15 Car Rentals with Free Extra Driver (& Those That Charge)

Having additional drivers on a car rental is handy to relieve tiredness when driving long distances or for travel flexibility.

Fortunately, many car rentals allow the addition of drivers, either for free or a fee, subject to requirements.

The 15 Car Rentals That Allow Additional Drivers (+Their Restrictions)

#1 Alamo

These additional drivers can drive Alamo rental cars for free:

The renter’s spouse or domestic partner; subject to the driver’s license and the State’s minimum age requirements.
If the renter secured the rental with a debit card, the spouse or domestic partner is the only permitted additional driver.

Other additional drivers pay a fee and have to meet these requirements:

Driver’s license and age requirements.
Be present at the rental desk when adding the name.
$5 per driver per day in New York state.
$15 per driver per day in other States.

#2 Avis

Additional drivers who can drive Avis rental car for free include:

Renter’s parent, sibling, or child (only in California).
Renter’s spouse or life partner in all States.
Renter’s employer and co-workers renting through a corporate account.
The additional driver to a renter with a driving disability.

These drivers must pay the additional driver fee:

Renter’s friends and extended family members.
Other drivers not listed in the preceding paragraph.
$3 per driver per day in New York.
$11 per driver per day in Nevada, subject to a maximum of $65 per rental.
$13 per driver per day in other States, subject to a maximum of $65 per rental.

In any case, only a maximum of two additional drivers is permissible per rental.

#3 Budget

Additional drivers who can drive Budget rental cars for free and don’t have to sign extra paperwork are:

Renter’s parent, sibling, or child (only in California).
Renter’s spouse or domestic partner.
Renter’s employer or co-workers via a corporate account.
Companion for a renter with disability.

Other additional drivers not listed above must pay a fee:

$3 per day per driver in New York.
$11-$13.75 per day per driver in Nevada.
$13 per day per driver, subject to a $65 per rental max., in other States.

All additional drivers must be at least 25 years old.

#4 Dollar

Dollar car rental allows these additional drivers to drive for free as long as they meet the age and license requirements:

Renter’s spouse.
Dollar Express Rewards members.
Government rate renters.
Corporate account renters.
Companion(s) to disabled renters.

Plus, renters can add additional drivers at pickup or during the rental at any Dollar corporate location.

An under-25 fee will apply for additional drivers in that age group (see the end of this post for more info).

Authorized additional drivers other than those listed above incur a $13.50 per day per driver fee when registering as Authorized Operators on the rental agreement.

#5 Enterprise

Enterprise allows additional drivers at no extra fee for:

Renter’s spouse or domestic partner.
Renter’s employer, employee, or co-worker under corporate contracts.
Commercial rentals.

Rentals secured with a debit card can only have the spouse or domestic partner as additional drivers.

Authorized additional drivers pay a surcharge of $5 per driver per day in New York and $15 in other States.

All additional drivers must be present with identifications for registration at pick up or during the rental.

#6 Fox

Additional drivers who meet Fox’s renter requirements on age, license, and credit card can drive for free, and they include:

Renter’s spouse or domestic partner.
Companion to a renter with disability.
At California rental locations.

Other additional drivers pay $12.99/day per driver in most Fox rental locations throughout the US, except for some locations in New York state, paying as low as $5/day per driver.

Additional drivers aren’t allowed on cash rentals.

#7 Hertz

Hertz calls additional drivers Authorized Operators.

Authorized Operators with Hertz Car Rental do not incur the additional driver fee and need not be present at the rental desk to sign the rental agreement:

Renter’s spouse for rentals originating in California or Iowa.
Renter’s domestic partner if the renter is a Hertz Gold Plus Rewards member.
Renter’s employer, employee, or co-worker on corporate accounts.
Spouse or domestic partner of AAA (American Automobile Association) members.
Companion to renters with driving disability.

Additional drivers not listed above (a.k.a. Additional Authorized Operator; AAO) must meet these requirements:

Pay a fee of $13.50/day, subject to a maximum of $189/rental per driver.
Be present at the desk to sign the rental agreement.
Can drive for free if the AAO and renter are AAA members.

Additional Authorized Operators under 25 will also incur the location’s age differential fee (see the end of this post for more info).

#8 Kyte

Kyte is a unique car rental service that delivers the vehicle to the renter regardless of the location.

More crucially, Kyte does not impose any additional-driver fee.

However, Kyte has these requirements when adding a driver:

The addition shall take place before the trip begins.
The additional driver must be present with the driver’s license at the time of delivery.

#9 National

Authorized additional drivers at National car rental pay $15/day/driver in all States, except for New York ($5/day/driver).

However, these additional drivers are exempt from the extra fee:

Renter’s spouse or domestic partner.
Renter’s immediate family members (father, mother, son, daughter, brother, and sister) who has the same address on the driver’s license as the renter with the Emerald Club membership.
Renter’s employer, employee, or co-worker through a corporate account.
One companion to a renter with disability.

Regardless of the additional driver’s relationship to the renter, the person must:

Meet age requirements, with under-25 drivers potentially incurring an additional charge.
Appear at the rental counter with the renter at pickup or during the rental.
Present a valid driver’s license.

Rentals secured with a debit card can only have the spouse or domestic partner as an additional driver.

#10 Payless

Payless allows additional drivers aged 25 or older, charging $13 per driver per day, although the fee could vary by location; those under 25 may incur a $25 per driver per day surcharge.

However, these additional drivers are free additions for Payless rentals:

Renter’s spouse or domestic partner.
Renter’s employer, employee, or co-worker renting through a corporate account.
Companion to a renter with driving disability.

A limit of two additional drivers per rental exists.

#11 Silvercar

If you like driving Audis and don’t want to pay an extra fee to add drivers to your rental, Silvercar is for you.

Silver has an all-Audi fleet, and it does not charge an additional-driver fee, as long as the person meets these requirements:

At least 22 years old.
Present the driver’s license to the rental desk for verification.

You can add a driver after the trip has started by informing Silvercar’s mobility specialist, and they can guide you on the process of making the addition remotely.

#12 Sixt

These additional drivers can drive Sixt rental cars for free:

Renter’s spouse.
Renter’s immediate family members.
Renter’s employer, employee, and co-workers on corporate accounts.

Other Sixt-authorized additional drivers will pay $15 per day per driver and must be present at the rental counter for registration.

Rather generously, Sixt allows up to nine additional drivers per rental.

#13 Thrifty

Unlike major car rental companies in the US, Thrifty imposes the extra-driver fee on spouses or domestic partners.

Additional drivers must pay a fee, except for:

Thrifty Blue Chip members.
Government renters on official orders.
Corporate account customers.
Companions of driving impaired renters.

Thrifty’s additional driver fee amount may vary by rental location, so you’ll need to check with the counter (rpd).

You can add additional drivers to your Thrifty rental any time during the rental, and the total number of drivers cannot exceed the vehicle’s passenger seats.

#14 Turo

Turo is one of the most popular car-sharing apps on the market.

Neither Turo nor the vehicle host imposes an additional driver fee. Still, the primary driver assumes all financial responsibility during the trip.

The additional driver must create a Turo account and get Turo’s approval to drive before the primary driver can add the name to the trip; similar age and license requirements apply.

#15 Zipcar

Zipcar is another car-sharing service that provides daily and hourly vehicle rentals.

The primary renter can only add active Zipcar members as additional drivers, but the former must ride along when the latter drives.

Family members registered on a family account are authorized drivers.

Zipcar imposes no extra charges in both cases, but the primary renter assumes all rental and financial responsibilities.

What About Additional Drivers Under 25 Years Old?

While who drives for free or incurs an extra-driver fee is relatively straightforward, please note that car rentals typically impose an additional young driver surcharge.

Car rentals that rent to under-25 drivers charge an extra fee that may vary by age, so drivers in this age group should shop around to keep this cost component to a minimum.

References:

https://www.avis.com/en/help/usa-faqs/additional-driver

https://www.budget.com/en/help/usa-faqs/additional-driver-policy

https://www.enterprise.com/en/help/faqs/additional-driver.html

https://www.hertz.com/rentacar/productservice/index.jsp?targetPage=additionaldriverUS.jsp

https://www.nationalcar.com/en/support/car-rental-faqs/additional-driver-fees.html

https://www.paylesscar.com/en/customer-service/faq/global/requirements-for-renting

https://www.sixt.com/help-center/articles/additional-driver/#/