Uber is acquiring parking reservation platform SpotHero, marking the ride-hailing giant's latest push to become a comprehensive mobility platform. The deal, announced Monday, will integrate SpotHero's parking inventory into Uber's app, letting users book parking spots at airports, event venues, and other locations alongside their rides and food orders. It's Uber's clearest signal yet that it views parking—a $30 billion US market—as the missing piece in its vision of owning the entire transportation experience from door to destination.
Uber just made parking part of the ride. The company's acquisition of SpotHero, announced Monday evening, brings reserved parking inventory directly into Uber's app—a strategic expansion that could reshape how millions of people think about the full journey, not just the drive.
The deal's financial terms weren't disclosed, but the strategic logic is clear. SpotHero has spent over a decade building relationships with parking operators, assembling a network of more than 8,000 facilities across North America. That's infrastructure Uber would've taken years to replicate on its own.
"We're building the operating system for everyday life," Uber has been telling investors for the past year, and parking represents a massive gap in that vision. Americans spend an estimated $30 billion annually on parking, with airport and event parking alone accounting for roughly a third of that spend. By folding SpotHero's inventory into its platform, Uber can now capture revenue from the moment a user plans a trip until they lock their car.
The initial rollout will target high-value scenarios: airports, concerts, sporting events, and other venues where parking headaches are predictable and users are willing to pay for convenience. Picture booking a Saturday night ride to a stadium concert and, in the same flow, reserving a parking spot for your own car when you drive there next week. That's the seamless experience Uber's betting will keep users inside its ecosystem.
has raised over $120 million since its 2011 launch, most recently at a valuation north of $300 million, according to PitchBook data. The Chicago-based startup had been profitable on an EBITDA basis and processing millions of transactions annually, making it an attractive acquisition target for platforms looking to expand beyond their core offerings.
