Say Goodbye To Rental Car Headaches With These Smarter Options

Transportation is an important factor to consider when traveling to less walkable cities, especially if you want to see more of your destination. You can rule out a travel company's group tour options by renting a car and creating your own itinerary — except rental car companies almost always come with caveats that create more headaches than solutions, like wondering if insurance is worth it or choosing a company that doesn't have bad reviews. Public transportation is an option depending on where you go, but if you want the freedom of having a car, there are even craftier services available across the globe that sidestep much of the challenges you'll encounter when going through a traditional car rental company, offering easier pickup options, flexibility, and accessible booking.

With alternative rental car services and apps, the power is back in the hands of the driver. You don't have to worry about confusing policies and workarounds when issues occur, such as getting blacklisted for involving credit card companies in rental disputes. Instead, you can control your rental and retain a record of your history rather than relying on a rental company's computer system. From Turo to Getaround, there are smarter options on the horizon to consider when traveling within the United States or overseas.

Zipcar is a savvy travel alternative because it's easy to sign up and there's a fixed rate, so you can forget about hidden fees. All you need to do is purchase a plan, verify your ID, and book the trip. Cars are priced by the hour or by the day, and plans are available on either a monthly or yearly basis. Zipcar comes with a gas card included in your rate, and additional benefits of Zipcar versus a traditional rental include 24/7 availability, standard damage protection on all vehicles, around-the-clock support, and the accessibility of using an app to open and close the car for security.

Redditors who used Zipcar tend to agree that it's best for short-term use rather than long-term, since a Zipcar for a few hours tends to be cheaper than a traditional rental car for a similar length of time. Others advise travelers to be mindful of the car location, as one person said that prices for vehicles can surge in tourist-centric places like Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. It can also be far cheaper to use Zipcar than owning a car yourself, avoiding hefty car payments and pricy gas pump fees, if you only need it for occasional use. It might be prohibitively expensive, though, if you're going to be using it every day, consistently, for several days or longer. As of this writing, Zipcar is available in North America.

Next on the list is Turo, which is basically like Airbnb for cars. It's become so popular that in 2024, it had 3.5 million active guests use the service around the world. It's a peer-to-peer process, meaning Turo cuts out the middle man and allows you to deal with the "average Joe" who is just looking to make an extra buck off of a luxury they already have. The downside of Turo is its pricing, because owners create their own price per car — be it a vintage car, a sports car, or a caravan. However, there is flexibility in options. Additionally, some Redditors have seen the same car double in price at a rental shop as opposed to the Turo app.

With Turo, all you do is select your car and pickup location, and off you go. You can meet the host at a set spot, get the car delivered to you, or remotely use a lockbox or security app (the host can unlock the car with an app on their phone). The cars, like Airbnb, are reviewed by drivers, giving you an honest reflection of how the car works, as well as its appearance. Turo operates in the U.S., some Canadian provinces, Australia, France, and the U.K.

As of February 2025, Getaround stopped operations in America, but if you're traveling overseas, it might be a nice alternative to public transportation. Getaround works a little differently than the other apps, as you have even more control with the touch of your phone screen. After choosing a car and verifying your profile, you can unlock the car with your phone to find the keys inside. When you return the vehicle, you'll do just the same: Leave the keys inside the car and lock it with your phone. With Getaround, you have a daily price, and you must refuel the car before the end of your journey. There is also a mileage allowance. Getaround's highlighted feature is its app-based service. Not having to meet anyone in person and being able to reach a car at any time of day makes the service extremely convenient for most users.

The car rental service no longer operates in America because of problems with cash flow. Plus, the company has received some negative reviews. Some commenters posted on a San Francisco thread on Reddit that there were fraudulent claims within their rental experience, and others, this time in the r/Norway subreddit, said that they've had reservations canceled without explanation. For these reasons, you may want to book with caution. You can still find Getaround in France, Norway, Spain, Belgium, Germany, and Austria.

Another overseas-only option is BlaBlaCar. It's kind of like professional hitchhiking. You can carpool with others and take longer journeys for a cheaper price. Essentially, you're reserving a ride with those going in the same direction as you. Rides can be as low as €15.50 for distances as far as Barcelona to Valencia. There are also options to book a seat on a BlaBlaCar bus, as well as on a train. On a Facebook thread asking about people's experience, there were only positive reviews. Commenters revealed they enjoy it more than a bus or train (using the car option), and they meet great people during their journey. 

Since the service is carpool-based, Redditors say to vet the profiles of those who you ride with, as some people can be "weird" or uncomfortable to travel with. The service can also be a bit flaky; the driver can cancel at the last minute, so it's recommended to have a solid second option. However, you can't beat the long-distance price of the journey, and for travelers who have flexibility, it's an easy move between cities without committing to a full rental. As of 2024, BlaBlaCar is available in Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom, Russia, Ukraine, Germany, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, India, Turkey, Mexico, and Brazil.

To create this guide of rental car service options, we looked at popularity, accessibility, affordability, and user reviews. During our time researching, we found Zipcar and Turo as the most mentioned companies on websites like Reddit. Some Reddit threads also mentioned Getaround, which we felt was necessary to include as an overseas option. As the writer, I live in Barcelona and have heard of BlaBlaCar through friends who have used it and had positive reviews. BlaBlaCar rounded out our research as another way to travel by car.

Besides prioritizing the most-mentioned companies, we also factored in what was said about each. Using public opinion threads from Reddit and Facebook, we had real-life scenarios as to why people liked or disliked each service. Affordability was another important factor, as hidden fees can sometimes be a deterrent when booking traditional rental cars. However, rates with each company can vary greatly. Therefore, we also prioritized features such as accessibility, 24-hour service, self-service options, and the ease of reservation.

Furthermore, location is key. Based on the location of the rental car company — whether it's in a tourist hotspot or not — services like Turo might save you money and were therefore included in our list. Also, we made sure to include Getaround and BlaBlaCar because they provide options in countries that the others do not.