Did You Know That There’s An Iranian Version of Uber?

Uber
image: wikicommons

Uber is a great way to hail a ride from your mobile device. Kim, Lucas and I have used the app in various countries (as long as we have a WiFi connection).

There’s one country where Uber doesn’t operate- Iran.

CNN writes that, with Uber locked out of the Iran for the foreseeable future due to U.S. sanctions, a startup called Snapp is looking to be a big player among ride-hailing apps.

Snapp aka “Iranian Uber” which started in 2014 is available on both iOS and Android. There’s also a version for the Apple watch. It should do well in Iran considering the city Tehran has “five times as many taxis as New York“.

Over the past year, the amount of rides on Snapp have grow by 70% on average. The app also has around 120,000 active users.

Just like Uber, there are different services offered. An interesting one is called Snapp Rose which caters to woman and families by sending female drivers for them.

No bargaining and going back and forth over the cost of a ride is allowed in the app. To pay for a ride, passengers either need to pay cash or use an ATM from an Iranian bank. (Sanctions have “left the country with few links to international banking and no credit card network“.)

Drivers for Snapp make pretty decent money. Many cannot find work so they drive making around $900 per month which is more than the average salary in Iraq.

Snapp is currently available in four cities in Iran with more on the way.

Find out more about Snapp from CNN Tech here.

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