As drivers continue to work to pay off their debt, the value of these once-coveted medallions has plummeted. There were 848 medallions renewed for the 2023-24 fiscal year, compared with 1,329 in 2019-20, according to data from San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority.

While not literally "worthless," taxi medallions have seen a catastrophic collapse in value since the rise of ridesharing apps like Uber and Lyft. In New York City, a medallion that was worth over $1 million in 2013-2014 can now be found for as low as $100,000 to $150,000 in 2026. This represents a loss of nearly 90% of their peak value. The decline has been similar in other major cities like Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco. For many individual owner-drivers who took out massive loans to purchase medallions as a "retirement investment," this has led to a major debt crisis and widespread bankruptcies. In response, cities like NYC have implemented relief programs to help restructure and write off medallion debt. While yellow cabs still have exclusive rights to street hails and lucrative airport queues, the "medallion" is no longer the guaranteed gold-standard investment it once was, and the market for them remains extremely thin with few new buyers entering the space.