It’s been a very different year for Kiwis – and as a result we’ve seen trends across the Uber platform that nobody could have forecast this time 12 months ago.

Rather than trying to predict what the next year might deliver – we focused on some of our favourite, and most heart warming stats of 2020. 

  1. The busiest night for Uber trips was Halloween in both Auckland and Wellington – which was also the day the All Blacks crushed Australia 43 – 5. Christchurch preferred a different sport though – their busiest day fell on Riccarton Cup Race Day in November.  Back before lockdown, the prize for most Uber trips in one day was 14 (on February 23). 
  2. In paw-some news, companionship was made easier this year with the launch of Uber Pet in March. In fact the Southern Hemisphere’s top Uber Pet rider hails from Auckland, taking 157 Pet trips in 2020!
  3. While we were socially distanced, we still connected with loved ones who were far away using Uber Eats’ Share My Delivery feature which people used to send their loved ones a meal no matter where they were on the planet. A Wellington local made the longest delivery, sending love in the form of food all the way to London (18,801 kms). An Aucklander ordered to Lausanne in Switzerland (18,548 kms), while another order originating in Hamilton went all the way to Zurich (18,845 kms). One Queenstown local sent some food love to Baton Rouge (13, 807 kms), while Palmerston North sent a lucky Memphis resident a meal (12,761kms). 
  4. We couldn’t fly, but we travelled with our taste-buds. The Americas owned the top two spots with North American cuisine and Mexican topping the list of Kiwi’s favourite flavours. In fact, tacos nearly doubled in popularity against the same time last year.
  5. Healthy food continued to breakthrough in popularity though – with searches for kale, quinoa, bowls, acai, tahini, and charcoal all skyrocketing in popularity in 2020.
  6. Positivity was pumping in 2020, with two Uber riders (one in Auckland and one in Wellington) each giving 347 compliments to drivers.
  7. Excellent service was appreciated by all with Aotearoa’s most complimented driver averaging almost 11 five star-ratings a day over 2020! 
  8. Earlier in the year people from 73 different countries discovered local restaurants via the Uber Eats app.
  9. With more virtual meetings, the country stayed connected with contactless caffeine delivery. With an increase in people working from home we noticed a sharp incline in the consumption of caffeine, with coffee orders (and wakefulness) rising by almost 33%. 
  10. People in Hamilton were burning the midnight oil, clocking up the highest percentage of orders placed between 10pm and 2am on Uber Eats. At the other end of the spectrum, Aucklanders took the early riser crown, with the highest percentage of Uber Eats orders between 5am and 10am.