You have to make sure the driver turns on the meter (sometimes they would tell me it is "broken" and then I would need to negotiate a price). Make sure you have change like 1 JD bills and coins because the drivers will likely not have change. In my experience, it was best if I knew the exact route of where I needed to go or else the driver might take a long route or bring me to a different neighborhood.
App-based servies are much more common now than when I was previously in Amman. Uber and Careem are great options but a bit more expensive than a taxi. With these services you can avoid the hassle of haggling and have a car come to your location as opposed to waiting for a ride. Most of my cowokers either drive their own car or use this option.
I have used the white taxi once when I was going home from the Balad (downtown Amman). To get home I would have had to walk up a large hill for over 30 minutes. I was with a friend who knew the stops and we both spoke Arabic, so we had no issues and paid less than one dinar!
Yellow taxis were stressful for me. I always had to know the exact route of where to go and clearly looked like a foreigner, so I was often taken advantage of and had drivers use the long route.
I use Careem to get to and from work every day. With this service, I can get rides easily and know that the driver will be a bit more respectful than drivers who drive the yellow taxis. I work on a busy street, so even if I wanted to take a yellow taxi, it would be difficult and time consuming to flag one down.
