Uber Technologies Inc. is an American multinational online transportation network company headquartered in San Francisco, California. Uber was founded as “UberCab” by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp in 2009. It develops markets and operates the Uber mobile app, which allows consumers with smartphones to submit a trip request which is then routed to Uber drivers who use their own cars. As of the August 2016, the service was available in over 66 countries and 507 cities worldwide.
Where Lyft is also a privately held American transportation network company based in San Francisco, CA, it was launched in June 2012 by Logan Green and John Zimmer. The company’s mobile-phone application facilitates peer-to-peer ride-sharing by connecting passengers who need a ride with drivers who have a car.
So from the above information, it is clear that both Uber and Lyft allow you to hail cars from your smart phones. Uber and Lyft are the two ride-sharing apps that dominate in most cities. They are disrupting the traditional taxi industry and using tactics both innovative and aggressive to build workforces of independent drivers.
Both services offer iOS and Android apps, and Uber offers an app for Windows phone users, too. While there are plenty of apps that enable you to hail a licensed taxi, Uber and Lyft are different, because each has its own drivers.
Here is what you need to know about the two different services, and how you can choose between them.
Uber and Lyft’s apps are different, but one of the biggest differences between the two services is the different kinds of rides that you can choose. Drivers for both Uber and Lyft offer different types of cars and services, and depending on how many people you have with you and what kind of vehicle you prefer. You can also select what ride to request via the Uber or Lyft app.
Lyft has fewer options than the many you can select from in Uber’s app, but its services cover everything that the average user need when requesting a ride. Lyft allows riders to tip their drivers via the app but Uber does not.
Lyft’s brand is more about community and friendliness so drivers interact with passengers more whereas Uber’s brand is more about a professional service so drivers do not interact more.
Uber offers many rides like UberX, UberLUX, UberXL, UberSUV, UberSELECT, and UberBLACK. But the most popular rides are UberX, UberXL, and UberBlack. UberX and XL rides are executed by ordinary drivers who use their eligible privately-owned cars to shuttle people around. AndUberBlack is the “classic” Uber ride, with a professional chauffeur in a livery-registered black luxury sedan.
Whereas Lyft has two car options, one is Lyft and second is LyftPlus. A standard Lyft has room for you and up to three friends, while Lyft Plus is a higher-priced ride for up to six passengers. Both services also offer carpooling services, which give you a lower-cost ride if you share the car with another passenger; Uber’s is uberPool, and Lyft’s is Lyft Line.
When it comes to choosing which app to use, another important consideration is which service is available where you live or are traveling. Both Uber and Lyft are available in cities across the U.S. and around the world, though Uber is available in more cities than Lyft. That means that you are more likely to find an Uber driver nearby than a Lyft driver. If one service has been in your city for a while, and the other only recently arrived, you are probably better off opting for the one that is been around longer, since it likely has more drivers on the road at any given time.
