New App Compares Prices of 3 Ride-Hailing Apps Before Booking With One Click

If there’s one thing Singaporeans enjoy, it’s saving money.

From scouring the web for the best deals, to walking an additional 20 kilometres for a jumbo packet of Milo that costs 20 cents less, Singaporeans are willing to do whatever it takes to save a few extra bucks.

As the Covid-19 pandemic has shown, it’s certainly prudent to save for a rainy day.

One way to save money would be to cut down on our intake of bubble tea, which would save the average Singaporean $76 dollars a day.

But if that’s too hard to do, you could try saving a few bucks every time you book a cab.

New App Compares Prices of 3 Ride-Hailing Apps Before Booking With One Click

Thanks to a new app created by a local start-up, you can now compare the prices of ride-hailing apps before you book your ride.

The app, Spur, pulls and lists fare ranges from the three main providers here: ComfortDelGro, Grab, and Gojek.

Co-founder and chief executive Mark Lim said the app was devised during Covid-19, “during a time when we felt we could help commuters save money”.

As Lim rightly pointed out, saving $2 to $3 on each ride can add up to a substantial amount over time.

If you happened to book a ride three times a week, and managed to save $3 on every ride, that would add up to more than $460 over a year.

Think of all the 4D tickets you can waste that $460 on afterwards.

Checks by The Straits Times shows there can indeed be a significant difference between the rates offered by the three ride-hailing providers at certain times.

The same 4.6km trip at 11.30am in the suburbs cost $5 to $7 for Grab, $7.33-$9.33 for Comfort, and $7.88-$9.88 for Gojek.

However, when I checked the app for a trip from Toa Payoh to VivoCity, the prices for all three apps were around $13 to $15.

ComfortDelGro Increased its Fares

Though the prices are similar here, Lim said he has seen signs of a “price war”, as well as a change in rates.

After ComfortDelGro reported its first loss in August, for instance, it has increased its ride-hailing fares by 30%, Lim said.

Lim added that the majority of Spur users had been using Comfort before, but noticed a “shift” after they upped their prices.

Plans To Include More Ride-Hailing Providers

Co-founder and chief technical officer Timothy Khor said Spur will be approaching other ride-hailing companies to include in their app, including SMRT and Tada.

To increase its revenue, Khor said Spur is “exploring referral arrangements” with ride-hailing firms where they could target commuters and persuade them to use an app they don’t usually use.

“But even if we have such an arrangement, the app will continue to be independent”, Lim said.

“…we are not linked to any company, we are agnostic and honest”.

According to Lim, Spur has about 150 active users on a weekday, and “the number is growing”.

Considering the economic climate, this app will surely grow in popularity, as saving money is more important than ever.

Read Also: Grab Fined $10k After 21K Users’ Personal Data Was Exposed; 4th Time Grab Breached PDPA