You will finally be able to tip your Uber driver

(Image credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

If you live in Seattle, Houston, and Minneapolis, you will now be able to tip your Uber driver through the ride-hailing app, the company announced Tuesday. The rest of the country will be able to tip drivers on the app by the end of July.

The decision breaks with Uber's longstanding decision to not add a way for passengers to tip their drivers, setting the app apart from other ride-hailing companies like Lyft. The new policy, part of Uber's "180 days of meaningful changes and improvements," comes amid widespread backlash to the company over multiple questionable and concerning practices.

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"Why now?" Uber rhetorically asked in its announcement. "Because it's the right thing to do, it's long overdue, and there's no time like the present. This is just the beginning. We know there's a long road ahead, but we won't stop until we get there."

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.