How to Build a Taxi App like Uber: Features & Cost Breakdown

Over the past five years, app-based ride-hailing services have displaced traditional taxi companies. They offer convenience, transparency, security, sharing, competitive pricing, and attractive offers. The overall cost of taxi application development is becoming more affordable as more advanced technology becomes available — features that were virtually unheard of earlier.

Uber, the pioneer in the passenger transportation industry, was founded in 2009 and changed taxi rides forever. In just over a decade, it has established itself in 700+ cities on six continents, according to S-1 SEC filings. While the competition is catching up, Uber owns 65–70% of the US market. On an average day, it makes a staggering 14 million trips globally!

That leads us to the question — how to build taxi apps like Uber? How much could it cost, and what’s involved in the process? Our team has much experience to share, specializing in custom software development for logistics and food ordering app development, including for Fortune 500 companies (see our case studies to learn more).In this article, our transportation software development team will tell how to build taxi apps, breaking the entire process down into simple steps, such as market research, required features, planning development in stages, and estimating costs.

Taxi app market — A global perspective

Before we delve into the details of Uber-like taxi app development, let’s examine this market. In the past decade, many app-based cab companies have emerged worldwide. They offer customized services that cater to the demands of specific geographies. User penetration is on the rise, and experts predict that half of global taxi rides will be ordered via online channels in the next five years.

According to Statista, the taxi app market generated $154 billion in 2023. The market is expected to increase, showing a healthy CAGR of 7.5%. By 2028, experts predict the market’s revenue will hit $217.5 billion.

China, with a user penetration of 36.4%, leads the global revenue generation market. It’s expected to make $55 billion in 2020, followed by the US ($41 billion) and India ($26 billion).

Uber has taken rapid expansion steps and leads the way, having served over 75 million customers in 2018. However, it is not unchallenged. It faces constant competition from localized players such as Didi Chuxing, Grab, Lyft, Ola, etc. China’s Didi Chuxing drove Uber out of the country and is now gaining ground on its turf via an investment in Lyft.

As populations migrate towards cities, many transportation services companies have elaborated on the taxi app model and added different layers to it. Apps that provide self-driving cars, bike taxis, and scooter rentals have carved their niche in the crowded transportation market. In addition to being affordable, these mediums reduce congestion in cities, control pollution, and are viewed as sustainable, environmentally-friendly options.

Let’s review the features that drive these ideas and make a taxi app run like a diligent, accurate, and efficient machine.

Key features of a taxi app like Uber

To learn how to build an app like Uber, first you need a clear understanding of required features. When you build a taxi app, you create a digital engagement platform offering services other than just ride bookings. 

Here are the basic features you’ll need for your Uber-like app development by types of users:

For passengers:

To create an app like Uber for passengers, you’ll need:

• User registration & profile management: A signup via email, phone number, or socials; a user cabinet, and a personalized profile system.
• Ride booking & scheduling: A few-tap booking process: set pickup and drop-off points → choose vehicle type → view the fare; location auto-detecting via GPS, ride scheduling.
• Real-time tracking and ETA: Live tracking of nearby drivers, driver assignment updates, and accurate times of arrival;.
• In-app payments:  Digital payments via cards, mobile wallets, QR codes, or cash; fare auto-calculation.
• Safety features: Driver verification and vehicle details, trip monitoring, live ride-sharing with contacts, and SOS buttons.
• Ratings and reviews: Post-trip driver rating and ride feedback, customer support buttons. 
• Push notifications: Real-time alerts of driver assignments, ETA updates, trip changes, payment confirmations, or scheduled-ride reminders.
• Ride history & favorites: A view of past rides, receipts, routes, and payment details; a favorites list for saving frequently visited locations.

For drivers:

To make an app like Uber, you’ll also need a drivers’ app with:

• Driver registration & verification: New driver onboarding with identity checks, license verification, and vehicle documents screening.
• Trip management: A real-time trip requests system; full trip details — passenger location, drop-off point, route, and estimated fare. 
• Navigation: Integrated GPS and real-time traffic insights on an interactive map.
• Real-time payouts & wallet integration: An in-app driver wallet, instant or daily payout system, a view of commission deductions, and payment management. 
• Earnings dashboard & history: A history of earnings and an overview of completed trips, bonuses, incentives, and fare breakdowns. 
• Availability toggle: A switch between online and offline modes based on a driver’s availability.
• Ratings & feedback: Post-trip passenger rating, a view of driver’s own score and positive/negative user reviews.

For admins:

To develop an app like Uber, its admin-side will require:

• User & driver management: Admin panels with account management, new driver onboarding, doc verification, suspension handling, and full system view.
• Pricing & commission settings: Dynamic pricing configurations, cost surge rules, distance-based fare structures, base rates, and commission percentages.
• Analytics & reporting: An analytics dashboard with insights into trips, peak hours, demand hotspots, driver performance, cancellations, revenues, etc.
• Dispute and support management: A support module with a live chat for managing complaints, refunds, trip disputes, lost-and-found issues, etc.

Advanced features of a taxi app like Uber

If you really want to create an Uber-like app, you’ll also need:

AI-powered features

• Smart ride matching.
• Dynamic pricing based on demand, traffic, etc.
• NLP-powered chatbots or voice assistants.

Loyalty programs & discounts

• Personalized rewards (ride credits, referral bonuses).
• Special discounts or incentives for inactive users.
• Subscription plans and ride passes.

In-app chat & calling

• A passenger-driver chat and in-app calls.
• A smart reply system for quick queries.
• A customer support bot.

Integration with third-party services

When you develop an Uber-like app, you need to make Uber-like app integrations:

• API integrations with partner platforms.
• External maps.
• Language & accessibility integrations.

Factors that impact Uber app development cost

The cost to build an app like Uber is a very individual aspect shaped by a variety of factors. If you want to estimate the Uber app development cost for your case, make sure to consider:

• Features complexity: Will your app feature real-time tracking, smart pricing, or AI-driven routing? Features like these will naturally raise the final cost. This is why starting with MVP Uber-like app development can be a good idea. 
• Platform selection: Building for iOS and Android natively requires two separate codebases, growing cost. In turn, using cross-platform frameworks can be more cost-efficient.
• Design requirements: UI/UX templates are cheaper. Custom design, with wireframing, prototyping, animations, and a polished user experience, can drive up cost dramatically.
• Dev team location & expertise: Hourly rates vary greatly by region, with the highest rates among U.S. developers and cheaper services across Eastern Europe. The team size and level of members’ qualification is another value factor. 
• Third-party integrations: Integrated mapping, payment gateways, push notification services, etc. all add development cost. Ongoing usage fees for APIs can also add long-term costs.
• Tech stack: The choice of backend (Node.js, Python, Java), database (PostgreSQL, MongoDB), and infrastructure (AWS, Google Cloud) affects both development and hosting costs. More scalable or realtime-capable backends (e.g., for live tracking) can be more costly to build and maintain.
• Maintenance and updates: Post-launch expenses include regular bug fixes, OS updates, feature additions, and server maintenance. Some buffer budget should also be dedicated to unexpected and force-majeur expenses.

How much does it cost to build an app like Uber?

Discovering the cost to build an app like Uber, it’s crucial to consider two things: the exact range of features and the overall scale of their implementation.

*The Uber-like app development cost estimates are based on very averaged hourly rates

Technology stack for taxi app development

When creating a strategy for how to build taxi apps like Uber, an entrepreneur needs to consider that apps for iOS and Android require different stacks of technologies.

The three must-have integrations for a custom taxi app are geolocation, push notification, and payment integration. Here are the most required technologies to adopt them:

These technologies are commonly used in taxi app development. But it doesn’t mean the other ones can’t be adopted. For example, payment options depend solely on the country, so before start to build taxi apps, a team should investigate which one would be useful for the target audience.

As for programming languages, iOS apps are mainly written in Swift, and Android ones usually use Kotlin. For the apps’ backend, a vast variety of languages may be used: Python, Java, Ruby, PHP, and about a dozen others.

How to build an app like Uber in 6 steps

On your mission to create an app like Uber, know-how is your main weapon and cost-saver. Here’s an overview of the main stages in Uber-like app development:

1. Market research & strategy

Studying target market; analyzing user demographics and local ride-sharing needs, and forming a unique value proposition; building a business model canvas and segmenting target customers (passengers/drivers); making a preliminary operational plan.

2. Defining features & technology

Picking features; forming a tech stack and mapping out necessary third-party integrations; defining the technical architecture, including backend APIs, data flows, and scalability plans. 

3. Designing UI/UX

Creating wireframes, interactive prototypes, and visual mockups for passenger and driver apps; refining user flows and completing a brand-inspired UI/UX design.

4. Uber-like app development

Building the server logic, connecting data storage, and making external integrations; developing frontends for passenger and driver apps with basic user features (registration/signup, booking/tracking, payments, etc.); also, building backend dashboards for administration. 

5. Testing & deployment

Running a QA cycle, including functional, load and performance testing, security audits, and app submission to marketplaces.

6. Maintenance & updates

Fixing bugs, pushing OS updates, gathering feedback, and scaling and improving the app with new features and optimizations. 

Now that you’ve learned the steps to build an app like Uber, it’s time to pick a development partner and kick things off. Django Stars will provide all the expertise you need, showing how to make an app like Uber work for your ROI.

Django Stars: Trusted partner for Uber-like app development

Uber-like app development requires only the top expertise. Django Stars is a perfect choice to build an app like Uber for several reasons:

Expertise in geo-based solutions

We offer in-depth expertise and certified skills in building smart, location-aware applications for the transportation and ride-sharing niches. 

Python-Django mastery & powerful tech stacks

A Python-first company with focus on Django, Django Stars works with all relevant technologies and tools for software development. 

Solid case studies

We have developed apps for clients across the world, raising over 1 Billion in client funding, including a food service app for a Fortune 500 company. 

Logistics coverage

We work with logistics operators from the US and other countries and can help efficiently process thousands of delivery routes.