Driving your own car to work beats Uber

A MyBroadband analysis has revealed that driving South Africa’s most affordable car, the Suzuki S-Presso, is generally cheaper than ride-hailing apps like Uber or Bolt.

South Africa’s fuel prices are relatively high, with the price of unleaded 93 at R20.98 as of 6 November 2024, and many residents hoping to save money may be looking for alternatives to driving to work.

MyBroadband compared the monthly costs of using Uber or Bolt to commuting with a Suzuki S-Presso along five significant routes:

• Fourways ↔ Sandton
• Bryanston ↔ Hatfield
• Centurion Central ↔ Sandton
• Centurion Central ↔ Hatfield
• Fourways ↔ Hatfield

According to Tracker, the rough cost per kilometre for the Suzuki S-Presso 1.0 GL is R4.84/km. This figure comprises the costs of petrol, maintenance, and insurance.

We assumed cost-conscious motorists would be filling up with cheaper unleaded 93 petrol.

For ride-hailing, we collected pricing for trips between 06:00 and 07:00 for morning commutes and between 17:00 and 18:00 for evening commutes.

We also assumed a working month of 22 days for our calculations and selected the most affordable fare each ride-hailing company offers.

For Bolt, the most affordable fare offered is the Go Hatch service, which Bolt claims to be the fastest to connect you with a driver and can carry two passengers.

Uber’s most affordable fares are on the Uber Go service, which also holds up to two passengers.

When comparing self-driving to e-hailing, we found that driving the Suzuki S-Presso was more affordable than using Uber or Bolt for all routes, except one where Bolt was the cheapest option.

The monthly costs for Uber and Bolt for the Fourways to Sandton route came in at R5,874 and R5,478, respectively.

In comparison, driving the Suzuki S-Presso yourself on this route will cost roughly R4,046.24 per month, travelling the 38km round-trip daily, making it roughly R1,432 more affordable than the next-cheapest option.

The commute between Centurion Central and Hatfield is the second shortest in the comparison at a total round-trip distance of 45.6km.

Driving the Suzuki S-Presso along this route for 22 days each month will cost roughly R4,855.40 per month.

In comparison, using Uber daily for the same route will cost R6,028 per month, while Bolt users will pay slightly less than self-driving commuters at R4,620 monthly.

Uber and Bolt were significantly more expensive for the three remaining routes. However, commuting between Bryanston and Hatfield in the Suzuki S-Presso could save commuters around R3,100 per month over Bolt and R4,150 over Uber.

For reference, the monthly costs of using Uber and Bolt for this route are R15,708 and R14,696, respectively. Those driving themselves can expect to pay around R11,563.64 monthly for the same commute.

There is also a significant price difference for the commute between Fourways and Hatfield. Uber’s rates work out to R14,850 per month, while Bolt users would pay R14,234.

Driving the Suzuki S-Presso 22 days a month along this route will cost approximately R11,010.12.

Commuters who must travel between Centurion Central and Sandton daily can expect to pay around R9,504 per month using Uber and R8,866 per month using Bolt.

Travelling the same route in the Suzuki S-Presso would cost roughly R7,304.44 per month — a difference of nearly R2,200 over Uber.

The table below compares the monthly costs of using Uber or Bolt to driving the Suzuki S-Presso for five significant commutes.