Independent rider's guide. Not affiliated with Waymo, Tesla, Zoox, Uber or Lyft. We don't book rides: book in the official apps. About our independence
A robotaxi (driverless taxi) ride costs about what a regular ride-hail trip does, sometimes more, and only one company publishes its rate anywhere: Waymo in Las Vegas, at $9.49 to start plus $1.23 a mile and $0.45 a minute. Tesla and Zoox show you a price in the app but publish no rate card, so treat any other number you see online as an estimate.
Use the estimator below to price a trip on the two rate cards that exist in public: Waymo's published Las Vegas card and the Tesla Robotaxi card that riders and trackers have reported from Austin. The cities are different and so is the rate basis, so this is a sense of scale, not a quote. The real price is the one the app shows you before you tap request.
Waymo, Las Vegas: the rate Waymo publishes on its Trip pricing help page, before demand pricing, tolls and fees. $9.49 base + $6.15 for 5 mi + $6.75 for 15 min.
What each company actually tells you about price
| Service | Published rate? | What you can rely on |
|---|---|---|
| Waymo (Waymo app) | Las Vegas only | $9.49 base + $1.23/mile + $0.45/minute in Las Vegas, before demand, tolls and fees. Other cities: the in-app estimate. Waymo Help: Trip pricing |
| Tesla Robotaxi | No | The app shows an estimated fare before you confirm; Tesla says pricing is "subject to change". Trackers report $3.00 + $1.40/mile in Austin since March 2026. App Store listing |
| Zoox (Las Vegas) | No | Paid since August 10, 2026: a base fare plus distance and time, possible destination fees for the airport and spots such as the Sphere, plus taxes. Full price shown before booking. Las Vegas Sun |
| Waymo on Uber (Austin, Atlanta) | Uber sets it | Uber said riders matched with a Waymo on UberX, Comfort or Comfort Electric pay no additional cost. Uber Newsroom |
| Waymo on Lyft (Nashville) | Lyft sets it | Lyft said matched riders pay no additional cost on Standard, Priority Pickup, Wait & Save and Extra Comfort. Lyft |
Rates as stated by each source; nothing here is a live quote. Checked Nov 11, 2026
The same trip on both public rate cards
On the default trip of 5 miles, Waymo's Las Vegas card gives $22.39 (15 minutes in the car) and the reported Tesla Austin card gives $10.00, because Tesla's reported card has no per-minute charge. The gap shrinks on short hops, where Waymo's $9.49 base dominates, and widens on long, slow trips, where Waymo's per-minute charge keeps adding up in traffic.
| Trip | Waymo, Las Vegas | Tesla, Austin (reported) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 mi, 8 min | $15.55 | $5.80 |
| 5 mi, 15 min | $22.39 | $10.00 |
| 10 mi, 25 min | $33.04 | $17.00 |
| 15 mi, 35 min | $43.69 | $24.00 |
Arithmetic on the two cards only, before demand pricing, airport and other fees, taxes and promotions. Different cities, different companies.
What else moves the price
Waymo's help page is the most complete list of what can change a fare, and the same ideas apply to every app-based ride. Besides the minimum, distance and time, Waymo names:
- Demand and availability when you request.
- Tolls, fees and surcharges, such as an airport access fee.
- Booking in advance.
- Promotions.
- Changing the destination, adding stops, or a late cancellation.
Waymo also says it prices the trip on the most direct route, so if the car takes an unexpected detour, your price for that trip doesn't change. Canceling after a car is on its way, or not showing up in time, generally costs a fee.
What independent price studies found
Ride-price aggregator Obi has compared the same routes at the same moment across apps in San Francisco three times. Its numbers are the best public evidence on robotaxi prices, with one limit: they cover the Bay Area only.
| Period | Waymo | UberX | Lyft Standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar. 25 to Apr. 25, 2025 | $20.43 | $15.58 | $14.44 |
| Nov. 27, 2025 to Jan. 1, 2026 | $19.69 | $17.47 | $15.47 |
Average fare per ride. Obi, 2025 report; TechCrunch on the January 2026 report. In its May 2026 update for March 1 to April 14, 2026, Obi said average prices rose 18% for Waymo, 5% for Uber, 12% for Lyft and 41% for Tesla, with Tesla still about half the price of a Waymo ride (Obi, May 2026).
For the full story, including wait times, see Waymo vs Uber and whether Waymo is cheaper than Uber in San Francisco.
How to get a real price before you ride
- Open the app you'll actually book in: the Waymo app, the Tesla Robotaxi app, the Zoox app, or Uber or Lyft where Waymo runs on those networks.
- Enter your pickup and destination. Both have to be inside the service area or the app won't quote.
- Read the estimate before you request. Check again a few minutes later or at a quieter hour if it looks high; demand moves it.
- For airport trips, look for an airport fee line. Waymo and Zoox both say airport trips can carry one.
Fare tools and guides: Waymo price calculator · Tesla Robotaxi price · Waymo vs Zoox in Las Vegas · Do you tip a robotaxi?
Questions riders ask
How much does a robotaxi ride cost?
It depends on the company and the city, and only one rate is published. Waymo's Las Vegas rate is $9.49 plus $1.23 a mile and $0.45 a minute, so a 5-mile, 15-minute trip comes to $22.39 before demand pricing and fees. Everywhere else you see a price in the app before you book.
Is a robotaxi cheaper than Uber?
Not usually in San Francisco, the one city with repeated independent price studies. Obi found Waymo averaged $19.69 a ride against $17.47 for UberX between late November 2025 and New Year's Day. Tesla's service, which still uses a driver in the Bay Area, was the cheapest option in Obi's data.
Can I get a robotaxi price without the app?
Only in Las Vegas for Waymo, where the rate card is public. For every other city and company, open the app, enter both addresses and read the estimate before you request the car. That estimate is the only price the company stands behind.
Do robotaxi fares have surge pricing?
Waymo says demand and the number of cars available when you request can change the price, and booking in advance or adding stops can too. Zoox and Tesla show the full price in the app before you book; neither publishes how it adjusts for demand.
Sources
- Tesla Robotaxi on the App Store, Apple App Store Operator, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Waymo Rides Now Available on the Lyft App in Nashville (Sept. 9, 2026), Lyft Operator, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Atlanta: The Future is Here with Waymo and Uber (June 24, 2025), Uber Newsroom Operator, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Trip pricing, Waymo Help Operator, checked Nov 11, 2026
- The Road Ahead: Pricing Insights on Waymo, Uber and Lyft (PDF), Obi Data study, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Autonomous Rides Are Getting More Expensive: An Update (May 2026, PDF), Obi Data study, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Free ride is over: Zoox robotaxi service to begin charging for Las Vegas trips (Aug. 6, 2026), Las Vegas Sun News report, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Amazon's Zoox to start paid robotaxi rides in Vegas next week (Aug. 5, 2026), Reuters News report, checked Nov 11, 2026
- The price gap between Waymo and Uber is narrowing (Jan. 27, 2026), TechCrunch News report, checked Nov 11, 2026
- Tesla raises Robotaxi price again with 40% increase, Not a Tesla App Tracker report, checked Nov 11, 2026
We check every fare, city, airport and rule against the operators' own help pages, regulators and reputable reporting, and we date each check. Reported figures are labeled as reported. We don't sell rides, codes or rankings. About us · How we source and check facts