I Forgot to Tip My Ride-Hailing Driver. Am I Too Late?

You may still have time to reward the gig worker at the wheel

Edward C. Baig,

AARP

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Published January 28, 2025

a person holding a phone with stars above it and a car in the background

Photo Collage: AARP; (Source: Getty Images (2))

I was late for a meeting, and failed to tip and rate my Uber driver when I got out of the car. He was helpful and kind, and now I’m feeling guilty. Is it too late?

Unless a lot of time has elapsed since you exited the vehicle and failed to rate and tip the driver, you’re probably not too late. But don’t be too hard on yourself; it’s perfectly understandable why you may not have given a gratuity to the driver just then.

You already indicated that you were running behind. Often when you’re in an Uber or Lyft — the two most popular ride-hailing services in the U.S. — all you can think about is getting where you need to be.

If you weren’t late for a work meeting, perhaps it was a doctor’s appointment. Or maybe you were coming home from the airport after a long flight delay and were zonked.

Whatever the reason, you were distracted, so you forgot to tip. And when that happens, many of us may not remember until the next time we open the app.

In a regular taxi, passengers pull out cash or a credit card to pay the fare before leaving the car. It doesn’t quite work the same when you’re compensating an Uber, Lyft or another ride-hailing driver through an app.

Tipping a Lyft driver after you’ve left the vehicle

You have up to two hours after a ride has been completed to rate and tip a Lyft driver for the just-completed journey. Options to rate and tip show up in the app.

After two hours, you still have up to three days to add a tip for your gig worker inside the app. But you have to do a bit more digging.

Tap the hamburger menu icon ☰ in the upper left corner of the screen — it has three horizontal lines stacked on top of one another — and tap Ride history. This summons a list of all your rides. Tap the ride in question, and assuming you’re within the 72-hour limit, tap Tip Driver.

Alternatively, you can add a tip through a link on the trip receipt you should have received via email. If a Tip Driver link is no longer available, you can contact Lyft Customer Service and supply the driver’s name, time and date of the ride, pickup and drop-off locations, and the amount you want to tip.

Worth noting is a Lyft feature that lets you set a default tip amount. Visit Settings, again found under the hamburger menu, tap Set default tip and choose a default amount by percentage of the ride, listed as 0, 10, 15 or 20 percent, or by dollar amount listed as $0, $1, $2 or Other.

By the way, I know you’re, pardon the pun, uber-generous. But Lyft does have an in-app ceiling on tips, up to $50 or 200 percent of the ride cost.

Related:

How to tip an Uber driver if you missed it previously

At the end of an Uber ride, you’re prompted to rate your driver and tip through the app. The company says handing over cash also is always an option.

If you forget to tip, you have up to 30 days to rectify the situation. In case you’re curious, the same time limit on tipping applies to the Uber Eats food delivery service.

But we’re talking passenger rides. In the Uber app, tap Activity at the bottom of the screen, and under Past, tap the ride where you want to add the tip. Then tap the Add tip button.

Ask the Tech Guru

The Add tip button will show up even if you previously tipped the driver, the theory being that perhaps you had second thoughts. The button will show up only within the 30-day window.

After a trip has ended, you also can tip and rate your driver by visiting riders.uber.com or through the trip receipt that was emailed to you.

Tap the Rate or tip button in the receipt to proceed.

Let me also state the obvious, which applies to Lyft, Uber or any cab or car service you ride in. While I think friendly and capable drivers absolutely ought to be rewarded, tipping remains optional, especially if your driver was rude, unhelpful or in your opinion driving recklessly.

Bonus tip: Split tab but not tip with fellow riders

If you’re traveling with friends or workmates and want to split the fare when taking an Uber, you have the option. Request a ride normally through the app, and swipe up to select a payment method.

Tap Split Fare and enter the names and phone numbers of your fellow passengers, who must then accept your invitation to split the tab. The tab will be divided equally.

Keep in mind: Uber slaps each participating rider with a 25-cent fee. And the company says only the rider who originally requested the trip will be able to select the tip amount. That person is also on the hook for the tip. It will not be split with other passengers.

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Edward C. Baig covers technology and other consumer topics. He previously worked for USA Today, BusinessWeek, U.S. News & World Report and Fortune, and is author of Macs for Dummies and coauthor of iPhone for Dummies and iPad for Dummies. Follow him on LinkedIn; Threads; and X, formerly known as Twitter.