Uber is a prominent rideshare service in Australia, with a network covering all major cities and many regional areas. It’s often a cheap and convenient way to travel to or from airports, offering substantial savings over taxis.
In this guide, we’ll provide an overview of Uber services and options at airports when travelling within Australia.
Earning points with rideshare and car booking services
First up – the rewards. When using Uber to get to and from airports in Australia, you’ll earn Qantas Points on eligible rides. We’ve covered all you need to know in our ultimate guide to earning Qantas Points with Uber, including how to link your accounts. There are ways to earn frequent flyer points with other rideshares in Australia, too.
You can stack the points by purchasing Uber gift cards at supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths during a bonus points promotion. You’ll often pocket 20x bonus points on the value of the gift card. So, for a $200 Uber gift card, you could earn 4,000 Flybuys or Everyday Rewards points. Converting these to their frequent flyer program partner would then earn you 2,000 Velocity Points or 2,000 Qantas Points, respectively. This is a great hack to keep up your sleeve if you have Uber rides coming up (say, travelling to the airport for work or getting around the city.)
Also read: Case Study: How I easily earned 10,000 bonus points with gift cards
Qantas American Express Ultimate
- Sign-up Bonus:
- Up to 100,000 bonus Qantas Points¹
- Rewards Earn Rate:
- 1.25 Qantas Points earned per $1 on eligible everyday purchases. 2.25 Qantas Points per $1 spent on selected Qantas products and services in Australia. 0.5 Qantas Point per $1 at government bodies in Australia. After a total of 100,000 Qantas Points is earned in a calendar year, the everyday earn rate will change from 1.25 to 1 Qantas Point per $1 spent.
- Annual Fee:
- $450 p.a.
- Offer expires
- 5 May 2026
- Earn 70,000 bonus Qantas Points when you spend $5,000 in the first 3 months, plus an additional 30,000 Qantas Points when you spend a minimum of $1 on your Card within 90 days of paying your second year annual Card Fee¹. (Offer ends 5 May 2026. New Amex Card Members only. T&Cs apply.) This card includes an annual $450 Qantas Travel Credit, two Qantas Club Complimentary Lounge Invitations after eligible Qantas spend each year, complimentary international travel insurance, and Qantas Wine Premium Membership (valued at $99). Earn 1.25 Qantas Points per $1 on everyday spend, 2.25 on Qantas purchases, and 0.5 on government payments. The annual fee is $450.
What kind of Uber services are offered in Australia?
There are a range of Uber services you can request in Australia, but they differ between cities. For example, regional towns will usually only have UberX, while large cities may have cars suitable for transporting pets. Here are the most common types of Uber rides in Australia:
- UberX – the most affordable option, with up to four seats in vehicles.
- UberXL – high-capacity vehicles with seats for up to 6-7 passengers in an SUV or minivan, or extra room for luggage.
- Uber Assist – an accessible option for people with disabilities or who require additional assistance. These vehicles can fit wheelchairs or other mobility aids.
- Uber Comfort – an upmarket option with top-rated drivers and newer cars.
- Uber Premier – a premium service with luxury vehicles. Prices can be up to double that of UberX.
- Uber Pet – pet-friendly vehicles, often with higher prices.
Getting dropped off by Uber at the airport
If Uber operates in your destination city, there are no restrictions on passengers getting dropped off at airport departures. Often, your Uber driver will drop you off in a general passenger drop-off zone, not in a dedicated rideshare or taxi drop-off area.
Uber is in all major Australian cities but might not be available in certain regional cities.
Getting picked up by Uber at the airport
Most major airports in Australia now have a designated Uber or rideshare pick-up zone, which is often well-signed. When requesting an Uber from an airport with a designated pick-up area, the app will often automatically select this as your pick-up point. This is a good way to locate the airport’s rideshare pick-up zone on the map.
For smaller airports without a rideshare pick-up zone, your Uber will normally collect you from the public pick-up areas.
The process for being picked up by an Uber also differs depending on the airport. For instance, larger airports like Melbourne and Sydney require you to queue in the Uber pick-up zone for the first available driver rather than being assigned a driver when hailing your ride on the app. You’ll then provide the driver with a PIN, shown in your app, to commence your ride. This process makes it more efficient for both the drivers and passengers. At most other airports, though, you can expect a driver to be assigned to you upon booking your ride on the app.
Almost all major Australian airports impose a rideshare pick-up fee for Uber and other providers. The fee varies by airport but is usually a flat rate of around $3-$4. The fee is added to the final cost of your ride.
Other options for getting to or from Australian airports
We’ve covered all options for travelling to major Australian airports, including public transport, in our guides below.
- How to get from Sydney Airport to the City
- How to get from Melbourne Airport to the City
- How to get from Brisbane Airport to the City
- How to get from Gold Coast Airport to Surfers Paradise
- How to get from Cairns Airport to the City
- How to get from Perth Airport to the City
- How to get from Adelaide Airport to the City
- How to get from Hobart Airport to the City
- How to get from Darwin Airport to the City
Summing up
Uber’s prominence in Australia makes it one of the cheapest and easiest ways to travel to or from major airports. With various vehicles to choose from, an easy-to-use app and the ability to earn Qantas Points on airport rides, Uber remains a solid option for travellers.
This article was originally written by Matt Moffitt. Featured image: Charles Deluvio, Unsplash.
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There should also be a discussion about the games the Uber drivers like to play after accepting a ride from an airport. I occasionally get texts asking where I’m going followed by cancellations from the driver if the destination isn’t to their liking. Last time was at Sunshine Coast Airport. Ola at SYD was the worst – they would call and offer a cash price (usually higher than the Ola price) and cancel if you didn’t pickup – but they’ve exited the market thankfully.
I recently received an email from CitiBank Prestige credit card, saying that the Luxury Transfer Service had changed (see below). My question is, say that cost of Uber Premier is $70, do I tell the Driver to make it an even $100 (so I reimbursed by CitiBank)? because if I pay $70 there is no reimbursement?
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Uber Premier $100 Cashback
Effective 1 August 2024, the Luxury Transfer Service will no longer be available. You can instead receive the Uber Premier $100 Cashback benefit on travel within Australia:
•
Book Uber Premier (or other available ride options) on the Uber app.
•
Spend $100 or more on one transaction with your Citi Prestige Credit Card to receive $100 cashback. Limited to one redemption per primary cardholder per calendar year.
•
The cashback will usually be credited to your Citi Prestige Credit Card Account within eight weeks after completing your Uber ride.
On 23 September 2024 I requested a ride from the Uber zone at Sydney Domestic Airport to home, which is less than 5kms away. Price was $23.05, my Amex was charged, but after drop-off the price increased to $28.70 (an extra $5.65) with the explanation it was “due to unanticipated tolls or surcharges on this trip”. No tolls applied, and there is actually no option within the Uber Help function to dispute this extra charge. I ended up contacting Uber via Facebook Messenger instead. Uber blamed the $5.80 “Airport Access Charge” as the culprit, calling it an additional charge due to factors beyond their control. As much as I argued that airport charges from an Uber pickup zone at the airport should not be considered “unanticipated” and would be something within their control to quote as part of the upfront fee, they disagreed and refused to refund me. I wonder if anyone else had a similar experience. Seems Uber are getting a little too big for their boots.
The exact same thing happened to me, but in Portugal, so it’s an Uber thing.
Another thing that’s good to know in Melbourne is that the 901 / 903 bus goes from Broadmeadows every 15/20/30 minutes on weekdays/Saturdays/Sundays straight to the airport.
If you’ve used your Myki to get to Broady, your bus trip is free! Sure beats Skybus. 🙂
This article desperately needs an update. Uber in Adelaide has been able to pick up in dedicated area for last 12 months and it costs less than $30 from airport to city.
This really needs updating – Uber has been in Hobart since December 2016.
You can also order a taxi for pick up at Melbourne airport if you drop the pin outside the airport and then message the drivers directly that your waiting at the airport pick up point.
Can you update the text of the Sydney section to read
“Uber may become the cheapest option when three or more passengers are involved”
Your table shows that you’d need the cheapest Uber pricing over the shortest route to even save two dollars on the train, and going to Parramatta in a busy hour you’d need five people squeezed illegally into your UberX to beat the train price.
You’re absolutely right, Andrew! Thanks for pointing that out.
Peter,
One needs to look further into the Adelaide Airport to City transfer. Adelaide Airports are the closest ports to a capital city. (roughly 5. 5kms) Near proximity of city to airport makes an UberBlack fare the dearest in the country.
If you’re really on a budget from Sydney airport, get the 400 bus out of there. $2.10-$5.60 depending on how far you’re going.
Uberx is ILLEGAL in Queensland and Victoria
As of 4/7/2016 in Western Australia new regulations were put in place requiring uber partners to apply for chartered vehicle licence to be allowed to operate. Operators have the option to apply for a chartered plate or to use the state registered plate.
I’ve benefitted from Uber in Sydney on many occasions. My only disappointment was a failed offer from Uber of $10 off my next ride. So I am wary of such offers from now onwards.
I had a failed $10 offer too, Matt. So I just emailed them to complain, and they apologised and applied a $10-off my next ride “credit” to my account. Worth doing!
No such luck for me unfortunately. I’ve been given the “run around”. Not sure what is worse – being cheated by Sydney taxi drivers or being cheated by Uber!!!
Although pickups at Melbourne Tullamarine are not officially allowed on UberX, it’s still very easy to do them. Drag the pin outside the airport onto the motorway and suddenly UberX becomes a pickup option (and you can see plenty of drivers waiting out there); book your pickup and then use the “Contact Driver” option to tell the driver to pick you up in front of the Park Royal directly across from the taxi/bus/shuttle pickup zone and they’ll be there in a few minutes.
This is what I was told to do when I asked the driver taking me to the airport how to come back with Uber and I have used this approach with no problem. The drivers waiting near the airport are familiar with it anyway; they know nobody is actually expecting to be picked up from a random spot on the motorway outside the airport, so will wait for confirmation before coming in.
I have been told you can use uberX at Melbourne airport. You just drop the marker outside the airport and contact the uber driver direct to arrange a pick up from the pick up section. It is the green lane on this map. http://melbourneairport.com.au/news-events/news-events-archive/2013/new-pick-up-lane-opens-1211.html
It is the same when I use goCatch for fares so I can earn points with a taxi but I have switched to uberx now as the service is better and the taxi industry has got way to complacent with the crap they allow some taxi drivers to do!