Renting an Electric Scooter: Everything you need to know

While Paris became the first capital in Europe to ban rental electric scooters as of September 1st 2023, here in the US, you have your choice of rideshare rentals available in dozens of U.S. cities, with Lime Scooters, Lyft, Bird, Bolt and Tier competing for market dominance.

Because of these electric scooter rental companies, you can rent and ride an e-scooter in almost every state of the U.S. for a fraction of the cost of regular commuting. Imagine: no more having to stand in line waiting for a ride share. Never again sniffing a stranger's sweaty armpit on an overcrowded subway.

To nip around town, you can simply rent an electric scooter through an app and zoom off into the sunset at a speedy 15mph.

Electric scooter rentals

Whether you're commuting to work, running errands, or just exploring your city, electric scooters are a great way to get around. They're easy to ride, environmentally friendly, and a lot of fun.

But before you hop on any electric scooter, there are a few things you need to know. Here's our ultimate electric scooter rental guide, with everything you need to know to get started.

How to rent an electric scooter

There are lots of electric scooter rental companies to choose from. Bird and Lime are two of the biggest names, but there are others such as Voi, Wind, Circ, TIER, Beam, Bunny and Swiftmile, each of which has slightly different processes to rent their scooters.

To rent electric scooters, most electric scooter rental companies use a mobile app. You download the app, create an account, and enter your payment information. Then, use the app to find a scooter near you. Once you've found one, scan the QR code on the scooter to unlock it.

To give you an idea of how easy it is to rent an e scooter and start riding:

How to rent a Bird Scooter

• Download the Bird app.
• Login using your email address - if you don't have an account, you can easily create one.
• The app's map will show you all available scooters nearby (called Birds).
• Zoom in for further information about each scooter, such as the battery charge etc.
• Add your credit card to the app if you haven't already done so (Settings > Payments).
• Find an e-scooter near you, tap the button on the app to unlock it.
• Photograph the scooter's QR code via the app to unlock the scooter.
• If it's your first ride, you'll need to scan your driver's license to prove your age.
• To begin scooting, kick off three times, then press the throttle button.
• You accelerate with your right hand and brake with your left.
• When you've finished scooting, simply park the scooter sensibly and avoid blocking public pathways. You need to ensure you park your scooter in a Bird designated area, otherwise you will be fined.
• To end rental, again, open the app, and tap the button to lock the scooter again.
• You'll be given a receipt of your ride time, cost and range travelled.

How to rent Lime Scooters

• Download the Lime app for iOS or Android.
• Login using your email address - if you don't have an account, you can easily create one.
• The app's map will show you all available scooters nearby (called Lime-S).
• Zoom in for further information about each scooter, such as the battery charge etc.
• Add your credit card to the app if you haven't already done so (Profile > Wallet).
• Find an available scooter near you, tap the button on the app to unlock it.
• Photograph the scooter's QR code via the app to unlock it.
• If it's your first ride, you'll need to scan your driver's license to prove your age.
• To begin scooting, hop on the scooter, kick off and press the throttle button.
• You accelerate with your right hand and brake with your left.
• When you've finished scooting, simply park the scooter sensibly and avoid blocking public pathways. You'll need to park up in a Lime scooter designated area, otherwise you will be fined for dropping the scooter in the red zone.
• To end rental, again, open the app, and tap the button to lock the scooter again.
• You'll be given a receipt of your ride time, cost and range travelled.

Where can you ride an electric scooter

The rules on where you can ride an electric scooter vary by city. Some cities have designated scooter lanes, while others allow scooters to be ridden on bike lanes and roads. Be sure to check the local laws before you rent a scooter.

The vast majority of rental companies will have up to date information for the city you're in, for where you can and can't ride your rental. But, bear in mind, because rules and regulations are constantly being updated, it's best to do your homework so you understand what you can and can't do.

As a general rule, you usually won't be allowed to ride on sidewalks and walkways. You'll be encouraged to scoot in bike lanes or on the actual street alongside cars and electric bikes.

How much does it cost to rent an electric scooter

The cost to rent an electric scooter varies depending on the company and the city. Most companies charge a flat fee per ride, plus a per-minute fee.

To put a figure on it, the starting price of owning a decent electric scooter is $1000, whereas electric scooter rentals can be hired for as little as $1 an hour, and 15+ cents per minute thereafter. Meaning a two mile commute will take you roughly 10 minutes, but will only cost you $3. Less than the price of a bus ticket, and probably a quarter of the time.

For example:

• It'll cost you $1 plus 25 cents per minute to rent a Lime electric scooter - it used to be 15 cents per minute, but this has increased recently by 68%.
• It'll cost you $1 plus 15 cents per minute to rent a Bird electric scooter.

Then, when you're done, you simply park up the scooter in a public place - you don't need to take it inside with you or plug it in to charge. You just leave it on the street, preferably somewhere that doesn't block traffic, and get on with your day.

How long does an electric scooter battery last

The battery life of an electric scooter varies depending on the model and the riding conditions. Most scooters have a range of 15-25 miles on a single charge. Each scooter will of course differ based on how much charge the battery has, the condition of the rental scooter, and how heavy you are, to name a few factors.

Who charges the rental electric scooters?

For rental companies such as Lime or Bird, at the end of each day, as the battery power fades, a team of freelance chargers scour the streets for abandoned depleted scooters (with the help of an app which highlights fading scooters). These freelancers take them home, plug them in and charge them up overnight ready to be placed back on the sidewalk, fully charged the next day, ready for another busy day's e-scooting.

What is the speed limit on a rental scooter?

Most cities have implemented a maximum speed limit of 15 miles per hour, and in order to ensure customers adhere to this, rental companies have limited their scooters to this speed, or slightly below:

• Bird: 15 mph (24kph)
• Lime: 14.8 mph (23.8kph)

If you ride on heavily populated city streets, expect speed limits to be even lower. Some rental companies have even programmed their scooters to automatically slow down if they enter these areas.

How hygienic are shared electric scooters?

Worried about catching something from the previous rider of your shared electric scooter? Don't be.

Thanks to the pandemic, scooter rental companies had to step up their cleaning and sanitizing processes. Cleaning crews are on the street disinfecting scooters after rides.

One scooter rental company has even been trialling remote-controlled autonomous scooter technology in a bid to improve their sanitization program. Go X e-scooters, equipped with Tortoise technology, sends scooters, remotely, to a cleaning hub after each ride.

A cleaning crew disinfects the scooter and then sends it back out onto the street, ready to be rented again.

Pros and cons of renting vs owning electric scooters

If you've fallen in love with electric scooters, or you're in desperate need of a commuting alternative to sitting in traffic for an hour. Should you invest in your own electric scooter, or keep renting?

Pros of renting an electric scooter

• You don't have to worry about where to park the scooter when you get to your destination. Simply park in a safe, convenient location - don't block the sidewalk, and leave the scooter to be picked up.
• If you live in a big city, there will usually be an electric scooter nearby to rent.
• Renting an electric scooter in the short term is infinitely more cost effective than owning one.
• Registering is quick and easy and only required once.
• The cost to rent an electric scooter is minimal in comparison to owning one. For example, if you only need to nip across town, a 10 minute journey, it's going to cost you a couple of dollars to rent a scooter vs $1000 minimum outlay to buy a decent one.
• You aren't responsible for maintenance costs. You simply pay to ride.
• You don't need to worry about charging the e-scooter, it's the rental electric scooter company's responsibility to keep their rental scooters charged up.
• Once you've stopped riding, you don't have any further responsibilities for the scooter. If it's stolen or damaged the second you log off, it's not your problem.

Cons of renting an electric scooter

• If you regularly commute on an electric scooter, the costs soon add up. Meaning it works out cheaper to buy your own e scooter in the long run as it'll be cheaper to run per mile over the lifetime of the scooter if you own it.
• Rental scooters are not the top of the line range, nor are they representative of a decent scooting experience. They're standard scooters with the sole purpose to transport you from A to B as cheaply and efficiently as possible. What they're not designed to do is give you the ride of your life. Nor will they allow you to experience the authentic ride of a modern electric scooter.

Pros of owning an electric scooter

• When you own your own electric scooter, it's all yours baby. No one else gets to ride it. You don't have to share it with anyone.
• Convenience of having a ride whenever and wherever you want it.
• Customize yours as you see fit.
• You know exactly what condition your electric scooter is in. When people rent property, they don't always take good care of it. When it's yours, you'll take care of it.
• It's always available, unlike rental electric scooters.
• You'll likely have the requisite safety gear to ride your e-scooter safely. When you rent an electric scooter you have to rent the helmet too, and who knows what state that's in.
• It's better for the environment. Think about it. You look after your own stuff much more diligently than you would something you rent. Meaning most rental scooters only have a life span of between 28 days to 9 month. At the end of their rental life, they typically end up in landfill because it costs too much to repair them and recycling isn't easy. Privately owned e-scooters on the other hand can last for years.

Cons of owning an electric scooter

• It's an expensive outlay upfront. And there's no point going for the cheapest option you can find, as the saying goes - buy cheap, buy twice. You don't need to fork out for the top of the range electric scooter, for example, you can buy a high quality model such as the Unagi Model One starting at $790. If that's still out of reach, you can always lease one starting at an affordable $59 per month.

Unagi subscription model

You want to commute to work on an e-scooter, but you don't want to spend a fortune on monthly rentals? Yet you also can't afford to buy a Unagi Model One outright?

We've got you covered.

Why not lease your scooter instead?

What now?

That's right.

Unagi doesn't rent scooters, you either buy one or take out a scooter subscription. This means you pay a monthly fee starting from just $59, to have private access to an Unagi scooter. The subscription includes all maintenance and repairs, so you don't have to worry about anything.

Here's how it works:

• You select and customize your Unagi Model One. You marvel at the unrivalled combination of power, agility and style.
• We ship your e-scooter directly to your door.
• You begin scooting within 72 hours of ordering your electric scooter.
• We provide you a replacement scooter to keep you scooting if you should experience any issues with your leased scooter.
• You get full insurance coverage protecting your scooter against any damage, with optional add-on insurance coverage for theft.
• If you decide to cancel your Unagi subscription, you can do so at any time, you aren't tied into a contract. You simply return the scooter.

It's a no brainer.

Electric scooters: the fun and convenient way to get around town

Whether you're team rent, or team subscribe, electric scooters are a great way to get around town. But, if you always want to have a scooter available, if you don't want to worry about maintenance or repairs, and if you want to save money on costly rentals (a subscription can be cheaper than renting a scooter each time), then consider an all access subscription from Unagi.