#ZIPCAR MILEAGE LIMIT FULL#
#ZIPCAR MILEAGE LIMIT LICENSE#
#ZIPCAR MILEAGE LIMIT PLUS#

Once you’re signed up to the program, it’s just a few taps to locate the closest available vehicle and choose your pick-up and return times. The Zipcar reservation process is definitely faster and easier than booking with a traditional rental company. Just be careful of late-return penalties, which start at $50 per 30 minutes.

At less than $10 an hour (and without the hassle of dealing with gas), Zipcar’s a better choice for a quick outing-and even compares favorably to Uber and Lyft. Zipcar’s model really works best for short trips of an hour or two-where it doesn’t make sense to pay $35 or so for a car just to run errands. Planning on a road trip? Careful-Zipcar caps mileage, and the fees are a hefty 55 cents per mile if you go over. Even if rental rates are as high as $50 per day, five days in a traditional car rental would save you $100 over Zipcar. And if you don’t need that insurance coverage, Zipcar’s value proposition looks even worse.

#ZIPCAR MILEAGE LIMIT FULL#

Even after full collision and liability coverage (about $25) and 5 gallons of gas (another $20), it still comes out under Zipcar’s $74 daily rate. Even though that includes gas, insurance, and up to 180 miles of driving per day, that’s not usually competitive with traditional rental car rates, especially if you let AutoSlash help you find discounts.įor example, a regular rental at LAX airport for an upcoming weekend runs around $25 a day retail and AutoSlash found rates as low as $18 a day. Rental rates themselves start at $9.50 per hour, but if you want to keep it for longer periods, like a regular rental car, the daily rate starts at $77.

#ZIPCAR MILEAGE LIMIT PLUS#

You’ll pay a $25 application fee plus a monthly membership of $7.

#ZIPCAR MILEAGE LIMIT LICENSE#

You’ll also need a valid driver’s license and either a debit or credit card. To sign up with Zipcar, you need to be 21 years old-or 18 and older if you’re a student. How Zipcar Compares to Traditional Rental Car Companies But staying in San Francisco? Living it up in Chicago’s Loop? Zipcar might work out for you. In other words, Zipcar isn’t a better option than a traditional car rental if you’re flying into Louisville or Sioux Falls. These can often be quite convenient for urban apartment dwellers and downtown hotel guests-in some cities, there’s a Zipcar spot every few blocks, compared with a handful of traditional rental car offices that serve an entire city.

While Zipcar has a presence at some airports now (thanks to its purchase several years ago by Avis Budget Group), most Zipcars live in dedicated spots on city streets as well as in parking lots and garages scattered around town. That goes along with Zipcar’s core mission, which really is providing an alternative to owning a car in places where a car-free lifestyle is practical.Īsk AutoSlash for a Quote on a Cheap Car Rental 2,311), Zipcar mostly serves larger urban areas and bustling college towns, and you won’t find much of a Zipcar presence in less-populated areas. While a few small, rural towns are served by Zipcar (such as Suwanee, Tenn., pop. With a low minimum renter age (18 years), Zipcar is a solid choice for students who need to an off-campus errand or take a daytrip. Zipcar is now operational on hundreds of college campuses in the U.S. Five of the seven cities listed in Illinois are part of the greater Chicago area.

Zipcar lists 54 cities served in California, but that represents only about 10 different metro areas. That sounds like a lot, but many markets are suburbs of major metro areas. Zipcar operates in over 500 cities around the world. Its model works best for short trips of an hour or two, but not if you need a car for at least a day and will be traveling more than 180 miles in total. Zipcar was conceived for city dwellers who don’t own cars. But does using this car-sharing service over a traditional car rental ever make sense? Sometimes. Just like Airbnb hasn’t killed off hotels, Zipcar hasn’t squashed the major rental car companies.

Zipcar mileage limit