Lyft Q4 Earnings Call Highlights

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) executives used the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings call to highlight accelerating growth, record profitability, and progress against longer-term targets, while outlining priorities spanning international expansion, partnerships, higher-value ride offerings, advertising, and autonomous vehicles (AVs).

Management also shared an Investor Relations leadership change at the outset of the call. Aurélien Auffret is leaving the company after accepting a new role, and Erin Rome, who joined Lyft’s IR team in September 2024, will step in as head of Investor Relations.

Q4 and full-year operating highlights

CEO David Risher said fourth-quarter performance included “accelerated gross bookings growth and record profitability,” closing out what he described as “another incredible year” with 51.3 million riders taking 946 million rides.

Risher cited several year-over-year metrics as evidence of momentum, including 19% gross bookings growth that “accelerated,” 18% active rider growth, and what he called Lyft’s “most profitable quarter ever.” He also noted the company “printed over $1 billion in cash” during the quarter and said driver hours reached a new record for the 12th consecutive quarter.

Risher framed the year’s accomplishments as extending beyond core rideshare, pointing to product and partnership launches, expansion “into Europe and into the world of chauffeuring,” and positioning Lyft “in the center of the trillion-dollar autonomous vehicle revolution.” He reiterated Lyft’s 2027 goals introduced at its 2024 Investor Day: $25 billion in gross bookings, 4% adjusted EBITDA margin, and free cash flow of over $1 billion.

Growth priorities: Europe, partnerships, higher-value modes, and ads

Asked what drove volume and user growth and what Lyft is focused on next, Risher repeatedly emphasized “customer obsession” and argued that the rides market remains underpenetrated. He compared the company’s current scale to what he characterized as a far larger addressable opportunity in the U.S. and Europe, saying the market is “5% penetrated” by his simplified example, leaving “an enormous amount of headroom.”

Among the company’s key growth vectors, Risher pointed to:

• Europe, including Lyft’s acquisition of FREENOW and plans to apply marketplace improvements developed in the U.S. and Canada to European operations.
• Partnerships, including DoorDash, which he called Lyft’s “most successful partnership ever,” and United MileagePlus, which he said was only “a couple of months old” but had generated 115 million miles earned on Lyft as of the call. He also cited Bilt and Chase as additional examples.
• Margin expansion through higher-value offerings, including Lyft’s move “up market,” the TBR acquisition, and what he said were “high-margin modes” growing 50% year-over-year.
• Lyft Ads, which he said reached a $100 million run-rate exit rate exiting Q4, highlighting campaigns on bikes and vehicles as examples of new brand formats.

Risher also noted Lyft launched Lyft Teen, describing it as a way for teens to travel independently with safety emphasized.

Q1 outlook, profitability dynamics, and promotions

On first-quarter guidance, CFO Erin Brewer said Lyft’s outlook for accelerating gross bookings growth is supported by a “very healthy” marketplace with “fast ETAs,” continued growth across markets, rapid growth in higher-value modes, and the inclusion of FREENOW.

On margins, Brewer said Lyft is “right where we need to be overall,” and cautioned that last year’s first quarter included “a favorable non-recurring item.” She said that absent that, Lyft expects “really strong profit growth year over year” and said the company feels “set up well” heading into 2026.

Management also addressed competitive and promotional activity during Q4. Risher said Lyft remains focused on “top line and bottom line” discipline and does not “get tempted to buy the marginal ride that’s maybe not profitable.” He said promotional activity was “a little unexpected” but described Lyft as resilient. Brewer added that heightened promotions were “weighted a little bit toward the back half of the quarter,” mainly “across the lower end,” and called the effects temporary with no lingering impacts.

Risher also pointed to operational performance around the Super Bowl as an example of marketplace improvements, saying Lyft delivered about 15% more rides year-over-year with about 20% lower surge pricing and improved pickup times.

Autonomous vehicles, Flexdrive, and the “hybrid network” view

Risher and Brewer spent significant time on AV strategy, repeatedly emphasizing that Lyft expects a hybrid network—combining human drivers and AVs—to be the dominant model. Risher argued AV-only networks would struggle with large swings in demand and use cases that still benefit from a driver, such as luggage help. He also said AVs are “not going to be material in 2026” financially, but should expand rideshare’s total addressable market and, over time, lower costs.

Discussing the cost equation, Risher said that by around 2030—after the technology is proven—Lyft expects AVs could deliver roughly a 20% cost savings per mile versus today’s model, citing the absence of driver pay and potential reductions in insurance costs as safety data accumulates. Brewer said Lyft believes Flexdrive, its fleet management capability, can enhance efficiency further through scale experience, rideshare-specific fleet optimization software, and fewer intermediaries. She suggested that in a 2030 scenario, Lyft could potentially “drive improvement on top of” the 20% differential, to “24%, 25%.”

Risher addressed questions about the pace of AV partnerships, arguing Lyft’s approach is intentionally selective and operationally driven rather than designed for announcements. He also said the limiting factor today is the small number of AV suppliers operating at scale with proven safety, adding that more supply should come online toward 2030 as investment and technology development continue.

Taxis, FREENOW progress, California insurance reform, and loyalty initiatives

Risher said Lyft has begun “welcoming taxis onto the platform” in three cities—St. Louis, Los Angeles, and San Francisco—as a supply lever with quality controls. He added that taxis are “a very big part” of many European cities, and said FREENOW’s expertise in regulated taxi markets can help Lyft expand globally and build relationships with regulators.

Brewer said Lyft has seen positive marketplace health improvements at FREENOW, including collaboration on conversion and lower driver cancellations, which she said are “the lowest they’ve been in years.” She also said Lyft previously communicated an exit rate of about EUR 1 billion in 2025 going into 2026 and stated the company is “right on track.”

Brewer also discussed California insurance reform that took effect on January 1, calling it “common sense reform” and a “win-win-win.” She said Lyft is already passing through “a good amount” of savings to riders, varying by market, and expects the demand impact to become more noticeable in the back half of the year as riders experience and recognize lower prices.

On loyalty, Risher said Lyft’s foundation is service quality, citing a “31-point advantage” in driver preference and a record level of retained riders in Q4. He highlighted two programs: Lyft’s business rewards program, where activations were said to be up 26% year-over-year, and a pilot Lyft Cash Rewards program that offers cashback based on prepaid amounts and may include additional ride benefits at higher levels. He said Lyft is increasing focus on loyalty programming but did not provide a detailed roadmap.

In closing remarks, Risher said Lyft is “super excited for another strong year” and reiterated that the company continues to track toward its 2027 goals.

About Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT)

Lyft, Inc (NASDAQ: LYFT) operates a peer-to-peer ridesharing platform that connects passengers with drivers through a mobile application. Since its founding in 2012, the company has expanded beyond traditional ride-hailing to include bike and electric scooter rentals, while also offering rental cars and public transit options in select markets. Lyft’s platform uses GPS mapping and dynamic pricing algorithms to optimize driver-passenger matches and route efficiency.

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Lyft primarily serves urban and suburban markets across the United States and Canada.