One-way car rentals can be within the same state,province or city or from one to another. It is a rental where you pick up the vehicle at one location and drop it off at another. Even if you drop it off in the same city, but at a different location, it is still considered a one-way rental. Booking a this kind of car rental makes sense if you are taking a one-way road trip and have other plans for your return journey or if you want to pick up your rental car at a location near your home and drop it off at the airport while you fly to your destination. You can do the reverse when you fly home.

Some rental companies are more flexible with these types of rentals than others! You can check online or with the rental company directly.
One-way car rentals are easier to get within some areas, than others. Example: rentals within Florida, New York, New Jersey and California are the most commonly allowed. Many Canadian car rental locations allow one-way rentals within the Maritime provinces and within British Columbia.

Whether travelling one-way within a state or province or across the country, some one-way rentals may only be available from one airport car rental location to another.

When searching for a one-way car rental, do the following:

Find out if the car rental company locations along the route you are taking or in the cities you will be visiting. Major car rental companies are more likely to have a larger number of drop off locations around the country.

Check into what/if any the drop-off charges will be. A lot of companies don’t charge an extra fee; the rate is just higher than it would be if you were returning back to your original pick up location. If you are renting and returning in the same city, but at different locations, there is often no extra fee.

Ask about other charges like fees for car rental insurance, airport fees, over mileage fees and taxes. Over mileage fees are those fees that you would incur if the mileage is limited during your rental. (example 100 miles per day free, each additional mile will cost more)

Usually, this type of rental will cost you more on a daily basis than a regular car rental. One-way rentals are often more expensive because the rental company has to find a way to get the car back to the original location themselves. Even if you plan on picking it up a week later to drive it back, the company does not want it to sit, unrented, on a car lot. They will try to find a way to have it rented right away to return or send one of their employees back in the vehicle to return it and then fly them back. Thus the extra expense!

You will want to look at various factors to determine whether or not the higher price of a one-way rental will save you money in the long run.
If you have five people travelling, you will save the costs of 5 airfares, but will have to take into account the cost of the car rental, gasoline, food (if you stop to eat) and any overmileage costs if your one-way car rental is limited to a certain number of miles.

You may often be limited on the size and type of vehicle that you can use for this type of rental. You may not be able to get a minivan or suv. Check your options!

Because you pay more for a one-way rental on a daily basis, if you can pick up and drop off in one day, you'll only being paying the higher rate for that day. It may be cheaper to pick up a new vehicle for the remainder of your rental because that car would be rented and returned to the same location!

The most common exception to higher prices is in Florida. A lot of travellers will fly into one airport and out another. One-way rentals are more often seen in this state and generally there are no one-way fees, depending on the company you rent with.

Another exception to the typically high cost of one-way rentals is to take advantage of specials that rental companies offer a couple of times a year.

During the fall, most car rental companies transfer a larger proportion of their fleet to the warmer, winter-time travel destinations, such as Florida or busy ski destinations like Colorado, British Columbia and Alberta.
If you are flexible with your travel plans, in the spring, car rental companies need to return their fleets north for the summer where they're most needed by travelers preparing for holiday travel and summer vacations.

Often people want to get a one-way car rental when they are taking a cruise. You want to fly into a city and pick up a rental car. You then want to drop it off at the pier where you catch your cruise. When you come back, you do the reverse.

This saves you the cost of paying for the rental each day plus the cost of parking it for the days when you will be on your cruise.

Note: Some rental companies may have a drop off location at the cruiseship terminal or it may be a location close by that will drive you over to the pier. Check with the rental company to see if they are on-site at the terminal.

Research your one-way rental carefully, and be sure to book as far in advance as you can!