A recent study conducted by Tsinghua University's School of Environment has released "Empirical Research on the Impact of New Energy Vehicles on the Ride-hailing Industry," concluding that electrification not only delivers significant environmental benefits but is also reshaping the industry's economic landscape. The research team also investigated platform commission rates and satisfaction levels, finding that the actual average monthly commission rate for all DiDi Global Inc. drivers was 15.3%, with 90% of drivers experiencing monthly commission rates below 20%. Additionally, 71.8% of drivers overestimated their actual commission rates in questionnaires.
The report indicates that this study was conducted from July to August this year, involving questionnaire surveys of 894 DiDi Global Inc. drivers, in-depth interviews with 31 drivers, and photographic documentation of "income reports" from 768 drivers with their permission. Among all surveyed drivers, approximately 49.0% had monthly average commission rates between 15%-20%, 24.6% had rates between 10%-15%, and 4% had negative commission rates. By combining actual passenger payments and driver earnings for all surveyed drivers across complete months, the calculated monthly average commission rate was 15.3%, slightly higher than DiDi Global Inc.'s published 14% average commission rate for all orders in 2024. Considering potential sampling bias, the data alignment is relatively close.
The survey revealed that 71.8% of DiDi Global Inc. drivers overestimated their commission rates. More than one-third of drivers mistakenly believed their monthly average commission exceeded 25%, but verification through photographic data showed that among 768 drivers, only one had a monthly average commission rate above 25%. The report suggests that most drivers' inflated perception of commission rates may stem from focusing more on individual order commissions rather than monthly statements, "loss aversion" psychology that makes high-commission orders more memorable while overlooking low-commission and negative-commission orders, insufficient understanding of platform transparency measures, or influence from misinformation. The report recommends that platforms should optimize information presentation to lower drivers' comprehension barriers.
In the survey, drivers generally considered 16%-20% to be the most reasonable commission rate range, while in reality, 89% of DiDi Global Inc. drivers had actual monthly average commission rates at or below this range.
The report also analyzed DiDi Global Inc. drivers' demographics and income situations. According to the survey sample, middle-aged individuals with high school education or below constitute the main driver group. The surveyed DiDi Global Inc. drivers had an average monthly income exceeding 8,000 yuan, though showing significant demographic and regional variations. Shanghai drivers had the highest average monthly income at 14,000 yuan, while Beijing and Shenzhen maintained levels around 10,000 yuan. However, smaller cities, constrained by market conditions and pricing levels, showed relatively lower incomes and more part-time characteristics.