Frequently asked questions about carpooling

Ride-Share is a Swiss carpooling platform. Drivers offer their free seats, passengers book online and pay securely with TWINT or credit card. The platform is available in four languages (German, French, Italian, English) and covers all of Switzerland.

The fare is set by the driver. As a guideline, the platform recommends CHF 0.12 per kilometre, CHF 0.09 beyond 35 kilometres and CHF 0.07 beyond 100 – Bern–Zurich (125 km) therefore costs around CHF 12. On top of that there is a service fee of 8% + CHF 0.30 per booking, payment fees included – CHF 13.26 in total. The search always shows you this final price per seat.

In most cases, yes. Ride-Share only charges a service fee of 8% + CHF 0.30, payment fees included – typically around 10% of the fare. Other carpooling platforms often charge 10–25% booking fees, and a standard train ticket often costs several times more: Bern–Zurich costs CHF 13.26 in total with Ride-Share versus approx. CHF 52 by train (2nd class without Half Fare card). See the price comparison below.

You pay directly when booking, with TWINT or credit card via the payment provider Stripe. No cash needed in the car – the driver receives the money after the ride.

Yes. When you book, you choose TWINT or credit card; payment runs through the payment provider Stripe. On a computer you scan a QR code with the TWINT app, on your phone you switch straight to the app. Both cost the same: the payment fees are included in the service fee, there is no extra charge.

Yes, at any time. If you cancel more than 5 hours before departure, the full fare is refunded; only the service fee is retained. Within 5 hours of departure, an additional 20% of the fare is retained. If the driver cancels the ride, you get a full refund including the service fee.

If the driver cancels the ride beforehand, you automatically get the full amount back, service fee included. If the driver doesn't turn up at the meeting point, first get in touch through the chat or by phone – once your booking is paid, the number is shown with your ride if the driver has added one. If the ride still doesn't happen, choose “Report a problem” for this ride under Profile › Bookings; you can do this from the departure time until 48 hours after the planned arrival. This stops the payout: the driver gets nothing until we have looked into your report. If it turns out that the ride didn't take place, we refund the full amount, service fee included. A driver who doesn't carry out a booked ride without cancelling it can be suspended.

Yes. If the driver has added intermediate stops, you can book any segment and only pay for that part.

Yes, for free. Below the results of any search with a departure or destination, you create a ride alert – for the searched day or for any day (for 90 days). On the home page you can also post a ride request directly. As soon as someone offers a matching ride, you get an email and an in-app notification. Drivers see an alert with a departure and a destination under “Requested rides”, without your name, and can offer you the ride directly. Your alerts are under Profile › Bookings › Alerts, and every email contains a link to delete the alert.

Nothing. Registration is free, there is no subscription and no fixed costs. Fees only apply when you actually book a ride.

With automatic payout (Stripe) you receive 95% of the fare – the platform keeps 5%. With a manual payout via TWINT it is 85%, via bank transfer 80%. Stripe pays the balance out to your bank account daily once it reaches at least CHF 5; smaller amounts stay in the Stripe account until then. On request via the contact form, we pay out balances below CHF 5 by TWINT or bank transfer; the share of that payout method then applies (85% or 80% of the fare). Ride-Share is meant as cost sharing: the suggested price covers fuel and wear, no more. On longer routes the rate per kilometre drops (to CHF 0.09 beyond 35 km, to CHF 0.07 beyond 100 km). The recommended price depends only on the distance, not on how many seats you offer – so an empty seat never makes the ride cheaper.

You set the price yourself; the platform suggests a price that covers fuel and wear (CHF 0.12 per kilometre, CHF 0.09 beyond 35 km, CHF 0.07 beyond 100 km). There is a firm upper limit, though: the fares of all seats offered may together not exceed the cost of the vehicle, which Ride-Share takes from the TCS kilometre costs (full-cost calculation 2026: CHF 0.74 per kilometre). With 3 seats, one seat may therefore cost at most a third of that, CHF 30.50 for Bern–Zurich (125 km). The platform does not accept a higher price. The suggested price is far below that; only on very short rides or with many seats would it be higher – the platform then suggests the maximum price instead.

In Switzerland, a shared ride is private cost sharing as long as the fares do not exceed the cost of the vehicle – above that, it can count as professional passenger transport (Art. 3 para. 1bis ARV 2), which requires a special permit. That is why Ride-Share does not accept prices above the vehicle costs, and commercial or professional passenger transport via the platform is not allowed (Terms & Conditions).

Register for free, enter your ride with departure, destination, date and price – the platform automatically suggests a fair price. You can also add intermediate stops so passengers can book partial routes.

Yes. “Requested rides” (linked on the home page and under Profile › My rides) lists every ride request and alert with a departure and a destination – with the day and the number of seats, without names. “Offer this ride” opens the form with the route and day already filled in. As soon as you publish the ride, everyone looking for it whose search it fits gets an email right away with a link to book it directly.

Yes. Female drivers can choose “Women-only” when posting a ride. Such a ride is marked “Women only” in the search results and can only be booked by members who have entered “Female” as their gender in their profile.

Anyone who wants to offer or book a ride has to confirm their email address first. Before you book, the driver's profile shows the ratings from earlier passengers (1 to 5 stars), the car and how long the account has existed. Other members only see your first name and the initial of your last name, never your email address; you only get the driver's phone number once your booking is paid. Payment goes through the platform – no cash involved. The driver is only paid after the ride – if something goes wrong, “Report a problem” stops the payout. Female drivers can offer women-only rides, and anyone who breaks the rules can be banned.