A white label solution or building your own software - what to choose for your vehicle sharing business?
May 21, 2021
min. read
Software is an essential part of your vehicle-sharing business. And it doesn't matter what vehicles your customers are going to share. They will do it through the mobile app. So here is the decision to make – are you going to create the vehicle-sharing software from scratch or choose one of the existing solutions on the market. Hopefully, this article will help you with this decision.
Which one of these two options should you choose? There is no one correct answer and there are advantages as well as weaknesses to both of them.
Imagine that this is your first vehicle-sharing business and you have decided to do everything on your own. You are full of enthusiasm and you approach your CTO or IT partner and promise to come up with the brief. The task doesn't seem too complicated for the software you need. However, the vehicle-sharing business is the one that makes creating the brief so complicated. There are many small details to consider.
First step - long and costly research
If you really have decided to start to develop software from scratch, you should take one step back. Your CTO or IT partner must start with the investigation on what functions you might need and how one thing might lead to another. This might take a lot of time and money. In addition, sometimes you can get an impression of what clients need only by operating in the market. For example, ATOM is operating in 23 countries. Their software that is also a white label solution for vehicle-sharing businesses already includes over 100 different features and settings that users might need. And those features are a collection of suggestions from users made over the course of several years in those markets.
However, the aim of the research is to understand what the vehicle-sharing software might look like. If the investigation is done, you can start to prepare the brief and documentation for developers. Here is a list of some other things that you should consider before starting work on a technical solution:
- backend, as well as frontend of the solution - both should be developed and supported so your team can manage operations;
- there should be two versions of the mobile app - one for users that has a device operating on iOS. Other - for the owners of devices that run on Android;
- whenever Apple or Android updates their operating systems or other 3rd party makes an update, you should be ready to check if everything works on your apps;
- apps should be compatible with smart locks in the case of bikes or IoT solutions in the case of scooters, mopeds, cars that are used on the vehicle;
- the IT solution must be properly tested and debugged - the industry average shows that testing the app takes approximately two-three months;
- if your vehicle fleet has over 100 vehicles, most likely you will have a service team. The most convenient way for the service team to operate is by using the phone app. This means that there should be one more app for the service team. And your team members might also have iOS as well as Android operating systems on their devices. So again – there are two more apps for you to build;
- additionally, you must have an invoicing option and also the option to create reports, see statistics, analyze routes, distribute promotions, launch referral programs, etc. And this list can go on and on.
The software development usually costs from EUR 100,000-400,000 depending on the complexity and features that you might want to include. In addition, you have to keep in mind that nothing ends with development. The software requires testing, private launch, debugging and support. And only then will the software be ready for the public launch. However, more bug fixing should probably be done.
One year and you are ready to go!
This whole process mentioned above takes approximately one year. Of course, fingers crossed that the solution as well as the integration with smart locks or IoT solutions works. There is just one problem - the vehicle-sharing industry is changing very rapidly - new players are coming in, others are expanding, new means of transportation are used for vehicle-sharing. And there are a lot of things that might happen and change in a year. It might be hard to catch up.
Furthermore, competitors are constantly offering and creating new features that were not in the market previously such as subscriptions, which is currently a new trend. For example, ATOM Mobility has created a white label solution for the vehicle-sharing market that constantly collects knowledge from their clients and adds new features. Later those features are integrated into solutions offered to other clients so everyone is up to date. In the case of a custom-made solution, everything is on you - it might take additional time and money.
One more thing that speaks in favor of the white label solution - let's imagine that your business is very successful. You have developed a vehicle-sharing software for the one-vehicle type and you would like to grow by adding other vehicle types. Sorry, not possible. You will have to make significant changes to the existing software or develop the new one. So probably you will have to start over again.
The same problem might apply to extending the fleet. If your business becomes scalable, the software might not be appropriate for a fleet with 20 000 vehicles. White label solution providers are usually ready for such success of their customers as they have already supported thousands of vehicles for some time.
When it is worthwhile developing a custom solution?
However, there are times that it is worth considering developing a custom solution - your own software for your vehicle-sharing business. It is worth doing this, if:
1) You already know that you might need some very specific features, but the company offering white-label solutions can't provide them to you. For example, you want your car sharing software to run on the blockchain. Or you want to create a decentralized sharing service. However, it is only worth investing in such a specific solution if it is a real game-changer for you and you have the data to proof it;
2) You have EUR 500,000 or more available in funding and you have a very strong team of developers that you would like to keep working for your company. You consider them to be your asset. Then, if you are lucky, after some time, someone might be interested in buying your company just because of the team and, of course, the solution you have developed;
3) The co-founder of the company is a very good CTO with high-level technical skills and the ability to lead the team. Then it is probably worth building a team. However, most likely you will build a technological and not a vehicle-sharing company in the end and spent more on development than actually on vehicles.
4) For some reason one of the requirements is to have a source code. Companies offering white label solutions won't be able to help you with that.
There is a power in sharing and this doesn't just apply to vehicle-sharing. You always get access to a strong network when you are working hand in hand with the industry leaders. That's what we at ATOM emphasize in collaboration with our clients. We are ready to share as much as we can because we do really care about our clients’ business. It is important for us that they grow and constantly have access to the latest achievements within the industry.
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📆🚗 Managing vehicle availability is now easier than ever. Each rental vehicle can now have its own availability schedule, allowing operators or vehicle owners to define exactly when it can be booked. Keep vehicles available 24/7, create recurring weekly schedules, configure multiple unavailable periods, and make one-time availability changes directly from the calendar - all while preventing conflicts with existing bookings.
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Managing vehicle availability has become much more flexible. With the new Vehicle availability calendar, every rental vehicle now has its own availability schedule, allowing operators or vehicle owners to define exactly when a vehicle can be booked.
By default, vehicles remain available 24/7, but operators can switch to a custom schedule and configure recurring unavailable periods or make one-time availability adjustments directly from the calendar.
Key capabilities
📅 24/7 availability by default
Newly added vehicles are automatically available around the clock. No additional setup is required.
🔄 Recurring weekly availability schedules
Configure custom weekly availability for each individual vehicle by defining one or multiple unavailable periods for every day of the week.
Navigation:
Vehicles → Select vehicle → Edit → Set availability
⚙️ Multiple unavailable periods per day
Need to block vehicles for maintenance, charging, cleaning, or personal use? Add as many unavailable time slots as needed for each day.
📆 One-time availability changes
Override the recurring schedule for a specific date without affecting the permanent weekly configuration. Perfect for holidays, temporary maintenance, or special events.
Navigation:
Vehicles → Calendar view → Click any available or unavailable time slot to add or edit
🔴 Visual availability overview
Unavailable periods are highlighted directly in the vehicle calendar, making it easy to identify when a vehicle can or cannot be booked.
🛡️ Booking conflict protection
To prevent scheduling issues, the system validates every availability change. If the selected period overlaps with an existing booking, the update cannot be saved and the operator will receive an error informing them that a booking already exists for that time.
How it works
The feature combines two layers of availability:
- Recurring schedule – the vehicle's permanent weekly availability pattern.
- Calendar exceptions – one-time changes that apply only to a specific date without modifying the recurring schedule.
For example, if a vehicle is normally unavailable every Wednesday from 10:00–12:00, you can temporarily extend, edit or reduce availability for a single Wednesday while leaving all future Wednesdays unchanged.
Why it matters
P2P rental businesses often manage vehicles with different owner preferences and operating hours. This feature gives operators the flexibility to support virtually any availability scenario while keeping bookings accurate and preventing scheduling conflicts.
Whether you're managing a small peer-to-peer fleet or thousands of rental vehicles, the new vehicle availability calendar makes availability management significantly easier and more reliable.
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ATOM Mobility review 2026: Pricing, features, and who it's actually for
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Choosing mobility software is a long-term decision. Once a platform is integrated into daily operations, replacing it can take months and require significant time and resources. That's why it's worth looking beyond feature lists and understanding how a platform performs in practice.
ATOM Mobility has become the leading white-label mobility platform for operators launching and scaling vehicle-sharing, car rental, and ride-hailing businesses. This review covers how the platform works, how its pricing is structured, what customers say about it, and the types of businesses it's best suited for.
What is ATOM Mobility?
ATOM Mobility is a white-label SaaS platform built specifically for mobility businesses.
Instead of developing software in-house, operators can launch their own branded mobility service using an established platform that already includes the infrastructure needed to run daily operations.
The platform brings together three products:
- Vehicle sharing
- Digital car rental
- Ride-hailing and taxi services
All three run on the same technology, allowing operators to manage multiple mobility services without maintaining separate software platforms.
Pricing: simple and built to scale
ATOM Mobility uses a transparent pricing model based on a one-time implementation fee followed by a subscription that scales with the business. The exact cost depends on the products, integrations, and level of customization required, but customers know what is included from the start, without unexpected licensing costs or hidden platform fees.
Compared to building proprietary software or purchasing enterprise mobility platforms, ATOM Mobility can be up to five times more affordable, depending on the project and deployment requirements.
What's included in the platform?
The rider app is an important part but not the only service on the platform. Customers use the mobile app to register, verify their identity, locate nearby vehicles, unlock them, make payments, purchase subscriptions, and manage bookings.
Operators manage the business through a web dashboard that provides access to fleet monitoring, pricing, reservations, customer management, payments, analytics, maintenance workflows, reporting, promotions, and day-to-day operations.
For fleet management, ATOM Mobility also offers a dedicated Operator app, designed to help teams manage vehicles, tasks, damages, and routes while on the go.
Companies offering ride-hailing services also receive a dedicated driver app, allowing drivers to accept rides, navigate trips, and track their earnings within the same ecosystem.
Altogether, the platform includes more than 300 features and 100+ integrations designed specifically for mobility operators, allowing businesses to launch 8-15 times faster than building comparable software from scratch.
What does hardware-agnostic mean?
One of ATOM Mobility's biggest advantages is its hardware flexibility. The platform works with numerous IoT providers and vehicle manufacturers, meaning operators are not locked into a single hardware supplier.
For example, if a business decides to replace its smart locks or expand its fleet with vehicles from another manufacturer, it doesn't need to replace the software platform as well. This gives operators more flexibility as their business evolves and reduces the risk of becoming dependent on a single hardware vendor. To name just a few, ATOM Mobility already supports integrations with Segway, Teltonika, Acton, Omni, Okai, Fitrider, Freego, Zimo, Marti, Comodule, Hongji, Yadea, NIU, NEXT, Geotab, Acacus, INVERS, Velco, Navee, Vaimoo, Dynasys, 2hire, Sentinel, Linka, and many others.
Customer support
Launching a mobility business often requires close collaboration between the operator and the software provider, particularly during implementation and expansion.
ATOM Mobility provides support through email, WhatsApp, and scheduled calls with a dedicated team that has worked together for several years. Rather than speaking with a different representative every time, customers build relationships with specialists who become familiar with their business and operational goals. For urgent or business-critical matters, customers can also communicate directly with company leadership, including the CEO when needed.
What customers say
ATOM Mobility has received consistently positive reviews on Capterra, where customers frequently highlight both the quality of the platform and the team behind it.
Some of the reviews describe ATOM Mobility as:
"ATOM is an exceptional app developer."
"Clear communication and good service."
"Atom has been a reliable partner to us for 3 seasons now."
"Great Partnership with the ATOM Team."
"Reliable Partner with Great Support and Continuous Improvements."
Across the reviews, the same themes appear repeatedly: responsive communication, long-term partnerships, and continuous product development.
Who is ATOM Mobility best suited for?
ATOM Mobility is designed for companies that want to launch, operate, or scale a mobility business without spending years developing proprietary software. The platform is ideal for entrepreneurs launching their first mobility service, SMEs entering the shared mobility market, established operators expanding into new cities or mobility verticals, and fleet operators managing anywhere from a single vehicle to more than 10,000 vehicles who need a modern, feature-rich platform at a reasonable cost.
Because the platform is white-label, operators keep full control over their branding, pricing strategy, and customer experience while relying on technology that has already been proven across more than 80 different markets.
Who isn't it for?
ATOM Mobility is built specifically for vehicle sharing, car rental, and ride-hailing businesses. Companies such as Uber, Bolt, Lime, and Voi have invested hundreds of millions of dollars and many years into developing proprietary software, creating platforms that are deeply integrated into their operations. While replacing such systems could potentially deliver commercial benefits, the migration effort, operational risk, and loss of flexibility that comes with owning and customizing their own technology make a complete platform switch unlikely. As a result, these companies typically continue investing in their in-house platforms rather than adopting third-party software.
Similarly, companies looking to build software outside the mobility sector or develop entirely different types of platforms may find that ATOM Mobility's feature set is too focused on its core products.
Pros and potential limitations
Like any software platform, ATOM Mobility has strengths as well as situations where another approach may be a better fit.
Pros
- White-label platform covering vehicle sharing, car rental, and ride-hailing.
- More than 300 mobility-focused features.
- 100+ ready-to-use integrations.
- Transparent pricing with no hidden platform fees.
- Hardware-agnostic architecture that supports multiple IoT providers.
- openAPI access.
- ATOM Academy access - educational resources for mobility entrepreneurs.
- Dedicated support team with direct communication channels.
- Proven by operators across multiple markets.
Potential limitations
- Designed specifically for mobility businesses rather than other industries.
- Companies with highly customised proprietary software may not benefit from switching.
- Global operators that have already invested heavily (Uber, Bolt) in their own engineering teams are unlikely to replace their existing platforms.
For startups, SMEs, and growing mobility operators, ATOM Mobility offers a practical alternative to building software in-house. The platform combines three mobility products in a single ecosystem, supports a wide range of hardware providers, and includes the operational tools needed to launch and scale a business. Beyond the technology itself, customers gain access to ATOM Academy - industry expertise, best practices, and educational resources, helping them avoid common mistakes and build a successful mobility business faster.
It isn't intended to replace proprietary platforms developed by companies such as Uber or Bolt, nor is it designed for businesses outside the mobility sector. For operators looking for an established white-label platform backed by long-term customer support and continuous product development, ATOM Mobility is a solution worth considering.
Driver App demo credentials - Email: test@atom.com, Password: driver
