What happens after you press the button.
What happens between opening the app and arriving, and how the money moves behind it.
Six steps, and what Topsy is doing in each
-
You set a route
Pickup and destination, plus any stops. Both ends are picked from suggestions so they carry real coordinates, which is what the distance and the fare are measured from.
-
Every option on that route is priced together
Rather than choosing a vehicle and then discovering the price, you see each ride class priced for your exact route at once, with how many people it seats. The quote is held for ten minutes while you decide, and re-priced in front of you if it lapses.
-
Topsy looks for a driver
For an immediate trip that search starts at once. For a scheduled one it starts ten minutes before your pickup time, so the driver you get is one who is genuinely nearby then, rather than one who committed hours earlier and has since moved.
-
A driver accepts, and you get their details
Name, photo, vehicle and number plate, before they arrive. Drivers see the job before accepting, which is why a long or awkward trip is offered rather than imposed.
-
A PIN starts the trip
A four-digit PIN has to match before the trip begins. It is a small thing that answers the question that actually matters at a busy kerb: is this the right car.
-
The trip is tracked, then settled
The route is followed live and can be shared with someone who has no Topsy account. At the end the fare settles by your chosen method and the receipt lands in your trip history.
How a fare is built, and who gets what
A Topsy fare is calculated from the route, not negotiated at the roadside. Distance and time are the base; the ride class you choose applies a multiplier; stops are added; a promo code or loyalty points come off the total.
Topsy takes a commission from the fare, and the rest is the driver's earnings. Both figures are visible: drivers see their earning on every trip and their history in the app, and riders see the fare before booking and the receipt afterwards.
- Paying
- Cash, Topsy Wallet, card through Paystack, or Mobile Money, depending on what is switched on for your account.
- Business travel
- Charged to the company account instead, with department, cost centre and approval rules applied before the trip is allowed.
- Cancelling
- Free before a driver is on the way. A scheduled trip only searches ten minutes ahead, so there is a long window where cancelling costs nothing.
- Refunds
- A cancelled trip that was already paid for is refunded rather than left as a credit to chase.
What a driver signs up to
- Documents and vehicle details are checked before a driver can accept trips
- Every job shows its pickup, destination and pay before it is accepted
- Earnings are itemised per trip, with commission shown rather than implied
- Payouts run on a schedule the driver can see, not on request
- Ratings run both ways, and a driver can report a rider too
If you are deciding whether to drive, the Drive with Topsy page covers earnings and requirements in detail.
The quickest way to understand it is to price a trip.
Put in where you are and where you are going. Nothing is charged until you confirm.