After choosing to become female drivers, this is what they said.

Regain Control of the Steering Wheel

At 5:10, before the alarm went off, Wang Suya was already awake. She had to cook breakfast for her husband and herself before going out to drive at around 6 a.m. They rented a room of about ten square meters with a monthly rent of 1,300 yuan.

In 2012, Wang Suya and her husband came from their hometown in Henan to the big city to make a living. They opened a Jun porcelain shop and could earn tens of thousands of yuan a month when business was good. However, in 2017, her husband suddenly fell ill and went blind. They had to close the shop, and almost all the hundreds of thousands of yuan they had saved from business were spent on medical expenses.

After that, in order to prepare a wedding room for their son, Wang Suya took out her meager savings and borrowed money from relatives and friends to scrape together the down payment. To relieve the financial pressure and have time to take care of her husband, in 2019, she registered as a Didi driver and started driving a ride-hailing car.

Like Wang Suya, Chen Peixin, a 49-year-old from Zhejiang, also experienced setbacks before driving for Didi. In 2001, Chen Peixin came to Shenzhen alone to seek opportunities. At first, she saved some money by selling MP3s and MP4s, but later, due to poor management of a restaurant, she lost all her savings.

After closing the restaurant, Chen Peixin got married and had two children. During the years when she devoted herself to her family, she often worried about being out of touch with society. She thought about going back to work, but it was difficult to balance family and work.

By chance, when taking a taxi, Chen Peixin was inspired by the driver. She realized that becoming a Didi driver was the most suitable choice for her at the moment rather than finding a regular office job. "Shenzhen is a city of struggle. I can drive, and I want to have another go while I'm still young."

Chen Peixin is participating in a chainsaw cutting rescue skills training.

In order to better balance family and life, more and more female drivers like Chen Peixin are joining Didi. The "2026 Didi Global Digital Mobility Female Ecosystem Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report") shows that "flexible working hours" and "stable income source" are the primary reasons for female drivers to choose to join Didi. Nearly 70% of female ride-hailing drivers believe that driving for Didi "improves their lives".

Lin Lichun, a 47-year-old single mother from Nanping, Fujian, has been driving for Didi for eight years. She said that before becoming a ride-hailing driver, her life was all about taking care of her child and helping her father with tea business. To change her life, she started driving for Didi.

Qing Xianping, a 43-year-old ride-hailing driver in Chengdu, joined Didi in 2021. Before that, she had worked as a liquor salesperson, a pastry chef in a bakery and a hotel. As she got older, she was often rejected when looking for a job. After trying various jobs, Qing Xianping found that driving a ride-hailing car was the most suitable for her. "I can earn money and have time to take care of my family."

In Didi's survey, when asked "What do Didi female drivers think of themselves?", 76.4% of female drivers chose "earning money by their own ability, independent and confident". The Report also shows that in first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, the income levels of male and female active ride-hailing drivers have basically become the same.

Qing Xianping at the 2026 Didi "International Women's Day" "Her D Power" Driver Open Day event.

Wang Suya is a good example. In six years, she has figured out a set of "order-taking secrets". She not only knows many areas well but also knows the off-work times of many companies. "For example, in Internet companies, there are often 'big orders' at night."

Now, having grasped the rules, she can maintain a stable income. Wang Suya said that among the more than sixty drivers in her team, she, at the age of 51, always ranks among the top three in terms of income.

They Illuminate Each Other

Over the years of being Didi drivers, they have encountered all kinds of passengers.

Once, Chen Peixin picked up a girl in a low mood. The girl cried all the way because of postpartum depression. She didn't dare to interrupt. After the crying subsided, she handed the girl a tissue and patiently listened to what had happened. Before she could offer any comfort, the girl's husband called to apologize, and they soon made up. "As a woman in marriage, I can really empathize. Sometimes, just listening is a kind of support."

In addition to being a wife, as a mother and a daughter, she often chats with female passengers about parenting and taking care of the elderly. Once, a passenger was so excited during the chat that she wanted to give Chen Peixin a box of oranges when getting off the car. After repeated refusals, the passenger still grabbed a big handful of oranges for her.

Wang Suya has had many heartwarming experiences. What impressed her most was that a tourist from another place accidentally spilled pear soup on the car. The tourist was nervous and apologetic. She quickly handed over a tissue and comforted the tourist that it was okay. After the tourist got off the car, she received a red envelope of 18.8 yuan as a thank-you. Besides feeling warm, Wang Suya also had a little regret. "I wish I could have sent a thank-you message to the tourist."

Lin Lichun's home is near Wuyi Mountain, and she often picks up passengers coming from other places for sightseeing. "At night, the mountain roads are pitch-dark, and there are no street lights for dozens of kilometers." Once, she picked up a girl who was going to climb the mountain alone at 4:30 a.m. Lin Lichun taught the girl to turn on the flashlight when climbing and repeatedly told her that there were many snakes in the mountains. She warned the girl not to step on soft ground and not to walk into the grass.

As a tea lover, she often keeps Dahongpao tea in the car and gives a few packs to passengers. She recalled that she has become much gentler since becoming a Didi driver. "I used to get angry easily, but now I can put myself in others' shoes, be more tolerant, and take things more lightly."

Lin Lichun at the 2025 Didi "International Women's Day" "Her D Power" Driver Open Day event.

The "female-friendly" relationship between drivers and passengers is not only reflected in these moments. In August 2024, Didi's "Optional Female Driver" feature was launched in some cities. After the launch, female passengers use this feature most often in scenarios such as traveling at night, in the suburbs, at transportation hubs, or with children. Lin Lichun said that after this feature was launched, she often receives female passengers' orders at night, which makes her feel more at ease.

In March 2025, Didi conducted a survey among female drivers. The results showed that 70.9% of female drivers hoped to be matched with more female passengers in order allocation.

In November of the same year, the "Optional Female Driver" feature was upgraded to the "Female-Friendly Program". Not only can female passengers set their preference to "prioritize calling female drivers" more precisely, but female drivers can also choose to join or quit the "prioritize picking up female passengers" option and take orders more flexibly. Thanks to this feature, the sense of security of female drivers and passengers and their satisfaction with the platform have been further improved.

Drive Towards a Bright Future

Wang Suya has really felt that her life is getting better little by little. Looking back on the days when her husband first went blind, Wang Suya described it as the "darkest moment". She had to take care of her husband and bear all the family expenses.

In 2023, Wang Suya got to know Didi's public welfare program through Didi's barrier-free travel orders and encouraged her husband to participate in the "Life Reconstruction Training Camp for Late-Blind People" jointly organized by Didi's public welfare program and the China Blind Association to rebuild his life. However, the good times didn't last long. Her husband was later diagnosed with end-stage uremia, and the high medical expenses dealt another catastrophic blow to the couple.

After learning about this situation, Didi's public welfare program immediately initiated the rescue process of the Didi Care Public Welfare Rescue Project and allocated a large amount of serious illness relief funds to Wang Suya's family.

Now, her husband's condition is stable, and his mood has also improved significantly. "He can wash clothes, do the dishes, and tidy up the house by himself. He has also learned to use the screen-reading software on his phone, so he can take a taxi, post on Moments, and watch live broadcasts by himself."

Previously, Wang Suya always worried about her husband and would call home during breaks from driving. Now, seeing that her husband has a full and busy life, Wang Suya can focus more on driving. "Most of the mortgage has been paid off, and there is more hope for the future."

Wang Suya is accompanying her husband to soak up the sun and chat.

For Chen Peixin, after becoming a Didi driver, she feels that there is so much to learn. "You have to know a little about everything to have a smooth chat with passengers."

During the super typhoon in Shenzhen in September 2025, as a member of the "Didi Public Welfare Rescue" team, Chen Peixin signed up for volunteer service and cleared roadblocks with the rescue team. When she put down the tools, her hands were shaking.

In recent years, whenever there is an opportunity, she will learn various skills. She has obtained the AHA (American Heart Association) first-aid certificate and the water inflatable boat operation certificate. In her words, she hopes to do more meaningful things. Now, she plans to learn psychology knowledge. "So when passengers pour out their troubles, I'll know how to comfort them."

Qing Xianping has also found a new plan while driving for Didi. In the past, she was often so busy that she forgot to eat. Sometimes when driving to the suburbs, she couldn't find anything to eat. When she came across boxed lunches sold by street vendors, most of the time, the taste was bad. They could only fill her stomach at most.

So Qing Xianping has always wanted to open a 24-hour noodle shop. "It's specifically for Didi drivers, so they can have a hot meal whenever they come." She said that the shop doesn't need to be very big, about twenty or thirty square meters, but the location must be easy to park and not congested. "The prices should be affordable, and the food should taste good. Drivers can use the toilet, have a chat, and wash their faces with hot water."

Before the just-passed "International Women's Day", Qing Xianping participated in the "Her D Wish" Didi Female Driver Care Survey and wrote down her wish to open a noodle shop. To her surprise, Didi noticed this wish and arranged for her to be an apprentice in a noodle shop in Chengdu for a day. She found that things were not as easy as she expected, but she said she wouldn't give up and would continue to work towards her dream step by step.

Qing Xianping experiences being an "apprentice" in a noodle shop for a day.

Like Qing Xianping, female drivers from more than 50 cities such as Wuhan, Huizhou, and Shenyang have recently gathered under Didi's organization to exchange experiences and suggestions on driving, share their "amazing" moments, and talk about their recent wishes.

Over the years, through organizing the "Her D Power" Female Driver Open Day, Didi has collected many suggestions from the female perspective on the relationship between drivers and passengers. For example, many drivers talked about the sense of security when taking orders at night or encountering drunk passengers. Some are concerned about the fairness of the platform's judgment in service disputes, and some hope that the platform will further consider the preferences of female drivers in order allocation.

After hearing these feedbacks and expectations, Didi recently officially launched the "Female Driver Care Program". In addition to ensuring the safety of female drivers and providing various activities and benefits, it has also piloted a special stable score right for female drivers' word-of-mouth value in more than a hundred cities. For example, when a female driver is unable to drive due to menstrual discomfort, she can rest assured with the stable score guarantee.

The scene of the Didi "International Women's Day" "Her D Power" Driver Open Day event.

As Sun Shu, CEO of Didi's ride-hailing platform company and Director of the Driver Ecosystem Development Committee, said, "What Didi connects is the trust between people. And female drivers are a very warm part of this trust. On the way for drivers to work hard and fulfill their wishes, Didi is a solid supporter."

Qing Xianping, who has fulfilled her "apprentice" wish, said that if she really opens a noodle shop in the future, she will continue to drive