Comparison

Curb Driver vs Empower Driver

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Curb Driver

Earn money by driving with flexible hours and keep 100% of your tips. Get paid daily, weekly, or monthly. Access 24/7 live support and even drive without owning a car in select markets.

Highlights
  • Flexible driving hours
  • Keep 100% of tips
  • Daily, weekly, or monthly pay options
  • 24/7 live support
  • No car required (select markets)
  • Health and safety guidelines
Features
Read full description

Download Curb Driver, the app dedicated to a driver first experience. WHY CURB DRIVER? FLEXIBLE HOURS Driving with Curb Driver is an easy way to earn money whenever you want. Unlike other rideshare apps, we never deprioritize you when you’re driving with us. Take trips when and where you want them. HIGHER TIPS THAN OTHER APPS Passengers have a default setting in the app for tips — and you keep the whole amount. GET PAID DAILY We give you the flexibility to choose how often you want to be paid. Daily, weekly, or monthly. It’s up to your preferences. 24/7 LIVE SUPPORT We’re here to help if you need us — via chat in the app, phone, email, and in-person at our Driver Success buildings. HEALTH CONSCIOUS We abide by all local and federal laws regarding mask and sanitary guidelines. NO CAR NEEDED With Curb Driver, you don't need your own car to earn (available in select markets). We can help get you a car to drive. If you have any questions, please feel free to email driver_support@gocurb.com Curb Driver Driving forward, together. ___ For drivers, continued use of GPS running in the background can dramatically decrease battery life. By downloading the app, you agree to receive communications from Curb, including push notifications; and (ii) to allow Curb to collect your device's language settings. You can opt out of receiving push notifications through your device settings.

About

Empower Driver

This app connects passengers directly with drivers, offering a more sustainable income for drivers and potentially lower costs and customized rides for passengers. It bypasses large corporate platforms to facilitate direct transactions.

Highlights
  • Direct driver-passenger connection
  • Sustainable driver income
  • Less expensive rides
  • Customized transportation options
  • Bypass corporate middlemen
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

We started Empower to empower drivers who can’t make a sustainable living under the current rideshare model and to provide an alternative for passengers who want the convenience provided by on-demand transportation platforms, but prefer to support drivers, not the companies exploiting them. By removing the giant corporate middleman, Empower is able to do that, while enabling passengers to obtain less expensive and more customized transportation directly from drivers.

Screenshots

Curb Driver4 screens
Empower Driver3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Empower Driver at 61% against Curb Driver's 15%. Empower Driver also leads on rating (4.6 vs 3.7) and ads (none vs shown). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Empower Driver holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Empower Driver has 2.8K ratings behind it against 289, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 15% of Curb Driver's written reviews are positive against 61% of Empower Driver's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Curb Driver ships an update every 3 months, Empower Driver fortnightly. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Curb Driver versus Empower Driver: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCurb DriverEmpower Driver
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (289 ratings)4.6 (2.8K ratings) — better
Positive reviews15.2% of reviews61.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2892.8K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesAd-supported — better
Best chart rank—#139 — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.716.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size145 MB63 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCurb Mobility, LLCYazam Inc.

Customer experience

Curb Driver

All ratings236 ratings
Positive66.1%
Neutral4.2%
Negative29.7%
Written reviews33 reviews
Positive15.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative84.8%

Empower Driver

All ratings2,692 ratings
Positive88.6%
Neutral2.6%
Negative8.8%
Written reviews287 reviews
Positive61.3%
Neutral4.2%
Negative34.5%

User reviews

Curb Driver

From 289 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Good app (Alex Alexalex)
  • 👍 Available in New Jersey (Amaky2021)
  • 👍 Best driver app in Chicago (Snake3222)
  • 👍 Easy payment, paid every day (Snake3222)
  • 👍 Professional drivers (Snake3222)

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Invasion of privacy (SSN request)
  • 🐛 App doesn't open
  • 💰 Drivers' money stolen
  • 💰 Don't pay drivers
  • 🐛 App doesn't work

Empower Driver

From 2.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 💰 100% of fare kept by drivers
  • 🤝 Drivers set their own rates
  • 🚗 Flexible driving hours
  • 💳 Daily payouts from Stripe
  • 🔒 Gender-specific driver selection

Room to improve

  • ❌ Poor customer support
  • 🗺️ Inaccurate pickup/dropoff locations
  • 🚕 Unexpected number of passengers
  • 💰 Discrepancies between quoted and actual pay
  • 🔒 Safety concerns with unverified passengers

Bugs and requests

Curb Driver

Reported bugs

9 issues
  • App cannot be opened
  • App doesn't work, no rides appear
  • System won't take pictures to become a driver
  • Cannot upload driver's license
  • Errors in update: buzzing when offline, continuous ringing, partial addresses, background location tracking issues
Show 4 more
  • Cannot press on location, says too far
  • App lags, doesn't show trips
  • Missing payments
  • Dispatch fee deduction confusion

Requested features

2 requests
  • Add landscape mode and multi-window support
  • Waiting time countdown timer for cancellations reimbursement

Empower Driver

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Background check delays
  • App crashes and freezes
  • Inability to delete account

Requested features

4 requests
  • Destination mode to pick up riders along the way
  • Cancellation fees for riders
  • Cleanup fees for driver incidents
  • Improved GPS accuracy and navigation

In-app purchases

None

Curb Driver

No in-app purchases

None

Empower Driver

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Curb Driver free?
Curb Driver is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Empower Driver free?
Empower Driver is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Curb Driver or Empower Driver?
Empower Driver is rated higher. Curb Driver averages 3.7 out of 5 from 289 ratings, while Empower Driver averages 4.6 from 2.8K ratings.
Do Curb Driver or Empower Driver have ads?
Curb Driver shows ads; Empower Driver does not.
Which is updated more often, Curb Driver or Empower Driver?
Curb Driver ships an update every 3 months, and Empower Driver fortnightly. Most recently, Curb Driver was updated on October 24, 2026 and Empower Driver on October 24, 2026.

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