How to Save Money on Car Rentals with AutoSlash

Whether you’re looking to rent a car for the day or a whole vacation, car rental options are overwhelming. Car rental prices can be high, especially if you’re traveling during a busy season or are renting a car in an expensive city. So if you’re looking to find an affordable option, you’ll want to get familiar with AutoSlash, a car rental comparison website.

What is AutoSlash?

AutoSlash is a fairly simple rental car comparison website that searches hundreds of coupon codes and discounts to find the cheapest rental car rate.

All you need to do is enter your rental details, the types of credit cards you have and the memberships you hold. Then, AutoSlash checks each discount you're eligible for, plus all of the coupon codes in its database.

Once it finds the cheapest option, AutoSlash emails you a list of options for each rental car company with available cars. Click on a link in the email for the option you want, and you'll be directed to Priceline to book your rental car at that rate. The only drawback is that if the car rental company isn’t on Priceline, it won't come up in AutoSlash’s search results.

Is AutoSlash legit?

Providing your email and waiting to receive car rental quotes may seem fishy, especially when other car rental websites don’t require you to supply any contact details before showing you prices. However, AutoSlash is legit. The company delivers on its promise and sends car rental quotes that are generally cheaper than what you can find on your own.

AutoSlash boasts that its service saves travelers an average of 30% compared with other rental car search options. AutoSlash says that it has collectively saved travelers over $50 million on car rentals.

» Learn more: Do you need rental car insurance?

AutoSlash reviews

AutoSlash reviews are about average. For example, at the time of publication, Trustpilot, a popular website where customers can post reviews, has a 2.9 out of 5 rating for AutoSlash. Another review site called Sitejabber has also rated AutoSlash, giving the car rental company a consumer rating of 3.67 out of 5.

How to request an AutoSlash quote

To get a quote from AutoSlash, you’ll need to input some information, including your pickup and drop-off locations, travel dates, loyalty program memberships and the type of credit card you have to maximize savings.

Step 1: Enter your travel details

To check rental car rates through AutoSlash, go to the AutoSlash homepage. Enter the city of the airport where you want to pick up your rental — or click the "Non-airport" tab if you're picking up your rental from a neighborhood location.

Then, AutoSlash will ask if you're returning the car to the same location. If not, you'll be prompted to enter the airport or city where you want to drop-off the one-way rental.

Enter your pickup and drop-off dates and times. Since AutoSlash will search these dates and times exactly, it can be worth checking the hours of non-airport rental car locations around your pickup or drop-off area. For example, you may get better rates and results by entering a 4:30 p.m. return time instead of 5 p.m. or later.

Next, AutoSlash will ask what type of vehicle you want to rent. For those that just want the cheapest rental car rates, AutoSlash has a "least expensive option" selection.

Step 2: Input what type of credit cards you have

The process so far is pretty typical of any rental car search platform. However, the next steps are what make AutoSlash special. AutoSlash will ask what types of credit cards you have and the membership programs you are part of.

AutoSlash checks for rental car discounts available for the following types of cardholders:

• American Express (including Platinum-level cardholders).

• Discover.

• Mastercard.

• Mastercard World Elite.

• Visa.

• Visa Infinite.

Step 3: Include your airline, hotel and car rental loyalty programs

Then, you indicate which association memberships (AAA/CAA, AARP and USAA), frequent flyer programs and warehouse clubs you're a member of. If you aren't yet a member of one of these programs, AutoSlash notes which ones are free to join.

It may be worth taking a few minutes to sign up for a program in case that yields a cheaper rental rate.

It's important to be accurate when selecting the credit cards and memberships you have. Once you book a rental, it can be difficult to tell which discount was used, and the rental car company may require proof of eligibility when you pick up your car.

Step 4: Provide your email

The final step to request your quote is to enter your name and email address. AutoSlash's search process takes a few minutes to test every discount code. Rather than having you wait on the website while it completes its search, AutoSlash emails you with the results.

Step 5: Check for price drops (after booking)

Once you book your rental car, you aren't done with AutoSlash quite yet. There's a critical next step that you'll want to complete to make sure you end up with the cheapest rental possible: tracking the rental for a price drop.

This option is available whether you booked your car rental through AutoSlash or another site.

» Learn more: The best travel credit cards right now

AutoSlash Track a Rental

Whether you booked a rental car through AutoSlash, you'll want to use AutoSlash's "Track a Rental" feature to be alerted if a cheaper rate pops up. AutoSlash has found that travelers can end up saving an additional 20% on their rental through this tracker tool.

To set up a price drop alert, you'll need the following information about your rental:

• Rental car confirmation number.

• Pickup date.

• Reserved price — including all taxes and fees.

• Driver's first and last name.

After entering this information, AutoSlash will ask which credit cards and memberships you have. If you're using the same browser that you used to book a previous rental, AutoSlash should automatically select the same choices.

Once you submit the request, AutoSlash will email you to confirm that it's begun tracking your rental. Then, AutoSlash will periodically check for a cheaper rental. If a cheaper rate is found, the service will email you with the new rate and include your purchased rate for reference.

For example, a couple of weeks before a trip to Denver last September, AutoSlash sent a notification about a $33 price drop. Since AutoSlash included a link to the cheaper rate in the email, it took just a couple of minutes to rebook the newer lower rate and cancel the original booking.

AutoSlash limitations

AutoSlash is a great tool for automatically applying a slew of rental car discounts. However, there are a couple of limitations to keep in mind.

You may find a bigger discount with corporate codes

Although AutoSlash tests hundreds of coupon codes and discounts, you may be eligible for other discounts that AutoSlash isn't able to apply to your search. For example, if you work for a large company, you may be eligible to apply a discount code to get cheaper rentals. These discounts may require booking directly with the rental car provider.

AutoSlash only shows cars available on Priceline

AutoSlash makes money by linking users to Priceline to book a rental car. That means car rental companies that aren't available on Priceline won't appear in your results. It's worth checking other rental car companies and rental car alternatives to ensure you’re getting the best deal available.

» Learn more: What to do when you can’t find a rental car

Final thoughts on AutoSlash car rentals

AutoSlash is a free online service for finding a discounted car rental for your next trip. By applying coupon codes and other discounts, AutoSlash can save you hours of manually searching for and applying coupon codes.

Just keep in mind that AutoSlash won't search all possible rental car companies, and you may be eligible for additional discounts that AutoSlash can't find. Still, you can use it as one helpful resource in your toolkit for travel and car rental savings.