Lyft Standard offers broader availability and a more traditional ride-hailing experience with human drivers. Waymo One Driverless provides an innovative, autonomous service with a focus on safety, but its availability is limited and is under investigation by the NHTSA.
| Attribute | Lyft Standard | Waymo One Driverless |
|---|---|---|
| Price per mile | $0.90 (average, varies by city) | Fares are comparable to conventional ride-hailing services. You'll see a price estimate before booking. |
| Base fare | Around $1 | Not available |
| Availability in my area | Check via Lyft app with pickup and drop-off locations | Waymo One operates in parts of San Francisco, Phoenix, and Los Angeles. In Austin and Atlanta, Waymo One is available only through the Uber app. They are gradually adding riders in Silicon Valley. Waymo plans to begin offering rides in Washington, DC, and Miami starting in 2026. Early testing is underway in Dallas, with public rides planned for next year. |
| Estimated wait time | Provided in the Lyft app before ride request | Not available |
| Vehicle cleanliness | Lyft provides cleaning guidelines to drivers | Waymo's Jaguar I-PACEs have spacious interiors that are meticulously cleaned daily. Avis Budget Group manages the fleet, including vehicle cleaning and maintenance. |
| Driver experience/safety record | Background checks, annual checks, continuous criminal and driving record monitoring | Waymo vehicles are involved in nearly 80% fewer injury-causing collisions than human drivers. |
| Insurance coverage | Varies depending on app status (off, on/receiving requests, on/ride in progress) | Waymo One has additional insurance coverage through a third-party insurer, including Auto Medical Payments coverage with a zero-dollar deductible for services within three years of an accident. |
| Cancellation policy | Fees apply if canceled >30 seconds after driver accepts, >30 seconds after Wait and Save request, or after driver arrives. Fees for scheduled rides if canceled within 1 hour of pickup and a driver has been matched. | Not available |
| Accessibility options (wheelchair, etc.) | Access Mode for wheelchair-accessible vehicles | Wheelchair-accessible vehicles (WAVs) are available, though these are manually driven, not autonomous. You can request a WAV in the Waymo App in San Francisco and Los Angeles. In Phoenix, you need to contact Support to request a WAV. App features include assistive in-car audio, minimizing walking time to the car, and turn-by-turn navigation. Features for riders who are deaf or hard of hearing include showing text of trip updates and displaying a message if Support needs to call. |
| Driverless safety record | Not available as of August 2025 | Waymo claims their vehicles are nearly twice as safe as human drivers. A study of 25.3 million miles driven by Waymo found an 88% reduction in property damage claims and a 92% reduction in bodily injury claims compared to human drivers. Waymo reports significantly fewer crashes than human drivers, including 84% fewer airbag deployment crashes and 73% fewer injury crashes. |
| Driverless availability | Planned deployment in Germany and the U.K. next year | Waymo One was the first autonomous service to operate without safety drivers. |
| User ratings/reviews | Details required for ratings <4 stars | Waymo provides 250,000 trips every week. |