Urban air mobility (UAM) has emerged as a promising solution to urban congestion and mobility inefficiencies, yet public acceptance remains a critical challenge for its successful implementation. This study aims to explain user acceptance of UAM services by applying a value-based adoption perspective that integrates multiple evaluative beliefs. Survey data were collected from 252 respondents with prior awareness of UAM concepts. To test the proposed relationships, this study employed a cross-sectional survey design and analyzed the data using regression-based path analysis grounded in the value-based adoption model. The research examines how technological reliability, hedonic motivation, usefulness, and perceived cost contribute to perceived value, and how perceived value subsequently shapes intention to use. The findings indicate that technological reliability, hedonic motivation, and usefulness significantly enhance perceived value, while perceived cost does not exert a meaningful influence. Perceived value, in turn, plays a decisive role in shaping users’ intention to adopt UAM services. These results suggest that users evaluate UAM primarily through anticipated benefits and experiential expectations rather than cost considerations at the current stage of market development. The study offers theoretical contributions by extending value-based adoption research to emerging mobility contexts and provides practical implications for service providers and policymakers seeking to foster early user acceptance.