Uber's rise has been extraordinary, and a survey of drivers reveals much about the demographics powering the $40 billion ride-hailing app.
In a collaboration of Uber's Head of Research Jonathan Hall and Princeton University professor Alan Krueger, Uber surveyed 601 active U.S. drivers and analyzed the histories, schedules, and earnings of all drivers using the app since 2012. The results, released earlier this year, are illuminating.
Uber's active driver base has grown from basically zero in mid-2012 to over 160,000 at the end of 2014. The number of new drivers has more than doubled every six months for the last two years. Most of that exponential growth has come from the cheaper UberX service, which in most areas lets drivers use their own cars to pick up riders. UberBlack, the commercial-licensed black car service, has seen steady but not exponential growth.
Overall growth is accelerating. Markets like Miami, Austin, and Houston, where Uber has more recently expanded, are adding drivers faster than earlier markets like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York.
On average, Uber drivers are younger, more educated, more white, and (slightly) more female than the rest of U.S. taxi workers. 49.2% of Uber drivers are under 40 years old, vs. 28.4% of taxi drivers. Yet nearly 37% have college degrees, and 10.8% have postgraduate degrees too (vs. 14.9% and 3.9% of taxi drivers, respectively).
More than 40% of Uber drivers self-identify as White non-Hispanic, vs. 26.2% for taxi drivers. Women make up nearly 14% of Uber drivers, more than the 8% of female taxi drivers, but much less than their 47.4% portion of the rest of the U.S. workforce. Women also work fewer hours, on average, than male drivers.
Drivers fall into one of three categories: those who have no other job (38%), those who continue to work full-time elsewhere (31%), and those who have a part-time job in addition to driving for Uber (30%). Nearly a quarter of drivers rely on Uber as their only source of income, and another 16% say the service is their largest income source.
About half of Uber contractors previously worked as a driver in some capacity prior in their career, but most came from other jobs. More than 80% were not employed in the transportation industry immediately prior to joining Uber. More than 9 in 10 survey respondents cited “to earn more income to better support myself or my family” as a reason they joined. More than 8 in 10 cited schedule flexibility or being their own boss as factors. About one-third of drivers are doing so "while looking for a steady, full-time job."
The study also gave us a window into retention. Within the first month, 11% of drivers became inactive (defined as not using the service over the next six months). Just over half are still active one year later.
Overall, drivers appear to be a happy bunch.78% say they are very or somewhat satisfied with Uber. 69% had a more favorable opinion of the company than when they first started. Nine times as many said Uber had improved, rather than hurt, their sense of confidence, while 6 times said it had made better, rather than worse, their overall quality of life.
Uber doesn't offer health insurance or other benefits to its contract employees, even those who rely on it full-time. That said, about half of its drivers receive health insurance either from their employer at another job or other family member’s job.
Driver earnings vary by city. For example, in New York City, median UberX drivers make between $26 and $30 per hour. In Chicago, that average is closer to $16 per hour. UberBlack drivers earn more per hour-- except in New York, where UberX is slightly ahead.
Overall, median hourly earnings for Uber drivers tend to be higher than hourly wages for other taxi and chauffeur jobs, and are sometimes 50-100% higher. However, Uber contractors are not reimbursed for driving expenses like gasoline, depreciation, or insurance, while employed drivers often are.
