Lower fares than Uber, but DiDi can be thin on drivers
DiDi runs at Arturo Merino Benítez (SCL) as a standard rideshare, with typical runs from T1 or T2 into central Santiago taking about 25–45 minutes depending on traffic on Route 68 or Costanera Norte. Fares in user reports come in cheaper than Uber for the same route, which is the only real reason to bother opening a third app after a long flight.
The main tradeoff is supply. One Reddit commenter checked DiDi at SCL and found a visibly lower price than Uber on the same ride, but also “far fewer cars” nearby and a noticeably longer ETA than the 5–7 minutes Uber was quoting. That lines up with most trip reports, which mention DiDi in Santiago in general but rarely talk about it as their primary airport option.
Language can matter here. Drivers on DiDi skew more local; English-language reviews of DiDi from SCL are thin compared with Uber or Cabify, and some riders mention needing at least basic Spanish to sort out pickup doors or route tweaks. If you can’t say “Nivel salidas, puerta tal” you might have a smoother time on Uber or Cabify, where drivers are a bit more used to foreign passengers around T1/T2.
Pickups usually work best on the departures level at SCL, the same as other rideshares; riders often pin a door at T1 or T2 departures and then message the driver. There isn’t much DiDi-specific documentation about “meet at Door X,” so use the exact door number the app shows and send a quick message with “T1/T2 salidas” so your driver isn’t looping the terminal twice.
How to use DiDi from SCL
- 1. Connect to airport Wi‑Fi in T1 or T2 or use your Chilean SIM so the DiDi app can load live ETAs and pricing.
- 2. Set your pickup point to the correct terminal (T1 for most international, T2 for LATAM domestic) and move up to the departures curb once you have your bags.
- 3. Open Uber, Cabify and DiDi together; locals say they compare all three and pick whatever shows the lowest price with an ETA under about 10–15 minutes.
- 4. In DiDi, confirm the door number on the map (for example, a specific puerta outside T1) and send a short Spanish message like “Estoy en T1 salidas, puerta 5.”
- 5. If DiDi shows a good price but an ETA longer than 15 minutes, or keeps timing out with “no cars available,” bail out quickly and rebook on Uber or Cabify instead of waiting.
Watch out for
Complaints cluster around reliability. Some users report opening DiDi at SCL late at night and seeing either 20+ minute ETAs or no drivers at all, even while Uber still shows cars within 8–10 minutes. Others mention prices that look great on-screen but then sit with “searching for driver” until they give up and change apps.
One practical tip: treat DiDi as a backup price check, not your only plan. Land, open all three apps at T1 or T2, and if DiDi shows both a cheaper fare and an ETA under 10 minutes, book it; if not, lock in Uber or Cabify and get moving toward the city.