Drivers can now book garage and lot spaces using technology from the company’s SpotHero acquisition.
Uber launched a parking reservation feature called Uber Parking directly inside its smartphone app on Monday, letting users book spots in 15 initial cities. The tool sits on the main home screen alongside ride booking, car rentals and food delivery, CNET reported.
The service rolls out in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, DC. Uber acquired the parking reservation business SpotHero earlier this year to supply the underlying network, according to Engadget.
How booking a space works
Drivers using the tool tap a new Parking icon on the app’s home screen, type their destination, and choose a date and time. An interactive map displays available garages and surface lots nearby with prices shown upfront.
Users can filter results by self-parking or valet options, as well as amenities like re-entry privileges or on-site staff. Booking requires entering the vehicle’s make, model and license plate number, with payment taken from the driver’s Uber Wallet.
Drivers then receive an in-app parking pass. Depending on the facility, entrance uses either a QR code scan or automated license plate recognition. Reservations can be extended through the app if drivers stay longer, and Uber says most locations allow free cancellations before the booked start time.
Subscribers to the Uber One program, which costs $10 a month, receive 10% back in Uber credits on eligible completed parking reservations. Those credits apply to future rides or Uber Eats orders.
Why the parking push matters
The addition comes as Uber expands beyond ride-hailing into a broader transport and service platform that includes bike rentals, hotel reservations and grocery drop-offs. Amit Fulay, Uber’s vice president of product, described the feature as a natural step to help people get around.
“If we can bring that ease that we have for rides into the app, it fits with helping people move. It felt like a very natural extension,” Fulay said.
Uber also plans to connect the parking spaces with its self-driving vehicle operations. Working with more than 30 autonomous vehicle partners, the company says it will test using these lots as staging and waiting areas to reduce deadheading, traffic congestion, and wear on fleets.
Fulay noted the parking sites could also provide stopping space for delivery couriers working in dense areas where street parking is scarce.
What happens next
Uber says the SpotHero brand and standalone app will stay active, though drivers might see co-branding such as SpotHero by Uber on physical garage signs.
The company plans to expand Uber Parking from the initial 15 cities to more than 400 locations across the United States and Canada in the coming weeks and months, bringing more than 13,000 garages, lots and valet services onto the platform.
