New Yorkers have always had the convenience of hailing a cab easily for the most part and never really a need for someone in Manhattan to have rideshare as much as someone living in Houston or Miami. Now they are even more spoiled and so spoiled now with ride share apps that you really don’t even have to take the subway as much with apps like Via. Black is definitely becoming the new Yellow and this is not a trend. You even see less yellow cabbies on the streets now that Uber has dominated the market. Black is the new yellow. With over 15,000 black and luxury cars operating in the five boroughs compared to around 13,500 medallion cabs it is unstoppable. First we hated cabs that overcharged with steep prices but now as Uber and Lyft are charging outrageous surge rates we always need as many alternative apps as we can fit on our phone for a ride.
Uber ($20 off), Lyft ($50 off), Gett and Via are the top NYC taxi alternatives and we also found some newbies.
30% Off Rides with Juno – currently in “beta” but that is a GOOD THING. They are preparing to disrupt the New York City ride share app market currently dominated by Uber and Lyft. Juno launched a beta app which gives 30% off rides + no surge fees in New York City (that’s 30% off of Uber’s prices using our link). This was my favorite app to use while in NYC because it was the cheapest without being restricted to certain areas. I could hail a Juno from a restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen and ride over to the 9/11 Memorial or to Central Park without having to pay the higher prices the other apps charge.
Juno rideshare also offers rides as of now at JFK and LGA airports. You also get the beta discount of at least 10% off Uber until June 2019 on these rides and 30% off the first two weeks with our link! If you refer friends you get 30% off Rides for an additional two weeks.
Gett-Gett looks to become the new ride-sharing game-changer with absolutely no “
surge pricing.” They are known to offer $10 for any ride in Manhattan south of 110th Street which is a relative bargain also if your trip rings in under that threshold then you pay the lower price. Tips can be pre-set for zero percent to 20 percent. The driver waits for free for three minutes, and you’ll be charged $1/min after that. An extra stop costs $5. Best yet, there’s no surge pricing—ever. You can pick from Gett Standard, Gett Premium, Gett SUV, and Gett Deal where you have drivers Active in 30-plus cities (Tel Aviv, London, and Moscow included), Gett, which used to go by GetTaxi, arrived in NYC in 2013, though its recent $10 deal has raised its profile along with the new $50 off offer. According to CNBC, it has a fleet of over 2,000 vehicles serving NYC.
March 2017 Update: We changed the promo offer above for $50 off. Get $5 off your next 10 rides which is $50 in value. Gett has also added firm quotes that will now include taxes along with the upfront pricing they had already provided with No ranges or estimates. Tolls, surcharges, and optional tip aren’t included.
Jan 2019 Update – We prefer Juno in NYC and think that Gett is out of the US Market and only in Europe now. We cannot seem to sign into our Gett account as it will not send us a confirmation number.
April 29, 2017 Update: On-demand ride service Gett confirms acquisition of Juno
The competitive landscape for transportation apps has become a little smaller today. Gett has announced that it has acquired Juno, a rival in the New York market. The ride-hailing industry just got a whole lot more interesting with Uber (Goliath) vs Lyft (David) no longer being the big players in town. A third and very credible player is suddenly in the picture with this merger. Gett has the support and a $300 million investment from the world’s largest automaker, Volkswagen. Gett already has a presence in 100 cities in Europe. This move positions them to establish a competitive United States presence beyond their current footprint in New York City.
Via – Considered an On-Demand Transit which is basically an alternative to the subway with carpooling which seems to really be catching on in the NYC area. If you sign up with my code, dj9i7, we’ll both get $10 of free Via Credit. You can download the app here. It’ll only cost $2.25 more than the subway and you can avoid waiting in the hot subway stations this summer. While it’s dirt cheap to use Via it is a bit awkward with others in the car if you are used to taking private cars. It also does not run after midnight for those of you going out for late night fun in the city that never sleeps.
