Kango

Kango Review:

Kango enlists freelancers in California and Arizona to drive kids to and from school and, possibly, watch them afterwards (or before). The site says you’ll earn a minimum of $20 per job and $35 per hour.

How it works

If you’re available during the day and interested in driving kids to and from school, the site encourages you to sign up. But it’s got a long list of requirements. Specifically, you must:

Be 21 or over
Have a reliable car 10-years old or younger
Submit to Trustline certification in California (includes fingerprinting)
Background check (includes criminal and sex offender searches from multiple states, counties and databases as well as check for multiple aliases)
DMV check (from multiple states, counties and databases)
Vehicle inspection
Two reference checks
Pass in-person and phone interviews

Kango work

Got all that? Then, you register and the site will tell you about driving opportunities. The site prefers to connect drivers with regular rides, where both drivers and riders can get to know each other. This also helps drivers who want it, set up a regular schedule.

Kango also has commercial auto liability insurance to cover drivers on the platform. As long as you have valid personal auto insurance that meets state requirements, you are not required to have additional insurance. Kango’s commercial auto liability insurance provides coverage up to a $1,000,000 limit per occurrence, for bodily injury or property damage caused by you to passengers and/or third parties. It also provides coverage up to a $1,000,000 limit, for bodily injury of drivers and/or passengers for damages caused by an at-fault underinsured or uninsured motorist.

Recommendations

We like this site and the fact that it’s straightforward about exactly how much you’ll earn. This makes it a better option for California and Arizona drivers than HopSkipDrive, which operates in the same neighborhoods, but somewhat less transparently. You can sign up with Kango here.

That said, it has a relatively small geographic footprint. So, if you’re not in its market areas or can’t find enough work here, we also recommend KidCar, RubiRides, and HopSkipDrive.

What their drivers say (from the Apple App Store):

I’ve very much enjoyed working for Kango as a ride share driver! Since it’s not an on-demand service (unlike Lyft) you know your schedule ahead of time & sometimes have breaks between scheduled rides, so the pace can be more relaxed. The fares are higher too. Plus the passengers are all sweet kids, many of whom you get to know over time (and whose parents request you to be their driver going forward). Also the flexibility is second to none.

Working for Kango has been really easy & flexible! I have a 3-year old so I needed a part time job that understood my hectic schedule and this was it. I’m able to plan out my days and choose what hours I can work. I’ve really enjoyed driving for them and would recommend it to other stay at home parents looking to make some extra income.

Bad experience

I’ve been a driver for Kango for more than 4-6 months now. I’ve been having problems with my payments and whenever I talk to them they say you have to contact support. And the only way that u can contact support is by email and they never reply back to you. I’ve been having a lot of missing payments. They don’t care about their employees. All they care about themselves and that’s it. I’ve tried to help them out in a very rough moments but they don’t appreciate your time and effort that you give them. They deserve a 0 star. If you want to waste ur time and have missing payments then go head and be one of their driver. I rather work for one of their competitors.

Kango posts several glowing reviews from drivers on its website, but we were unable to find similar reviews on independent sites. If you have experience working for this app, please hit “contact us” and tell us about it.

From Indeed

I enjoy driving for Kango because it is flexible and I like being able to help out parents. I wish it was around when I was raising my kids! The live ops team is always available to help out and answer any questions I have. I have been driving for a couple of years and definitely will continue.

Working for kango is awesome! I love the flexibility of being able to choose my jobs and also to be able to have consistency in my work. Baby sitting is also very fun. Building long lasting relationships with the kids is rewarding.

Always have a clear communication as well as comprehension with support. 9 out of 10 they always have your back. The kids aren’t just a job nor passengers; they become YOUR kids once they’re assigned to you so naturally treat, protect, and respect them like your own.

Updated 1/30/2023