by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 11:45 AM ET, Mon March 9, 2026
Uber’s women-only ride-hailing option has launched nationwide, offering women a safer option—Uber rides driven by women.
According to ABC News, the new system, called Women Preferences, which was pilot-tested previously, has launched across the U.S., allowing women Uber drivers and women riders to match themselves together, eliminating the risks that exist for both female drivers and riders.
The new feature allows women to request a female driver through the “Women Drivers” option. Women can also set a preference for women drivers in the app, increasing their likelihood of getting a woman driver. According to the pilot testing, this feature is also becoming popular among teen riders.
Uber states that one-fifth of its drivers are women in the U.S.
“When women riders and drivers told us they wanted more control over how they ride and earn, we listened,” the blog post reads. “That feedback led to Women Preferences, features designed to give women the choice to ride with other women. Since our first pilots last summer, we’ve heard just how much that choice matters—from feeling more comfortable in the back seat to more confident behind the wheel.
Yet not everyone’s happy with the move. Uber drivers filed a class action lawsuit against the new feature in California, claiming it’s discriminatory against men.
“This feature is a common sense solution to a long-standing request from both women Drivers and Riders who told Uber they would feel more comfortable and safer if they could choose to ride with another woman,” the company said in the court filing.
The Women Preferences feature is available in 40 other countries, including Canada, Mexico and Saudi Arabia. The ride-hailing platform has faced criticism for its safety record, with thousands of reports of sexual assaults from both passengers and drivers.
Uber and Lyft created a database of contracted drivers with bad behavior in 2021, ensuring that they won’t be hired by another ride-hailing app again. There were just under 6,000 sexual assaults reported during Uber rides between 2017 and 2019. The most recent data, available for 2021 and 2022, reported just over 2,700 sexual assaults on rides.
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