M RahmanCompetitors of Uber (Competitor analysis of Uber)
This article aims to explore the main competitors of Uber both in the domestic and the international markets. It aims at looking into the key players in the ridesharing industry in the USA, the UK, Canada, and some other countries. Uber Technologies, Inc. is an American technology company. It has become a global name, particularly because of its ridesharing and food delivery services. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California, the USA. It has made a commitment to become a fully electric, zero-emission platform by 2040 (Uber 2021).
Competitors of Uber in the USA
Uber is the market leader in the U.S. ridesharing industry. It has 71% of the market share which is simply outstanding. Its nearest rival is Lyft which has 29% of the market share. It should be mentioned that Uber’s market share went down in the last few years, whereas Lyft’s went up a bit (Mazareanu, 2021). However, Lyft’s challenge is somewhat limited to the North American market only.
Traditional taxis are not out of the market yet. They also put a considerable amount of pressure on Uber in many U.S. states, particularly, New York and Chicago though their market shares have been badly affected by Uber and Lyft in the recent years.
It should be mentioned that many people in the USA use both Uber and Lyft regularly making the market difficult for both companies. They use traditional taxis as well. Though Uber is the market leader, it has been seen in some cities that Lyft is narrowing the gap steadily. Therefore, it is extremely important for Uber to come up ideas and offers that will address the needs of the customers and make them loyal.
Competitors of Uber in the UK
Uber has a number of competitors in the UK. It was a walk in the park for the company to dominate the market in the past; however, not anymore. A massive battle is well underway to dethrone it as a number of companies have already entered into the market with promises to offer customers something better.
Ola, an Indian tech company, launched its campaign in the UK in 2018 and has been growing fast ever since. Like Ola, another company that is disrupting the market, particularly London is Bolt which has millions of sign-ups in London alone. The home country of Bolt is Estonia where the company has started diversifying its business portfolio (Heathman, 2020).
Kabbee is another competitor which specialises in airport rides. Its offer to be 28% cheaper than Uber has already attracted the attention of many people (Heathman, 2020). Like Kabee, the French start-up Kapten is also challenging Uber and other competitors with a ‘20% cheaper promise’ which is sending the market to an unsustainable territory.
Once the London market was dominated by Black cabs and local taxi services (minicabs). Though most of the minicabs have lost their momentum and many of them have already gone out of the market, the same does not yet apply to Black taxis.
Indeed, the drivers of Black cabs have been campaigning against Uber and ramping up their marketing campaigns with a view to remaining in the market. Both the London’s black cabs and Uber have already battled each other in court with new pledges to not to back down (Espiner, 2021).
Competitors of Uber in Canada
The battle for the crown of the leader in the Canadian ridesharing industry seems to remain confined to Uber and Lyft for some time. Uber is currently the largest ridesharing company in Canada and well challenged by Lyft. Other names to look out for are TappCar, Facedrive, RideCo, and URide; however, their operations are somewhat limited in terms of location and subscriptions.
Competitors of Uber in other international markets
Uber faces a number of competitors in the international markets. For instance, in India, Ola has a local brand image. It is often considered cheaper than Uber. It is also present in Australia, New Zealand, and UK.
Brazilian company EasyTaxi is gradually increasing its presence in many countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay. Another Brazilian company which is exerting efforts to establish its presence in the domestic market is 99taxis (Mallen, 2020).
LeCab is dominating the ridesharing business in many cities in France. Likewise, Grab offers services in hundreds of cities across Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and some other neighbouring countries. These examples demonstrate that while Uber is unchallengeable in some markets, it is boldly challenged by competitors in some others. In fact, the competition was so fierce in China that Uber had to sell its Chinese business to domestic rival Didi Chuxing in 2016.
We hope the article ‘Competitors of Uber (Competitor analysis of Uber)’ has been helpful. You may also like reading SWOT analysis of Uber. Other relevant articles for you are:
SWOT analysis of General Motors (GM)
Competitors of Amazon (Competitor analysis of Amazon)
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Last update: 29 January 2021
References:
Espiner, T. (2021) Uber: London cabbies plan to sue for damages, available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55742569 (accessed 28 January 2021)
Heathman, A. (2020) From Bolt to Ola: the next-generation of UK taxi apps to know, available at: https://www.standard.co.uk/tech/uber-app-alternatives-london-bolt-kapten-viavan-wheely-a4357906.html (accessed 29 January 2021)
Mallen, P. (2020) Hitching a Ride: The Best Uber Alternatives Around the World, available at: https://toomanyadapters.com/uber-alternatives/ (accessed 29 January 2021)
Mazareanu, E. (2021) Market share of the leading ride-hailing companies in the United States from September 2017 to December 2020, available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/910704/market-share-of-rideshare-companies-united-states/ (accessed 28 January 2021)
Uber (2021) About us, available at: https://www.uber.com/gb/en/about/ (accessed 29 January 2021)
Author: M Rahman
M Rahman writes extensively online and offline with an emphasis on business management, marketing, and tourism. He is a lecturer in Management and Marketing. He holds an MSc in Tourism & Hospitality from the University of Sunderland. Also, graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University with a BA in Business & Management Studies and completed a DTLLS (Diploma in Teaching in the Life-Long Learning Sector) from London South Bank University.
