Rideshare giant Uber is known for its reciprocal rating system, whereby passengers rate drivers, and drivers rate passengers. While many can appreciate the intent of this (to keep both parties well behaved), the rating system has also been controversial, and rubs many people the wrong way.
While it has long been possible to see your Uber rating, Uber has just taken this to the next level, and now shows a breakdown of your rating over time.
In this post:
View a breakdown of your Uber rating
In addition to being able to see your average Uber rating on your Uber profile page, it’s now possible to see a breakdown of how many drivers gave you each star rating. How many drivers gave you five stars, how many gave you one star, and how many gave you something inbetween?
Getting the info takes a bit of work, though. Log into your Uber account, go to your profile page (click the icon at the top right), and then click on “Settings.”
From there scroll down and click “Privacy.”
On the next page click on “Privacy Center.”
On that page go down to the “Your data and privacy at Uber” section, and scroll over until you see “Would you like to see a summary of how you use Uber?”
Then scroll down to the “Ratings” section, and click on “View my ratings.”
There you’ll see a breakdown of how many of each ratings you received over time (on a five star scale).
It’s interesting just how many steps you have to go through to see this info. That suggests to me that clearly this isn’t something that Uber actually wants you to see, but rather I imagine this is about some sort of regulatory requirement in some areas to share data that companies have on customers?
My take on Uber’s new transparent rating feature
Uber’s rating system rubs a lot of people the wrong way. On the one hand, I do think the concept of a rating system leads to friendlier and more professional interactions on both sides. For example, think of the taxi industry before ridesharing was a thing, and what customer service was like. It was non-existent.
The ability to provide instant feedback is one of the things that made ridesharing so much more pleasant of an experience.
At the same time, this system annoys the heck out of some people. You can be perfectly well behaved and a driver can give you a low rating for whatever reason they’d like. As people look at their scores and see that they were given one and two star ratings for some rides, I’m sure they’re thinking back and wondering what the heck happened.
Back in the day I viewed having a high Uber rating as a badge of honor (sort of). Nowadays I don’t care. That’s not to say it has in any way changed my behavior, as I believe in treating people with respect. I never keep drivers waiting, I say “please” and “thank you,” I don’t talk on the phone in the car, and I don’t have many requests.
Rather I just really don’t care, because unless your rating is really low, it doesn’t impact your ability to get rides.
Bottom line
It’s now possible to see a detailed breakdown of your Uber rating. While you’ve long been able to see your average rating, you can now see how many one star ratings you’ve received, etc. The Uber rating system frustrates many people, but at the same time I think its existence does lead to more pleasant interactions between both parties.
If you checked your detailed Uber rating, were you surprised by it, or was it what you expected? What do you make of Uber’s rating system?
It's interesting looking at mine.
2 x 1 star
2 x 2 star
10 x 3 star
20 x 4 star
300 x 5 star.
Rating fairly low, 4.8 something.
I can identify the 2s and 1s, two were drivers who were smoking when they picked me up (wtf?), 2 more were drivers who never actually picked me up, in one case, a guy guy in and just said...
It's interesting looking at mine.
2 x 1 star
2 x 2 star
10 x 3 star
20 x 4 star
300 x 5 star.
Rating fairly low, 4.8 something.
I can identify the 2s and 1s, two were drivers who were smoking when they picked me up (wtf?), 2 more were drivers who never actually picked me up, in one case, a guy guy in and just said 'yes I'm Brendan' and the driver said 'Nothing I can do'. That was absurd.
I guess what's interesting is the 3s and 4s, like why bother? I've never been incourtious, other than saying probably that many times 'If you have the radio on for me, and you're not listening to it, I actually prefer just to sit in silence'. (these are all during COVID when I really can't be bothered speaking through two masks, the screen, the radio, and all the other road noise (I have autism so hate noise anyway).
This is kind of interesting and funny too. I have 350 5* and 18 4*, pretty much what I’d expect to see. But wait, I also have 6 1*?! So now I’m dying to know what those rides were.
I have a 4.64 rider rating comprising over 300 rides. I'm shocked to see 7 1-star ratings. I like to think I'm a conscientious and friendly person. Wake up call.
As evidenced by Michael SEA post, a 1-3 start rating can be completely random. Open beverage...1 star for you! And you with the metal water bottle, all that heavy jewelry, big zippers on your jacket, big backpack you didn't stow in the trunk ( all of which might hit my car and dent it)...blah blah blah...
As long as I am courteous and mindful as a rider, I couldn't care less about their rating.
...As evidenced by Michael SEA post, a 1-3 start rating can be completely random. Open beverage...1 star for you! And you with the metal water bottle, all that heavy jewelry, big zippers on your jacket, big backpack you didn't stow in the trunk ( all of which might hit my car and dent it)...blah blah blah...
As long as I am courteous and mindful as a rider, I couldn't care less about their rating.
I'm paying for a service with many providers and if I closed your door harder than your liking, oh well, 1 star it is. Big F'g deal.
I believe the Uber rating system is flawed wrt. outliers and should adapt an approach where the top 2-5% and the bottom 2-5% of ratings are dropped when computing the overall number reported.
(This is what they do in figure skating and other sports, for example.)
My rider rating is 4.87. But, like everyone else, I wonder about the 2 2-star ratings I got. I figure one is a driver I had a conversation with about COVID, which was probably ill-advised. I explained my reasoning for being vaccinated and cleared up some misunderstandings he had about the booster (for some reason he thought you had to take a bunch of pills.) But, he was pretty adamant about his position, although I...
My rider rating is 4.87. But, like everyone else, I wonder about the 2 2-star ratings I got. I figure one is a driver I had a conversation with about COVID, which was probably ill-advised. I explained my reasoning for being vaccinated and cleared up some misunderstandings he had about the booster (for some reason he thought you had to take a bunch of pills.) But, he was pretty adamant about his position, although I tried very hard not to seem critical of him. It's not a topic I'll engage in again.
I figure the other 2-star is the driver who ran through a stop sign just as I was saying, "Hey, stop sign, stop sign, stop sign!" He got a 1-star, so we're even, I guess.
This was useful. I've taken 2279 rides over 3814 days. Apparently the rating numbers are calculated over the last 500 rides ...my rider rating is 4.94 with 491 five-stear rides, two four-star rides, and 7 one-star rides.
i wondered for a hot second about those seven one-star rides. then my mind moved to something else.
On a recent airport ride my driver asked if I minded if he made a call. I mean, how can you say no without souring the atmosphere for the rest of the trip? Uggh...
The call was in animated Hindi, becoming louder and more intense, with hand gesturing (hands on the wheel please!) as the recipient copped a bucketful of verbal abuse. After the call abruptly ended, the driver meekly said " thank you"....
On a recent airport ride my driver asked if I minded if he made a call. I mean, how can you say no without souring the atmosphere for the rest of the trip? Uggh...
The call was in animated Hindi, becoming louder and more intense, with hand gesturing (hands on the wheel please!) as the recipient copped a bucketful of verbal abuse. After the call abruptly ended, the driver meekly said " thank you". I was thinking WTF!, but kept that thought to myself. 1* seemed in order.
@Ben,
I also *used* to care but now I no longer. If my rating drops too low (causing longer wait and pick up times), I simply delete my account.. use Lyft for a month then create a brand new Uber account.
I haven't had to do this in years after I figured out why my rating keep being so low (4.48)- I live very close to LAX and drivers waiting over an hour for...
@Ben,
I also *used* to care but now I no longer. If my rating drops too low (causing longer wait and pick up times), I simply delete my account.. use Lyft for a month then create a brand new Uber account.
I haven't had to do this in years after I figured out why my rating keep being so low (4.48)- I live very close to LAX and drivers waiting over an hour for a pick up in the waiting lot get pissed off when they see I'm just a 5 minute ($15 ride). They used to take it out on me by giving me one or two star ratings- Now, I just take a taxi which cost $10 more but there's no politics, I don't have to worry about if I closed a door too loud or have to engage in chit chat. My rating has been 4.90-5.0 since I started taking taxi home from LAX.
Go figure.
My rating is 4.73 and it has been more or less stable for the past few years. I have taken rides across the U.S., H.K., the U.K., and the Netherlands.
I had always assumed that this rating was a underpinned by a mix of 4* and 5* scores. It was very depressing checking out my detailed ratings. Apparently I have received 9 ratings of 1* and 11 ratings of 2* rides out of a...
My rating is 4.73 and it has been more or less stable for the past few years. I have taken rides across the U.S., H.K., the U.K., and the Netherlands.
I had always assumed that this rating was a underpinned by a mix of 4* and 5* scores. It was very depressing checking out my detailed ratings. Apparently I have received 9 ratings of 1* and 11 ratings of 2* rides out of a total of 500+ rides.
I cannot think what would have triggered those 1* or 2* ratings. I never make my drivers wait, am typically social when I get in, rarely have phone calls, almost never ride while drunk (and certainly have never caused disturbances). I have also never observed drivers displaying any signs of dissatisfaction. I can only conclude that some drivers are overly sensitive or have certain issues.
Ultimately I do not care as my rating only seems marginally to impact my ability to secure rides.
Just wake up one day and stop caring. That's what I did and it's worked just fine for me.
You’re right John G. Ultimately it is of no consequence. But I was shocked that 4% of drivers consider me a 1* or 2* rider while I consider myself to be a model citizen.
There’s politics involved… read my post above about being given a bunch of 1 star ratings because the drivers were pissed off about how close I live to LAX
I am really not a fan of Uber and prefer a taxi if at all possible although having looked at all the information available here from Uber, it is clearly more secure than I thought! Anyway, my rating is the same as Ben's but what surprised me most when I looked at all areas is how many times I have been charged for cancellations when in fact, it has always been because the ride didn't...
I am really not a fan of Uber and prefer a taxi if at all possible although having looked at all the information available here from Uber, it is clearly more secure than I thought! Anyway, my rating is the same as Ben's but what surprised me most when I looked at all areas is how many times I have been charged for cancellations when in fact, it has always been because the ride didn't turn up & I have always phoned Uber to advise & invariably ordered another at the same time. I would not have expected to see any cancellation charges so this was a surprise & just shows why one should check the Uber account regularly (which I never have!). Perhaps another reason to use a cab. This seemed more prevalent in foreign cities like Mexico which is a pity because I am much more likely to use an Uber when traveling rather than at home!
For those that don't see the Privacy Center, make sure you've updated the app to the most recent version. Should show up once you update.
@Lucky: re: your comment about the regulatory issues, what's weird is Lyft is not reporting the same detailed data. So maybe related to a specific privacy lawsuit filed against Uber?
Out of 250+ rides I have one 1* and 2* each. Would LOVE to know what I did to deserve those!
I don't have the Privacy Center on my app... maybe it's only in certain states? I am located in New Jersey.
Same for me. I’m in CA.
You have to make sure the app is updated to the most recent version. Should show up after that.
I’ll look into it.
I’m a 4.8 rider, so maybe I shouldn’t care?
Oops. Meant to say 4.98.
An ego thing, perhaps.
4.89 overall score
158 ***** ratings
12 **** ratings
0 *** ratings
0 ** ratings
4 * ratings
I have no clue why these 4 drivers gave me a * rating...oh well, most of my rides in the US are with Lyft, use Uber when Lyft isn't available.
As a former Uber driver with a 4.98 rating, here is my list of automatic 1 star rating for a rider. 1. Open beverage container (it will spill). 2. Eat in my car (I will have to clean your crumbs) 3. Ask me to transport more than the maximum number allowed (don’t be cheap get an XL). 4. Get in my car reeking of marijuana (that smell lingers and I will have to stop working...
As a former Uber driver with a 4.98 rating, here is my list of automatic 1 star rating for a rider. 1. Open beverage container (it will spill). 2. Eat in my car (I will have to clean your crumbs) 3. Ask me to transport more than the maximum number allowed (don’t be cheap get an XL). 4. Get in my car reeking of marijuana (that smell lingers and I will have to stop working until it dissipates so the next rider doesn’t report me for DUI) 5. Don’t touch me while I’m driving (it’s dangerous and I’m happily married)
Other drivers have different pet peeves but that is what will get you an automatic 1 star in my car.
Otherwise everyone is a 5 star, I generally don’t down rate anyone for anything else.
That's nice insight, Michael SEA... I would always obey the rules, but the fact that Uber is only letting 3 passengers instead of 4 ride is annoying at this point. It's claimed to be for safety, but when you can take an Uber from one crowded club to another, we all know it's bullspit. Have drivers lobbied to keep the number of passengers in the car artificially low as to force there to me more...
That's nice insight, Michael SEA... I would always obey the rules, but the fact that Uber is only letting 3 passengers instead of 4 ride is annoying at this point. It's claimed to be for safety, but when you can take an Uber from one crowded club to another, we all know it's bullspit. Have drivers lobbied to keep the number of passengers in the car artificially low as to force there to me more rides or necessitate an XL? Demaning 5 pax in an X is clearly wrong, but I can see why people might assume 4 could ride as Uber requires space for 5 (including driver)
Thanks for being a good rider Jerry, the drivers I know are not lobbying for the COVID 3 pax limit to be made permanent. I think the restriction will be lifted eventually but likely not until they can lift it everywhere or it will get confusing for riders when they travel and could cause some down rating on both sides.
Thanks for the details on how to see your rating. I am not a fan of Uber and have generally stop using it unless i have no choice.
I don't like the escalated rates and many times the ability to get a car if your distance is too short.
One of the dumbest social media schemes ever cooked up. What's next? Your score at Publix or Ralphs? How about this, just treat people with respect. Say good morning/afternoon/evening, how are you today, please, etc. I don't need to know the life story of my Uber driver and certainly don't think he/she wants/needs to know my life story.
I don’t think “social media” means what you think it means.
This is not showing for me. There is no "Privacy Center" after clicking on the Privacy tab. Strange.
Update the Uber app and it should show up. Only available in the most recent version.
Good job Ben. 4.86 is a good passenger rating. It means you are ready and waiting when your Uber arrives , say hello and thank you , and sit still during the ride like a human being. You don’t figet , make your rider wait for you , act like an imbecile by shouting nonsense on a cell phone call during the ride or scream at your driver which directions to take. Again good job....
Good job Ben. 4.86 is a good passenger rating. It means you are ready and waiting when your Uber arrives , say hello and thank you , and sit still during the ride like a human being. You don’t figet , make your rider wait for you , act like an imbecile by shouting nonsense on a cell phone call during the ride or scream at your driver which directions to take. Again good job.
On the other side anyone with a passenger rating below 4.7 is an inconsiderate human being and likely has issues in their life outside of Uber that need to be addressed.
Another trite post. Glad to hear you use your please and thank yous. Isn’t that just basic human decency?
But you don’t talk on the phone in an Uber? Really? Hardly an offense when half the Uner drivers these days are doing it (which I know is illegal etc) please.
Wait: you think talking on the phone in a ride share is rude? This never would have occurred to me. (Assuming the driver want trying to talk to me, obviously.) Do many people feel this way?
It's your ride, so of course you can use your phone. So long as you're not yelling or swearing.
Funny how it works. I’d say >50% of Miami uber drivers are on the phone for the entire duration of the ride, yet the passenger is expected to not take a call?
Talking on your phone in the Uber is disrespectful and low class. You are in a vehicle with another human being. HOWEVER, if you are on a business call or need to make a call and can keep your voice at a reasonable level than that is fine. If you’re going to shout on your phone nonsense and act like a child about really irrelevant unnecessary stuff. You’re an idiot and deserve one star.
@grichard @D3kingg as a former Uber driver, most drivers don’t actually care if you on on a call during the ride as long as you are polite about it. Let the driver know you are going to take a call so they don’t think you are talking to them. Don’t shout into the phone and when the call is done thank the driver for accommodating you if they turned off the radio or something.
...@grichard @D3kingg as a former Uber driver, most drivers don’t actually care if you on on a call during the ride as long as you are polite about it. Let the driver know you are going to take a call so they don’t think you are talking to them. Don’t shout into the phone and when the call is done thank the driver for accommodating you if they turned off the radio or something.
Drivers mostly want to make your trip as pleasant as possible and some manners go a long way.
Also in my 5 years driving Uber I made about $50k profit on stock trades from people having loose lips on a call in my car!
@Michael SEA
As long as it is within reason that is fine. If someone’s talking volume level is at an 11 on a scale of 1-10 that’s not OK.
The problem with the passenger smelling of marijuana is if the next passenger that gets into the car may think I smoked and am driving DUI. That’s why I report a passenger when they smell of marijuana and inform my next passenger about the previous passenger.
The marijuana smell problem is a real thing I know quite a few drivers who were deactivated because of this situation, and it can take weeks to clear up and get back on the road. Which means you lose income.
Thanks for understanding this and passing the info on the the next rider, we appreciate that.
I always think of Larry David yelling at the Polish Uber driver and openly receiving a 1-star rating.
Sounds like a precursor to a China-style Social Credit System.
Precursor? The rating has been there since the beginning!
We need a social credit system to shame idiots into behaving like normal human beings.
I couldn´t see it on the app. Only on the laptop by going to https://privacy.uber.com/privacy/center
I don't see on my the laptop even after going to the privacy center URL above
68 (5*) + 2 (4*) + 1 (3*) = 4.94.
What’s the formula?
I was pleasantly surprised to have no one or two star ratings. I’ve never done anything knowingly to cause driver distress, but you never know…..
For me it seems a simple weighted average.
That's a big problem with the rating system - that it doesn't show any context. I have three '1-star' rides. No idea where two of them came from... but one of them I do know and it was after a driver couldn't find me even though the pin was right where I was. For whatever reason, he couldn't figure out how to get to me, arrived like 10 minutes late and furious. All was then...
That's a big problem with the rating system - that it doesn't show any context. I have three '1-star' rides. No idea where two of them came from... but one of them I do know and it was after a driver couldn't find me even though the pin was right where I was. For whatever reason, he couldn't figure out how to get to me, arrived like 10 minutes late and furious. All was then normal but as I got out of the car at my destination, this guy unloaded on me about the pick up and told me I was getting 1-star for being rude or something. I couldn't believe it, especially after how routine the ride was and not a word was spoken throughout. So I gave him 1-star right back. However none of this is displayed, at least to you and me/publicly.
I think it's not available everywhere, I don't see a link to Privccy Center in my account
Didn't work, just have "location" and "notifications" under settings, no privacy options. Have the UK app so maybe that's why?
Same here, and I’m in the U.S.
I have a feeling the keep drivers waiting is the number one reason the ratings go down. My is now 4.73 and it used to be higher (4.85) but drivers having to wait for me to Put in a booster seat at the airport and sometimes be 2-3 mins late getting the kids out of the house has tanked my rating some but does it really matter? I always seem to get picked up fast.