Type in a location above, or select from the list below.

Zipcars live in 500+ cities across North America and Europe. See all Zipcar cities

United Kingdom

Canada

Your First Zipcar Trip: A Beginner's Guide

Get ready to hit the road and experience the freedom of renting a Zipcar. We've put together all of the information you'll need when hiring your first Zipcar. From hiring to unlocking a vehicle and returning the car, our guide will equip you with everything you need to know. Start reading and get driving!

Zipcar booking process

I've signed up, what now?

Once your account is approved, you can download our app and start driving! If not, head over to our pricing page so you can start your application.

What does a car sharing community mean?

A car-sharing community means we need to look out for each other. We ask all of our members to follow our community rules, so that everyone can enjoy their trips as much as you do.

Book Now

Once you're account is approved, it's important to install the app to get the best experience. You can find all the cars and vans available nearby, for both Roundtrip and Flex. If you're looking to book a trip in advance, you can book our Roundtrip cars, the green pins in the app. Just select the time you need the vehicle and book the one you need. If you need a van or are looking for a longer reservation it's best to book at least a week in advance to get your nearest vehicle.

If you're in London, you can use Flex for shorter one-way trips in and around London! Flex vehicles can be blocked for 15 minutes ahead of your reservation, ideal for spontaneous and local trips.

For even more details about reserving your Zipcar, take a look at our help centre page.

Once you've made your reservation, you can make your way to the car or van for the start time of the booking. Finding and unlocking the car can all be done with our app, but if you want to learn more you can find out here.

As we are a car-sharing community, we ask all of our members to look out for each other and our vehicles. Before you set off, make sure you check the car for damage and report any that isn't already noted in the log book by following the instructions there (in the glove box).

We also ask members to report on the cleanliness of the vehicles at the start of their trip in the app (this doesn't include damage!) to help everyone in the community. You can find out more cleanliness reporting here.

You've unlocked your car with the app and done all your checks, so you're ready to hit the road! The keys are in the glove box to get the car started, and make sure you have an amazing trip!

If you arrive at your Roundtrip car and there is no booking immediately before, you can enter the car 10 minutes early and you won't be charged for it! Anything before 10 minutes you will be charged for the extra usage.

Zipcar parked in an approved parking spot

When your trip is nearing the end make sure you know where you are leaving your Zipcar. Roundtrip vehicles must be returned to the same bay you picked them up from, and Flex cars can be dropped anywhere in our Zipzone.

Remember you might need to refuel the car (fuel's on us!), and put the keys back in the glovebox before locking the car and ending the trip on our app. Always leave the cars how you would want to find them, this is car sharing after all!

For full details on how to return your car correctly, check out our blog.

Our Community Rules

Before you hit the road, read our community rules of car-sharing.

Return it right

Return a Roundtrip on time, or you can extend your booking. Drop a Flex in our Z ipzone.

Keep it clean

Clean up, don’t smoke and take everything with you. Don’t forget to recycle your rubbish!

Fill ‘er up

If fuel is below ¼ tank at the end of your trip, fill up before you return to it’s bay. Fuel's on us!

Why Rent a Zipcar?

Save money

We pay for fuel, parking and insurance – so you get access to a car without the hassle of owning one!

Rent a car locally

Zipcars live just around the corner. We've got thousands of cars and vans near where you live and work.

Drive on-demand

Rent by the minute, hour or day when and where you need them. Just book and unlock with the app.

Live greener

Cheaper and greener than owning your own car, we've also got hundreds of electric cars in our fleet.

Join now