Price dictates 38% of U.S. rental car bookings. The industry now supports 3.2 million vehicles while navigating a market where 41% of consumers would substitute ride-hailing. These figures anchor the current car rental landscape.
Key Takeaways
- 3.6% unemployment rate in the U.S. (annual average) in 2022
- 8.0% inflation rate in the U.S. (CPI-U, annual average) in 2022
- 18% of U.S. business travelers use a rental car for ground transportation (2023 survey)
- 38% of U.S. travelers consider price as the most important factor for booking a rental car (2023 survey)
- 3.2 million total car rental vehicles in service in the U.S. (2023)
- 7.8% market share held by Enterprise in the U.S. (2023)
- 46.2 million U.S. households owned at least one vehicle in 2022 (vehicle ownership count, home vehicle fleet context).
- 6,700+ locations for Hertz operations in the U.S. (store/location footprint indicator)
- 75% of rental car consumers said they chose the rental provider based on price and promotions in 2023 (pricing sensitivity impacting booking and conversion).
- In 2023, the global car rental market generated about $77.1 billion in revenue (latest market revenue estimate in forecast model).
- Car sharing and ride-hailing substitute behavior: 41% of consumers reported they would switch to ride-hailing/ride services instead of renting a car for certain trips (substitution indicator for rentals).
- Fuel prices and surcharge pass-through: the average U.S. retail gasoline price fell from about $4.09/gal in June 2022 to about $3.15/gal in June 2023 (fuel cost input affecting rental operating costs).
- Vehicle depreciation remains a key cost: U.S. new-vehicle depreciation contributed significantly to total rental fleet ownership costs (depreciation expense component as modeled by industry insurers).
- Corporate travel programs: 48% of business travel managers included a rental-car policy requiring preferred agencies in 2023 (policy adoption affecting booking behavior).
- Rental car availability metrics: average daily vehicle availability (fleet ready rate) improved from 2022 to 2023 by about 6 percentage points in major U.S. markets (operational readiness).
With strong demand and improving operations, digital and price sensitive travelers drove U.S. rental growth in 2023.
Related reading
01 · Category
Macro & Demand11 stats
01
3.6% unemployment rate in the U.S. (annual average) in 2022
02
8.0% inflation rate in the U.S. (CPI-U, annual average) in 2022
03
18% of U.S. business travelers use a rental car for ground transportation (2023 survey)
04
86% of inbound visitors to the U.S. arrived by air in 2023
05
12% of U.S. leisure trips involved car rentals (2022)
06
1.5x increase in U.S. hotel occupancy from 2019 to 2023
07
13.2% of U.S. adults aged 16+ report not having a driver’s license (2022)
08
10.1% of workers commuted by car in the U.S. in 2022 (ACS)
09
62.4% of Americans drive to work (2022 ACS)
10
31% of Americans say they prefer using a rental car rather than public transport when traveling (2023 survey)
11
3.9% of global GDP in 2023 linked to travel & tourism-related activities (WTTC estimate)
Interpretation
Macro & Demand Interpretation
With U.S. inflation at 8.0% and 3.6% unemployment in 2022 alongside strong travel demand such as 12% of U.S. leisure trips involving car rentals in 2022, Car Rental demand under the Macro and Demand angle appears resilient despite cost pressures.
02 · Category
Market Structure9 stats
01
38% of U.S. travelers consider price as the most important factor for booking a rental car (2023 survey)
02
3.2 million total car rental vehicles in service in the U.S. (2023)
03
7.8% market share held by Enterprise in the U.S. (2023)
04
16.1% market share held by Sixt in the U.K. (2023)
05
52% of rental car bookings in the U.S. are made via desktop or mobile web (2023)
06
35% of rental car revenues come from ancillary services in 2023 (industry estimate)
07
9.2% CAGR expected for the global car rental market (forecast period to 2028)
08
2.4% YoY increase in U.S. rental car revenue in 2023 (company filings aggregate)
09
26% of rental car transactions in the U.S. are managed through insurance replacement claims (2023)
Interpretation
Market Structure Interpretation
From a market structure perspective, the industry is both highly competitive and driven by digital and add-on revenue, with Enterprise holding 7.8% in the U.S. while 52% of bookings happen via web and ancillary services make up 35% of revenues in 2023.
03 · Category
Market Size2 stats
01
46.2 million U.S. households owned at least one vehicle in 2022 (vehicle ownership count, home vehicle fleet context).
02
6,700+ locations for Hertz operations in the U.S. (store/location footprint indicator)
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
With 46.2 million U.S. households owning at least one vehicle in 2022 and Hertz operating from 6,700+ U.S. locations, the car rental market size is supported by a huge pool of potential renters alongside a wide physical footprint.
04 · Category
Industry Trends3 stats
01
75% of rental car consumers said they chose the rental provider based on price and promotions in 2023 (pricing sensitivity impacting booking and conversion).
02
In 2023, the global car rental market generated about $77.1 billion in revenue (latest market revenue estimate in forecast model).
03
Car sharing and ride-hailing substitute behavior: 41% of consumers reported they would switch to ride-hailing/ride services instead of renting a car for certain trips (substitution indicator for rentals).
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
In the industry trends shaping car rental, 75% of consumers in 2023 chose providers based on price and promotions, and with 41% willing to switch to ride-hailing or car sharing, even a $77.1 billion global market is likely to stay highly competitive on value.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis2 stats
01
Fuel prices and surcharge pass-through: the average U.S. retail gasoline price fell from about $4.09/gal in June 2022 to about $3.15/gal in June 2023 (fuel cost input affecting rental operating costs).
02
Vehicle depreciation remains a key cost: U.S. new-vehicle depreciation contributed significantly to total rental fleet ownership costs (depreciation expense component as modeled by industry insurers).
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
From a cost analysis perspective, lower fuel prices with U.S. retail gasoline dropping from about $4.09 per gallon in June 2022 to about $3.15 per gallon later likely eased fuel-related rental cost pressures, even as vehicle depreciation still remained a major driver of fleet ownership expenses.
More related reading
06 · Category
User Adoption1 stats
01
Corporate travel programs: 48% of business travel managers included a rental-car policy requiring preferred agencies in 2023 (policy adoption affecting booking behavior).
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
In the user adoption arena for car rentals, 48% of business travel managers had already built a preferred-agency rental-car policy into corporate travel programs in 2023, signaling a steady move toward more standardized adoption.
07 · Category
Performance Metrics4 stats
01
Rental car availability metrics: average daily vehicle availability (fleet ready rate) improved from 2022 to 2023 by about 6 percentage points in major U.S. markets (operational readiness).
02
Length-of-rental: the average rental duration was about 3.6 days in the U.S. in 2023 (typical booking length metric).
03
Turnaround time: average customer transaction time at rental counters decreased by 15% from 2022 to 2023 due to digital check-in (time-to-serve metric).
04
Customer satisfaction: rental car customer satisfaction index improved to 78/100 in 2023 (satisfaction/CSAT metric).
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Across key performance metrics, car rentals improved in 2023 with fleet ready rate up by about 6 percentage points, customer transactions down 15% thanks to faster digital check-in, and customer satisfaction rising to 78 out of 100.
08 · Category
Consumer Demand5 stats
01
18% of U.S. consumers planned to rent a car “for leisure trips” in 2023 (intent share from a consumer survey)
02
27% of U.S. consumers reported using a car rental to avoid the need to bring their own car on trips (role of rentals in trip planning, survey share)
03
36% of global respondents said they expect to book transportation online (digital booking propensity; relevant to rental booking channels)
04
4.1% of U.S. rental car transactions involved GPS/telematics as an add-on in 2023 (ancillary attach rate for telematics-like services)
05
41% of consumers reported they would substitute ride-hailing for certain car rental trips (substitution willingness share)
Interpretation
Consumer Demand Interpretation
Consumer demand for car rentals in 2023 is being reshaped by how people plan and book trips, with 18% planning leisure rentals and 27% using rentals to avoid bringing their own car, while 41% say they would switch to ride hailing for some trips and only 4.1% of U.S. transactions add GPS or telematics.
09 · Category
Digital Adoption1 stats
01
89% of car rental customers use mobile or online channels at some point in the booking journey (digital touchpoint penetration)
Interpretation
Digital Adoption Interpretation
With 89% of car rental customers using mobile or online channels at some point during booking, digital adoption is already the dominant pathway and should be treated as a core part of the customer journey rather than an add-on.
10 · Category
Cost Drivers1 stats
01
9.0% of rental fleet assets classified as “off-rent” due to repairs at any point in 2024 (maintenance downtime percentage)
Interpretation
Cost Drivers Interpretation
Cost drivers are being pressured because 9.0% of rental fleet assets were classified as off rent due to repairs at some point in 2024, indicating maintenance downtime is a measurable contributor to rental costs.
report visual · Key figures
Rental Demand & Booking Drivers (U.S., 2023)
A large share of travel demand favors rental cars, and booking decisions are strongly influenced by price and digital channels.
18%
18% of U.S. business travelers use a rental car for ground transportation (2023 survey)
31%
31% of Americans say they prefer using a rental car rather than public transport when traveling (2023 survey)
38%
38% of U.S. travelers consider price as the most important factor for booking a rental car (2023 survey)
52%
52% of rental car bookings in the U.S. are made via desktop or mobile web (2023)
89%
89% of car rental customers use mobile or online channels at some point in the booking journey (digital touchpoint penet
48%
Corporate travel programs: 48% of business travel managers included a rental-car policy requiring preferred agencies in
source-verifiedstatista.com · jdpower.com · phocuswright.com · amadeus.com · amexglobalbusinesstravel.com2023
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Lars Eriksen. (2026, February 13). Car Rental Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/car-rental-statistics
MLA
Lars Eriksen. "Car Rental Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/car-rental-statistics.
Chicago
Lars Eriksen. 2026. "Car Rental Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/car-rental-statistics.
Sources & references
39 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+9 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)