Many suburban neighborhoods are built to be car-dependent, and practically every suburban dwelling has enough parking space to support this design. However, the same level of affordability of parking lots and spaces is not attainable in cities and huge cosmopolitan areas. Some people openly refuse to buy vehicles and instead prefer to use ridesharing services, such as Uber, which is one of the most popular.
This is in addition to congested traffic, a general lack of space and a cost-benefit ratio in which owning a car is a major metropolis provides less advantage than owning a car in a suburb. However, personal vehicles, or vehicles not used for public transit, continue to be in great demand. Entrepreneurs and service firms overcome this problem by creating personal taxi services, such as Uber, and facilitating these services through a mobile app for convenience.
However, while designing such an app may appear to be the simple part at first, there is much more to it than simply being able to summon a ‘taxi’ via an app. This article will explain how to create an app similar to Uber, as well as the development and expense involved.
What You Should Know If You Want to Create Your Own Uber App
Companies and services that successfully launch a new business model, such as Uber, will always serve as role models for future enterprises, and they can be excellent ways to help them succeed. Before you start working on this massive project, we recommend that you learn a few key concepts in app development for something as difficult as an Uber app.
Uber’s History – How Did They Get Here?
Before we get started, let’s take a look at what Uber is and how it has been so successful.
Uber has 69 percent of the ridesharing market share in the United States as of July 2021, with Lyft owning the remaining 31 percent. The company has regularly maintained 90-94 million active users within its portfolio and continues to dominate a market where more and more ridesharing companies are cropping up everywhere. Even Lyft, which is considered a major competitor to Uber, only has about a 30% market share.
Uber also has a larger global footprint, with coverage in over 80 countries, whereas a major competitor like Lyft is exclusive to the United States. People normally don’t question how difficult it is to create an app like Uber, but rather how they can create one, and we are well on our way!
Uber’s service is available through its Android and iOS mobile applications, and it makes use of a variety of technologies to make it possible. It is powered by Android and iOS devices.
Developing an Uber-like App: An Inside Look
Both parties (ride and driver) are informed of each other’s whereabouts within the app. The service is generally provided around the clock, which means it is operational 24 hours a day. The feature is also on-demand, which means that clients must first download the app, and only then will Uber be able to display the customer’s location as well as the driver’s. This indicates that the app has geolocation tracking capabilities.
Uber’s reach has also guaranteed that arrival times are kept to a minimum and that there is little opportunity for error. This is accomplished through complex algorithms that are always trying to optimize journey times, arrival timings, and the efficiency of linking driver and passenger, among other things.
- Uber also offers four tiers of service, each with different cost levels.
- UberX is a cost-effective and inexpensive choice that the majority of passengers will choose.
- With ‘elegant’ automobiles, UberBLACK focuses on class and fancifulness.
- UberSUV, as the name implies, has a garage full of larger vehicles.
- UberLUX has the most ‘premium’ deals of any luxury service.
This means that not only will the app need to accommodate these many options and packages (if the developer requires it), but each higher-tier service will require greater assurance that everything runs well. Providing a premium service without the ability to use the app is hardly luxurious.
How Does It Work to Create an Uber-like App?
Uber, for example, has two distinct versions. One version is for the consumers, while the other is for the driver. That means these two versions will have to be developed at the same time. In general, there are six steps to consider for both the rider and the passenger in this app.
- Requesting a Ride is the first step. When a consumer wants a car ride, the first stage begins (or schedules it, which is a separate app feature). These ride requests are then routed to nearby drivers that are closest to the rider.
- Matching with a Rider is the second stage. Following that, it’s up to the driver(s) to accept or decline the ride. If one driver declines a ride, the other accepts it, and the rider proceeds to the next level if accepted.
- Arrival is the third stage. The consumer must wait for the driver to arrive at this location. Both parties are aware of the whereabouts of the customer and the driver.
- Stage 4 – Getting There. The consumer is then driven to their destination whenever the driver arrives. The (Uber) app displays real-time ride monitoring as well as the route to the destination.
- The final stage is to make the payment. When the ride is finished, the customer must pay the rider using cash or cashless payment options (VISA or MasterCard).
- Stage 6: Evaluate the driver. This is also a key aspect of Uber’s and other ridesharing apps’ business logic, in which both the driver and the consumer are rated to guarantee that service is consistent on both ends.
How to Create an Uber-style App — What Do You Actually Require?
As previously said, two apps must be built at the same time. The customer’s side of the app has the following functionalities.
Customer App’s Basic Features
- Geolocation and route tracking capabilities.
- Payment integration to enable cashless transactions.
- Registration and verification of personal profiles.
- To contact the driver, use the in-app call and text options.
- Notifications and background processes are both available.
- Estimated ride costs based on geography, traffic, and other factors.
- Features for canceling rides (with timed limits).
- All of the aforementioned will be made easier with UI/UX design.
Customer App’s Advanced Features
- Advanced ride scheduling is available.
- The ability to book rides for other people.
- Split-fare functionality is available.
Rider App’s Basic Features
- Management of one’s personal profile (for driver).
- Real-time route tracking and route optimization (changing routes when necessary).
- To contact with passengers, there are phone and text tools built into the software.
- Statistics and progress will be displayed in the driver report (bonus incentives for number of rides)
- Bookings, ratings, and earnings statistics are reported on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis.
- Toggle the driver active/inactive option to make drives visible or invisible.
Rider App’s Advanced Features
- Details and a map of the driver’s destination.
- Driver cancellation features (within timed limits).
Heat maps are used to highlight congested locations so that drivers can get more rides.
The admin panel, which is the application panel displayed to the service vendor host or web development team, is the final portion of this. This panel can be used to make changes within the app and serves as a company overview, with sections for user data, riders, and so forth.
In 2022, how much would it cost to create an Uber-like app?
Want to learn how much does it cost to create an app like Uber? Here are a few helpful charts and tables to make such an app.
Payment Integration
| Feature | Timeline | Cost |
| Adding payment method, card scanning, etc. | 2-5 weeks | $4.000+ |
| Multiple payment selection options | 1-2 weeks | $2,000+ |
| Info screen, checkout screen, etc. | 1-2 weeks | $2,000+ |
| Total Cost | 4-8 weeks | $8,000+ |
Geolocation and Routing
| Feature | Timeline | Cost |
| Map integration | 1-2 weeks | $2.000+ |
| Pickup location | 1-2 weeks | $2,000+ |
| User location tracking/detection | 1-2 weeks | $2,000+ |
| Total Cost | 3-6 weeks | $6,000+ |
UI/UX
| Feature | Timeline | Cost |
| Android UI/UX | 3-5 weeks | $6.000+ |
| iOS UI/UX | 3-5 weeks | $6,000+ |
| Total Cost | 6-10 weeks | $12,000+ |
However, If you ask an app developer the question of how long to build an app like uber, you will probably get a time estimate of a few months or three-quarters of a year.
Other Features
| Feature | Timeline | Cost |
| Ride scheduling | 3-6 weeks | $6.000+ |
| Book a ride for others | 4-8 weeks | $8,000+ |
| Split-fare feature | 4-6 weeks | $6,000+ |
| Total Cost | 12-20 weeks | $20,000+ |
As it shows, the cost can reach upwards of $40,000 USD, which is far more than anyone would have assumed it would take. That is also noting that it is only the app development that has this cost, and that this does not include having the actual Uber cars and taxis for this service to be viable, as well as drivers, maintenance for the cars, etc. Of course, the focus here is only on the app, so the final costs of all features will be provided here.
Total Costs
| Feature | Timeline | Cost |
| Payment integration | 3-6 weeks | $6.000+ |
| Geolocation and Routing | 3-6 weeks | $6,000+ |
| Ride scheduling | 3-6 weeks | $6,000+ |
| Book a ride for others | 4-8 weeks | $8.000+ |
| Split-fare feature | 4-6 weeks | $6,000+ |
| Profile, registration, and verification | 2-3 weeks | $3,000+ |
| Notification | 2-4 weeks | $4.000+ |
| Ride costing estimate | 1-2 weeks | $2,000+ |
| Back-end development, framework integration | 4-8 weeks | $8,000+ |
| Front-end UI/UX (Android/iOS) | 6-10 weeks | $12,000+ |
| Front-end framework (Android/iOS) | 4-6 weeks | $6,000+ |
| Total Cost | 4-8 months | ~$70,000+ |
Conclusion
Uber is regarded as the pioneer of the ridesharing industry, with new businesses looking to it as a model. It may appear that providing such a vast service through an app is simple, but it is far from it. The cost of developing an Uber-like app is estimated to be over $70,000 USD, which is not inexpensive.
App development is already a costly and time-consuming endeavor, and the costs of hiring and training developers, as well as the costs of maintenance, testing, back-end, and front-end frameworks, libraries, feature integration, and other factors, must all be considered in order for this venture to succeed.
