A Complete Guide to Make Taxi Booking Apps like Uber

Introduction:

As an alternative to transport in many towns, taxis play an important role. Taxis are commonly used as a replacement for private cars by travelers in developing countries who use the service for convenience or do not want to own a car. Ride-hailing is the fastest-growing segment of the online mobility industry, with a slew of new transportation firms vying for market share worldwide. So, Let’s take a closer look at taxi booking app like Uber for statistics and development.

Statistics

According to Mordor Intelligence, Taxi Market was valued at USD 213.14 Billion in 2021 and it is projected to reach USD 356.47 Billion by 2027, registering a CAGR of 8.95% during the forecast period (2022 – 2027). So, if you invest in branded taxi booking app development, you have a good chance of growing your business just like Uber is doing.

How Does the Taxi Booking App or Uber App Work?

Customers can book a cab through a taxi booking app by selecting the pick-up and destination address. Riders have to pay the total cost of the trip after the ride is done. The price of a taxi is calculated based on the distance traveled and the base fare. Users can rate and review drivers’ performance on the app based on their performance. Also, drivers may give feedback on their interactions with customers.

Key Features of Taxi Booking Apps like Uber

We need features and functionality for users to build an easy-to-use taxi booking app for both drivers and passengers. The software stack for some of the Uber mobile app’s most important functions is detailed below.

Some Important Features Technical Specifications

The smooth operation of Uber apps is focused primarily on the following fundamental features:

• Geolocation
• Push Notification
• SMS and Payment Integration Technologies

Let’s dive deeper into each of them using the technology stack!

1. Geo Location

Following are the navigation & mapping technology used by Uber.

• It detects the device’s location using the CoreLocation framework for iOS and Google’s location APIs for Android.
• The drivers’ directions are provided using MapKit for iOS users and Google Maps Android API for Android users when navigating from one point to another.
• Uber has incorporated Google Maps into their software for both iOS and Android. However, it does not rely solely on Google Maps and, at times, prefers to purchase mapping technology teams to solve their logistical issues.

2. Payment Integration

The payment apps like Uber use cards and wallets to avoid human error. There are some criteria that the organization must meet when accepting card/wallet payments. It is referred to as PCI specifications.

In the United States, the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards are used to ensure the safe handling of payments and data.

For this, Uber has teamed up with Braintree.

3. Push Notification and SMS

This technology is used to notify the rider at different points after the ride was booked:

• The request is accepted by the driver.
• The driver arrives at the spot where he will be picked up.
• If the travel has to be rescheduled

The Passenger and the driver will keep track of the trip status using push alerts and SMS.

Uber sends SMS using the Twilio telecommunications provider, while Apple Push Notification Service and Google Cloud Messaging (GCM) are used for iOS and Android, respectively.

Uber is a Combination of 3 Different Apps-

• The driver App for driver use
• The Rider App for customer use
• Admin panel to monitor and manage the app’s functioning

Without a production team, developing a taxi booking app is difficult. To build the app effectively, you’ll need an all-around team with an all-around plan. Here’s a list of people who should be on your team:

• Swift for iOS app
• Kotlin for Android app
• Node.js for back-end
• Amazon S3
• Amazon EC2
• PayPal / Stripe
• Elastic email
• Twilio
• Socket.io
• Google Places
• Google Maps
• Google Directions
• APNS
• Firebase
• Facebook SDK
• Card.io

Now, coming to the team. Your development team would most probably include:

• Project Manager
• Business Analyst
• Android / iOS Developer
• UI/UX Designer
• Back-end developer
• QA Engineer

Should You Hire an Agency to Develop Taxi Booking Apps like Uber?

We all know that freelancers are less costly than technology firms. However, recruiting freelancers rather than a technology team has a lot of disadvantages.

One of the main disadvantages is that you cannot be certain of the success of freelancers. Seeking good freelancers and recruiting them at affordable rates, on the other hand, is far too difficult and time-consuming.

If you want your apps like Uber to be a commercial success, you should employ a professional development team. Technology companies, like ours, have good growth roadmaps that ensure our success.

How Much Does it Cost to Build Taxi Booking Apps like Uber?

Below is the expected cost of each feature that will use in-app like Uber:

Sr No.	Features	Costs
1	Geolocation Features	$3000+
2	Ride Scheduling	$3000+
3	Booking a Ride for Others	$4000+
4	Payment Integration	$3000+
5	Split a Fare	$3000+
6	Registration and Profile	$2000+
7	Ride Cost Estimation	$2000+
8	Notifications	$1500+
9	For Back-end (Framework and Libraries Integration)	$6000+
10	For Android/iOS (UI/UX Development)	$8000+
11	For Android/iOS (Framework and Libraries Integration)	$4000+

The cost of developing an app like Uber will range from $35,000 to $90,000 for one or two user apps (for iOS and Android, respectively). You’d also have to factor in the cost of developing an admin panel, which could start at $10,000.

Other Cost-Determining Factors for Development of an Apps like Uber:

Aside from features, a few other variables influence the cost of creating an app like Uber. Let’s take a closer look.

1. Type of Company

The nature of your business is an important consideration. Are you a new business? Do you want to develop the app alongside your company? Startups are more likely to face a limited budget than existing businesses.

2. Platform for Apps

Here is one of the most frequently asked questions before creation. Do you want to make an app for Android, iOS, or both?

Uber’s app was the first to be released on iOS. iPhones were very popular at the time. Around 80% of the market was accounted for by iPhones (on the US market).

It’s important that you prepare your app platform ahead of time. It would be easier to make the final decision if you based it on market research.

3. App’s Category

On the technology front, the next important decision is to be made. You could build a native app that is more cost-effective than a hybrid app. What distinguishes them? Programming languages, architecture, and a variety of other aspects all have subtleties.

Benefits of Taxi Booking Apps like Uber

If you own a dispatch taxi company, you should consider how taxi booking app creation can benefit your company.

The App like Uber is beneficial for everyone like Customers, riders, and taxi companies. Let’s discuss all three points and how the Uber-like app is useful.

Benefits to Customers:

1. Service is available 24*7:

A taxi booking app can be downloaded to your smartphone and used at any time. You can book and get a taxi if you need one late at night. This is one of the most valuable advantages that users can obtain at any time.

2. Security

When you book a taxi ride via an app, you will be given the name, phone number, and photo identification of the driver. As a result, you won’t have any security concerns. If you feel unsafe in any case, you can use your driver’s details to seek legal action, providing you with more protection than if you took a taxi without knowing the driver’s information.

3. Flexible Payment Options:

In the market, there are numerous taxi booking apps. Almost all of the application’s payment options are available, including cash, passport, wallet, net banking, and others. The trip fare can be paid using the payment method of the user’s choosing.

4. Cost Affective:

In a competitive market, every taxi booking app offers new promotions and coupons to entice more customers. You may have also noticed that using a taxi booking app will help you save money and is the perfect alternative to public transportation.

Benefits for Drivers:

1. Work Schedule Flexibility:

A taxi driver may choose to be online or offline in the taxi booking app. The online status of a driver can be set according to their scheduled time. You place your rate online when you want to receive a ride request and go for a ride. When you use the taxi driver app, you don’t have to work at a certain time as you would at a job; you can work whenever you want.

2. Easy to discover Passenger

You must locate your Passenger if you are a shuttle driver. However, if you take a taxi cab, you will receive a user request on your smartphone. You don’t appear to be a passenger; instead, you easily receive and handle ride requests.

3. Identify the User Profile:

When you get a new ride request for a particular route, you can also see the user’s name, ranking, and other driver feedback. If you receive any negative feedback from users when creating a new ride request, you may deny it. This is the most useful feature for drivers who want to remember a user profile based on a previous ride.

Price Haggling should be Avoided at all costs. A commuter receives a base fare before booking a trip, so there is no need to haggle over the ride fare.

Benefits to the Taxi Business

If you own a Taxi Booking App, let us see how you profit from it.

• You will easily get a business idea for a potential strategy by controlling all systems and viewing system reports.
• You use GPS to track each Taxi and find out where your driver is.
• Hire more drivers to increase the number of users in your area and strengthen your brand.
• Any trip earns you a commission.

Similar Taxi Booking Apps like Uber

There are many apps similar to Uber all over the world, below are the top 5 apps that are similar to Uber,

1. Lyft

In the United States, Lyft is one of Uber’s main rivals. With coverage in over 60 cities across the United States, we’ve got you covered.

Notable features include:

• Coverage in 65 cities across the United States.
• The ability to share a trip with up to six people with Lyft Plus.
• Smartphone apps for Android and iOS. Better overall protection and response time.

Countries Available: United States (65 Cities)

2. Hailo

Hailo is a ride-hailing service based in the United Kingdom that is one of several Uber-like apps.

Notable features are CRB-checked drivers, Hailo Hub, Hailo electronic pay, Haido for Business, Android, Apple Watch, and iOS smartphone applications to book a cab quickly.

Countries Available: Ireland, Spain (2 cities), United Kingdom (4 cities), Japan, and, Singapore.

3. Grab Taxi

Based in Southeast Asia, Grab Taxi is one of the best apps like Uber for booking a ride across Southeast Asia. With over 3.8 million mobile app downloads, GrabTaxi has received positive feedback from people all over the Southeast.

A notable feature is the Pre-screening of drivers, Mobile applications for Android, iOS, and Blackberry enable you to track your journey.

Countries Available: Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines.

4. Ola Cabs

Ola Cabs is one of India’s most popular ride-hailing apps and a direct competitor of Uber. Ola Cabs has easily one of the largest fleets of vehicles and covers over 80 cities across India, thanks to the acquisition of TaxiForSure, one of the other larger ride-hailing services in India. Ola Cabs has one of the most affordable fares among the various ride-hailing services available in India.

Notable features include support for over 80 Indian cities, checked drivers, and mobile apps for Android, iOS, and Windows.

Countries Available: India (85 Cities)

5. Easy Taxi

Easy Taxi is another great alternative to Uber with support for over 30 countries and 420 cities worldwide. Easy Taxi is the fastest and quickest way to book your next taxi ride, with over 17 million users worldwide and a taxi fleet of 400,000 taxi drivers. Easy Taxi makes finding and booking your next taxi ride a breeze.

Notable features include a fleet of 400,000 taxi drivers, coverage of over 420 cities worldwide, screened and checked taxi drivers, the ability to monitor your journey, and the ability to pay using the Easy Taxi app.

Countries Available: 30 countries and 420 cities.

Conclusion

For all taxi companies, the taxi booking app has become a requirement. These apps provide a variety of benefits to your company, including an awareness of market dynamics, consumer reach, and service delivery.

So, if your company doesn’t have a branded taxi booking app, you’re probably losing a lot of money to your rivals. Get a taxi booking app today and start reaping the rewards right away. While developing a branded taxi app is never easy, it is typically a worthwhile endeavor.

Being the leading taxi booking app development company in USA and India, OneClick IT Consultancy helps you with comprehensive solutions to market your app. Your taxi booking app business plan will allow you to defend your ideas by its rigor effectively and the methodology used. You are one click away from success, so connect with us!