Rental Car Pricing Statistics: 2024

Rental car prices have experienced a massive spike during the COVID-19 pandemic, and they’re generally still high.
Sam Kemmis
Sally French
By Sally French and  Sam Kemmis 
Updated
Edited by Meg Lee

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Of all the things that have experienced massive price swings during the COVID-19 pandemic, rental cars saw one of the biggest — and that swing was directly up. Renters in summer 2021 got hit especially hard when rental car prices reached an all-time high that July. While prices have slightly dipped from those highs, they were still higher every month in 2022 than before the pandemic.

But not all rental car prices are created equal, even if the rental car is otherwise the same. Depending on the company or city you’re renting from, you might pay significantly more or less than the average. Even renting from an airport versus a downtown location in the same city might have a drastically different cost.

NerdWallet conducted an analysis of 360 rental car prices (including taxes and fees) to better understand rental car pricing trends. The analysis looked at the price of a weeklong rental across eight major rental car companies based on the company’s lowest-priced available car (typically a small sedan). Data was gathered for 20 regions, and it covered both the cost to rent from an airport location versus the same company’s nearby downtown counterparts.

Here are the results of our car rental pricing data collection.

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The cities with the cheapest rental cars

NerdWallet’s analysis looked at areas of the U.S. with the 10 largest airports based on enplanements using 2020 Federal Aviation Administration data. Enplanements are paying passengers who board an aircraft, including those boarding another as part of a layover.

Then, those 10 areas were ranked by lowest to highest rental car prices to give us a better sense of the cheapest metro areas for renting cars.

Metro area

Nearest major airport

Average weekly rental price

Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte/Douglas International Airport.

$490.

Orlando, Florida

Orlando International Airport.

$519.

Dallas-Fort Worth

Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.

$545.

Denver

Denver International Airport.

$548.

Atlanta

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

$558.

Seattle-Tacoma

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

$566.

Los Angeles

Los Angeles International Airport.

$568.

Las Vegas Valley

Harry Reid International Airport.

$588.

Phoenix

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

$598.

Chicago

Chicago O'Hare International Airport.

$671.

Charlotte, North Carolina, was the only city in our data set to fall below $500 for an average weekly rental price. Meanwhile, Chicago was the only city with an average weekly rental price above $600.

When looking specifically at airport rental locations, results were mostly similar to the overall averages, with some slight deviations. Here are the largest U.S. airports, ranked by average weekly car rental price, from cheapest to most expensive:

Airport

Average weekly rental price

Orlando Airport.

$517.

Charlotte/Douglas Airport.

$542.

Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.

$553.

Denver Airport.

$601.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Airport.

$609.

Los Angeles Airport.

$628.

Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport.

$642.

Harry Reid Airport.

$646.

Seattle-Tacoma Airport.

$657.

Chicago O'Hare Airport.

$743.

The main airports servicing Orlando, Florida; Charlotte/Douglas; and Dallas-Fort Worth all had the lowest average rental car prices and were the only three airports with average weekly rental prices below $600. On the other end, Chicago O'Hare Airport had the highest average prices — $743 for a weekly rental.

The cheapest rental car company

Within each city, NerdWallet also looked at prices broken down by eight major rental car brands: Enterprise, Budget, Hertz, Dollar, Thrifty, Avis, Alamo and National.

In this analysis, National almost always had the highest rental car prices, with average weekly rental car prices of nearly $700. The cheapest car rental company, Enterprise, offered car rentals at an average weekly price of just $480.

The best time to book a rental car

The best time to book a rental car isn't in advance. Rental cars tend to be cheaper when booked last-minute.

The average weekly rental price for cars booked 91 days in advance was $589. For cars booked seven days in advance, it was $513. That amounts to a 13% discount, on average, for those who roll the dice and risk availability to book a car closer to their travel dates.

Here’s the percentage difference in costs broken down by rental car company:

Rental car company

Percent more you’ll pay to reserve three months in advance vs. one week out

Alamo

13.56%.

Avis

5.68%.

Budget

6.21%.

Dollar

2.09%.

Enterprise

38.63%.

Hertz

11.01%.

National

6.23%.

Thrifty

14.77%.

At Dollar, the cost savings for booking early versus procrastinating was minimal. But it was, on average, nearly 40% more expensive to book 91 days in advance from Enterprise.

The best place to book a rental car

To save on car rentals, you should almost always book at an offsite rental car location versus the airport outpost.

NerdWallet found that weekly car rentals for downtown locations were, on average, $126 cheaper than airport locations. That means you’ll spend on average about 26% more for an airport rental compared with a downtown rental.

The price difference is usually (though not always) due to fees charged by the airport. Exact amounts vary, but they’re typically charged by the airports to the car rental car company (which then passes the cost on to customers) to cover services like an airport-provided shuttle, cleaning, security, and sometimes simply the right to do business.

Easy ways to save money on rental cars

Use travel credit cards

The best credit cards for rental cars tend to offer both bonus points and miles from your spending, as well as the other (potentially more lucrative) benefit of rental car insurance coverage, which can sometimes save you hundreds of dollars if you decline the rental car company’s coverage at the counter. Among cards with rental car benefits:

Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
NerdWallet Rating
Apply now

on Chase's website

Chase United Airlines Mileage Plus Credit Card
United℠ Explorer Card
NerdWallet Rating
Apply now

on Chase's website

The Platinum Card® from American Express
The Platinum Card® from American Express
NerdWallet Rating
Apply now

on American Express' website

Rates & Fees
Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card
Chase Sapphire Reserve®
NerdWallet Rating
Apply now

on Chase's website

Annual fee

$95.

$0 intro for the first year, then $95.

$695.

$550.

Rental car benefits

• Primary rental car coverage with reimbursement up to the cash value of most rental vehicles.

• Booking a car rental through Chase earns 5 points per dollar spent.

• Redeeming points to book travel through Chase — including renting cars — gives you 25% more value per point.

• Primary rental car coverage that reimburses up to the cash value of most rental cars.

• Other day-of-travel benefits for United flyers include a free checked bag, priority boarding and lounge passes.

• Complimentary elite status with Avis, Hertz and National, which entitles the member to upgrades and discounts.

• Secondary rental car coverage.

• Other benefits include expansive airport lounge access and hundreds of dollars' worth of travel credits.

• Terms apply.

• Primary rental car coverage with reimbursement up to $75,000.

• Booking a car rental through Chase earns 10 points per dollar spent.

• Redeeming points to book travel through Chase — including renting cars — gives you 50% more value per point.

• Cardholders eligible for special benefits from Avis, National and Silvercar.

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(To view rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, see this page.)

Join rental car loyalty programs

These programs are generally free to join. In exchange for signing up, they offer perks like member-exclusive rates, or the ability to skip the line (which won’t save money, but can save you time). For loyal customers with elite status, expect complimentary upgrades, free rental days and more.

Book now, then rebook

Most rental car companies don’t require payment upfront. Given the unpredictability of travel, it can make sense to reserve a car rental as soon as you’re able to. Then, periodically check in with your rental car company’s booking tool to see if prices drop. As long as that company doesn’t charge a cancellation fee (most rental car companies don’t), then cancel and rebook the same rental.


How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2024, including those best for:

Cards for Rental Cars from our Partners
Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card

on Chase's website

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
5.0
NerdWallet Rating
Rewards rate

1x-5x

5x on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases.

Points

Intro offer

60,000

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $750 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards®.

Points
Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card

on Chase's website

Chase Sapphire Reserve®
5.0
NerdWallet Rating
Rewards rate

1x-10x

Earn 5x total points on flights and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Travel℠ immediately after the first $300 is spent on travel purchases annually. Earn 3x points on other travel and dining & 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases.

Points

Intro offer

60,000

Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. That's $900 toward travel when you redeem through Chase Travel℠.

Points
Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card

on Capital One's website

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
4.9
NerdWallet Rating
Rewards rate

2x-10x

Earn unlimited 10X miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel, Earn unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases.

Miles

Intro offer

75,000

Earn 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel.

Miles
See more cards for rental cars
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