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Lagos drivers reveal the most profitable ride-hailing apps By Ngozi Chukwu Feb 28, 2025 Ride-hailing driver HMO An Uber driver in a Car | Thibault Penin / Unsplash When Uber launched in Lagos in 2014, drivers like Kayode Olaniyan made as much as ₦300,000 a week. Today, the story is different. Ride-hailing has become a survivalist hustle, with drivers juggling multiple platforms to maximize earnings amid rising fuel costs, high platform commissions, and relentless fare cuts. Uber, Bolt, inDrive, and Rida all compete on pricing, and sometimes, these strategies to win market share disadvantage drivers, who shoulder the costs of maintaining and fueling their vehicles. So, which platform pays best? We spoke to six ride-hailing drivers who frequently switch between apps to find out. Bolt offers the best deal for driver earnings For Collins and several other drivers who spoke to TechCabal, Bolt offers the best deal. Its commission is as high as Uber’s (25%), but its fares are generally higher. The lowest fare on Uber is 26% less than Bolt, a difference that adds up over multiple trips. Drivers say Uber has increased its commission to 30% while slashing fares to compete with InDrive. The result? Lower take-home earnings. “They don’t own the cars, they don’t maintain them, yet they take so much,” Collins said. InDrive and Rida, on the other hand, allow passengers to negotiate fares, which often forces drivers to accept unreasonably low prices to stay in business. Despite InDrive’s lower 10% commission, many drivers feel it’s a race to the bottom. “You will see someone order a ride for ₦2,000, and when you arrive, they’re cramming four people into the car,” says Akhigbe, a gig driver. “If each of them took a bike, the total fare would be much higher. Ride-hailing is a luxury service—not everyone needs to afford it.” Shrinking earnings are compounded by rising fuel prices and vehicle maintenance costs, making platform commissions even more concerning. The cost of staying on the road When Tunde, a Lagos-based Uber driver, completes his 16th trip of the day, he tallies his earnings: ₦36,000. But after spending ₦20,000 on fuel and factoring in Uber’s commission, his take-home pay is far less than expected. “With Bolt, I can make ₦50,000 to ₦60,000 in a day and have more money left,” he says. But even Bolt’s slightly higher fares aren’t enough for many drivers. Akhigbe recalls that in three months, Bolt deducted ₦900,000 in commissions from his earnings—but he didn’t even have that amount in savings. “I earned about ₦3 million, but after fuel and maintenance costs, I barely kept anything,” he says. One major cost driver incur is fuel. Some ride-hailing drivers spend ₦180,000 per week on fuel alone, plus an additional ₦30,000 for periodic vehicle servicing. “They should increase the prices. Is it not better for me to do fewer trips and have a good profit than to run around doing so many cheap trips and be left with nothing?” Akhigbe asks. Another driver who works across multiple platforms told TechCabal that the rising cost of spare parts and oil makes profitability even more difficult, especially for those who lease their cars. “The car owners keep increasing the weekly payments to make a profit, so drivers end up making even less,” he said. Olaniyan, the former Uber top earner, now drives a Moove-financed vehicle, which requires him to pay ₦9,400 daily to Moove, plus Uber’s 25% commission. After all deductions, his take-home pay is around ₦15,000 per day. “If this car were mine, I’d be making a lot more,” he admits. The weekend hustle is Uber’s edge? For some, Uber still offers the best earnings—especially on weekends. Adebayo, an Uber driver who also runs a restaurant, drives only on weekends and says he earns around ₦350,000 every weekend from about 35 trips. “If I didn’t have my restaurant, I could still afford my annual rent of ₦2.6 million just by driving on Uber every weekend.” His earnings are significantly boosted because his car is categorized as a “priority car” on Uber, which charges riders 46% more than UberGo, the cheapest option. Uber also has other pricing tiers—UberX and Uber Comfort—where fares are adjusted based on ride acceptance rates and car quality. A trip from Somolu to Ikeja costs 63% more on Uber Comfort than on UberGo, making car category selection a major factor in driver earnings. The verdict: which platform pays best? Bolt driver Akhigbe believes there is no one-size-fits-all answer. “Every app is different, and the best choice for a driver depends on their personal philosophy, ambitions, education level, and, ultimately, whether they understand that these companies are here to make a profit.” Conversations with drivers reveal distinct platform preferences: Bolt: Best overall balance of higher fares and manageable commission. Uber: Best for weekend drivers and those who can leverage premium car tiers. InDrive & Rida: Attracts drivers who want high trip volumes but offers the lowest fares. There is no perfect ride-hailing platform—only trade-offs. Drivers who adapt and switch based on demand stand the best chance of maximizing their earnings. |
goodnewscliff:
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Omoapena: |
GeneralZodd:Valentine’s Day is usually special for e-hailing |
CheerfulGiver:Well done Cheerful giver, more grease to your elbows, I might be needing you for consultancy work if you don’t mind. I’ll get in touch when I am ready. I need someone to ginger my drivers, Particularly when they are burnt out, which happens quite frequently |
lexylexy:Awon Niger ya werey gan, rental 30k weekly from someone mouth. Oga ju!! , why this propensity to always cheat. I repeat e-hailing works best when both owners and drivers get a fair reward |
dapotemi:What you are saying is the owner should wallow in poverty, what you are saying is if you have a tenant living in your property , 3bed house in say Lekki paying N500k he lived there since 2010, the landlord arrive from the UK, you are suggesting he accepts that rent like that because he is a very nice man, or a person collecting 35k minimum should not collect the new minimum wage because he is a nice man, Does that make sense, Awon Gbajua, in a nice way because O WA MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL. Awon Agba yahoo!! I just hate cheating. Instead of giving honourable advise that will show your integrity. |
Gentlelife50:I Hate Awon Agba Yahoo, in this inflation owner is receives rent of N100k monthly while the driver makes 1m.l Haba.!! This business works best when there is fairness btw both owner and drivers. My belief is all ehailing drivers will one day want to become fleet owners and renters of vehicles in future. The system works best when there is fairness btw all parties. Gbajua by one party will bring the whole system down LETS MAKE THE WHOLE ECO-SYSTEM WORK FOR US GREED IS A BAD THING. |
AutoTechDoyz:Not everyone can do ehailing , but she does need to be paid a fair rent |
northbird:Don’t ask drivers for advice seek from owners as well . Drivers are greedy and selfish |
YeyeGbami:40/45k is about right if he will be responsible for maintenance and servicing, 30k is ridiculous |
Foreigner12:40/45k is abt right if he will fully maintain the car. Drivers like freebies, I take 55k and fully maintain my cars, my cars using Gas I take 65k |
davit:Bolt and Uber works all over the world as long as they have operations in that country |
HelenaWills:Unless it’s for altruistic reasons don’t be fooled, some pay 65k for 7day. I collect 55k rent my suggestion is 40/45k while he does all the maintenance |
[quote author=Shimmaa post=133503065]I have no idea but 25k for 5days doesn't sound fair to me. We have seen and heard where drivers are netting 30k daily, and someone is paying car owner 5k out of it... Ole ni Awon drivers, when they make 30k easily everyday Haba , Awon Agba Yahoo. These same drivers always abuse Govt.,for exploitation yet they want to chop and owners should starve. Awon Ole Jati Jati, it’s only when there is fairness for both sides that everybody will prosper. These drivers if you tell them you collect 12k they will say it’s fair. Another crook might ask if you have another car to rent. 50/55k or keep your car don’t be fooled.’ December driver they clear btw 500k & 1m per month so pls don’t be fooled |
Gentlelife50:You should not ask drivers for how much you should rent . Ask owners, particularly veterans. I earn N220k monthly on each of my cars, you are earning N100k it is not sustainable, in the long run. 25k is what a driver make in 6/8hrs. I tell my drivers Friday/Saturday should be for the owner and weekdays for the driver. The driver is a scammer and will use you to buy a car, leaving you with a dilapidated vehicle, pls just be careful. Except you are doing it for altruistic reasons. |
HelenaWills:I charge 55k to rent out a similar car, when cars are used for long problems major problems build up which are expensive to fix, also higher mileage affects vehicles saleability. You need to think of cost of replacement. I have 25 cars I rent out and N55k is my rent, however I take full responsibility for all repairs service and maintenance Prices of cars are expensive |
dre11:Na intention the whole matter go end, 4 refineries producing 100,000 barrels , is the figment of somebody’s imagination, |
CheerfulGiver:NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH. |
Styluss: |
Mysteriousworld: |
[quote author=Omoapena post=125350882]Can someone educate me properly about this brics, heard they are trying to bring down dollar… BRICS Which is an an acronym for BRAZIL, RUSSIA INDIA, CHINA AND SOUTH AFRICA, are fast developing nations that are trying to be an alternative to America, European countries and her allies. I think it will be a good development for the world and will lead to development of developing countries, they also want an alternative to the dollar, and USA hegemonistic tendency it will lead to a multipolar world where one country won’t be the ruler of the world but many powers. Ie Russia, India, China and America thus able to act as a check on each other. it’s a work in progress, and a good development Very sad Nigeria is not part of it |
XGhost:London they deduct 17.5% VAT and still collect income tax from drivers. Imagine |
GeneralZodd:General; UBER NA FATHER WORLDWIDE, indrive in unkown, except in Russia, Bolt is still a relatively small fry, not anywhere near UBER in terms of size, they are like a big rat compared to UBER which is indeed a lion, india alone they have 600,000 drivers, U.K. abt 100,000 drivers , America abt 700,000, Nigeria abt 25k, Bolt is bigger with 30k drivers |
Pearl1910:Do you guys pay income taxes on your take home pay, they just added that to Uber drivers in the U.K., it’s quite a chunk of one’s income. If you don’t pay your license won’t be renewed. Is it the same bck home |
MrCarter577:In the nxt 3months the economy should reboot and rebalance itself, particularly when palliatives and increase in salaries kick in, this is the worst that can happen to e-hailing, it can only get better from now onwards. Just thinking out loud, is there anyone using hybrid Prius Toyota cars in Nigeria, it’s the most common car used in London and what’s the performance like, they are very economical on fuel, and they just love traffic jams, completely immune, as it has the most marginal effect on its fuel consumption, is their anyone on this forum using these cars. I’ll love to hear their experiences |
Pearl1910:INSTEAD OF ABUSING CHEERFULGIVER AND PEARL YOU SHOULD LISTEN CAREFULLY TO WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY, THESE GUYS ARE GEMS AND OUGHT TO BE HAILED NOT INSULTED. BY NEVER DO WELL. WELL DONE GUYS. I MIGHT BE NEEDING YOU FOR GUIDANCE AND CONSULTATION. |
GeneralZodd:Trust me it’s not going to reach N2000. Highly unlikely. Just look at the economic prognoses, there are new shoots of progress and low hanging economic fruits |
NewDea4:Naira will appreciate once Dangote’s refinery starts operating as it will lead to savings of 25% of our dollar cost of import, then at the moment we export abt just 1m barrels of petroleum, our capacity is abt 2.5m barrels a day, if Tinubu can deal wit the oil bunkering and increase our oil output, if remittances from the diaspora of over $25b can be captured, l believe this increase and saving of our dollar reserve will lead to an enhancement of the value of Naira. Once Dangote gives a firm date for the operations of his refinery, l will suggest you sell the dollars you are holding. |
Gentlelife50:The Government of Venezuela still dey intact o, na America dey try to destroy that country |

