What are the ways a taxi company earns?
Five, each with a different split of risk between the company and its drivers.
- Driving its own cars: the company keeps the whole fare and pays every cost, including a driver's wages if it employs one.
- Commission: self-employed drivers keep the fare minus a percentage or a flat fee per job; the company earns only when cars are busy.
- Weekly rent: drivers pay a fixed amount for access to the company's work (and sometimes a car), whatever they earn; the company's income is steady, the driver carries quiet weeks.
- Accounts and contracts: businesses, schools and councils pay the company on invoice; it pays drivers their share.
- Airport, hotel and venue work: pre-booked transfers sold through partners, often at fixed prices.
Commission or rent: which suits a fleet?
Commission ties your income to how busy drivers are, which suits a new firm that cannot promise volume; rent gives predictable income but only works if drivers earn well above the rent. Many firms run both, a plan per driver.
TaxiDex commission and rent plans cover a percentage of each fare, a flat fee per job or a fixed weekly rent, with a preview of the split on any fare, and feed driver settlements.
Does the model change drivers' employment status?
It can. Employment status depends on how the work is really done, not on the label in a contract. In Uber BV v Aslam the UK Supreme Court unanimously held that the Uber drivers in that case were workers, entitled to the minimum wage and paid leave, so check your arrangement against the rules before you scale it.[1][2]
Where does account and contract money come from?
From businesses that want one monthly invoice, councils that buy school and social care transport, and hotels and airports that need reliable transfers. This work is booked ahead, which makes it easier to plan cars and drivers around.
See corporate accounts, school transport contracts and airport contracts.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a taxi company make?
There is no official average: it depends on fleet size, the model and local fares. Work it out for your own firm with the worksheet in is a taxi business profitable.
What is driver rent in a taxi firm?
A fixed weekly fee a self-employed driver pays the operator for access to its bookings, sometimes including a car, whatever the driver earns that week.
Sources
Fees and rules change. Each source is the official page we read, with the date we read it; check it before you apply or pay.
- [1] UK Supreme Court: Uber BV v Aslam [2021] UKSC 5, press summary (19 February 2021) (read 2 Nov 2026)
- [2] GOV.UK: Employment status (read 2 Nov 2026)