Uber Introduces Women-Only Ride Option in 26 US Cities (Teens Now Included!)

Women opening the Uber app in cities like Houston, Los Angeles, and Detroit will now see something new: an option that lets them request a woman driver. It’s a small toggle with big implications, arriving after years of safety concerns and repeated calls for more rider control. “When we began piloting Women Preferences in a few cities this summer, the goal was simple: give women more choices in how they ride and drive,” Uber said in a recent release. The company reports that, since the pilot launched earlier this year, riders and drivers have said the feature gives them “more comfort and confidence on every trip.” Now Uber is expanding the program to 26 U.S. cities, and, for the first time, extending the option to teen riders.

The expansion arrives amid Uber’s ongoing efforts to address safety issues on the platform. According to the company’s own safety report, 2,717 sexual assault incidents were reported in 2022, down from nearly 6,000 between 2017 and 2018, but still a central concern for riders nationwide. In past years, Uber has faced lawsuits from survivors and a multimillion-dollar fine from the California Public Utilities Commission over the handling of assault data. Their new women-only ride option mirrors features already available in 40 other countries and follows similar offerings from Lyft and women-focused rideshare apps like HERide and Just Her Rideshare.

This feature isn’t just for passengers. Women Uber drivers can activate the “Women Rider Preference” setting to receive requests exclusively from women and nonbinary riders. If they choose to switch back, the preference can be turned off at any time. Uber says that this added flexibility may help bring more women onto the platform. Currently, the majority of U.S. Uber drivers are men, a factor the company had to account for while testing the feature in markets like France and Germany.

One of the most notable additions is the extension of the preference to teen accounts. After hearing from parents for two years, Uber added the ability for teens to request women drivers, either on their own or when a guardian schedules the ride. This U.S. expansion builds on Uber’s global rollout, which first began in Saudi Arabia in 2019 after women were granted the right to drive. Since then, the company has continued gathering feedback from women riders and drivers around the world to refine safety tools and trip preferences. As Uber plans to bring Women Preferences nationwide in the coming months, the company says the goal remains the same: offering passengers more choice, and more peace of mind, whenever they open the app.

Resources: https://www.cnn.com/2025/07/24/tech/uber-women-preferences-us-launch

https://www.uber.com/newsroom/expanding-women-preferences/

https://secrethouston.com/uber-houston-woman-drivers-preferences/