This year, 48.0 million US adults will use Uber at least once. While that’s a jump of 18% over last year, it’s lower than eMarketer’s 2017 projections. In fact, eMarketer has lowered its usage and market share estimates for Uber through 2022. Uber, however, will remain the market leader through the forecast period.
Meanwhile, Lyft, which is smaller and younger, is growing at a faster rate and narrowing the gap. In 2018, 29.9 million US adults will use Lyft at least once, an increase of nearly 41% over 2017.
“Uber’s brand image took an even bigger hit than expected as it grappled with a series of scandals and PR disasters in 2017," said Shelleen Shum, forecasting director at eMarketer. "To make things worse for Uber, Lyft—which had been rapidly expanding its coverage—seized on the opportunity to brand itself as a more socially-conscious alternative.”