Choosing Between a Standard Cab, Silver Service and a Hire Car in Melbourne
2 November 2026
Most trips around Melbourne need nothing more than a clean cab and a driver who knows the way. Some trips carry more weight: a client landing at Tullamarine, a funeral, the morning of a wedding, a parent’s milestone birthday dinner. For those, people start looking at the premium end of the market and find three different things sold under similar words: silver service, chauffeur cars and hire cars.
They are not the same booking, and they are not priced the same way. This guide explains what each one is, how each one is charged, and how to choose without paying for more car than the trip needs.
The Everyday Cab
A standard taxi is a sedan, booked online or by phone or taken from a rank, and priced on the meter. In Victoria the meter starts with a flag fall, then charges on either distance or time, never both at once. Higher tariffs apply in the evening, overnight and late on Friday and Saturday nights. Tolls are added when the route uses them, and an airport fee applies to pickups at Tullamarine.
For a trip across town, a school pickup, a medical appointment or getting home after dinner, the standard cab is the right booking. It seats up to four people with room for a couple of large bags, and nothing about a premium car makes the trip any shorter. Our fares page sets out each tariff and when it applies, and the calculator gives an estimate for your exact trip before you book.
What Silver Service Means in Melbourne
Silver service is the premium tier of the Melbourne taxi industry. It is still a taxi: you book it trip by trip and it runs on the meter like any other cab. The difference is the car and the driver. Expect a late model premium sedan kept to a higher standard than the everyday fleet, and a driver dressed in a suit.
With us, the price difference is a flat surcharge added once to the metered fare, and the estimate shows it before you confirm. Because the meter still runs, a short silver service trip stays a short fare. That is the whole appeal: the presentation of a premium car without the commitment of an hourly booking. Our silver service page compares the two fares side by side on real airport runs.
Chauffeur Cars and Hire Cars
A chauffeured hire car is a different kind of booking. It is usually priced by the hour with a minimum block, or at a set price agreed before the day, and the car is yours for that time whether you use all of it or not. Hire cars and rideshare vehicles also sit under different road rules from taxis. The clearest example is children: in a hire car a young child must travel in a restraint suited to their age, where a taxi has an exemption.
A hire car suits a long day with the same car waiting outside, such as a wedding with several stops or a day of meetings in different parts of the city. For a single important trip, paying for a minimum block often means paying for time you never use.
Our hourly hire sits in this space: a sedan, an SUV or a maxi with one driver for three hours or more, at a rate quoted before anything is booked. Silver service cars are not hired by the hour. They stay on the meter, trip by trip.
Side by Side
| Question | Standard cab | Silver service | Chauffeur or hire car |
|---|---|---|---|
| How it is priced | Metered fare | Metered fare plus a flat surcharge | Usually hourly with a minimum, or a set price |
| How you book | Online, by phone or at a rank | Online or by phone, ahead where you can | Ahead, often days ahead |
| The car | Everyday sedan | Late model premium sedan | Depends on the operator |
| The driver | Taxi driver | Taxi driver in a suit | Chauffeur |
| Best for | Everyday trips | One trip where the arrival matters | A long day with waiting between stops |
When Silver Service Is Worth It
The surcharge buys presentation, and presentation matters most in the first few minutes of a trip. These are the bookings where it earns its keep:
- Collecting a client, a new hire or a visiting executive from Tullamarine, where the car is their first impression of your business. Our corporate travel page covers accounts and booking for someone else.
- A board meeting, a pitch or an interview, when you want to arrive composed rather than flustered.
- Funerals, where the family should not have to think about the car at all.
- Weddings, usually as the couple’s car, with maxi taxis carrying the guests. Our wedding cars page explains how a whole day goes on one booking.
- A milestone dinner or anniversary for parents or grandparents.
- A long run to or from the airport, when an hour in a quieter, better kept car is worth the difference.
When a Standard Cab Is the Smarter Choice
Most of the time. A run to the shops, a lift home after a night out, the daily trip to work or a quick hop between appointments: a standard sedan does exactly the same job on exactly the same meter, for less. If nobody is watching the arrival, there is little reason to pay for it.
The same goes for groups. Silver service cars seat four, like any sedan. If six of you are heading to dinner, a maxi taxi keeps everyone in one car on one meter, which is usually cheaper and always simpler than two premium sedans.
Booking Silver Service So It Actually Turns Up
Silver service cars are the first to be booked out on busy days, so a little planning goes a long way:
- Book ahead, especially for a Friday, a Saturday, a major event or a spring wedding date. The night before is good. A week out is better.
- Choose Silver Service in the car options on the booking form, or ask for it by name when you call.
- For an airport pickup, add the flight number so the pickup is timed to the landing rather than the timetable.
- If you are booking for someone else, put their name and mobile on the booking so the driver can reach them directly.
- If a child is travelling, ask for a fitted seat. Our child seat page explains which restraint suits which age.
We take silver service bookings from across Melbourne, from apartments in Southbank and Docklands to homes in Toorak, Brighton and Balwyn. Each suburb page shows local fare estimates and the drive time to Tullamarine.
Questions People Ask
Is silver service more expensive than a normal taxi?
Yes, by a flat surcharge added once to the metered fare. The meter rates underneath are the same as a standard sedan, and the online estimate shows the total before you book.
Can I book silver service for a trip to the airport?
Yes. Choose Silver Service in the booking form and add your flight number if you are being collected. The toll and the airport fee are worked out the same way as for any taxi.
Is a silver service taxi the same as a limousine?
No. A limousine or chauffeur car is usually hired by the hour. Silver service is a premium taxi booked trip by trip on the meter, so you pay for the trip you take rather than a block of time.
Can I hire a silver service car by the hour?
No. Silver service cars stay on the meter. If you need one car and one driver for several hours, hourly hire with a sedan, SUV or maxi is the option, at a rate quoted before you book.