{"id":249700,"date":"2025-10-21T08:00:30","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T12:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nomadicmatt.com\/?p=249700"},"modified":"2025-12-29T03:57:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T08:57:29","slug":"find-cheap-car-rental","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nomadicmatt.com\/travel-blogs\/find-cheap-car-rental\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Find a Cheap Car Rental"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/p>\n

I love<\/em> road trips<\/a>. You get in car and can just head off anywhere you want. There’s a freedom to a road trip that you can’t get with trains (and, don’t get me wrong, I love train travel too). Small towns, beautiful parks, historic buildings….whatever you see, you can stop for and can stay as little or as long as you’d like! <\/p>\n

Over the years, I\u2019ve been on dozens of road trips. Some destinations are just meant<\/em> for them (think New Zealand, Ireland, Iceland, the United States, South Africa, etc, etc.).<\/p>\n

However, when you don’t have your own car, renting one can be a pain in the ass. No one likes doing it and we all (rightly) worry we’re getting ripped off. There’s always a lot of questions that go with renting a car.<\/p>\n

Where can I find the best deals?<\/p>\n

How do I know this cheap car rental site is legit? <\/p>\n

What are things I should watch out for? <\/p>\n

And what about insurance? Do I really need that? Or is my credit card’s insurance good enough? <\/p>\n

In this post, I am going to share my tips and advice to help you find a cheap (but reliable) car rental and how to avoid common pitfalls that many travelers make.<\/p>\n


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Step 1: Join Rental Company Mailing Lists & Loyalty Programs<\/a><\/h3>\n

Most rental car companies advertise deals to their subscribers first. As soon as you know that you’re going on a road trip, join the mailing lists of the major car rental company. That way, you can snag any deals on offer as soon as they are announced. <\/p>\n

To find the main rental car companies in your destination, simply visit the website of the airport you’re arriving at and see what car rental companies are available there.<\/p>\n

Additionally, like airlines, many car rental companies have loyalty airlines that offer perks like discounts, bonus upgrades, and free rentals. Enterprise, Avis, Alamo, and Hertz are some of the major players on the market that offer free loyalty programs. Sign up for them so you don’t miss out on any perks, offers, or upgrades.
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Step 2: Search for a Car with Discover Cars<\/a><\/h3>\n

While you can certainly check each car rental company individually for a deal, the best way to compare prices is to use an aggregator. These websites compile information from every car rental website so you don’t have to spend time manually comparing prices before you book.<\/p>\n

Discover Cars<\/a> is the best car search aggregator<\/strong> to use as it pulls more cars from more websites to ensure you find the best deal (it searches over 500 websites for deals). It cover 165 countries and 50,000+ locations worldwide! <\/p>\n

You can use the widget below to check prices and get a quote quickly and easily to compare rental car deals with DiscoverCars comparison tool for cheap rentals<\/a>:
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