The more recent meaning of the term ridesharing , related to using a mobile app to book a ride in a usually privately owned vehicle, arose in the context of the sharing economy , in which digital technology assists in the sharing of goods or services owned by individuals.

The term "ridesharing" was originally coined to describe a cooperative arrangement where multiple people traveled together in a single vehicle to share costs and reduce traffic, similar to carpooling. When companies like Uber and Lyft launched in the early 2010s, they adopted this term primarily for regulatory and legal reasons. By framing the service as "sharing a ride" rather than a commercial taxi service, these companies sought to bypass the strict medallion systems and labor laws that governed traditional taxi fleets. They argued that drivers were simply "peers" sharing their personal vehicles with neighbors. Over time, the term evolved into "Transportation Network Companies" (TNCs), but the word "ridesharing" stuck in the public consciousness. Today, it describes the app-based economy where a private vehicle is dispatched on-demand, even if the "sharing" aspect is now a purely commercial transaction between a professional driver and a paying passenger.