Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Tuesday, Jan 13, 2026

Uber’s delivery business is now larger than ride-hailing

Uber’s delivery business is now larger than ride-hailing

But it's still losing nine-figures every quarter.

Uber reported its second-quarter earnings Thursday, and buried in the blizzard of less-than-rosy numbers is a stunning figure that illustrates how much the company has changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Uber’s delivery business - better known as Uber Eats - is now bigger than its original and core ride-hailing division, based on adjusted net revenue. Now, adjusted net revenue tells only a piece of this evolving Uber story. Income, or losses in the case of Uber’s delivery business, are also important.

Still, looking at the change of the past year, and specifically in the past two quarters, it’s clear that Uber’s strategy has shifted. And all eyes are on delivery.


Before digging deeper, let’s run a quick recap.

Uber’s reported net loss was $1.78 billion in the second quarter of 2020, down from a year-ago net loss of $5.24 billion. The company went public last year, resulting in various one-time, non-cash costs. The company’s net loss worked out to a loss of $1.02 per share. That was enough to beat analysts’ expectations of a $0.86 per-share deficit.

Uber missed on profitability in the quarter, but did surpass expectations on top line, posting more revenue than the $2.18 billion figure investors expected.


The shift to delivery

There are three key ways to weigh the company’s various businesses, of which only two are of material scale to Uber’s operating results, namely Mobility (ride-hailing), and Delivery (Uber Eats) . Here’s how the pair stacked up in Q2 2020:

Delivery gross bookings: $6.96 billion
Mobility gross bookings: $3.05 billion
Here’s how those gross bookings results turned into adjusted net revenue:

Delivery adjusted net revenue: $885 million
Mobility adjusted net revenue: $793 million
And how those revenue results turned into adjusted profit, and adjusted losses:


Delivery adjusted EBITDA: -$232 million

Mobility adjusted EBITDA: $50 million
As you can see, Uber’s food delivery business is doing far more gross dollars in transaction volume. However, as Uber has a better take-rate (the portion of gross spend it gets to keep as revenue) with ride-hailing than Uber Eats, the two had far closer adjusted net revenue numbers. Here, again, Delivery beat Mobility.

When it came down to adjusted profit, Uber’s traditionally core business of ride-hailing generated the superior result, generating positive adjusted EBITDA, while delivery lost money using the same profit calculation method.

In Q1 2020, Mobility generated more gross bookings, adjusted net revenue and adjusted EBITDA than Delivery. In Q2, due to COVID-19 and its resulting economic impacts, two of the three numbers flipped. How fast the figures could change in the future if the market for ride-hailing recovers further is not clear. Today’s earnings call made it clear that Uber is more about bringing you food than taking you to the airport, and that’s a big change for the American company.

To be clear, ride-hailing isn’t going anywhere. It’s the dual focus of delivery and ride-hailing that Uber is counting on to get it through this rough patch of COVID-19 pandemic as well as fortify its revenue earning potential in more stable times.

“It’s become clear that we have a hugely valuable hedge across our two core businesses that is a critical advantage in any recovery scenario,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said Thursday. “When travel restrictions lift we know the mobility trips rebound. If restrictions continue or need to be re-imposed our delivery business will compensate.”


Graphical context

For fun, here are the pertinent sections of Uber’s Q2 investor slides.

Here’s the company’s Mobility numbers:

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Designates Saudi Arabia a Major Non-NATO Ally, Elevating US–Riyadh Defense Partnership
Trump Organization Deepens Saudi Property Focus with $10 Billion Luxury Developments
There is no sovereign immunity for poisoning millions with drugs.
Mohammed bin Salman’s Global Standing: Strategic Partner in Transition Amid Debate Over His Role
Saudi Arabia Opens Property Market to Foreign Buyers in Landmark Reform
The U.S. State Department’s account in Persian: “President Trump is a man of action. If you didn’t know it until now, now you do—do not play games with President Trump.”
CNN’s Ranking of Israel’s Women’s Rights Sparks Debate After Misleading Global Index Comparison
Saudi Arabia’s Shifting Regional Alignment Raises Strategic Concerns in Jerusalem
OPEC+ Holds Oil Output Steady Amid Member Tensions and Market Oversupply
Iranian Protests Intensify as Another Revolutionary Guard Member Is Killed and Khamenei Blames the West
President Trump Says United States Will Administer Venezuela Until a Secure Leadership Transition
Delta Force Identified as Unit Behind U.S. Operation That Captured Venezuela’s President
Saudi-UAE Rift Adds Complexity to Middle East Diplomacy as Trump Signals Firm Leadership
OPEC+ to Keep Oil Output Policy Unchanged Despite Saudi-UAE Tensions Over Yemen
Saudi Arabia and UAE at Odds in Yemen Conflict as Southern Offensive Deepens Gulf Rift
Abu Dhabi ‘Capital of Capital’: How Abu Dhabi Rose as a Sovereign Wealth Power
Diamonds Are Powering a New Quantum Revolution
Trump Threatens Strikes Against Iran if Nuclear Programme Is Restarted
Why Saudi Arabia May Recalibrate Its US Spending Commitments Amid Rising China–America Rivalry
Riyadh Air’s First Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner Completes Initial Test Flight, Advancing Saudi Carrier’s Launch
Saudi Arabia’s 2025: A Pivotal Year of Global Engagement and Domestic Transformation
Saudi Arabia to Introduce Sugar-Content Based Tax on Sweetened Drinks from January 2026
Saudi Hotels Prepare for New Hospitality Roles as Alcohol Curbs Ease
Global Airports Forum Highlights Saudi Arabia’s Emergence as a Leading Aviation Powerhouse
Saudi Arabia Weighs Strategic Choice on Iran Amid Regional Turbulence
Saudi Arabia Condemns Sydney Bondi Beach Shooting and Expresses Solidarity with Australia
Washington Watches Beijing–Riyadh Rapprochement as Strategic Balance Shifts
Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 Drives Measurable Lift in Global Reputation and Influence
Alcohol Policies Vary Widely Across Muslim-Majority Countries, With Many Permitting Consumption Under Specific Rules
Saudi Arabia Clarifies No Formal Ban on Photography at Holy Mosques for Hajj 2026
Libya and Saudi Arabia Sign Strategic MoU to Boost Telecommunications Cooperation
Elon Musk’s xAI Announces Landmark 500-Megawatt AI Data Center in Saudi Arabia
Israel Moves to Safeguard Regional Stability as F-35 Sales Debate Intensifies
Cardi B to Make Historic Saudi Arabia Debut at Soundstorm 2025 Festival
U.S. Democratic Lawmakers Raise National Security and Influence Concerns Over Paramount’s Hostile Bid for Warner Bros. Discovery
Hackers Are Hiding Malware in Open-Source Tools and IDE Extensions
Traveling to USA? Homeland Security moving toward requiring foreign travelers to share social media history
Wall Street Analysts Clash With Riyadh Over Saudi Arabia’s Deficit Outlook
Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Cement $1 Trillion-Plus Deals in High-Profile White House Summit
Saudi Arabia Opens Alcohol Sales to Wealthy Non-Muslim Residents Under New Access Rules
U.S.–Saudi Rethink Deepens — Washington Moves Ahead Without Linking Riyadh to Israel Normalisation
Saudi Arabia and Israel Deprioritise Diplomacy: Normalisation No Longer a Middle-East Priority
As Trump Deepens Ties with Saudi Arabia, Push for Israel Normalization Takes a Back Seat
Thai Food Village Debuts at Saudi Feast Food Festival 2025 Under Thai Commerce Minister Suphajee’s Lead
Saudi Arabia Sharpens Its Strategic Vision as Economic Transformation Enters New Phase
Saudi Arabia Projects $44 Billion Budget Shortfall in 2026 as Economy Rebalances
OPEC+ Unveils New Capacity-Based System to Anchor Future Oil Output Levels
Hong Kong Residents Mourn Victims as 1,500 People Relocated After Devastating Tower Fire
Saudi Arabia’s SAMAI Initiative Surpasses One-Million-Citizen Milestone in National AI Upskilling Drive
Saudi Arabia’s Specialty Coffee Market Set to Surge as Demand Soars and New Exhibition Drops in December
×