So, how much am I making per hour?

Realize that every driver is going to be a little bit different. I am more focused on enjoying myself than making money. That effects how productive I am per hour. I hang out in areas where there are fewer fares. I take a couple of minutes between fares to make sure I am ready for the next fare. I probably drive more between fares than the typical Uberx driver.I am a part time driver with a full time day job.

So, with that caveat in mind and including the Samsung Note 3 and related T-Mobile plan I purchased to provide GPS, I have from an IRS perspective, lost money driving for Uberx. If I just include the $0.56/mile IRS mileage expense deduction, I am making $7/hour. That deduction covers everything related to the vehicle including the the insurance.

The details matter.

I charge off $0.56 per mile driven while driving. This includes miles in which I am not online. For example, I may be returning from a fare, on an expressway, and in and unfamiliar area so I don't want to get ride requests. So I go offline. The miles driven per fare has a significant impact on the hourly rate. Drivers making their living with Uberx are probably much more efficient with their miles.

The $0.56/mile probably includes about $0.31 variable expense - mostly gas and roughly $0.25/mile capital expense. That variable expense also includes things like the $50 I paid to replace a tire after hitting a particularly nasty pothole. I seem to be running 15-18 MPG overall. At $3.80/gallon, that is about $0.24/mile for just gas. The variable expense also includes all vehicle maintenance.

The $0.25/mile capital expense is a deduction without a corresponding out of pocket expense. I am going to own the car anyway. All driving for Uberx does is, possibly, shorten how long I will own it. If I take that out of the expense calculation and only include $0.31/mile operating expense, then my hourly net jumps to almost $11/hour.  This looks better for leisurely,  part time drivers like me. But only as long as it is fun.

The other thing to consider is what if I were a more efficient driver? For example, if I used 5% fewer miles for the fares I generate, that improves the net by about $0.25/hour. If I generate 10% more fares per hour, then that improves the net to about $12.50/hour.

According to the Uber report I receive each week, my fares/hour consistently rank about 20% below the top drivers. So, if I were a top driver and if I was 5% more efficient with mileage then I would be making  net $14.25/hour use the operating expense model ($0.31/mile)  and about $10.55/hour using the total mileage expense model ($0.56/mile).

Uberx drivers are independent contractors, so they have additional tax consequences that are beyond the scope of this post.