Just What is Uber Driver Pay?

Uber is an American multinational transportation service company. It works just like the usual taxis, but it is barely regulated by the government. The main headquarters is located in San Francisco, California. Using Uber, those who need a ride can make a request and they will be picked up by an Uber driver and bring them to a respective destination. Uber drivers use their personal car. They can just register to be a part of the system. They can work any time they want. As of now, Uber is available in 58 countries and over 300 cities all over the world.

The increase in the number of passengers seeking for Uber services has sparked the interest of car owners to be a part of Uber. The bigger question is, how much do Uber drives actually earn? The truth is that there is no clear figure as drivers work for varying hours a day and not all days in a week. According to a claim made by Uber, Uber driver pay is at an average of $90,000 a year. This is such a huge figure, but the reality is quite far from this claim.

A closer look at Uber pay

For a driver to reach an Uber driver pay of $90,000 a year, he has to be a full time driver. In most cases, Uber drivers work only when they are free or when they are in the mood to do so. Most Uber drivers also have a full time job or are running a business.

To earn $90,000 a year, Uber drivers are supposed to get an average of $25 an hour. It seems reasonable. However, if we take a closer look at how much drivers actually receive, the story might be a bit different. A study was conducted with Uber drivers as the subjects. Those who were willing to participate had their earnings recorded for comparison. Based on the results, these drivers earn around $15 to $38 an hour. There are a lot of factors affecting the figures though. For instance, working during rush hours would result to a bigger pay. Those who are only available to work outside the peak hours won’t get the same amount. Add to that the possibility of getting stuck in traffic especially in big cities like New York or California.

The realistic figure

If Uber’s claim will be followed, it means that Uber drivers have to work for 12 hours a day for 6 to 7 days a week. In reality, Uber drivers are mostly college students who want to earn extra money to pay their tuition fees. Some others don’t earn enough with their day job so they need extra job to make ends meet. As such, they average only around 3 to 4 hours a day for 3 to 4 days a week. Given this situation, these drivers earn roughly $200 to $300 a week. Those who work for longer hours and receive more requests from passengers end up getting more, but still far from the average $90,000 a year.

Other fees

The said amount works only if we don’t consider other expenses. Uber drivers pay for car insurance, car maintenance, gas, rental fees (if necessary) and other costs. There are also some instances when they have to pass through a bridge where a toll is required. All these expenses will then be deducted from the amount that they are earning. The expenses can even go bigger depending on the type of car driven. As a result, the figure for earning becomes even lower.

Is it worth the try?

For drivers who want to earn additional income, registering in Uber is a good idea. It provides them more money to make ends meet. However, for those who are searching for a full time job, being an Uber driver does not guarantee anything. You need to work for several hours a day to earn enough money. It also depends on what type of car you are driving and how difficult it is to maintain. Finally, you need to consider the city where you are to drive. Bigger cities might have huge demands. However, there are a lot of cities where demands are quite low. Uber has not even become that popular in some cities for you to think about earning huge amounts of money.