RUNGig driver playbook · TX
Driving in Austin
Austin is a college town + tech hub + festival capital. The earnings calendar is spiky — SXSW, ACL, F1, UT football. Drivers who plan around the calendar out-earn drivers who don't.
Population
975k city · 2.4M metro
Uber avg/hr
$22–28/hr
DoorDash avg/hr
$19–24/hr
Best hours to drive in Austin
Thu–Sat 8pm–2:30am
Worst window: Mon–Tue daytime
Austin surge hotspots
- 6th Street (Thu–Sat is a goldmine)
- Rainey Street
- South Congress
- East Austin
- Domain shopping district
Airport strategy
AUS (Austin-Bergstrom) — fast queue, big trips during SXSW/F1
Recurring surge events
UT Longhorn home games (massive)ACL Festival (Oct)SXSW (Mar) — biggest cash week of the yearF1 USGP (Oct)Formula 1 weekend
Taxes for TX drivers
No TX state income tax. SXSW + ACL + F1 weeks = your annual cash crunch — drive 80 hours those weeks and you set the year.
Run the TX tax calculator →Weather watch
Heat dome summers — heat advisories drop riders into Ubers. July is surprisingly good for drivers willing to run AC.
Drive in Austin? Get on the MyRunner waitlist.
MyRunner launches city by city. Drop your email and we'll text you the moment Austin goes live — plus send your first gear drop free.