Why Riders Love Favourite Drivers – And How It Builds Loyalty

In the evolving world of mobility services delivered via a ride-hailing app or ride-sharing app, one of the most powerful yet under-leveraged features is the concept of a “favourite driver.” When riders develop a preference for a particular driver, the entire experience changes. It becomes more predictable, more comfortable, more trusted. For an Uber Clone or a white label taxi booking app, harnessing this dynamic can significantly enhance user retention, differentiate the brand, and reduce churn.

A taxi app development company, or a white-label taxi app development company that builds the favourite-driver feature into the user journey, stands to gain in competitive markets.

In this blog, we delve into why riders gravitate to their favourite drivers, how that builds loyalty, the practical mechanisms that support it, the challenges it faces, and how your ride-hailing or e-hailing app can implement it effectively.

What motivates riders to prefer favourite drivers?

Riders often choose a particular driver repeatedly because the experience goes beyond just the basic pickup and drop-off. Several motivational drivers (no pun intended) exist:

Enhanced comfort and reduced anxiety

When a rider uses the same driver regularly, they know what to expect: driving style, vehicle cleanliness, chat level, and comfort level. That familiarity reduces anxiety. In the context of ride-hailing apps, unknown drivers can lead to unpredictable behaviour. A favourite driver eliminates many unknowns. That sense of “I know what this ride will be like” matters especially for recurring commutes, airport transfers, or rides at odd hours. For a ride-sharing app or e-hailing app pursuing repeat users, offering a way to select or flag favourite drivers satisfies that psychological need.

Trust and perceived service quality

Studies have shown that perceived service quality and value for money influence passenger satisfaction, which in turn influences loyalty. When riders repeatedly choose the same driver, it signals that they trust that driver’s performance. A favourite driver becomes a heuristic for quality, including less risk, fewer surprises. In the context of a white label taxi booking app, enabling riders to mark drivers as favourites gives them more agency and increases perceived quality.

Personalisation and user-centric service

A favourite driver feature supports personalisation. The rider’s preferences (quiet ride, conversation, AC level) can be learned and delivered. Over time, the driver knows the rider’s preferences and can anticipate them. That kind of personalised touch turns a simple ride into a more bespoke service. For an Uber Clone built by a taxi app development company, embedding such personalisation can differentiate the app from commodity alternatives.

Reduced cognitive load and friction

Booking a ride is a moment of decision. If a rider knows they can pick a driver they like, they skip some of the decision anxiety (should I wait 10 mins, is the driver good, will the car be clean?). The favourite-driver feature reduces friction in the user journey. That improves conversion for the ride-hailing app and increases the chance the user will ride rather than postpone or choose a competitor.

Emotional connection and loyalty reinforcement

Human beings like to form relationships. Even in transactional settings like rides, familiarity and predictability foster comfort. Riders feel more loyal to a driver they prefer, and, through them, to the platform that enabled that driver's access. A ride-sharing app or e-hailing app that allows favourite-driver relationships taps into this emotional dimension of loyalty.

How does favourite-driver preference contribute to loyalty?

Understanding how preferences flow into loyalty is critical for a taxi app development company or a white-label taxi app development company seeking to design this feature into the system.

Increased repeat usage

When a rider has a favourite driver, they are more likely to reuse the service rather than switch platforms. The habit factor strengthens. The ride-hailing app becomes their “go-to” because the experience is familiar. Over time, the rider’s lifetime value rises because they stay active longer.

Reduced churn and reduced switching

As per research, customers in ride-sharing are already prone to switching between platforms. For example, one study found that about one-third of Americans who used both major ride-sharing platforms accounted for a large share of revenue, indicating users are not loyal. By contrast, enabling favourite driver matching gives your e-hailing app a moat: riders are less likely to switch when they know they’ll lose their preferred driver. This helps reduce churn.

Premium pricing and differentiated service

When favourite-driver relationships exist, platforms can optionally build premium tiers: “Book your favourite driver” or “Reserve your preferred driver” at a slight surcharge. The rider sees value in being matched with someone they like. A ride sharing app or white label taxi booking app that offers this can generate additional revenue and build a higher-tier loyalty segment.

Word-of-mouth referrals and advocacy

When riders repeatedly have excellent experiences with a favourite driver and the platform enables that, they’re more likely to recommend the platform. The positive driver-rider relationship becomes a topic of discussion. That peer referral helps growth. Loyalty drives advocacy. For your Uber Clone solution designed by a taxi app development company, this becomes a growth lever.

Data-driven insights and lifetime loyalty

Favourite-driver matching enables the platform to gather richer preference data: which drivers riders prefer, why, at what times, and what kinds of rides. The ride-hailing app can then tailor offers, reminder prompts, and push notifications to bring users back. Over time, this enriches the platform’s loyalty ecosystem and increases total user value.

What features should a ride-hailing / ride-sharing app include to support favourite-driver functionality?

For a white-label taxi booking app (or Uber Clone) built by a taxi app development company or a white-label taxi app development company, the following design features are important.

Favourite driver toggle or flag

Allow the rider to mark a driver as “Favourite” after the ride. In the user profile/rides history section, show a “Star this driver” or “Add to favourites” option. This simple flag becomes the foundation for matching logic in the ride-hailing app.

Priority matching for favourite drivers

When the user logs a ride request (immediate or scheduled), the system should attempt to match them with a favourite driver if that driver is available nearby. If unavailable, fall back to standard dispatch. This gives the rider confidence that the favourite driver option works, reinforcing loyalty.

Scheduling favourite drivers

In the case of scheduled rides (airport pickups, airport drop-offs, business rides), allow the rider to reserve their favourite driver in advance. This is especially relevant in a ride sharing app or e-hailing app targeting business or recurring commute segments. The favourite driver becomes part of planning, increasing user trust in your platform.

Visibility of favourite driver availability

When the rider selects their favourite driver, the app should show that driver’s profile, recent rating, ETA, and maybe a note about their typical style (for example: “Quiet ride,” “Chatsome driver,” “Premium car”). This transparency increases trust and reinforces the preference.

Incentives for drivers to accept favourite-rider matches

The system should encourage drivers to accept rides from riders who have marked them as favourites. Perhaps show them as high-value or premium requests. This ensures alignment of incentives (the driver picks up the favourite rider, and the rider gets the favourite driver). For a taxi app development company, designing driver incentives is a key part of the architecture.

Analytics Dashboard

Include analytics to track favourite-driver usage: percentage of rides done with favourites, retention of riders with favourite driver compared to those without, incremental revenue from favourite driver matches. The ride-hailing app team needs to compute the ROI of the favourite-driver feature. A white label taxi app development company should provide this analytics module.

UX Flow Integration

Ensure the favourite-driver feature is seamlessly integrated into the rider flow. After the ride ends, prompt the rider: “Would you like to mark this driver as a favourite?” In the next ride, preselect the favourite driver option. The UI must make it easy and obvious. In your Uber Clone design, this small friction-reduction makes a big difference in adoption.

What do market studies and research tell us about preferences, loyalty and ride-sharing behaviour?

While there is limited public data specific only to favourite-driver features, broader research on app-based ride-sharing loyalty provides strong insights.

Service quality and loyalty correlation

A study on app-based ride-sharing services in Bangladesh found that perceived quality and value for money significantly influence passenger satisfaction, which in turn has a direct and significant relationship with passenger loyalty. The path model indicated passenger satisfaction was influenced by perceived quality (β = 0.456) and value for money (β = 0.418), while the satisfaction → loyalty path was β = 0.644. That suggests strong underlying behaviour: when riders feel good about the service, they repeat and become loyal.

User preferences matter in matching

A 2024 study exploring user preferences in ride-sharing found that considering passenger preferences in matching algorithms leads to higher user satisfaction, reduced response times, and increased demand and revenue. Favourite-driver capability is a form of user-preference-driven matching. The research reinforces that giving users what they prefer (including driver choice) improves system performance.

Loyalty remains elusive without differentiation

Another article pointed out that in the U.S., ride-sharing customers were increasingly switching between major platforms. That suggests that commoditised ride-hailing, where riders treat all drivers the same, leads to weak loyalty. By contrast, building differentiation via favourite drivers helps anchor users to your platform.

Growing market size reinforces need for retention

The global ride-sharing market (or ride-hailing/e-hailing app market) is rapidly expanding. In such a high-growth, high-competition market, features that enhance loyalty (like favourite drivers) are increasingly strategic for a ride-hailing app or ride-sharing app.

Why your Uber Clone or white label taxi booking app must include favourite-driver capability now

If you are building a ride hailing app, ride sharing app, or e-hailing app using a white label taxi booking app or hiring a taxi app development company, here is why adding favourite-driver matching should be high priority.

Differentiation in a crowded market

As more platforms launch Uber Clone solutions or white label taxi app offerings, the fight for user mind-share becomes harder. The favourite-driver feature offers a non-price differentiation. Your ride-hailing app can market “Ride with drivers you trust” rather than just “lowest fare.” A white-label taxi booking app with this built-in gives you a marketing advantage.

Higher user lifetime value (LTV) and lower acquisition cost

Acquiring new riders is expensive. Retaining existing riders is cheaper and more profitable. When riders repeatedly use the platform because they like their favourite driver, the LTV goes up. For a taxi app development company, your architecture must support features that increase retention and thus boost ROI.

Better driver-rider alignment and fewer cancellations

When a rider is matched with a driver they prefer, cancellations and ride failures reduce. Drivers know the rider already and may accept quickly. This improves efficiency and lowers operational costs in the ride-sharing app. That means fewer lost rides, higher completion rates, and better metrics for your Uber Clone.

Premium service opportunities

Favourite-driver matching opens possibilities for upsell: premium cars, scheduled rides with favourite driver, corporate contracts. The ride-hailing app that offers “Your driver, always” or “Book your favourite driver ahead” positions itself as higher-value. That helps monetisation.

Data-rich insights and segmentation

Riders who use favourite-drivers represent a high-engagement segment. The platform can track their behaviours, preferences, ride times, and zones. This data helps create segmentation, offers, and loyalty programmes. A white label taxi app development company can embed analytics modules to capitalise on this.

Platform-wide network effects

When drivers know that certain riders prefer them, they may perform better, leading to higher ratings, more rides, and greater loyalty. The favourite-driver feature thus creates a virtuous cycle of quality. Better-quality leads lead to better retention, which improves the health of your ride-hailing app's marketplace.

What operational and development considerations must a taxi app development company address?

Building favourite-driver features is not simply UI toggles. For a ride-sharing app or e-hailing app, several operational and technical factors must be managed.

Matching algorithm changes

The dispatch engine must incorporate favourite-driver logic. When a ride request is made, the system should first attempt to match the rider with an available favourite driver nearby. That means building a preference ranking and availability check. The taxi app development company must ensure this doesn’t degrade dispatch performance.

Driver availability and fairness

Drivers marked as favourites will get preferential matching. That raises fairness concerns for other riders and drivers. The system must balance favourites with other pickups so that the platform remains equitable and efficient. The ride-hailing app logic should include fallback assignments if the favourite driver is busy.

Scheduling favourite-driver rides

If the favourite driver is allowed for future scheduling (e.g., airport transfer), the system must reserve that driver’s time slot, handle cancellations, driver refusal, and compensation. The white-label taxi app development company must implement scheduling logic, driver commitments, and cancellation rules accordingly.

Incentive alignment

Drivers may need incentives to accept favourite-rider matches and maintain high quality for those riders. The system must track metrics and, perhaps, provide bonuses for high-rated rider-driver pairs. A ride-sharing app needs to build such driver-reward modules.

Data privacy and preference management

Storing and managing rider preferences (driver IDs, history) demands data security, user consent, and transparency. The taxi app development company must ensure compliance with relevant data protection laws.

Analytics and measurement

Implement dashboards and tracking for favourite-driver usage: how often riders select favourite drivers, retention improvement, cancellation/drop-off rates, revenue uplift. These metrics help the ride-hailing app iterate and improve the favourite-driver offering.

UX and rider communication

The favourite-driver feature must be clearly communicated: when booking, show the “Choose your favourite driver” option or “Ride again with driver Ali”. After rides, invite riders to mark the driver as favorite. The user journey must seamlessly integrate this feature without adding friction. A white label taxi booking app designed by the development company must pay particular attention to this UX.

What are the potential challenges, and how can you mitigate them?

While the favourite-driver feature offers many benefits, it also introduces risks. It is vital for your Uber Clone or ride-hailing app to address them.

Over-reliance on favourite drivers causes a supply imbalance

If too many riders request the same favourite driver and that driver is at capacity, other riders may face delays or cancellations. Mitigate by limiting the number of favourite-rider bookings a driver can accept within a timeframe and promoting alternate favourite drivers.

Driver dissatisfaction or burnout

Favourite-rider drivers may feel pressured or limited in flexibility. It is important to allow drivers to opt in/out of favourite-rider matches and manage their availability. The taxi app development company should include driver-side settings to handle this.

Rider disappointment if the favorite driver is unavailable

If the favourite driver is busy/unavailable, riders may feel let down if the system falls back silently. The ride-sharing app must notify riders that their favorite is unavailable and provide alternate options, and perhaps give a loyalty bonus or discount to maintain trust.

Complexity in matching logic and priority weighting

The dispatch system becomes more complex: balancing driver preferences, proximity, driver ratings, and supply and demand. The taxi app development company must thoroughly test the algorithm to avoid performance bottlenecks or mismatches.

Data storage and driver-rider matching ethics

The platform must ensure that favourite-driver matching doesn’t inadvertently create bias or discriminatory patterns. The ride-hailing app must evaluate the driver-rider pairings for fairness.

How to launch and scale favourite-driver feature effectively in your white label taxi booking app

For a successful implementation and rollout in your ride-sharing app or e-hailing app, here’s a recommended roadmap.

Phase 1: Pilot with high-frequency riders

Begin by selecting riders with 10+ rides and forming a pilot group. Enable favourite-driver marking only for those users. Monitor metrics compared to non-favourite riders for retention, ride frequency, cancellation. This helps test the feature before full roll-out.

Phase 2: Expand to full user base

Once pilot results show uplift, roll out the feature to all users. Add UI elements in the booking flow, ride history, and driver profiles for marking favourites. For your Uber Clone or white label taxi booking app, make the feature highly visible but not intrusive.

Phase 3: Monetise and integrate loyalty programmes

Add a loyalty module: “Ride with your favourite driver 5 times; get next ride free” or “VIP favourite driver subscription.” The ride-hailing app can upsell this. The taxi app development company should integrate a loyalty engine.

Phase 4: Analytics, iterate and optimize

Track KPIs: repeat rate of favourite-rider pairs, incremental revenue, cancellation rates, driver utilisation. Use A/B testing to refine UI, pricing, and incentives. Expand scheduling favourite driver for airport rides and corporate clients.

Phase 5: Marketing and brand positioning

Promote the feature as part of your brand: “Your driver. Your ride.” “Ride with drivers you trust.” This positioning helps differentiate your white label taxi app. Communicate via in-app banners, push notifications, and driver notifications.

Also Read: Refer & Earn: How to Turn Every Rider into a Brand Ambassador

Why choose Appicial Applications as your partner for building favourite-driver features in your Uber Clone?

When you decide to build a ride-hailing app, ride-sharing app, e-hailing app, or adopt a white-label taxi booking app, partnering with the right taxi app development company or white-label taxi app development company matters. Here’s why you should consider Appicial Applications:

Domain expertise and deep mobility understanding

Appicial Applications has worked on multiple Uber clones and white label taxi booking app projects. We understand the intricacies of ride-hailing app architecture, driver-rider matching, scheduling, loyalty modules, and favourite-driver features.

End-to-end delivery and ownership

We provide full-stack development, backend architecture, mobile UI/UX, analytics dashboards, driver modules, and rider modules. You get a complete Uber Clone solution with favourite-driver capability built in. We act as your white label taxi app development company and give you code ownership.

Scalable, modular architecture

Our approach supports modular features like “Favourite Driver”, “Schedule Ride”, “Loyalty Engine”, and “Driver Incentive Module”. You can launch quickly, test, iterate and scale. Your ride-sharing app grows sustainably.

Analytics and optimisation built in

We include analytics dashboards and KPI tracking so you can measure usage of favourite-driver functionality, retention uplift, and revenue impact. This is vital for informed decision-making.

Support and ongoing iteration

Post-launch, we support optimisations, feature enhancements, driver-rider behaviour monitoring, and help you iterate. As your e-hailing app evolves, favourite-driver features become part of your retention engine.

Ready to build a ride-hailing app or ride-sharing app with a powerful favourite-driver feature? Contact Appicial Applications today for a consultation. Let us help you launch your Uber Clone or white label taxi booking app and embed favorite driver capability to enhance rider loyalty and drive growth.

Conclusion

In the competitive landscape of ride-hailing, ride-sharing, and e-hailing apps, building true loyalty among riders is challenging. Most users shop around, compare fares and hop between services. But when you offer a favourite driver experience, when riders can choose drivers they trust, you create a meaningful differentiator. Favourite-driver features tap into comfort, trust, personalisation, and emotional connection. They drive increased repeat usage, reduced churn, higher lifetime value, and better operational efficiency for your platform.

From a development standpoint, implementing favourite-driver capability requires careful matching logic, driver incentives, scheduling integration, analytics and UX design. A capable taxi app development company or white label taxi app development company must build this as part of your core ride-hailing or ride-sharing app ecosystem. By partnering with Appicial Applications, you can implement this effectively and gain a competitive edge.

Don’t let your platform become a commodity. Stand out by letting riders ride with drivers they love. Reach out to Appicial Applications now and let’s build your future mobility business together.

Author's Bio

Vinay Jain

Vinay Jain is the Founder at Grepix Infotech and brings over 12 years of entrepreneurial experience. His focus revolves around software & business development and customer satisfaction.