hassles


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

rideshareMN said:


> hmmm....not sure where it would rank in a national poll, but there are some pluses to driving in the Twin Cities:
> 
> PLUSES
> #1) no pool/line
> ...


I was actually just up there.
(I go to MN a lot).

Lyn-Lake / Uptown, or whatever, seemed to be pretty hot. And I would compare this neighborhood to Wicker Park in Chicago (bars+hipsters). I noticed people going back and forth between Uptown, the Warehouse District, and maybe NE Minneapolis. You guys also have the University of Minnesota, which is a huge school. In Chicago, I find that the college kids either do these short rides, or go out to the airport(s). We have several schools here, but none of them are as massive as U. of M.

This makes me wonder -- what is the best market in The Midwest?

I do think that it would come down to either Chicago or Minneapolis.

Chicago is larger, but much of it is a no-go zone, due to crime and/or minimal volume.


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## Terri Lee (Jun 23, 2016)

Gosh, I'm overwhelmed by how scientific this all is!


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

Cigars said:


> NJ, Connecticut and NY State cannot work in NYC. Your Uber app will not work there. (Although amusingly my Lyft app has illegally pinged me from NYC while I was in NJ)
> But NYC TLC can work in Connecticut and NJ and upstate (Theoretically only if the destination is NYC, but Uber and Lyft will give NYC cars point to point in NJ. And many NYC cars will work there anyway. It seems to be a legal grey area. There is an insurance coverage question as TLC insurance will not cover a nonNYC destination and whether TLC allows a TLC car to operate nonNYC routes).
> Some counties in NY operate like NYC with County TLC plates required and only pickups in that county legal (Westchester, nassau).


Wait a minute?

New York State is separate from New York City?

This is really messed up!

What about if I wanted to run between Queens and the rest of Long Island - or The Bronx and Westchester County?

There is a ton of money being left on the table out there.

I just imagined you NYC-Tri State drivers having a good old time, making bank left and right, with the only problem being those outrageous tolls.


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## Robertk (Jun 8, 2015)

Seattle! 

$1000 = 39-42 hours


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## LoveTheBlues (Jun 2, 2016)

Terri Lee said:


> Gosh, I'm overwhelmed by how scientific this all is!


Watch out PricewaterhouseCoopers! By the way; What about Portland? - SO CUTE! Yeah, gotta be Portland!


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> As for Miami, I thought of Downtown as that area between American Airlines arena and on down to those I-95 feeder ramps near that river.


Correct, but it's a total dead zone most of the time unless there is something big happening at Bayfront Park south of AAA. (Ultra, for example)


> I think of Brickell as south of there, where U.S. 1 takes that sharp curve, and there are more of those condo towers.


Close. Brickell is south of the river; downtown is north of the river to 836/I-395 going to the beach.

The Midtown/Design District/Wynwood area I mentioned is north of 836 and mostly west of Biscayne Blvd.


> I just imagined constant volume in those areas, between locals going to work


...in Brickell -- 20-30 minute minimum fare rides in construction congestion/traffic. The decent going to work rides are not downtown/Brickell; they're suburbs to downtown, etc.


> and tourists hitting up Ocean Drive.


Tourists don't usually stay downtown/Brickell/Midtown and visit Miami Beach. If anything, they do the opposite.


> I do know that Miami can change very quickly -- within 1-2 miles west of Biscayne Bay. It's a totally different world


Right -- the real world, where real people live and work.


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## Ribak (Jun 30, 2017)

Interesting thread. However, it is pretty easy to Google studies that have been done on the topic.


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## Cigars (Dec 8, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Wait a minute?
> 
> New York State is separate from New York City?
> 
> ...


I am a NJ driver. I can get pings in Connecticut, Philadelphia and suburbs, Deleware but not NY or Allentown (Lehigh Valley) in PA. I have been told I can also get Maryland and Boston but not Western Mass, (Boston and suburbs only). I was driving through Harrisburg Pa, turned my lyft on and got a ping but who knows with Uber.

NYC, I believe can work all those markets (see grey area the app will work but is it legal?), and NYC (of course) but not NY State unless the destination is NYC. NY State will prosecute (fine and points) a NYC TLC that takes a Westchester to Westchester trip. But they are allowed a Westchester to NYC trip. Only a Westchester TLC can take a Westchester to Westchester trip. Only A Nassau County TLC can take a Nassau to Nassau Trip. Only a Suffolk TLC can take a Suffolk to Suffolk trip. BUT there are parts of Suffolk in the Hamptons where you need to license and register in the townships you operate in (unless you are going to a jurisdiction you are licensed).
The taxi and limonsine commissions in these areas all conduct stings.
The fines are very expensive and it is racket.
NYC TLC hires pretty Broadway actresses to con drivers into making an illegal pickup. The fine can be $2,000 and the actresses get a piece when you pay. They bat their eyes and say "please take me".
I paid a $750 fine and a day in court because of one of their entrapment schemes at LGA. The prosecutor begged the judge to raise it to $1,500.

(Thats another cost difference with NYC, every driver will end up paying TLC fines every year for a sticker in the wrong location by 1 inch)

Tolls between NYC and Jersey:
Every NYC NJ trip a $20 toll fee is added. The tolls pricing can change based on time of day or green ezpass It could be $18.50 down to $11.50.
Tolls paid by Uber Lyft in NYC are paid at NYC ezpass rates ( a NJ driver gets charges full price and NYC driver gets a discount. A staten Island driver gets a discount at the Verranzano which connects SI and Brooklyn is $18, i believe, for a NJ ezpass).
Tolls in NJ are paid ezpass rate not cash rate.

All tolls in NYC are now moving cashless. If you do not have an ezpass, they send you a bill in the mail at address of registration at high rate, pay within 30 days, or have a high fine due and you car gets put on the tow list. Thats a bad list to be on. I have had my car towed twice in NYC many years ago and it was quite unpleasant.

taxes
All NYC origin trips are taxed (high, like 12%) unless the trip leaves NY State.
If leaving NY State it is not taxed because it is interstate commerce.
There was a NY Times article that shows how Uber screwed themselves and owes NYC 1/4 billion dollars in unpaid taxes. Its worth reading, look it up.
Uber did not collect taxes and interstate trips and screwed themselves in a way that demonstrates that the drivers paid taxes on intrastate trips.
Lyft called the taxes "fees" and that legalese allowed them to get away with it.


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## BostonTaxiDriver (Nov 23, 2014)

Seems that some drivers in Boston believe it is one of the hot markets, at least when students are here...and not too slow when they're gone.

But housing costs are 3rd highest in America.


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## Veju (Apr 17, 2017)

NYC also has some of the worse streets I've ever experienced. Combined with everyone's tendency to be heavy footed between lights, id never drive my personal vehicle there.


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## B - uberlyftdriver (Jun 6, 2017)

Boston is #3


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## Dchap08 (Jul 29, 2017)

Every uber and lyft driver I spoke to in the SF and surrounding areas do very well. $1500 or more a week easily. That was a handful of drivers I asked about a month ago. 

Heading up there for my other job in a couple of weeks. We'll see!


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## Cigars (Dec 8, 2016)

http://nypost.com/2017/08/15/officers-choke-wrestle-uber-driver-in-disturbing-airport-arrest/

Here you go. TLC thugs arresting a man at JFK.
Maybe his sticker was expired and he became upset when they tried to take his property/vehicle away.

The TLC believes it has a right to assault you and choke you. They are the law and above the law. They need to confiscate that man's vehicle to pay for their salaries, so they beat him into submission.

In the TLC court, your guilt is assumed. It is the opposite of what a court should be. That man will be found guilty of some silly offense like the wrong sticker and the thugs will get large pensions when they retire at 50.

NYC a top market?
Nah. It fascist now. Thugs roughing you up and taking your property because one of your 12 licenses expired.


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## Robertk (Jun 8, 2015)

Cigars said:


> http://nypost.com/2017/08/15/officers-choke-wrestle-uber-driver-in-disturbing-airport-arrest/
> 
> Here you go. TLC thugs arresting a man at JFK.
> Maybe his sticker was expired and he became upset when they tried to take his property/vehicle away.
> ...


thats really messed up, worst NYC cop video I've seen since eric garner


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## Cigars (Dec 8, 2016)

Robertk said:


> thats really messed up, worst NYC cop video I've seen since eric garner


They are not even police. They are solely enforcing taxi laws not criminal laws. Whatever they wanted that man for, it was not an arrestable crime. It was an accused violation of a car for hire code.


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## swingset (Feb 26, 2017)

Uh, markets with high pay are completely nullified if the cost of living and operating a motor vehicle is very costly.

/Captain obvious.


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## ebrain (Oct 3, 2016)

Someone list Dallas somewhere phleeez!

Dallas Ft Worth sucks big time ..


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Cigars said:


> They are not even police. They are solely enforcing taxi laws not criminal laws. Whatever they wanted that man for, it was not an arrestable crime. It was an accused violation of a car for hire code.


I can't recite NY laws, but here in AZ some of the fare for hire laws are criminal (unlicensed, uninsured, non airport credentials). The video opens up well after the initial confrontation. That driver is heavily resisting arrest. I'm sure that not all 4 taxi enforcement authority officers were the initial contact with this driver.


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## Spotscat (May 8, 2017)

Canada is the best Uber market. Tell me this isn't


swingset said:


> Uh, markets with high pay are completely nullified if the cost of living and operating a motor vehicle is very costly.
> 
> /Captain obvious.


That's why Canada is probably the best location to operate in!


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## Robert finnly (Jul 1, 2017)

Hows Philly rank?


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## TheWanderer (Sep 6, 2016)

swingset said:


> Uh, markets with high pay are completely nullified if the cost of living and operating a motor vehicle is very costly.
> 
> /Captain obvious.


https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.citylab.com/amp/article/506354/

Sf has the worst road conditions in the us, on top of that the hills really mess up the transmission.


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## rembrandt (Jul 3, 2016)

Miami can be a good place if you put enough hours and you have the nerve to do "cherry pickings" safely. If you are the one who accepts every request that pops up on your app , the prospect is pretty bleak. The long trips involving 30+ miles are frequently available if you know where to go. You also need to have a great deal of patience whenever it is slow ( either by algorithm or real ). Avoid Walmart or similar sorts if you hate $2 minimum rides.


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## TheWanderer (Sep 6, 2016)

rembrandt said:


> Miami can be a good place if you put enough hours and you have the nerve to do "cherry pickings" safely. If you are the one who accepts every request that pops up on your app , the prospect is pretty bleak. The long trips involving 30+ miles are frequently available if you know where to go. You also need to have a great deal of patience whenever it is slow ( either by algorithm or real ). Avoid Walmart or similar sorts if you hate $2 minimum rides.


It is funny, in sf super short rides are actually good. But typical eta's are less than 5 minutes, but if there is not much traffic it is around a 3 minute eta and .5 mile drive to pick up a pax. Then they usually only go 1.5 miles at about 6 minutes. For the amount of time and miles it is great, but this really only applies in very dense markets.


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## rembrandt (Jul 3, 2016)

TheWanderer said:


> It is funny, in sf super short rides are actually good. But typical eta's are less than 5 minutes, but if there is not much traffic it is around a 3 minute eta and .5 mile drive to pick up a pax. Then they usually only go 1.5 miles at about 6 minutes. For the amount of time and miles it is great, but this really only applies in very dense markets.


Keep in mind that it is 73 cents/mile rate that applies to Miami and South Florida on the drivers' end. The market is not dense either. The only way to break even is the long trip.


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## TheWanderer (Sep 6, 2016)

rembrandt said:


> Keep in mind that it is 68 cents/mile rate that applies to Miami and South Florida. The market is not dense either. The only way to break even is the long trip.


Yeah, when the OP said miami, I assumed they did not check the rates there. I have been there for vacation and I was amazed how low it is there.


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## Maven (Feb 9, 2017)

Nobody has mentioned Washington DC that often appears on lists of top Uber markets.
Red tape is minimal in New York Metro area, outside NYC, including, LI, CT, NJ, and Westchester.
However, rates are lower


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## Goduckies (Mar 23, 2017)

Made 2250 in sf last week between uber and lyft for 60 hours.... but usually1500 to 1800 a week.


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## Veju (Apr 17, 2017)

It's $.76 in Sarasota and most trips near the highway are long.


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## Uber Crack (Jul 19, 2017)

Sacramento $600 a week if you work 40+ hours. Best as a side hustle for weekends $250. A lot of dead miles so pretty much no tax. Write off = earnings. Many drivers commute to San Francisco or nearby to be in on quests. No quests in Sac.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

rembrandt said:


> Keep in mind that it is 73 cents/mile rate that applies to Miami and South Florida on the drivers' end. The market is not dense either. The only way to break even is the long trip.


In Miami, it's 73 if you're a 20%er. 68.25 for us peasants.

The one that is really pathetic is Orlando -- 53 cents per mile if you don't take the insurance. And their XL rates are only something like 1.6x X rates.


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## rohit_cs (Jan 17, 2017)

Terri Lee said:


> Gosh, I'm overwhelmed by how scientific this all is!


Science is Fake News.


----------



## KMANDERSON (Jul 19, 2015)

Terri Lee said:


> Gosh, I'm overwhelmed by how scientific this all is!


All you got to do is look at the per mile rates.The highest rates are the best cites to drive in.Any market that is .85 a mile should not be compared to a market that 1.25 per mile.Uber has higher rates their for a reason.


----------



## john1975 (Jul 29, 2016)

I would tend to agree that ny and sf are probably 1 and 2. But I could easily make an argument for Boston as number 1 and it would not be hard to do. I'm an above average earner because of my experience and driving habits but a typical Boston driver can easily make 20-25 per hour when it's slow and 25-30+ during the busy months. We also have stricter background checks which limits the driver pool somewhat. Boston tends to also get decent incentive offers which make higher earnings even possible. 
To include Miami on the list is laughable. I would think Seattle is good with its rates. D.C. Too but I've heard it's not so lucrative there as you might think. And we are not factoring in smaller seasonal markets. For example Nantucket during the summer you can probably make $50+ an hour during the busy times. Just need to spend serious cash to get there via ferry.


----------



## leroy jenkins (May 27, 2015)

This would be an easy answer to calculate if Uber HQ ever made its data public. Rank on something like.....

Factor 1: Average Rides per hour * average fare 
Factor 2: volatility of traffic speed (as a measure of traffic suckage)
other factors: puke fees collected per 1,000,000 miles, crashes per 1,000,000 miles, etc


----------



## john1975 (Jul 29, 2016)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Well Scottsdale is right next to Phoenix. Phoenix with its population of 1.4 million is a very very lucrative market in winter. The metro Phoenix area has a population of 4.7 million with 42 million overnight visitors spending $21 billion each year.
> View attachment 148268
> 
> I wish I had a more current graph. This only goes to 2012. Look what the housing market crash caused us to lose in '09. Tourism is huge here. After the '09 crash we increase by a billion each year.
> By the way, driving in June, July and Aug sucks here.


Interesting. I also wouldn't have considered and the rates are not that high but maybe if you factor in cost of living.


----------



## sre94 (Mar 30, 2017)

rideshareMN said:


> hmmm....not sure where it would rank in a national poll, but there are some pluses to driving in the Twin Cities:
> 
> PLUSES
> #1) no pool/line
> ...


Your airport sounds like San Diego's, where a $3 ride to and/or from is quite common


----------



## Liberty89 (Jan 26, 2017)

Yeah, Boston should have been on this list.


----------



## Cynergie (Apr 10, 2017)

1: San Francisco
2: New York City
3: Chicago
4: Los Angeles
5: Miami

Add Las Vegas as #3. Higher and consistent revenue sources between the gambling and recent LA Raiders move to Vegas


----------



## Safe_Driver_4_U (Apr 2, 2017)

Robertk said:


> Seattle!
> 
> $1000 = 39-42 hours


 Seattle for sure, their rates are near the top in the US, ...what are they Robertk ? Also in Seattle you have the liberal progressive mindset in a big way so I would assume tips would be plentiful. You will need to do 70 hrs a week in my area of So CA to come close to netting 1k if you are grinding. You can do better if you are an exceptionally skilled cherry picker.

I think Phoenix would good too, the way the City is laid out it's a long ride to get anywhere, probably not uncommon to get 3-4 30+ miles trips per day out there. I don't drive there just lived there many years and often visit. I cracked up last visit, I stayed downtown on a Wednesday, asked hotel staff about parking downtown, they got all excited warned me how bad traffic will be downtown during rush hours. Laughed when I saw their downtown traffic, I am used to SF, LA and San Diego Gaslamp / Waterfront. Looked liked a piece of cake to drive downtown Phoenix compared to others.


----------



## Trebor (Apr 22, 2015)

unitxero said:


> NYC shouldn't even be on this list, we are all professionally licensed drivers with liability insurance for pax (300k per accident, 50k uninsured motorist) and we are regulated by a Taxi and Limousine Comission, you're trained to drive a yellow cab , green cab, wheel chair accessible cab at the same time you get your TLC license to drive for Uber. We aren't 'normal' Uber drivers in that sense and the cost to start up is extreme.
> 
> If you rent a vehicle, it ranges from 375-500 per week on a vehicle.
> 
> ...


Wow. If your so much better than use regular ubers, why post on uberpeople?


----------



## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

john1975 said:


> Interesting. I also wouldn't have considered and the rates are not that high but maybe if you factor in cost of living.


Scottsdale is a fantastic market to drive, just not for $.71/mile. Before Uber X slashed their rates 50% in June of '14 an X driver could easily net $50k/yr and a Black/SUV driver $80k.


----------



## DexNex (Apr 18, 2015)

Safe_Driver_4_U said:


> Seattle for sure, their rates are near the top in the US, ...what are they Robertk ? Also in Seattle you have the liberal progressive mindset in a big way so I would assume tips would be plentiful. You will need to do 70 hrs a week in my area of So CA to come close to netting 1k if you are grinding. You can do better if you are an exceptionally skilled cherry picker.
> 
> I think Phoenix would good too, the way the City is laid out it's a long ride to get anywhere, probably not uncommon to get 3-4 30+ miles trips per day out there. I don't drive there just lived there many years and often visit. I cracked up last visit, I stayed downtown on a Wednesday, asked hotel staff about parking downtown, they got all excited warned me how bad traffic will be downtown during rush hours. Laughed when I saw their downtown traffic, I am used to SF, LA and San Diego Gaslamp / Waterfront. Looked liked a piece of cake to drive downtown Phoenix compared to others.


@Safe_Driver_4_U You are correct.

Seattle driver here. OP has no clue what he is talking about. He didn't even know about regulations for NYC drivers. Close thread, move along.



Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...





Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


Your logic is flawed. Drivers in good markets keep their mouths shut here so as not to attract more ants.


----------



## arghcd (Dec 23, 2016)

#17- Kansas City, Mo/Kansas City, KS

NO real consistency at all, one day could be an easy $100 in 6 hours on a weekday the next day $30-$40 in 6 hours. Can be rough to make $600-$700 unless you drive 50 hours a week


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## LA_Native (Apr 17, 2017)

Los Angeles is 4th?
I feel bad for Miami.


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## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

110% Correct... L.A. Sucks. Terrible traffic and way too many Ants. Markets like Portland, Seattle and others should be above us.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

No. I did not look up rate information before starting this post.

My list was a shot in the dark.

But, I think many, if not all of us can at least agree that San Francisco is the top market.

They just seem to be killing it out there.

As far as what comes after that, I had originally not considered Seattle, Portland, and Boston, but I can now see why those cities would be ranked highly. At first, I simply assumed that the largest cities would have the best markets. NY, LA, and Chicago are the three largest cities in America, in terms of population. So, I a saw them as transportation hubs that would be likely to have near non-stop demand.

As for Miami, the city itself is small, but I think the combined metro area of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach is top 5-10 in the U.S. It was the tourist in me -- that felt like the area around Biscayne Bay (Downtown, Brickell, Miami Beach) would have year-round, non-stop demand.


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## Lag Monkey (Feb 6, 2015)

New York number #1 by far 

#2 San Francisco 

All other markets it’s low pay


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## Safe_Driver_4_U (Apr 2, 2017)

seattle is 1.25 or 1.50 per mile for X and .25c per minute in an ultra liberal city, go read the Seattle forum they have to empty their tip jars mid shift. I would say Seattle then Phoenix Scottsdale.


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## john1975 (Jul 29, 2016)

It's funny how clueless people are about other markets. The fact that only people from Boston and Seattle mention those markets is surprising. I believe only ny and sf of the larger year round markets have higher rates than those two. Higher than Chicago D.C. La etc


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

john1975 said:


> It's funny how clueless people are about other markets. The fact that only people from Boston and Seattle mention those markets is surprising. I believe only ny and sf of the larger year round markets have higher rates than those two. Higher than Chicago D.C. La etc


L.A. Sucks big time...we .67 & .72 cents per mile and .09 & .11 per minute.


----------



## Wehodriver84 (Jun 30, 2017)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


NONE OF THE ABOVE! In 2017 the best markets to catch a RIDE is a better article because the rideshare industry has completely changed ! Today the RIDER is king! With so much discounting and FREE RIDE offers from retailers the RIDER is getting accustomed to ZERO CENTS per mile ! The refusal of DRIVERS to stop DRIVING for RIDESHARE companies is only delaying the inevitable ! The Introduction of automated vehicles ! While federal minimum wages are rising in top markets, rideshare drivers are more than willing to work for FREE!


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## Dammit Mazzacane (Dec 31, 2015)

What are the base rates for, say, America's 20 largest cities ? (Not counting other countries at the moment.) If somebody catalogued that info, it could help as a starting point.

Use Amazon Mechanical Turk and you can get somebody to create this list for like five bucks.


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

Dammit Mazzacane said:


> What are the base rates for, say, America's 20 largest cities ? (Not counting other countries at the moment.) If somebody catalogued that info, it could help as a starting point.
> 
> Use Amazon Mechanical Turk and you can get somebody to create this list for like five bucks.


Here's the ones OP mentioned:
*These are prices passenger pays.*






































http://uberestimate.com/prices/


----------



## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

UberLaLa said:


> Here's the ones OP mentioned:


Keep in mind, however, that the driver gets only 75%-80% of the "cost" per mile and minute.


----------



## Maven (Feb 9, 2017)

Rates in New York City Metro Area. Uber Cut is now 30% in newest markets.  Wherever you are, if there is a Booking Fee or other fees then Uber's actual cut is larger than you think.  Then subtract for Up-front pricing, "Lost Tolls" and "Lost in-App Tips".


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

JimKE said:


> Keep in mind, however, that the driver gets only 75%-80% of the "cost" per mile and minute.


Notice my earlier post where I listed L.A.'s driver prices. yes

Thought maybe I would submit some actual numbers. Each driver can do their own math on the percentages. I'm a 20%'er.


----------



## Uberk5487 (Apr 4, 2017)

Charlotte is a great market for Uber....every Monday Friday and Saturday I make $250 any other day $100 to 150 with no problem....but I stop at $650-800


----------



## tohunt4me (Nov 23, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


NOT MY MARKET FOR SURE !
No surge
No Bonus
No incentive
No gas price increase
No cost of living increase

Yes constant onboarding of new drivers

Plenty rate cuts

Plenty car jackers

Terrible streets and traffic



Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


I thought Miami pay was Lousey !



Dan Ryan said:


> Wow!
> 
> Again, I had no idea about all of the red-tape involved. I did think that there would be red tape, as there is with everything NYC related, but I did not know that you guys had to jump through all of those hoops. I do think that Uber must be a full-time thing for New York drivers, just so that they can recover all of those fixed costs.
> 
> ...


I can bank $800.00before expenses off a 70 hour week !



JimKE said:


> I'm not sure Miami is in the top 5 -- or top 10, for that matter. At 68 cents per mile for X, I don't see how we could be a prime venue.
> 
> Great place to live, but not sure it's an Uber Mecca.
> 
> I would have put Vegas in there, but I don't know much about driving Uber there.


Uber pay sucks in Miami !



TheWanderer said:


> https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.citylab.com/amp/article/506354/
> 
> Sf has the worst road conditions in the us, on top of that the hills really mess up the transmission.


Hills Slaughter fuel economy !


----------



## Hans GrUber (Apr 23, 2016)

unitxero said:


> NYC shouldn't even be on this list, we are all professionally licensed drivers with liability insurance for pax (300k per accident, 50k uninsured motorist) and we are regulated by a Taxi and Limousine Comission, you're trained to drive a yellow cab , green cab, wheel chair accessible cab at the same time you get your TLC license to drive for Uber. We aren't 'normal' Uber drivers in that sense and the cost to start up is extreme.
> 
> If you rent a vehicle, it ranges from 375-500 per week on a vehicle.
> 
> ...


Lol. Uber doesn't take 25% commission. Fake news! They take 35% usually with uber taking 60%+ on some rides.


----------



## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Safe_Driver_4_U said:


> I think Phoenix would good too, the way the City is laid out it's a long ride to get anywhere. I cracked up last visit, I stayed downtown on a Wednesday, asked hotel staff about parking downtown, they got all excited warned me how bad traffic will be downtown during rush hours. Laughed when I saw their downtown traffic.


All you have to do is look at the buildings in downtown Phoenix to see that there isn't any traffic. For the 5th largest city our DT is pathetic when it comes to tall buildings because Phoenix didn't build up like most cities. Phoenix built out. It's much cheaper to build single story residences on vast available land than it is to build 40 story apartment buildings. Phoenix metro takes their 4.7 million people and disperses them over 500 sq miles of the Phoenix city limits and the 4,000 sq miles of Metro Phoenix area. Almost every home in Phoenix is a single story with a pool. We love our space. That's why the avg ride is much farther in Phoenix than most other places.


----------



## DeplorableDonald (Feb 16, 2017)

D.C. isn't bad for part time. If I did Uber full time I would either give a shotgun a Monica Lewinsky or go full roadman.

There are definitely slow times, such as August, but over all we have people that do a shitload of hours but can eke out weeks with commas in the payouts.

We used to have more surge. We had better Boost and last year the Platinum Metals Program. They are slowly ratcheting the incentives down.

For me low end is $20/hour, high is $35. Will be praying for lots of snow this year so the shitty weather brings on the surge.


----------



## Safe_Driver_4_U (Apr 2, 2017)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> All you have to do is look at the buildings in downtown Phoenix to see that there isn't any traffic. For the 5th largest city our DT is pathetic when it comes to tall buildings because Phoenix didn't build up like most cities. Phoenix built out. It's much cheaper to build single story residences on vast available land than it is to build 40 story apartment buildings. Phoenix metro takes their 4.7 million people and disperses them over 500 sq miles of the Phoenix city limits and the 4,000 sq miles of Metro Phoenix area. Almost every home in Phoenix is a single story with a pool. We love our space. That's why the avg ride is much farther in Phoenix than most other places.


 yes indeed, I lived there when Bell Rd, was the City limits and my parents were in awe because it used to be Dunlap Ave when they were children there. Phoenix-"America's largest moving parking lot". I know about the houses, I built houses there pre-NAFTA, when you could work in the trades and make good money.Sun City all out Shea Blvd, I did the very first houses in Fountain Hills.... the good 'ol days when a white guy could get a very good paying job working the housing tracts.... no more.


----------



## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Safe_Driver_4_U said:


> yes indeed, I lived there when Bell Rd, was the City limits and my parents were in awe because it used to be Dunlap Ave when they were children there. Phoenix-"America's largest moving parking lot". I know about the houses, I built houses there pre-NAFTA, when you could work in the trades and make good money.Sun City all out Shea Blvd, I did the very first houses in Fountain Hills.... the good 'ol days when a white guy could get a very good paying job working the housing tracts.... no more.


Yep, constuction all changed in the very late 80's early 90's in the Phoenix area. Do you know that metro Phoenix increased in population an average of 100,000 residents a year for 30 years? That's 3 million people. I really didn't blame the construction turnover on NAFTA because they still had framers making $18/hr and foreman up to $25. The piece work was abundant. The problem was more that Gen X didn't want to work. It was too hot in Phoenix to work outdoors and the work was too hard for the wimpy generation. 
I always say that the immigrants didn't take away the job as much as the fat lazy American white boy gave away the job. To this day there is plenty of construction jobs in Phoenix paying up to $35/hr with health benefits, retirement, advancement, company truck and so on.


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## The Ghost of Travis (Jul 26, 2017)

Safe_Driver_4_U said:


> seattle is 1.25 or 1.50 per mile for X and .25c per minute in an ultra liberal city, go read the Seattle forum they have to empty their tip jars mid shift. I would say Seattle then Phoenix Scottsdale.


Seattle pays well for X and is very busy and there are predictable surges daily, but the emptying tip jars is kinda limited to the guy who drives higher level and the spunky Lisette, the rest of us dont see much tips. Im at around 5% of trips, another just quoted 7%, maybe will go higher once peps get used to the tip in App.

Id say Seattle is #3 - #5 for sure.

Getting hella expensive here too!


----------



## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

The Ghost of Travis said:


> Getting hella expensive here too!


Just picked up a Seattle resident from the Phx airport about 2 hours ago and he said the exact same thing. Besides being expensive he said you guys have a really bad traffic problem and already are at $14.5 billion for that tunnel system you're building. He told me there are many toll roads too. He was born and raised in Phx, but has lived in Seattle for the past 28 years.


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## TheWanderer (Sep 6, 2016)

Higher rates doesn't necessarily mean the best.


Maven said:


> Rates in New York City Metro Area. Uber Cut is now 30% in newest markets.  Wherever you are, if there is a Booking Fee or other fees then Uber's actual cut is larger than you think.  Then subtract for Up-front pricing, "Lost Tolls" and "Lost in-App Tips".


I think the highest rates in the us might be in ca though. There is a city that is 1.85 per mile at .45 per minute.


----------



## EthiopianFemalePax (Jun 19, 2017)

Dc should be considered. Regulations basically nonexistent (one inspection needed for md and va pickups, the inspection is shared). Pay is okay I usually average 20 an hour gross very little cherry picking. Fuel costs are marginal as is insurance. You can do it here on some far out of state plates too


----------



## Grahamcracker (Nov 2, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


Well, Honolulu is not bad either. We have one of the highest rates per mile @$1.50 and tons of tourists from all over.


----------



## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

TheWanderer said:


> I think the highest rates in the us might be in ca though. There is a city that is 1.85 per mile at .45 per minute.


That has to be the Monterrey Peninsula. Carmel, Pebble Beach, Monterrey that place is beautiful.


----------



## RideshareSpectrum (May 12, 2017)

SF _sucks_. Can't make decent money here as driver supply outweighs heavy demand especially on weekends. _Don't waste your time._ Tell you what though... I drove down in LA for a few days a couple weeks ago and it was surprisingly pretty profitable... some longer pick up pings but my kind of rides at the end of the day... avg 10-15 miles/20 min.


----------



## 1rightwinger (Jul 13, 2015)

There is a recent post in SF forum of a guy that cleared $2500 in a week.


----------



## Jorgeletsee (Jun 26, 2017)

I drive in Los angeles and yeah 4th place seems legit. If i work 12 hours day ill make 150-170$. Gotta make a sign for tips so my earnings can go up. Quest bonus add 150 every week.



1rightwinger said:


> There is a recent post in SF forum of a guy that cleared $2500 in a week.


Uberx??


----------



## Fenwitch (Sep 4, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


Yeah, LA has the LOWEST per mile and per minute rate of any major city in the country. In rush hour traffic, which is 6am-11am and then 2pm-7pm you might make it 4 miles in 45 minutes. Back to back non surge fares might, might, net you $12 per hour if you are lucky.

LA- .65 per mile
SF- 1.80 per mile


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

RideshareSpectrum said:


> SF _sucks_. Can't make decent money here as driver supply outweighs heavy demand especially on weekends. _Don't waste your time._ Tell you what though... I drove down in LA for a few days a couple weeks ago and it was surprisingly pretty profitable... some longer pick up pings but my kind of rides at the end of the day... avg 10-15 miles/20 min.


You coy fox...you know SF is a Honey Hole for Rideshare...lol



1rightwinger said:


> There is a recent post in SF forum of a guy that cleared $2500 in a week.


Precisely!



Fenwitch said:


> Yeah, LA has the LOWEST per mile and per minute rate of any major city in the country. In rush hour traffic, which is 6am-11am and then 2pm-7pm you might make it 4 miles in 45 minutes. Back to back non surge fares might, might, net you $12 per hour if you are lucky.
> 
> LA- .65 per mile
> SF- 1.80 per mile


Do tell~










That would be THE busiest interchange in the World. 1 million cars a day flow through it. Okay, _flow_ might not be the right word choice.


----------



## Robertk (Jun 8, 2015)

1rightwinger said:


> There is a recent post in SF forum of a guy that cleared $2500 in a week.


I got close to that last week in Seattle...

TOTAL EARNINGS

$2169.95

173
COMPLETED TRIPS
76h 26m
ONLINE HOURS
77%
ACCEPTANCE RATE
7
DRIVER CANCELLATIONS

Weekly Earnings

Trip Earnings$2149.95
Fare$1750.85
Cancellation+ $16.00
Boost+ $49.96
Surge+ $250.41
Tips+ $59.00
Toll+ $15.05
Wait Time+ $8.68


Incentives & Other Payments$20.00


----------



## Jorgeletsee (Jun 26, 2017)

Is that in 5 or 7 days?


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

Jorgeletsee said:


> Is that in 5 or 7 days?


I'd guess YES. 5+7 = 12 Days lol

Yeah, zero life this guy had that week, but great Earnings. Those 76 Online Hrs = 90 Hrs of time out there.


----------



## Robertk (Jun 8, 2015)

7 days, and I didn't keep track but I kinda think the 76 hours on the clock is accurate.

what makes you guys think Uber's clock is inaccurate?


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

Robertk said:


> 7 days, and I didn't keep track but I kinda think the 76 hours on the clock is accurate.
> 
> what makes you guys think Uber's clock is inaccurate?


Deadmiling and time away from the home in general is part of the Time. You did great, don't get me wrong - Averaged $28 an Online Hour. Just pointing out how much time you put into the week.


----------



## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

Let's be clear:

Ranking the best markets would be a function of (Rate TIMES Volume) MINUS Cost of Living Expenses.

We can't just throw up a list of rates by city, sort them, and post up rankings. It does not matter if a city has high rates, but little to no volume.



UberLaLa said:


> You coy fox...you know SF is a Honey Hole for Rideshare...lol
> 
> Precisely!
> 
> ...


I always thought that the East LA (I-5 / I-10 / U.S. 101 / CA 60) interchange was the worst out there.



Robertk said:


> I got close to that last week in Seattle...
> 
> TOTAL EARNINGS
> 
> ...


Dude,

You are killing it. I usually don't go over 40 hours, though.

I doubt that anybody driving 75-80 hours in Chicago would rake in $2,200. Maybe $1,500 - $1,800.


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> Let's be clear:
> 
> Ranking the best markets would be a function of (Rate TIMES Volume) MINUS Cost of Living Expenses.
> 
> ...


Nope...Number 1 Highest Volume Interchange in the world is 405 & 10 Freeways.


----------



## Tysmith95 (Jan 30, 2017)

Boston has some of the worst roads in the country. The traffic is horrible and the potholes will quickly ruin your car. Also you're more then twice as likely to get in a crash in Boston then you are in other parts of the country.

The pax are also mostly students that go two miles to a frat house and puke all over your car. Also only NYC and San Fran can compete with regards to high rent costs.


----------



## Safe_Driver_4_U (Apr 2, 2017)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Yep, constuction all changed in the very late 80's early 90's in the Phoenix area. Do you know that metro Phoenix increased in population an average of 100,000 residents a year for 30 years? That's 3 million people. I really didn't blame the construction turnover on NAFTA because they still had framers making $18/hr and foreman up to $25. The piece work was abundant. The problem was more that Gen X didn't want to work. It was too hot in Phoenix to work outdoors and the work was too hard for the wimpy generation.
> I always say that the immigrants didn't take away the job as much as the fat lazy American white boy gave away the job. To this day there is plenty of construction jobs in Phoenix paying up to $35/hr with health benefits, retirement, advancement, company truck and so on.


 The NAFTA mindset had more influence here directly on the border, it was bad very bad. Skilled people always find decent work in Phoenix, here it was and is much more racial. After the white guy purge, setting up the sanctuary cities, they loosened up the credit and built out the I15 corridor at a rate of 50k house per year, for the most part with undocumented worker slaves. These were the Clinton Reich years, serious dirt bags they were. It got so bad during that time you would see pick up trucks with foriegn plates and the bed full of workers on the freeway, CHP would be behind driving protection escort. It is illegal to have people in the bed of a pick up! Glad I have escaped the building trades, now I do Uber to lose money, so I can offset other income. One thing my experience taught me is these globalist are downright evil and they want it all and they want the working people of the world as slaves..... but they call it global wage equilibrium. When you experience it first hand, you realize how evil they really are..... I agree with the Gen X comments, they would die if they had to do old school work, old school way.


----------



## East bay (Jun 4, 2017)

Jorgeletsee said:


> I drive in Los angeles and yeah 4th place seems legit. If i work 12 hours day ill make 150-170$. Gotta make a sign for tips so my earnings can go up. Quest bonus add 150 every week.
> 
> Uberx??


Uber X and pool


----------



## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Robertk said:


> I got close to that last week in Seattle...
> 
> TOTAL EARNINGS
> 
> ...


Damn, $2150 total sales and only $60 tips. That sucks!!! BIGTIME


----------



## john1975 (Jul 29, 2016)

Robertk said:


> I got close to that last week in Seattle...
> 
> TOTAL EARNINGS
> 
> ...


76 hours you are nuts. I make 1700 in 50 hours in Boston and still have time for other things.



john1975 said:


> 76 hours you are nuts. I make 1700 in 50 hours in Boston and still have time for other things.


I better post a pic. Lyft has nice 130 for 320 incentive in Boston. Also 200 on uber



Robertk said:


> I got close to that last week in Seattle...
> 
> TOTAL EARNINGS
> 
> ...


You don't get incentives in Seattle ?


----------



## Goduckies (Mar 23, 2017)

My week so far 30 hours...


----------



## JesusisLord777 (Dec 4, 2016)

UberLaLa said:


> Nope...Number 1 Highest Volume Interchange in the world is 405 & 10 Freeways.


The absolute worst might be the 91/15 interchange near corona.


----------



## bobby747 (Dec 29, 2015)

you dropped the ball..nyc real tlc and fee.s miami #1 no way

seattle
boston 
and phila alot higher than florida ouch $..68 a mile

and guys i unerstand you get great money in snow..
but many drivers wont do snow. and it dont snow all year..


----------



## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

JesusisLord777 said:


> The absolute worst might be the 91/15 interchange near corona.


Not even close...

https://la.curbed.com/2013/8/21/10206430/the-405-through-la-is-the-busiest-interstate-in-any-us-city


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## JesusisLord777 (Dec 4, 2016)

UberLaLa said:


> Not even close...
> 
> https://la.curbed.com/2013/8/21/10206430/the-405-through-la-is-the-busiest-interstate-in-any-us-city


I'm not talking about the worst in terms of overall busyness, but rather, the worst in terms of my dislike. It bottlenecks so hard right in that area around 8-9 in the morning, with a lot of it being people trying to access the pay lanes, that it had my vote for hottest mess in SoCal.

I don't mind the 405/10 nearly as much. Then again, I usually tried to avoid it at it's absolute worst.


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## UberLaLa (Sep 6, 2015)

JesusisLord777 said:


> I'm not talking about the worst in terms of overall busyness, but rather, the worst in terms of my dislike. It bottlenecks so hard right in that area around 8-9 in the morning, with a lot of it being people trying to access the pay lanes, that it had my vote for hottest mess in SoCal.
> 
> I don't mind the 405/10 nearly as much. Then again, I usually tried to avoid it at it's absolute worst.


That I would have to agree with you on. OC in general doesn't do traffic well. Even their city streets get super congested at times. L.A. peeps seem to know how to keep it at least creeping when it's backed up.


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## TheWanderer (Sep 6, 2016)

1rightwinger said:


> There is a recent post in SF forum of a guy that cleared $2500 in a week.


Yeah but he did like 250 rides 
And most likely 80+ hours.



RideshareSpectrum said:


> SF _sucks_. Can't make decent money here as driver supply outweighs heavy demand especially on weekends. _Don't waste your time._ Tell you what though... I drove down in LA for a few days a couple weeks ago and it was surprisingly pretty profitable... some longer pick up pings but my kind of rides at the end of the day... avg 10-15 miles/20 min.


I still do well in sf. But a majority of drivers do not do well.


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## john1975 (Jul 29, 2016)

Goduckies said:


> My week so far 30 hours...
> View attachment 149370


230 is that a ride incentive. If so I'm jealous lol


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## TheWanderer (Sep 6, 2016)

john1975 said:


> 230 is that a ride incentive. If so I'm jealous lol


Yeah, I think most major cities have them.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

Revised Power Rankings:

1: San Francisco
2: Boston
3: Seattle
4: New York City
5: Chicago
6: Washington, D.C.
7: Las Vegas
8: Phoenix
9: Portland
10: Miami

I still think that San Francisco is the top market. There was a guy complaining about San Francisco now being pretty bad. But, I don't know if he was being serious, or trolling, trying to thwart the competition. Look, there are people driving 100+ miles to San Francisco and camping out, just to get a piece of the action. I don't think that this happens anywhere else. Also, if and when San Francisco were to go down, then there is no hope for the rest of us. SF is a dense city, with a pretty tech savvy population. The Bay Area is enormous, geographically, so there should be plenty of opportunity for long-haul, freeway runs.

Now, I am bumping Boston all the way up to number two. Boston is also a dense city, with numerous colleges and universities. I am giving Boston the edge over Seattle, largely because of a limited sample size of two drivers that have posted their numbers on here. The Boston driver was significantly more efficient, in terms of his hourly rate. And I will assume that both of these drivers are veterans, who know what they are doing.

After SF, Boston, and Seattle, things are getting a little hairy. New York City is very polarizing. Some of us assume that NYC drivers are making money hand over fist. Other of us talk as if the place is a total nightmare, in terms of red tape. For me personally, I see New York City as the largest city in America, where the action is non-stop. This is The City that Does Not Sleep, for crying out loud.

Beyond New York, are Chicago, Phoenix, Portland, and DC. I see Chicago and DC as solid, but not spectacular markets. I would also think that Portland would be better, if it were larger. I am still not totally sold on Phoenix. I am bumping Vegas ahead.


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## 20yearsdriving (Dec 14, 2014)

Historical there has been only 1 requirement for a good Market
Irrelevant of all you technology & theory.

It's a *. driver / demand *balance that's Win Win

You welcome.


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## dirtylee (Sep 2, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> Revised Power Rankings:
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: Boston
> ...


I'd like to know which of those markets can a full time driver be able to afford rent within 15-20 minutes of their prime area.
Quality of life matters.

i.e. I can spend 35% of my uber monthly income & still afford live in the trendy/hip/busy uptown.

I can also get house, {assuming I qualify a mortgage} in the decent suburbs for less than 50% of my monthly.


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## KMANDERSON (Jul 19, 2015)

dirtylee said:


> I'd like to know which of those markets can a full time driver be able to afford rent within 15-20 minutes of their prime area.
> Quality of life matters.


The thread is market to drive in not live in.


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## dirtylee (Sep 2, 2015)

KMANDERSON said:


> The thread is market to drive in not live in.


 True.

Too many are moving here as is. I shouldn't be encouraging them.


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## KMANDERSON (Jul 19, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> Revised Power Rankings:
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: Boston
> ...


That a good top ten.I would put dallas ahead of miami.No uber pool here.


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## john1975 (Jul 29, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Revised Power Rankings:
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: Boston
> ...


Pretty good. Although I still think ny is number 1. One thing to keep in mind if I worked 26 more hours in Boston to match the 76 hours my rate per hour would drop as I'd be working several hours with low demand. Incentives would be another thing to look at as it indicates demand.

I'd think San Diego would be another good place to drive. I would think that would be a possible top 10.


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## Tysmith95 (Jan 30, 2017)

Boston has too many Uber trolls on this site. What drivers actually make is much less then what you see in the subforum. People like John are extremely selective with their hours, only working when he sees surge or good promos. Most people earn far less.

And Boston in the summer is wicked saturated.


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## Victorvnv (Sep 5, 2016)

What about Vegas? A city that never sleeps and always full with tourists who rather uber than rent a car. Also dirty cheap rent to live. I would think it's a great uber city. Anyone knows?


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## Milito (Apr 26, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


Miami #5? Most Uber drivers in Miami work over 100 hours to gross around $1000 before any expenses, lux suv's can go for an entire day without any pings



JimKE said:


> Correct, but it's a total dead zone most of the time unless there is something big happening at Bayfront Park south of AAA. (Ultra, for example)Close. Brickell is south of the river; downtown is north of the river to 836/I-395 going to the beach.
> 
> The Midtown/Design District/Wynwood area I mentioned is north of 836 and mostly west of Biscayne Blvd. ...in Brickell -- 20-30 minute minimum fare rides in construction congestion/traffic. The decent going to work rides are not downtown/Brickell; they're suburbs to downtown, etc. Tourists don't usually stay downtown/Brickell/Midtown and visit Miami Beach. If anything, they do the opposite. Right -- the real world, where real people live and work.


Brickell to the Beach on a Uber you get paid a whopping $6 to $8. Without any traffic you spend at least 20 minutes to get there, with traffic at least 40 minutes


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## Wardell Curry (Jul 9, 2016)

NYC is good for earning potential but you have to be in the game with a clean license so you can reduce costs and take advantage of that. Also Manhattan is a nightmare logistically but has the most trips. Can't wait till school starts in September and we have to fight even more traffic with all the school buses double parked letting kids off. Uber on!!!


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## supersoaker83 (Aug 22, 2017)

SF! Number 1. If you do 50-55 hrs weekly and hit promotions you will make $2000/weekly.


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## Zeppelin77 (Nov 10, 2015)

Pittsburgh is not a large market but has the nice balance of low-cost of living and decent rates ($1.05/mi, .15/min, 1.30 base). Public transportation here is not great and taxis were never available and slow to react. Solid customer base from Pitt, CMU, and Duquesne, 3 Pro sports teams, airport that is 20 miles from downtown. When I started in 2015 the under 30 crowd made up 90% of my riders but the older generations have embraced it too so now I would say it's closer to a 60/40 split which has been good for business. Also the locals have embraced tipping better than some markets.


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## Dan Ryan (Jun 7, 2017)

I will definitely drop Miami from this list.

It was the tourist in me, that assumed Miami would be a solid place to work Uber. I saw the non-stop activity around Biscayne Bay. I also assumed that there would be a lot of lengthy runs up and down I-95. Southwest only flies in to Ft. Lauderdale, which is 25 miles north of Miami via I-95.

Miami proper, itself, is geographically small. But, that metropolitan area of Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach is sprawling, especially north-to-south (Everglades are immediately to the west). Now, after reading through the rants on here, the rates in all of Florida appear to be very low, especially for Orlando. And, again, I would have thought that FL would be ideal to work Uber, because of the great weather and tourism. 

Beyond Miami, I still do think of L.A. as a top-ten market.


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## RideshareSpectrum (May 12, 2017)

UberLaLa said:


> Nope...Number 1 Highest Volume Interchange in the world is 405 & 10 Freeways.


I think That's #2. The Crush is first if I'm not mistaken.



RideshareSpectrum said:


> I think That's #2. The Crush is first if I'm not mistaken.


And I just got on the 5... heading down to make some real $$ this weekend before team Fresno gets situated for the next few days.


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## pismire (May 2, 2017)

Fenwitch said:


> Yeah, LA has the LOWEST per mile and per minute rate of any major city in the country. In rush hour traffic, which is 6am-11am and then 2pm-7pm you might make it 4 miles in 45 minutes. Back to back non surge fares might, might, net you $12 per hour if you are lucky.
> 
> LA- .65 per mile
> SF- 1.80 per mile


This is true, but I don't think it automatically disqualifies LA from at least the top ten. I mean, just the sheer number of people in LA makes it so you never have to wait more than a few minutes. A person can easily ant around for a decent buck in LA.


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## Cableguynoe (Feb 14, 2017)

Fenwitch said:


> LA- .65 per mile
> SF- 1.80 per mile


I've driven in SF. I don't get 1.80 per mile. 
What the hell!


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## metal_orion (May 14, 2015)

Dan Ryan said:


> I get the feeling that this thread will soon degenerate into a race to the bottom!
> 
> Well, now I know that visiting a place is so very different than actually living in a place.
> 
> ...


Compared to what we've read from other drivers on the other top markets it seems like Chicago has it pretty easy on regulation.


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## Jdemonto (Aug 10, 2015)

SEAL Team 5 said:


> Well Scottsdale is right next to Phoenix. Phoenix with its population of 1.4 million is a very very lucrative market in winter. The metro Phoenix area has a population of 4.7 million with 42 million overnight visitors spending $21 billion each year.
> View attachment 148268
> 
> I wish I had a more current graph. This only goes to 2012. Look what the housing market crash caused us to lose in '09. Tourism is huge here. After the '09 crash we increase by a billion each year.
> By the way, driving in June, July and Aug sucks here.


Phoenix is a terrible market


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## SEAL Team 5 (Dec 19, 2015)

Jdemonto said:


> Phoenix is a terrible market


I know. I just feel like I'm stuck here. JK 
You know I love it here. Speaking of Lovin it, aren't you having one of your best August ever?For the life of me I'm stumped, and we still have 3 really good days left in the month. I'm already booked with AP runs and 2 D-Back games. I'll come close to $7.5k and that is incredible for Aug. I'm not complaining


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## Steveyoungerthanmontana (Nov 19, 2016)

Dan Ryan said:


> Disclaimer: I drive Uber in Chicago
> 
> 1: San Francisco
> 2: New York City
> ...


Los Angeles sucks. Less than minimum wage 24/7. Good days you make 12 dollars a hour, on GOOD days.


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## swingset (Feb 26, 2017)

Once again, it's not lucrative if your standard of living is 4x what other cities with 1/2 the earning potential is.

Just keep pointing this out, because economics seems to fly right over a lot of Uber driver's heads.


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## bsliv (Mar 1, 2016)

swingset said:


> Once again, it's not lucrative if your standard of living is 4x what other cities with 1/2 the earning potential is.
> Just keep pointing this out, because economics seems to fly right over a lot of Uber driver's heads.


I like numbers.

Driving UberX, getting 2 rides per hour, each ride being 6.25 miles and 15 minutes, no surges, tips, etc., a Las Vegas driver can expect to gross $14.625 per hour. To earn $50k a year, one would have to drive 65.75 hours per week.

A San Francisco driver can expect to make $18.73 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 67% higher in SF than LV. To make $83,429, one would have to drive 85.65 hours per week.

A Boston driver can expect to make $19.59 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 39% higher in Boston than LV. To make $69,723, one would have to drive 68.43 hours per week.

A Seattle driver can expect to make $20.08 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 35% higher in Seattle than LV. To make $67,526, one would have to drive 64.67 hours per week.

A Phoenix driver can expect to make $11.53 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 8% lower in Phoenix than LV. To make $45,798, one would have to drive 76.38 hours per week.

A New Orleans driver can expect to make $14.93 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 9% lower in New Orleans than LV. To make $45,606, one would have to drive 58.76 hours per week.

A Miami driver can expect to make $12.88 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 4% higher in Miami than LV. To make $52,245, one would have to drive 78.00 hours per week.

A Chicago driver can expect to make $15.96 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 14% higher in Chicago than LV. To make $56,829, one would have to drive 68.49 hours per week.

A Honolulu driver can expect to make $22.01 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 83% higher in Honolulu than LV. To make $91,261, one would have to drive 79.73 hours per week.

A Detroit driver can expect to make $11.62 per hour under the same conditions. But the cost of living is 11% lower in Detroit than LV. To make $44,413, one would have to drive 73.47 hours per week.


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## JimKE (Oct 28, 2016)

bsliv said:


> I like numbers.
> 
> Driving UberX, getting 2 rides per hour, each ride being 6.25 miles and 15 minutes, no surges, tips, etc., a Las Vegas driver can expect to gross $14.625 per hour. To earn $50k a year, one would have to drive 65.75 hours per week.
> 
> ...


I think the takeaway from this analysis is that driving for Uber to support a family is not sustainable for the long run. Yes, you can drive 60-70 hours a week for a while, but not 50 weeks a year, year after year. Uber works for me as supplemental income driving part-time (20-25 hours a week), but I sure wouldn't want to do it for a living!


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## bsliv (Mar 1, 2016)

JimKE said:


> I think the takeaway from this analysis is that driving for Uber to support a family is not sustainable for the long run. Yes, you can drive 60-70 hours a week for a while, but not 50 weeks a year, year after year. Uber works for me as supplemental income driving part-time (20-25 hours a week), but I sure wouldn't want to do it for a living!


And those numbers don't include the cost to drive. It costs me roughly $5 per hour in operating costs to drive 25 miles. That brings the Las Vegas rate down from $14.62 to $9.62. There could be fixed costs involved too that I didn't account for (additional licenses, additional insurance, etc.).

On the other hand, the IRS will allow $13.37 per hour (25 miles) of driving as a deduction. The difference between one's hourly gross and $13.37 is either the taxable income or loss that could be used to offset a tax liability caused by another job.


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## blahguy88 (Mar 30, 2017)

I used to do UberEATS in DC. Now, I'm in LA and looking to find a place to settle. I was going to ask about places to drive, but...hey. Thanks.


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## bsliv (Mar 1, 2016)

blahguy88 said:


> I used to do UberEATS in DC. Now, I'm in LA and looking to find a place to settle. I was going to ask about places to drive, but...hey. Thanks.


Like cajun food?


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## RedSteel (Apr 8, 2017)

Don't know where my area would rank but 

1) easily on fridays and Saturdays nights to work maybe 8 hours and make about 250 bucks
2) easy ass driving with no traffic.... most people are off the roads by 10pm leaving the streets clear
3) cost of living is cheap but gas is a little more expensive then normal area


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## bsliv (Mar 1, 2016)

Uber advertises in many city's Craigslist. In the ad they state the average earnings for a 40 hour per week driver. Using the Uber supplied data instead of making the assumptions concerning the average number of rides per hour, average number of miles per ride, and the average number of minutes per ride, I came up with some new, potentially more accurate numbers.

According to Uber, a driver working a 40 hour week in Las Vegas will make $13/hr or $27,040/yr (no vacation). 

According to Uber, a driver in San Francisco will make $19.30/hr or $40,144/yr. But the cost of living is 67% higher in SF than LV. To make $45,118, one would have to drive 45.0 hours per week.

According to Uber, a driver in Boston will make $21.10/hr or $43,888/yr. But the cost of living is 39% higher in Boston than LV. To make $37,706, one would have to drive 34.4 hours per week.

According to Uber, a driver in Seattle will make $14.40/hr or $29,952/yr. But the cost of living is 35% higher in Seattle than LV. To make $36,518, one would have to drive 48.8 hours per week.

According to Uber, a driver in Phoenix will make $16.00/hr or $33,280/yr. But the cost of living is 8% lower in Phoenix than LV. To make $24,767, one would have to drive 29.7 hours per week.

According to Uber, a driver in Miami will make $15.40/hr or $32,032/yr. But the cost of living is 4% higher in Miami than LV. To make $28,254, one would have to drive 35.3 hours per week.

According to Uber, a driver in Chicago will make $15.40/hr or $32,032/yr. But the cost of living is 14% higher in Chicago than LV. To make $30,733, one would have to drive 38.4 hours per week.

Honolulu doesn't have earnings posted.

According to Uber, a driver in Detroit will make $14.40/hr or $29,552/yr. But the cost of living is 11% lower in Detroit than LV. To make $24,018, one would have to drive 32.1 hours per week.

According to Uber, a driver in New Orleans will make $19.10/hr or $39,728/yr. But the cost of living is 9% lower in New Orleans than LV. To make $24,664, one would have to drive 24.8 hours per week.

Again, these numbers do not include the cost to drive or costs to start and run a business, both of which could be very expensive. These numbers sort of include a quality of life rating by using the cost of living index. 

Gumbo, anyone?


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