Finding cheap car rentals
When I traveled to Thailand in 2018 and was looking to rent a car to drive to the south of the country, getting cheap rental cars was a nightmare. Not only did I have the language barrier to contend with, but finding the lowest-priced options seemed impossible. No matter how hard I tried, the best car rental deals seemed to evade me when I tried to book locally.
From my personal experience, booking online is far more straightforward, even though finding the best car rental deals can feel like an art form. Thankfully car rental comparison sites provide a whole host of cheap car rentals at the click of a button. We have taken a look at some of the best places for you to get the cheapest rental cars.
Before we start, here is an easy searching hack. Go incognito and clear your browser history to get the lowest available prices, regardless of the site!
Best sites for cheap car rentals
AutoRentals.com
If you’re looking for the best rental car deals, then check out AutoRentals.com. They offer rentals in most major cities throughout the world at great prices. Their site is easy to use and has excellent search and filter options. They are a metasearch site (an online Information retrieval tool that sends multiple queries to several search engines at once and finds more information than say a normal Google search), so you’ll get rental car deals from over 24 suppliers and be provided with 25 different model options.
Unlike some other providers, AutoRentals.com lets you know if your rental location is not at the airport, which is crucial when traveling. They are also renowned for having some lesser-known companies in their rental car comparison results. So you can find deals you might otherwise miss.
Expedia
Arguably the most well-known online travel agent, Expedia, has been offering the best prices on travel and car rental deals for close to two decades. Not only can you find some of the best rental car deals, but booking with them means you get the security of a big name brand.
There are a couple of things that set Expedia apart. Firstly, you can get car rental deals and book them alongside your travel package. It makes the entire travel process hassle-free. More importantly, they have a loyalty program, Expedia Rewards, which you earn points on every time you book with them. In the long run, it could make your rental car deals even cheaper.
Momondo
Momondo has rental car deals from a whole host of providers as well as other metasearch engines. It was also twice awarded the “Best Meta Search Website.” Unlike other sites on our list, nothing is booked on Momondo. Instead, you are directed to the specific agency’s website to make the booking.
What makes Momondo unique is that they do not charge any fees and help travellers find the best car rental deals for free!
Rentalcars.com
I used Rentalcars.com for cheap car rentals when traveling throughout New Zealand, and since then, it has become my favorite car rental comparison website. They book over 73 million rental car days a year and operate in over 160 countries worldwide.
They provide outstanding value and make it very easy to compare car rentals deals among different makes and models. Rentalcars.com has a wide variety of providers, both big and small. It is fantastic if you don’t mind opting for an opaque booking and not knowing the exact car you’ll get.
In my opinion, based on the rock bottom prices I have gotten numerous times, rentalcars.com is the best rental car company website.
Kayak
Known for its excellent hotel and flight prices, Kayak is an excellent choice for finding the best car rental deals. They are one of the best rental car company aggregators around. What makes Kayak so great is the usability of their site. The seemingly limitless filtering and searching potential make finding the best deals a breeze. Kayak also indicates whether the dates you have chosen are the best time to go.
Like other companies, Kayak provides opaque bookings but label them as Surprise Agency, so keep an eye out for this if you book cheap rental cars through them.
Priceline
Known for its opaque bookings, which gained prominence through its “Name Your Own Price” system, Priceline has some of the best car rental deals on the market. Despite some of their early discount tools now being retired, the company still primarily offers car rentals deals through opaque bookings. While it means you won’t know who you are booking with until the deposit is paid, the resulting cost saving is more than worth it.
Their Express Deals make them stand out against the competition and offer highly competitive rental car deals starting as low as $10.95 a day. However, you might have to be slightly more flexible with your requirements.
Which site should you use for cheap car rentals?
Despite having something of a bias in favour of Rentalcars.com, I would highly recommend shopping around. To get the best car rental deals, take a look at a few of the car rental comparison sites. Then pick the one that suits your needs at the best price. Make sure you read our article on things to know when renting a car to avoid surprises before committing to any great looking car rental deal.
