Tablet Ads in Uber Cars: What NYC Drivers Earn

In short: Drivers with an approved advertising tablet in their for-hire car earned about $33 a month on average from it between May 2025 and January 2026, according to TLC's first Interior Advertising Provider Report (March 2026). About 4,700 to 4,900 drivers had one each month. The law guarantees drivers at least 25% of the gross ad revenue from the tablet in their car, and only one company — T-Mobile (Octopus Interactive) — is licensed.

So far, a tablet adds roughly a dollar a day. The rest of this page shows the monthly numbers, the rules that protect you, and what the data does not show.

The numbers at a glance

Month by month

TLC found the lowest share paid to any driver was 25%, as the law requires, and that "many records (in some months nearly half) showed driver compensation exceeding gross revenue" — possibly bonuses to attract drivers. TLC decided not to recommend changing the 25% minimum "at this time."

The 25% rule and other protections

New York City Local Laws 33 and 56 of 2024 created the license; TLC's rules took effect March 6, 2025 (Sub-chapter 59E of the Chapter 59 rule book). The parts that protect drivers:

• At least 25% of the gross revenue generated by the system in your car (§59E-15(c)). The provider may not subtract fees — card processing, installation, rental, repair, deposits, taxes and more — before working out your share, and may not deduct time the tablet was muted during your shift.
• Paid at least weekly, at no cost to you, no later than two weeks after the ads ran.
• A receipt for every payment (§59E-16(g)) and a written contract you sign before installation, plus free training (§59E-16(b)–(c)).
• Leaving: either side can end the contract on 10 days' written notice; removal is free (§59E-17(c)).
• No retaliation for a good-faith complaint (§59E-17(h)).
• The provider must reimburse fines caused by a tablet malfunction, unless the failure was caused by you, by misuse, or by something outside the provider's control (§59E-16(d)).

Rules for the device itself

Under §59E-22, passengers must be able to turn the screen off and mute it at any time; screens must remind riders about tipping the driver; at least 15% of ad airtime is TLC content; there is no web browser or payment function; and only one approved tablet may run in a car. You may only touch it while stopped, except a single-touch or voice on/off.

Should you install one? The facts

• Money: about $33 a month on average so far, or roughly $1 a day. For scale, app trips paid drivers about $64 per hour with a passenger in TLC trip records over the same period — so a month of tablet pay is close to half an hour of engaged driving time.

• Choice: there is one licensed provider, so you cannot compare offers yet.
• Exit: 10 days' notice and free removal.

Nothing in this page is a recommendation; the decision is yours.

Definition: interior advertising provider. Your main income: Uber and Lyft earnings, how much Uber drivers make and do Uber drivers earn minimum wage?. Other extras: WAV pay, paid sick leave and Social Security credits. Tablets are allowed only in for-hire vehicles; app cars are licensed as black cars, so taxi drivers are not covered by these rules. Hub: money.