Alamo vs Enterprise: Which is Right For You? [2024]

In the car rental company battle of Alamo vs Enterprise, choose the best car rental company that suits your preferences and gives you the best choices.

Staying at home feels boring, as long as you are not doing something unusual this weekend. Weekends can be gone within moments but when you have a vacation, you feel like spending it in nature or at a place you want to go for a long time.

At times like these, families which are quite rich and own a car can easily move on with their vacation plans. But, the ones without cars have to think about another way.

Borrowing a car from a friend, colleague, or relative does not sound well each time. When issues like these arise, you have only one solution in front of you, the car rental company.

If you search on the internet, you will find a lot of car rental companies working in your area. Some are based internationally and known across the globe while some are local or national companies.

Two of the most famous rental companies in the United States are Alamo and Enterprise. Both are well-organized and work systematically in their own ways.

However, when you want to select a car rental company, there are many things you are required to highlight. If you ask us, Alamo and Enterprise are two of the best options you have if you live within the borders of the United States. But, which one to choose or which one suits your taste the most?

To know more about Alamo and Enterprise, we have presented you with the Alamo and Enterprise comparison, which will help you decide which car rental company is well-suited for you.

Alamo vs Enterprise: What are they?

Alamo: Alamo Rent A Car is a well-known car rental company in the United States. It is based in Clayton, Missouri, United States. The company is officially owned by Enterprise Holdings along with other subsidiaries like Vanguard Car Rental USA, LLC.

Alarm Rent a Car has launched its franchise across the lands of Africa, Europe, North America, Australia, Asia, Oceania, and South America. Alamo was founded in 1974. Crissy Taylor is its current CEO and Andrew C. Taylor is its executive chairman.

Enterprise: Enterprise Holdings is another USA-based private car rental company. The bottom line, it asks you to believe in them and go on a ride of your life with confidence.

Jack C Taylor founded the Enterprise Holdings car rental company in 1957. With Crissy Taylor being its current CEO, the organization is running smoothly along with National Car Rental, Enterprise Car Sales, Enterprise Rent A Car, Alamo Rent a Car, and other subsidiaries. The Crawford Group, Inc is the parent organization behind all these car rental companies.

Enterprise vs Alamo: How does it work?

To become a part of the agency, they may ask you to sign up for a membership first. But, most of them will not want to tie you with monthly or any other member. So, it will ask you for a straightforward payment when you rent a car.

To rent a car, you are required to accept certain terms and policies and follow rules and regulations according to the company. They have a criterion that says that you are required to be eligible to rent a car. After they make sure you are eligible to rent a car from their company, the process is pretty easy.

To help you recognize your eligibility for either of the rental companies, we are presenting you with the requirement list along with other important details below:

Alamo:

• Meet the minimum age requirement. The minimum age requirement depends on the location you are renting a car from.
• The driver must have a valid driver's license.
• You have two options for payment – credit card or debit card/other modes of payment:
  • For the people who are going to use the credit card, they are required to show their credit card at the time of the rental along with the available credit. The company will charge you an extra amount in the name of a security deposit along with the fixed amount for renting the car.
  • If you have a debit card, you must meet the company's deposit type requirements. You must have a debit card or any other form of payment that is acceptable by the company. The other payment method must qualify the payment policy of the company.

Enterprise:

• Must be more than 24 years old.
• Have a Credit card or debit
• Show a valid driver's license along with the photo at the time of pickup.
• Have a valid photo ID. Passport or driver's license.

If the driver is below the age of 25, they can still rent a car from Enterprise, but they will have to pay an extra amount – a young driver's fee. The charge fee will depend on the area you are living in.

Once you are sure you are eligible for all the requirements, you can visit the website of Enterprise Holdings and start the process by adding your pick-up location and return location. Enterprise has a special option for you – where it allows you to put in a different return location.

If the website is not your thing – you can opt for the Enterprise application available on both Android and Apple devices. You can install the app. It is up to you if you wish to sign up and go for renting straight away. The process on both the app and website will be similar and easy.

Enterprise vs Alamo: Price

Alamo: Alamo Rent a Car is comparatively reasonable. The car rentals at Alamo start from $6.35 a day, which can fluctuate depending on your preferences and the area you live in. It can drop to 4 dollars per day and also rise to 8 dollars per day.

Alamo, along with the exact rent payment, will ask for extra payment in the name of a security deposit. In case you put any harm on their vehicle and did not return it the way you picked it up, Alamo will automatically deduct the charges accordingly. Once the deductions are completed, it will pass the deposit to you on the estimated date of refund.

Enterprise: comparing Enterprise to Alamo, the prices of Enterprise can be a little expensive. Although both car rental companies relate to each other in many ways, Enterprise has a whole lot of models listed in their menu for you compared to Alamo.

Along with the wide library of models, they also have Short term and long-term car rental services. In comparison with the short-term car rental services, the company's long-term car rental services seem a bit complicated to adapt to. Because a long-term contract will give you more time to spend with the vehicle – it is likely, they will allot more rules based on the risk.

Alamo vs Enterprise: How much do they hold onto your card?

Alamo: Alamo will hold the total of your rental payment along with the security deposit on your card. The security deposit will be 120% of your rental payment. This amount will include extra charges like Late returns, Additional fuel, etc.

For other customers, who will pick up the vehicle from airport locations and are not able to manage a return ticket of the airline – Alamo will hold an extra amount of $200 on their credit card. Means – they will charge the credit card 120% for the rental charge total along with $200.

Enterprise: Enterprise will hold 20% of the total rental payment as the security deposit. Also, if your pick-up location is from an airport, they will put 120% of the rental cost on hold.

Alamo vs Enterprise Car Rental Fleet

Alamo: at the official site of the Alamo, you will get all the options for rental displayed with exact details. The fleet list of Alamo contains categories like Full Size Hybrid Compact, Full Size, Drive happy Deal, and more.

For the aforementioned, they offer a good variety of cars like Infiniti Q60 for Exotic Sportscar, BMW 4 series for Luxury Convertible, Chevrolet Impala for Premium Special, Nissan Leaf for Intermediate Electric, Chevrolet Camaro SS for American Muscle car, VW Jetta for Standard, Chevrolet Corvette for a Performance Sports car, BMW 5 series for Premium Elite, VW Beetle Convertible for Size Convertible, Dodge Challenger for a sports car and more.

Enterprise: Audi A7, Nissan Versa, Tesla Model S, Mitsubishi Mirage, Nissan Maxima Chrysler 300, Jeep Wrangler 4 door, Kia Forte, The new Chevrolet Spark, Hyundai Elantra, Toyota Camry, Performance Sport, Opel Insignia, Chevrolet Impala, Volkswagen Jetta, BMW 5 series, Cars Ireland, BMW X3, Exotic Sport, MINI countryman and many more.

At Enterprise, they promise to give you every type of car you wish to drive. From sports cars to premium ones, they have every option for you.

Alamo vs Enterprise Car rental: When do they Return the Money?

Rented through Credit card –

Alamo will take 5 to 10 business days to transfer the deposit back into your credit card account.

Enterprise will hold both the security deposit and the total cost of renting for you in your bank account. Once you return the car safely and the car is examined by the Enterprise Holding company, they will release the calculated deposit and take the rental payment with them.

Rented through Debit card –

If you rented a car through a debit card, it depends on the bank you are associated with to decide the refund date. As soon as you return the car and secure the rental with a debit card, the deposit will be transacted on the same day by Alamo but it may take 5 to 10 days for your bank to process the money.

Enterprise Holding will approximately require 5 to 10 business days to refund your security deposit. The actual delivery of the refund in your account will depend on your bank.

Rented through Cash –

At the moment, Alamo does not accept deposits and payments in cash at the time of pickup for security reasons. Most of the locations are restricted to cash in-person meetings.

If you paid for the cost through cash cheque or mail, Alamo will require 20 business days to do a thorough check-up of certain things before passing the deposit cheque or money through the mail to you.

Alamo vs Enterprise Rental car: Difference

	Alamo	Enterprise
Car hiring locations	It has over 1,500 locations in Asia, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, the Caribbean, Latin America, the United States	Has branches in over 7,600 locations, including Australia, Caribbean, Latin America, Middle East, Asia, Canada, Europe, United States
Types of cars available	SUV/minivanSedanCompact cars High performance vehicles  Vas 4X4 vehicles  Premium/luxury vehicles  Hybrid vehicles  Utility vehicles	Vans 4X4 vehicles Premium sedan SUV/minivanSedan
Type of insurance included	Standard cover and loss or damage liability. Additional insurance options are available	Standard cover is included with damage liability or loss liability. Extra insurance can also be purchased
Fueling agreement	You can start with a full tank of fuel in your vehicle at the time of rental or pay upon return	You can refuel the vehicle to the same fuel level upon picking up the vehicle or you’ll be charged the local Enterprise rate which is usually above the local pump price. Or you can also prepay for fuel
Can I smoke or carry a pet in the car?	You cannot smoke but you can carry pets and you’ll need to clean the car before returning it	You cannot smoke but you can carry pets but clean the car before returning it
Can I drive out of state?	Although most of the vehicles are allowed to travel between the US and Canada, vehicles classes like Large Passenger, Exotics, or Cargo vans and other specialty vehicles cannot be allowed to travel outside of the US	Yes
Do I require a deposit?		No
What are the car rental requirements?	Drivers must be ages 21 or olderHave a valid driver’s license written in English or accompanied by an International Driving Permit	Driver should be at least 21 years old Have a valid driver’s license held for at least 12 months Overseas license might need an International Driving Permit
Can I pay in cash?	Yes	No
Will they pick me up?	No	Yes, during normal business hours from non-airport locations
Does it allow reservation cancellation?	You can make cancellation online before the start of the rental but there will be a cancellation fee	Cancellations can be made online before you pick up your vehicle. In many cases, complete refund will be given minus cancellation fees.
Can I add extra driver?	Yes, additional drivers need to meet Alamo’s age and license requirements and present themselves at the rental counter along with the primary driver. And pay a daily fee which differs by location	Yes, additional drivers should mee the age and license requirements and present their license while collecting the car. Fee might apply outside of Australia

Conclusion

Alamo car rental vs Enterprise Holding – both look legitimate and trusted. However, Enterprise looks convenient in more ways than Alamo. Although they both relate to each other – according to us, Enterprise Holding car rental is the best choice for you.

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