10 Ride-Hailing Apps Competing for North Africa’s Riders

North Africa is rapidly emerging as one of the world’s most dynamic and fiercely contested battlegrounds for mobility platforms. With a young, tech-savvy population and explosive urban demand, the region has attracted a powerful mix of global giants and local champions vying for supremacy on the roads.

The stakes are enormous. According to recent market analysis, Africa’s entire ride-hailing market is valued at USD 2.53 B in 2025, with projections climbing toward USD 3.16 B by 2030, according to Mordor Intelligence. North Africa sits as one of the major drivers of this growth, a high-stakes environment where mobile apps, competitive pricing, and the promise of convenience are turning a simple car journey into a daily contest for customer loyalty.

At the core of this market conflict are two powerful factions: the international behemoths leveraging global recognition and deep venture capital pockets, and the regional innovators who have mastered the art of local regulatory navigation and cultural relevance.

Below is a breakdown of the 10 leading players shaping this fascinating and fraught competition

The Global and Regional Players Battling for North African Roads

1. YASSIR

No conversation about North African mobility can begin without Algerian-born ‘super app’ Yassir. Meaning “easy” in Arabic, Yassir remains the true regional champion, successfully scaling from its 2017 origins in Algiers. It is one of the most valued startups in North Africa, having raised a total of over USD 190 M.

Yassir’s success is rooted in local fluency. It adapted to cash-heavy economies early, designed driver onboarding around local compliance rules, and built trust through responsive customer service in Arabic and French. Beyond rides, Yassir has become a “super app” ecosystem integrating deliveries, groceries, and mobile payments.

In Morocco and Tunisia, Yassir has positioned itself as the “homegrown” alternative to Western brands, offering lower fees for drivers and flexible pricing models for riders. It has become a key player for middle-class professionals, students, and gig workers seeking affordable, locally run mobility options.

Today, it boasts over 8 million users and more than 100,000 drivers across 45 cities in six countries, including Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia.

By positioning itself as both a transport service and an ecosystem for payments and errands, Yassir has managed to challenge global giants and localize what Uber and Careem once promised the region but never fully delivered.

2. UBER

Uber remains the ubiquitous, global brand, with its North African operations, particularly in Egypt and Morocco, acting as crucial hubs for its wider Middle East and Africa strategy. The company’s entry in 2014 catalyzed the entire industry, forcing local startups to elevate their tech, pricing, and safety standards.

While present in a number of North African countries, Egypt is Uber’s most significant market in the region, where it continues to drive millions of rides monthly across major cities like Cairo and Alexandria. The platform dominates the premium and mid-tier ride segments and is heavily used for work commutes and airport transfers.

However, outside of Egypt, the brand has struggled to replicate that dominance, constrained by regulations in Morocco and resistance in Algeria. Still, its app remains a benchmark when locals describe ride-hailing.

Its primary strength is its established technological stack and brand credibility. Critically, its landmark USD 3.1 B acquisition of Careem gives it an unparalleled view of the regional competitive landscape by controlling the top two brands in key markets.

3. BOLT

Challenging Uber’s dominance is Bolt, the aggressive Estonian competitor. Bolt has made Africa a priority, and its hyper-aggressive expansion into Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt is characterized by a low-cost strategy designed to undercut the competition.

Bolt’s model is explicitly designed to undercut the competition by offering lower commission rates to drivers (often between 15%-20%) and lower fares to riders, positioning itself as the everyday, affordable option. This has helped it secure quick traction among price-sensitive users and gig drivers frustrated with high platform fees elsewhere.

Its operations in Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt are expanding rapidly. In Casablanca and Rabat, Bolt is now among the top two most used ride-hailing apps, known for its affordability and aggressive promotions. In Tunisia, it’s one of the few foreign apps that managed to gain real traction, with high adoption among younger riders. In Egypt, Bolt competes head-to-head with Uber in Cairo’s urban sprawl, often undercutting it by 10–20%.

While Bolt doesn’t yet dominate any single North African country, its steady rise signals a shift toward affordability-driven loyalty, rather than pure brand prestige.

4. CAREEM

Before anyone else, Careem made ride-hailing mainstream across much of the Middle East and North Africa. Founded in Dubai, Careem entered Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia years before Uber’s acquisition in 2020. Its early advantage was cultural alignment; Arabic-language support, cash payment options, and an operational understanding of local cities.

In Egypt, Careem remains one of the most recognizable mobility brands, serving millions of riders monthly. It has managed to hold on to its loyal base by maintaining local driver networks and launching side services like Careem Pay and Careem Food.

Careem’s tone is distinctly more regional and community-focused than Uber’s global voice. Its communications and marketing lean into local pride, emphasizing reliability and safety. In Morocco, Careem has built a smaller but solid market presence, primarily in Casablanca.

Now operating as a semi-independent “super app” under Uber’s ownership, Careem is expanding beyond rides to integrate payments, deliveries, and even public transport connections.

5. IN-DRIVE

Originally founded in Russia and now headquartered in the US, inDrive has made a significant impact across North Africa, particularly in Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, thanks to its peer-to-peer fare negotiation model.

This revolutionary business model, where the rider proposes a fare, and drivers can accept, decline, or counteroffer, has proven wildly popular in North Africa, where bargaining is part of everyday life.

InDrive’s model brought a major disruption to the standard algorithmic pricing, directly challenging the core profit mechanism that other competitors use. In Egypt, inDrive has surged among younger users and gig drivers frustrated with algorithmic pricing and surge fares. It is also gaining massive popularity across North Africa and more broadly across Africa.

Its negotiation model, unconventional elsewhere, strongly appeals to the local culture of haggling and offers transparency and perceived fairness, which are major counter-arguments to the centralized pricing of Uber and Bolt.

6. DIDI

China’s ride-hailing titan, DiDi, made its first North African move in Egypt, targeting a market that blends scale with complexity. Cairo, a megacity of over 20 million residents, was the obvious launchpad. DiDi rolled out operations in Hurghada, Suez, and Port Said, gradually expanding beyond the capital to coastal and secondary cities often underserved by Uber or Bolt.

DiDi’s strategy in Egypt has been clear from the start: affordability and driver-first economics. The app launched with lower commission rates and frequent driver bonuses to quickly secure supply. Promotions aimed at riders, often offering discounted fares for new users, helped DiDi gain quick visibility.

It’s still a challenger brand, far behind Uber in overall volume, but its focus on smaller cities could give it a foothold others have neglected. Currently only operational in Egypt, the company’s next move is expected to be Morocco, where app-based mobility is growing quickly but still fragmented outside Casablanca. If DiDi can replicate its Egyptian playbook, it could become a quiet but steady third force across the region.

Its overall North African strategy is to leverage this immense financial resource and technological expertise to offer a compelling, affordable alternative.

7. HEETCH 🇫🇷

Heetch, founded in France, has carved out a strong niche in the Maghreb, particularly in Morocco and Algeria, where its blend of technology and local partnership has allowed it to thrive where others stumbled.

Initially launched as a late-night, social ride-sharing app, Heetch evolved into a fully regulated VTC platform, working closely with licensed taxi drivers and private chauffeurs. This hybrid model helps it navigate strict regulations that have tripped up global competitors.

In Morocco, Heetch is now one of the top three most used ride-hailing platforms, operating in Casablanca, Rabat, and Marrakech. In Algeria, it maintains a smaller but loyal base, especially among younger riders who view Heetch as approachable and community-oriented.

Heetch’s strength lies in its proximity to the street. Its operations teams are local, its app interface is bilingual (French and Arabic), and its brand messaging feels conversational and relatable. Rather than chasing massive scale, Heetch focuses on building trust and loyalty, an approach that gives it staying power in a market prone to volatility and regulation swings.

8. YANGO

Russian tech company Yandex runs Yango, one of the most technologically advanced ride-hailing apps active in Morocco and Tunisia. Yango’s edge comes from its engineering-first DNA

Yango’s strength is its advanced IT, including efficient mapping and sophisticated routing algorithms to minimize trip cost and maximize driver income. Its strategic focus on technology-driven efficiency makes it a powerful challenger in operational excellence, often outperforming competitors in pickup precision and estimated arrival times.

In Morocco, Yango has grown into a top-tier player alongside Bolt and Careem, especially in Casablanca and Rabat. Riders are drawn to its clean interface, consistent pricing, and transparent fare breakdowns. The app’s efficiency also helps drivers complete more trips per hour, improving their earnings and retention.

Yango’s model depends on local fleet partnerships rather than direct driver management, which reduces friction and helps it adapt quickly to local regulations. Its presence in Tunisia is smaller but growing, and the company’s broader strategy across Africa positions North Africa as a cornerstone of its regional expansion.

9. SWVL

Cairo-born Swvl stands apart from every other company on this list. It’s not a ride-hailing service in the traditional sense; it’s a digital mass-transit platform designed to tackle the chaos of North African commutes.

Instead of cars, Swvl operates app-booked minibuses and vans along fixed or dynamic routes. Its model helps thousands of commuters get to work or university daily, offering rides up to 60% cheaper than Uber or Careem. For Cairo’s congested roads, it’s an alternative that saves both money and time.

Swvl’s routes are algorithmically optimized to cover dense corridors like Nasr City, Giza, and Heliopolis, and the company continues to expand to mid-sized cities where informal microbuses dominate. Its success has also influenced policy discussions about public transport modernization in Egypt.

Though Swvl doesn’t compete directly with car-hailing apps, its dominance in shared mobility means it occupies a parallel, and massive, part of the same market.

10. iTAXI

Completing the landscape is iTAXI, another Algerian platform that takes a more traditional route, connecting users to licensed taxis through a minimalist, functional app that strips out the complexity of tiered pricing or driver bidding systems.

Operating primarily in Algiers, Oran, and Constantine, iTAXI has become a trusted service among older demographics, families, and professionals who prefer regulated, predictable fares. Its average ride price, between USD 2 and 4, aligns with official taxi rates, allowing it to avoid the legal controversies that plagued other platforms.

While it doesn’t boast the scale of Yassir or Bolt, iTAXI fills a vital niche: digitizing the traditional taxi sector without disrupting it. By maintaining compliance and focusing on reliability, iTAXI is helping bridge the gap between legacy transport systems and modern digital platforms

North Africa’s ride-hailing market is as diverse as its cities. Egypt remains the region’s core engine, dominated by Uber, Bolt, and inDrive, while Algeria is led by Yassir and iTAXI. In Morocco and Tunisia, Bolt, Heetch, and Yango are engaged in an aggressive three-way race for user loyalty.

The key differentiator across all markets isn’t just technology, it’s local adaptation. Apps that understand local language, pricing expectations, and payment realities outperform global giants every time. Super apps like Yassir and Careem are embedding themselves into daily life, while new models like inDrive and Swvl prove there’s more than one path to success in African mobility.

As competition deepens, North Africa’s ride-hailing evolution will hinge on three things: trust, localization, and affordability.