I have used both Uber and Lyft on several occasions. I don’t really have a preference for one service over the other. Both have great drivers, and either beat taking a taxi. However, there is one big distinction between the two services: Lyft allows tipping through the app while Uber does not. Since Lyft allows you to tip through the app, it begs the question: should I tip Lyft drivers?
There is definitely a divide on this issue. Lyft and Uber have completely different ideas about tipping drivers. Let’s explore Uber’s policies first before diving into whether you should tip your Lyft driver.
Uber’s stance on tipping
Uber’s FAQs can easily be read to discourage tipping, although in essence the company is completely hands off. Drivers are allowed to receive tips and even place signs in the car encouraging riders to tip. Uber explicitly bills itself as a “cashless experience”, which is one of the things I really like about the service. And people definitely use Uber because of the easy, seamless experience that does not include tipping.
The lack of an option to tip your driver without carrying a few greenbacks is an explicit choice by the company. It is also a frustrating one. Uber does not plan add the ability to tip your driver through the app, which is inconvenient, to say the least. From Uber’s help section:
Tipping is voluntary. Tips are not included in the fare, nor are they expected or required. As a rider, you are not obligated to offer your driver a gratuity in cash. If you decide you would like to tip, your driver is welcome to accept.
For people who want to tip their driver, this means carrying some cash. Which flies in the face of the way Uber bills their service. Overall, I see it as a net discouragement of tipping.
Should I tip Lyft drivers?
Lyft, on the other hand, does allow you to tip through the app, which essentially encourages tipping. This implies that a Lyft fare does NOT include any sore of gratuity for the driver. There is even a help section spelling out exactly how to tip your Lyft driver.
Lyft is explicit that 100% of tips go to drivers, and you can tip through the app up to 72 hours from when you complete your ride. Even after that time-frame has passed, you can send a message to Lyft to manually add a tip to a driver. Tips are charged to your card on file. You cannot use promotional credits to cover a tip.
Personally, I find that being presented with an option to tip your service provider essential obligates you to do so, for better or for worse. If I’m not prompted to tip, I generally don’t. If I’m prompted to tip and decide not to do so, I tend to feel like a jerk. Thus, I usually tip when prompted, even if I believe the service was poor or overpriced. I certainly will not tip as much for poor service.
All that being said, I think you should tip your Lyft driver, especially if the service was very good and you are rating your driver highly. I’ve been provided free bottled water by both Uber and Lyft drivers on a couple occasions. I’m also glad that Lyft prompts me to tip through the app, since it makes it much easier on me than digging out cash. The cash I carry while traveling is often only for emergencies. Being able to tip my driver through the app is much easier.
In my opinion, tipping encourages drivers to provide better service to riders. If a driver is rude or doesn’t drive safely, don’t tip him. If she provides great service, show her you appreciate it. It’s that simple.
With prices being slashed, should tips be expected and/or encouraged?
Uber has pushed prices lower and lower for their services. Uber’s CEO even got into hot water recently after arguing with a driver over fare pricing. When Uber rolled out the flat fare pricing in several cities (SEE: Get flat-fare Uber rides for as low as $1.99 in select cities), I couldn’t believe the fares offered. There is no way the bulk of rides are anywhere close to economical. Does Uber pass on these uber-low prices to drivers, or do they still pay them the time and mileage fare? It left me scratching my head.
As the fierce competition continues among ride sharing companies and taxis, I feel more compelled to tip both Uber and Lyft drivers (and drivers with any other ride-share company). Uber drivers also say you should tip them. They say they would struggle to make a living without them. It’s funny that I feel less inclined to tip my taxi driver. Uber and Lyft have always provided smooth, pleasant service. Either beat taking a ride in a car that reeks of smoke with a grumpy taxi driver, who then expects a tip.
At the end of the day, though, tipping is still voluntary. You don’t have to tip. I think Lyft makes the right call by allowing riders to tip their driver seamlessly through the app. Even though Uber and Lyft drivers are independent contractors, they are still service workers in an industry where tipping has been customary. Like in any other service industry, tipping allows good service to be rewarded over service.
Conclusion
So, should I tip Lyft drivers? I believe the answer is yes, and I certainly do tip. And I will continue to do so. I’m generally a fan of our U.S. tipping culture (unlike Dan). It allows good service to shine and be appropriately rewarded.
The service industry is not foreign to me. My wife works part time at her parents’ restaurant and routinely makes a great deal in tips. She is attentive and engaging with customers, and has regulars who LOVE her. There are times when a table of two will leave her $10 or even $20 for a check of $20. Why are they tipping like that? Because they are getting great service. When I hear of the idiocy of “communal tip jars” for waitstaff, I shake my head. Why work harder so someone else can freeload on your efforts?
Now that we have answered the question “should I tip Lyft drivers”, have you ever considered tipping your flight attendant? (SEE: Tipping flight attendants: fact or fiction?)
If you have not signed up with Lyft yet, you can get $10 in ride credits if you’re a new user by using my Lyft referral link. I will also get a $10 credit – thanks in advance
Featured image courtesy of Sergio Ruiz under CC 2.0 license.
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
In my home city of San Francisco, waitstaff and others are getting government mandated higher “living wages” in addition to tipping.
Rideshare drivers OTOH have none of those benefits AND have to deal with the companies cutting pay, pocketing the difference between what passengers pay and what drivers get paid and increasing the take (I know this firsthand; I drive for both Uber and Lyft).
Basically what we have here are passengers who tip their waiters. They tip their barstaff. They’ll tip the valet. But they don’t like to tip the people who get them home in one piece.
Rodney, FWIW, I always tip my Lyft drivers . . .
Lyft has chosen to put their politics front and center by communicating their misguided uninformed liberal talking points to their customers via email. Sinc I disagree with Lyft leadership on these matters I no longer use Lyft. Consequently the tipping issue is moot.
Everyone is entitled to express their own opinions, whether it’s an individual or a corporation (which *is* an individual, under US law). Uber has done the very same thing as Lyft, albeit expressing a “misguided conservative” point-of-view, which is why I (along with a number of my friends) no longer use Uber. In other words, @Rjb, it’s ALL moot as it all “comes out in the [proverbial] wash,” and we continue to move forward . . .
It’s always “six of one, half-a dozen of the other” . . . unless you prefer some other cliché.
I have no problem tipping my drivers but what I love about these new services is the ability to avoid handling money. I love the ease of it and no hassle of cash being exchanged. That is why I use Lyft whenever I can and include the tip later. I avoid Uber because there is always the uncomfortable moment of “should I, or shouldn’t I tip”? ” I don’t have any cash on me and now I am a jerk for not tipping, but they say I don’t need to tip” etc…,I hope Uber will eventually follow suit.
We always tip our driver who takes us to the airport $5 in cash. This is in addition to a $15 fare. We believe the driver would prefer cash vs. putting in on the credit card. The drivers are always great, and we have a lot of luggage which they load and unload for us. We do this whether it’s Uber or Lyft; although we basically quit Uber after a $90 airport run; the same trip at the same time of day/week was $15 on Lyft last week.
Having only used Uber, I’ll speak from my experiences. I will ALWAYS tip the driver, but amount I tip is based on the fare and service. I normally do $5 which seems to be decent considering my rides are around $20. Most times it is because the drivers are interesting. I would tip a taxi driver, but in my experience some are surly should the fare only be $12-$15. Not so with Uber. They’re glad to have your business.
Unless you are driving at surge time, an Uber/Lyft driver makes less than the minimum wage.
I’ve heard that. It should be noted that minimum wage laws don’t apply, as long as Uber keeps the lines drawn clearly that drivers are subcontractors.
The business practices I disagree with are the unilateral ability for Uber to determine pricing. Yeah, surge takes care of some of this if people aren’t on the road, but Uber has been pushing standard pricing down. If you were relying on them as your sole source of income, you’re likely hosed. Also, I do not think that Uber should be helping people buy cars. It makes it sound too good and too easy to drive with them. That being said, potential drivers need to consider the cost of the business. But that brings us back to point #1 where Uber unilaterally pills the rug out from under you after you expect one price and then get another.
Uber’s practices will come back to bite them. They will not be able to sustain their growth forever when they aren’t turning a profit. I believe their day of reckoning will come.