50 free Cash Cab trivia questions with answers — entertainment quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
Cash Cab turned an ordinary taxi ride into a game show: climb in, name your destination, and answer general knowledge questions for cash until you arrive or strike out. This quiz is about the show itself. It covers the rules (strikes, the Red Light Challenge, Shout-Outs and the double-or-nothing Video Bonus), the money values, the record-breaking rides, and how the production actually works, from the ten hidden cameras to the prop cash handed over at the end. There are questions about host Ben Bailey, his other shows and his Daytime Emmys, plus the versions most Americans never saw: the original British series on ITV, the Canadian edition with Adam Growe, and Montreal's Taxi Payant. It is a good round for a game-show themed trivia night or for anyone who watched Discovery on a loop. Every answer is checked against a reference page and the explanations add a detail from the show's history.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Which stand-up comedian hosted the American version of Cash Cab from its 2005 premiere?
Ben Bailey
He is also a licensed New York City taxi driver, which is handy for a host who does the driving.
Q 02On which network did the American Cash Cab originally premiere in 2005?
Discovery Channel
It later moved to Bravo for its ninth season in 2019.
Q 03In which country did the Cash Cab format originate?
United Kingdom
The original ran on ITV from June 2005 to June 2006 before being franchised around the world.
Q 04How many wrong answers get contestants thrown out of the Cash Cab with nothing?
Three
On the third strike the host pulls over immediately, and a camera crew from the trailing van is already waiting on the sidewalk.
Q 05A Red Light Challenge question has multiple correct answers. Usually how many?
Four to nine
Contestants do not have to name every one, and there is no penalty for wrong guesses along the way.
Q 06How long do contestants get to answer a Red Light Challenge?
30 seconds
Naming every answer in time is worth $250; running out of time costs nothing and is not a strike.
Q 07How much is a completed Red Light Challenge worth on a regular ride?
$250
On a Double Ride the same challenge pays $500.
Q 08What are the two lifelines available to Cash Cab contestants called?
Shout-Outs
One is a phone call, the other pulls the cab to the curb so passers-by can help.
Q 09How long can a Mobile Shout-Out phone call last before the contestant must answer?
15 seconds
The Street Shout-Out, by contrast, has no official time limit once the cab is at the curb.
Q 10In the revived Cash Cab, the Mobile Shout-Out was replaced by a lifeline using which platform?
Facebook Live
The Social Media Shout-Out lets viewers watching the live stream help the passenger.
Q 11What can passengers risk their whole prize on when they reach their destination without striking out?
A Video Bonus question
Get it right and the money doubles; get it wrong and, as the host says, they leave with nothing but a cab ride.
Q 12Unlike some other versions, what happens to US contestants who decline the Video Bonus?
They are not shown the question
Passengers who take the money and leave never learn what they would have been asked.
Q 13From Season 3 onward, what were the three regular question values in the American Cash Cab?
$50, $100 and $200
Q 21A special episode themed on which 2008 film was driven by the host of Cash Cab: Canada?
Frost/Nixon
Adam Growe took the wheel for the promotional episode aired December 23, 2008.
Q 22Which comedian hosted the short-lived spin-off Cash Cab: Chicago?
Beth Melewski
It used the same rules as the New York show and was cancelled after one season, though reruns air in syndication.
Q 23How many cameras are fitted inside and on top of the New York Cash Cab?
Ten
Three of them sit in the advertising shell on the roof, filming the passing streets.
The values doubled from the first two seasons; a rare Double Ride doubles them again.
Q 14In the first season, how much were the first five questions worth each?
$25
The next five paid $50 and anything after that $100, so early rides were worth far less than later ones.
Q 15What was different about the 2007 spin-off Cash Cab: After Dark?
Night pickups with doubled prize values
The questions were harder too, but the spin-off lasted only nine episodes.
Q 16How many episodes did Cash Cab: After Dark run before it was ended?
Nine
It debuted on August 8, 2007 with double the usual cash values.
Q 17Which city hosted a special run of Cash Cab episodes filmed during the fifth season?
Las Vegas
Filmed in May 2010, the episodes had celebrities like Penn & Teller playing for charity.
Q 18Who holds the record for the most money won on a single Cash Cab ride, $6,200?
Sam Meyer
He rode solo on a Double Ride and won the double-or-nothing Video Bonus in an episode aired in May 2009.
Q 19The previous winnings record, $4,100, was set by two New York City workers in what job?
Tour guides
Sean Devney and Steve Irolla reached their destination with two strikes and then nailed the Video Bonus.
Q 20Which reality show's boat crews competed in Cash Cab's 250th-episode charity special?
Deadliest Catch
Time Bandit's Andy Hillstrand and Josh Harris faced Sig Hansen and his brothers, with winnings going to charity.
Q 24How does the host receive questions and logistics during a ride?
Through a radio earpiece
A support van full of producers and camera crew tails the cab and feeds him the information.
Q 25What model of vehicle is the New York Cash Cab?
Toyota Sienna
The Canadian version also uses a Sienna minivan, while Montreal's Taxi Payant uses a Dodge Grand Caravan.
Q 26What is true of the cash the host hands over at the end of a winning ride?
A prop; real winnings arrive by check
The winnings have to be taxed, so they are sent to contestants later.
Q 27Which device plays the Video Bonus clip in the American Cash Cab?
A DVD player in the front seat back
The lights and fanfare that greet passengers run from a switchboard wired to an iPod and the car stereo.
Q 28How are passengers who are selected in advance tricked into the Cash Cab?
Told the cab is taking them to the show they will appear on
The cab, of course, turns out to be the show itself; other riders are picked at random from the sidewalk.
Q 29How many times has the American host won the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Game Show Host?
Three
He won in 2010, 2011 and 2013 from four nominations, and the show itself won Outstanding Game Show in 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Q 30In which year did TV Guide include Cash Cab in its list of the 60 greatest game shows ever?
2013
The show had ended its original run the previous year and would not return until 2017.