Uber Expands “Women Preferences” To More Cities

Back in August we told you about a new Uber app feature that allows women riders and drivers to choose to be matched with one another. Following positive feedback from the initial rollout in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit, Uber is now expanding its “Women Preferences” feature to 26 more U.S. cities, including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, San Diego, Sacramento, San Diego and Nashville. The feature will also expand to teen drivers for the first time.  

Uber “Women Preferences”

The option, first piloted earlier this year, allows women riders to request women drivers and gives women drivers the ability to receive trip requests only from women if they choose.  Uber says feedback from the initial rollout showed riders felt more comfortable and drivers appreciated the ability to tailor the trips they accept.

Women riders now have three ways to increase their chances of being matched with a woman driver.

1. They can select “Women Drivers” when requesting an on-demand trip, with the option to switch back to standard service if wait times are too long.
2. Riders can also use Uber Reserve to schedule a ride with a woman driver in advance.
3. A third option allows riders to set a preference inside their app settings, which does not guarantee a match but makes it more likely.

Women drivers have similar flexibility. A new “Women Rider Preference” setting allows them to choose whether they want to accept rides only from women riders. They can turn the feature on or off at any time. Uber says it plans to make this option available to women drivers nationwide in the near future, calling it another way for women to earn on their own terms while feeling safe and supported.

Photo: Uber.

Teen Riders

The expansion also extends to teen riders. Since teen accounts launched more than two years ago, Uber reports that parents have frequently asked for the ability to request women drivers for their children. In cities where both teen accounts and Women Preferences are active, teens and their guardians will be able to select the women-driver option or schedule rides with women drivers through the Reserve feature.

Uber said it has implemented versions of this program in other countries for several years. It first introduced a women-only matching option in Saudi Arabia in 2019 after the country began allowing women to drive. Similar tools later spread to dozens of markets globally. Company officials said the latest U.S. expansion builds on those international experiences while responding to local feedback from riders and drivers.

If your city isn't on the newly expanded list, it could be soon. Uber's plan is to continue rolling out Women Preferences to more cities across the U.S. in the coming months. The company framed the expansion as part of a broader effort to improve comfort, confidence, and choice for women using the platform, whether they are behind the wheel or in the back seat.