Uber is one of the leading ridesharing service in the United States and even in the entire world. It owes its insane popularity to its easiness of use, accessibility, and competitive pricing.
With that said, Uber has seen some controversy in recent years connected to the unfair treatment of drivers, questionable employment terms, the disruption of the traditional taxi business, and not only.
Needless to say, factors like these won’t be adding points to Uber in the eyes of potential customers. And even though Uber is one of the more affordable ridesharing services out there, many are willing to search for alternative professional companies.
This isn’t the only reason to look for an Uber alternative.
Although Uber is available in many locations around the world, it may not be in your country just yet. With that said, you may be looking for a ridesharing app in your area – just like Uber.
No matter the motivation behind your searches of sites or apps like Uber, our top 16 list below may be able to help you.
Note that the ranking below is in no particular order.
1. Bolt
Bolt (formerly Taxify) is based in Estonia, Northern Europe, and primarily services European cities. There are a number of locations covered by Bolt in Africa and Asia as well. As of this post’s writing, it wasn’t available in the US.
If you are interested, you can find the full list of covered cities here.
Bolt aims to deliver the best prices in every city. Aside from that, Bolt also works hard to implement its “Green Plan” aimed at reducing our eco footprint and maintaining greener cities.
Bolt additionally donates to carbon-offsetting projects around the world, so by using Bolt, you may have the chance to make a difference.
2. Lyft
Lyft has a 30% market share in the US, which makes it the second-largest ridesharing company in the country (as of 2020).
The first one is, of course, Uber. Internationally though, the presence of Lyft isn’t as strong – Lyft only had coverage in US and Canadian cities as of this post.
In terms of taxi experience, Lyft and Uber are largely similar. Anecdotally, this is because some drivers work for both Uber and Lyft.
The same goes for pricing, but it may fluctuate based on demand. So if you want to save money, you should have both apps and just see which one is more affordable at the moment.
3. Kapten
Kapten (formerly Chauffeur Privé) is also a European taxi service, but its coverage is very limited compared to Bolt.
People can use their services in Paris, Lyon, Cannes, Lisbon, and London. This list is to expand in the future, so you may want to stay up to date with this service.
Despite the limited coverage, Kapten does have a few interesting things to offer.
First up, in London, you may choose to travel on either standard or electric vehicles. Then, Kapten also offers a loyalty program where you get 50 loyalty points for each ride.
You may then may spend your points to buy discounts or play roulette to have a chance to have a free ride.
Since recently, Kapten has been a member of FreeNow, a mobility alliance between Daimler AG and BMW Group. Kapten also works with over 40,000 partner drivers. In 2020, Kapten looks to expands its driver network to 70,000 and also increase its coverage.
4. Cabify
Part of the Maxi Mobility holding, Cabify services over 90 cities around South, Central, and North American countries. Cabify is also available in one European country – Spain.
With that, Cabify is a good option if you are living in one of the covered countries and if services like Uber aren’t available in your area.
You may find the list of locations where Cabify is available here. On the same page, you may get a quote on a ride and also check out fares.
Cabify follows sustainable practices in 3 key areas as well – eco friendliness, diversity, and safety of drivers and passengers.
5. Easy Taxi
Founded in 2011 in Brazil, Easy Taxi is today a Cabify app. With that, it follows the same practices as Cabify – most importantly, sustainability.
When it comes to coverage and prices, you can expect an experience that’s no different from that of Cabify. Since Easy Taxi and Cabify are functionally the same service, the service quality should be similar.
6. Gett
Gett is headquartered in Israel and therefore offers its services primarily there. With that said, since its establishment in 2010, Gett has expanded its network to Russia, the US, and the UK. In total, you may access Gett in over 120 cities.
Gett may not be the first taxi service of choice in countries like the US and the UK – there are plenty of other taxi apps to use. In Russia or Israel though where access to such services may be limited, Gett is a must-have.
Compared to Uber, Gett appears to be more convenient when there is peak demand. Some drivers may be happy to take riders right from the street, while Uber drivers prefer to work with the app and benefit from the surge prices at peak times.
7. Curb
As of this post, Curb was only available in the US. Compared to services like Lyft or Uber, its availability was quite limited – you could find a Curb driver only in a few dozen US cities. Despite the limited availability, Curb has 50,000 cabs and 100,000 drivers in the serviced areas.
Compared to the likes of Lyft and Uber, Curb costs a little more. However, it actually lets you hail licensed cabs or book flat-rate or per-mile in advance.
Unlike Uber and other ridesharing platforms, Curb drivers are insured too. Additionally, you may expect better service quality from Curb.
8. Anyride
Anyride actually isn’t your traditional ridesharing service like Uber. Instead, it is a price comparison app for Lyft and Uber and allows you to pick the best service based on current pricing.
So rather than switching between the Uber and Lyft apps to compare prices, you can do it all from one place – the Anyride app.
To get started with Anyride, you need to sign in to your Uber and Lyft accounts via the app. Anyride promises that all your data is saved on your phone and that it communicates with Uber and Lyft directly. So Anyride acts as a middleman without having any access to your data.
By the way, check out Anyride’s FAQ page – you can find a few interesting tips there on money-saving with ridesharing services.
9. Ola
Ola is one of the coolest cab services on this list. Aside from a ride to help you get to your destination, Ola also offers car rentals and the Outstation service for affordable out-of-town trips.
The vehicle inventory of Ola is exceptionally diverse as well – aside from traditional sedans, you may order e-rickshaw or even bike rides.
Ola is available in India, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Based on where you are booking, your access to Ola services may be limited. The things we listed above, for example, were available in India but perhaps not in other areas.
10. Beat
Headquartered in Greece, Beat (formerly Taxibeat) services its home country along with a number of South American countries – most notably, Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Mexico, and Peru.
Remarkably, Beat has introduced a number of new services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of them is Beat Envio whose purpose is to help you send or receive goods or supplies.
Another one is Beat Mission, a service designed to help those who need a ride in Peru and Argentina. As of this post’s writing, Beat’s regular services were disabled in these countries, and Beat Mission’s purpose was to provide a ride to those who had permission to commute.
With Beat Lite, you may also access more affordable taxis without sharing your ride. Beat Plus, in contrast, will offer increased space and comfort for a premium.
11. Free Now
Free Now (formerly mytaxi) offers its services in over 100 European cities in 10 countries.
Aside from regular rides, Free Now offers convenient, fixed-fare transportation to a number of airports in Europe. Free Now provides services to businesses as well, including black cabs and private hire vehicles with licensed drivers. These are available for Kapten as well since it’s a member of Free Now.
In some areas, you may be able to find electric taxis too.
As the parent company of Kapten (and a few other services), Free Now is planning to adopt its loyalty program. At the moment of this post’s writing, the loyalty program was undergoing final checks, and it will become available soon. Users of Kapten will be able to use their loyalty points in Free Now.
12. Flywheel
Flywheel provides services in 4 American cities – San Francisco, CA; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Houston, TX; and Washington, D.C. In the future, Flywheel may expand its reach to other US areas.
This service offers a number of interesting solutions both to riders and drivers. Flywheel connects you with professional taxi drivers in your area no matter their company. The app only works with local drivers as well.
For drivers and fleets, Flywheel also offers solutions such as the Passenger Information Monitor (PIM) to facilitate payments and the Shield to separate the driver and passenger compartment for added health safety.
13. Taxi.eu
Taxi.eu offers its services in 10 European countries and 160 cities, though the vast majority of cabs are in Germany.
With Taxi.eu, you may choose cabs from a diverse fleet including Business, Eco, and other vehicle classes. You may schedule rides as well and make payments with a wide range of methods.
Speaking of payments, Taxi.eu is compatible with Amazon Pay, Apple Pay, and PayPal. You may even place orders with Amazon Echo! For even more convenience, you may create a personal address book and use it to make orders.
14. Heetch
Heetch was made in France and is currently available in two European and North African countries – France, Belgium, Morocco, and Algeria.
Unlike standard ridesharing apps, Heetch works only with professional drivers and carefully performs background checks before allowing them to transport passengers.
All drivers are licensed as well. The stringent application process is perhaps one of the reasons for Heetch’s limited coverage.
Heetch also claims that passenger and driver telephone numbers are kept anonymous and expire 24 hours from the ride.
15. Wingz
As of this guide’s writing, Wingz provided coverage in 16 metro areas and 22 airports in the United States. The list of supported cities will undoubtedly grow in the future, so stay tuned with Wingz if you like what it has.
Wingz is all about making the lives of customers and drivers more convenient. The highlight of Wingz is its scheduling functionality that allows you to book drives 2 months in advance – with flat rates! Additionally, Wingz allows you to directly get in touch with your favorite drivers.
Speaking of drivers, Wingz has a demanding onboarding and screening process. To ensure high quality and safety for customers, Wingz performs criminal background checks and motor vehicle record checks on applicants. New drivers undergo disability training as well to be ready to service customers in need.
16. Via
Via provides ridesharing services in a number of American cities – New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. It covers a few European cities as well – namely, Amsterdam, Berlin, and Milton Keynes. European customers are serviced via ViaVan, Via’s joint venture with Mercedes-Benz.
Notably, aside from on-demand transportation, Via is also engaged in developing pre-scheduled transit systems. To gain more insight into public transportation systems, Via employs a complex model called ViaViewer.
Via provides services for business and government customers too, such as universities, public transit agencies, and cities. So although Via offers consumer services, this company is a little more focused on public transportation and enterprise solutions.
Final Words
There are plenty of Uber alternatives out there, as you can see.
We personally would recommend that you opt for apps that connect you with licensed drivers. These may be more expensive, but they are worth it. But other apps are mostly fine too, so you shouldn’t have issues with them.
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