The Best and Worst Rental Car Companies in North America

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When you’re searching for a rental car to book for your trip, it’s always tempting to reserve the cheapest vehicle that pops up on search. After all, a Corolla is the same regardless of which agency you book it from, right? It seems that way… but waiting outside the airport for a shuttle that never arrives, dealing with a dirty or unreliable car, or spending hours in line just to reach the rental car counter can quickly ruin your vacation. 

To help you avoid these rental car nightmares, J.D. Power conducts an annual North America Rental Car Satisfaction Study. This study surveys over 8,000 travelers who rented cars at airport locations for either business or leisure trips. 

Participants ranked rental car agencies based on seven factors:

1. Ease of rental
2. Pick-up/drop-off experience
3. Level of trust
4. Vehicle
5. Staff
6. Value for price paid
7. Digital tools

The Best Rental Car Companies

A famous name doesn’t guarantee a good rental car experience. “Trust fosters loyalty, enhances the company’s reputation, and differentiates it in a competitive market,” said Azari Jones, rental car practice lead at J.D. Power. “This leads to higher customer retention and positive word-of-mouth. Without this trust, even a well-known brand may struggle to maintain long-term relationships with customers.”

According to the survey, these are the best rental car companies in North America.

1. National
2. Enterprise
3. Sixt
4. Advantage Rent A Car
5. Alamo
6. Hertz
7. ACE Rent A Car

The Worst Rental Car Companies

If you want to avoid a bad experience, you shouldn’t book with the following rental car companies, which were ranked lowest in the customer satisfaction survey.

1. Dollar
2. Budget
3. Thrifty
4. Fox Rent A Car
5. Avis
6. Payless

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