Whether offering greater transparency with upfront pay, or simplicity and ease with better maps, Lyft’s recent driver app improvements have focused on enhancing the underlying experience so that the best drivers continue to choose Lyft.
Today, our Driver Earnings Release is stacked with some of drivers’ top-requested features and improvements, including upgrades to upfront pay. Combined with our reputation for having the best riders, this new-and-improved driver experience demonstrates our commitment to ensuring Lyft is the best place to earn good money with great people.
Upfront pay, upgraded
The bottom line: earnings are up.
Our improvements to upfront pay this year are yielding higher per-ride driver earnings, especially on long trips. Recent average earnings per ride were 10% higher than they were earlier this year, with per-ride earnings on long rides rising 14%.*
Upfront pay is now available in most regions across the country, and we have continued listening to drivers’ feedback on upfront pay to directly make improvements.
More control and choice
We are also introducing new ways to give drivers more control over their driving and more choice over how they earn.
The “stay within area” location filter quickly became a driver favorite upon introducing it earlier this year, enabling drivers to stay closer to home with shorter rides, avoid traffic, combine with streak zones to maximize earnings, and myriad other popular use cases. Now, we are offering drivers even greater location customization with the filter, including the ability to set a specific pin and radius for pick-ups and drop-offs. Drivers can choose exactly where they drive for up to 3 hours with this filter–the longest duration amongst similar products within the rideshare category.
Drivers’ feedback on bonuses has also led to direct improvements to ride challenges that empower drivers to earn on their terms. The Lyft platform now offers ride challenge options for both weekdays and weekends, so drivers are more likely to be offered a challenge that works for their schedule if not driving the full week. Additionally, drivers can choose the challenge based on how much they expect to drive, from bigger challenges for bigger payouts to smaller challenges that are achievable with less driving time.
Lastly, we have improved visibility into scheduled rides in order to offer a more transparent, reliable and differentiated way for drivers to plan ahead. We now uniquely show drivers all available scheduled rides–and expected earnings–in their region on a new map view or list view for up to 7 days ahead. Drivers can also plan ahead for their week and filter through scheduled rides by date, time, and airport drop-offs.
An upgraded airport experience
Travelers show no signs of slowing down in 2023, and we’ve doubled-down on enhancing the airport experience for both riders and drivers. Our new features empower drivers to make the most of airport trips–in both directions–just in time for peak summer travel season. For drivers considering driving to the airport, or already headed there for a drop-off, the Lyft app now offers more detail about real-time conditions. Drivers can view anticipated airport wait times, the number of drivers ahead in the airport queue, plus incoming flight information–all to help make it easier to decide if and when to drive to the airport or get in the queue.
A new benefit only available on the Lyft platform, drivers in the airport queue can now use their favorite location filters - such as stay within area, arrive on time, and head to destination - to help ensure they get an airport ride that works for their schedule.
Finally, we have unlocked additional upgrades and perks for top Platinum drivers. Our new pilot program enables eligible drivers to jump ahead in the airport queue every time, and to use destination filters at the airport that do not count toward the daily limit.
Turn insights into earnings
Lastly, additional features within the driver app offer greater transparency that help turn insights into earnings. The Lyft driver app now offers guidance on the busiest areas in real time by showing current wait times on the driver map. Drivers can simply tap the map to view how quickly nearby drivers were matched with a ride in the last hour, and then tap to navigate to that area.
We have also made it easier to see earnings details during active driving time. Previously, drivers were unable to track their earnings and bonus progress for long stretches of time if giving back-to-back queued rides. Now, drivers can easily track their progress by swiping up in the app when stopped.
Visit us online or listen to our podcast to learn more about the Driver Earnings Release and how we’re making Lyft the best place to earn good money with great people.
* Average earnings per ride across US & Canada, comparing Jan 2023 vs May 1 - May 21, 2023, including bonuses and tips. Long ride pay includes top 80th percentile rides by distance in each market, comparing average pay per ride Jan 2023 vs May 1 - May 21, 2023. The per ride earnings communicated are no guarantee of future performance and not indicative of any specific driver's earnings, and calculated before taxes, insurance, depreciation, and other costs associated with being a rideshare driver.