Renting a Car in Argentina
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Rent your car in Argentina today! Easy to compare, carefree driving.
Outside Buenos Aires, Argentina runs on distances that public transport handles poorly. The bus to El Calafate takes the better part of two days; getting from Mendoza's wine roads to the salt flats of Jujuy without a car means multiple transfers and days lost. A rental car changes the math entirely. Places like the Quebrada de Humahuaca, the back roads around Bariloche, and the silent 200 km stretches of Route 40 become part of your trip rather than things you skip because they're too hard to reach.
Road Trip Car compares offers from trusted providers across 39 pickup locations in Argentina, with insurance details, deposit holds, and mileage policies shown alongside each result so you know what's included before you confirm. Use the search widget above to see available cars and rates for your dates. Prices vary by season and pickup location, and the pricing section further down covers how rates shift across the calendar.
Long-distance buses connect Argentina's major cities, but they run fixed corridors on fixed schedules. The places that make this country unforgettable sit well off those corridors: a bodega tucked into the Uco Valley foothills, a silent stretch of altiplano above Purmamarca, a Patagonian estancia hours from the nearest paved road. A rental car turns a two-week itinerary built around bus timetables into a trip where you set the pace, stop when the landscape demands it, and reach villages most travelers never see.
Outside Buenos Aires, local car availability can be genuinely thin. In smaller cities, a rental office may have only a handful of vehicles on any given day. We lost two full travel days in Salta because the car we needed simply wasn't there. Booking online in advance locks in a vehicle at your chosen pickup location, so you're not stuck waiting an extra day in one town while a car slowly makes its way back from somewhere else.
compact
Petrol
•Manual
From €24.45 / day
Street Rent A Car
€24.45 / day
economy
Petrol
•Manual
From €29.01 / day
Street Rent A Car
€29.01 / day
intermediate
Petrol
•Manual
From €32.31 / day
Street Rent A Car
€32.31 / day
compact
Petrol
•Automatic
From €32.64 / day
Street Rent A Car
€32.64 / day
economy
Petrol
•Manual
From €34.35 / day
Localiza Argentina
€34.35 / day
standard
Petrol
•Manual
From €37.17 / day
Localiza Argentina
€37.17 / day
Enterprise
€71.20 / day
economy
Petrol
•Automatic
From €37.27 / day
Street Rent A Car
€37.27 / day
standard
Petrol
•Manual
From €37.98 / day
Localiza Argentina
€37.98 / day
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Compact or economy cars work well for Buenos Aires and the wine roads around Mendoza. City traffic is manageable and parking spaces are tight, so smaller is better. If your route heads into Patagonia, the Andean northwest, or along any stretch of ripio (the gravel roads that show up on countless popular routes across Argentina), an SUV or 4x4 is the right choice. Once the tarmac ends, ground clearance matters.
Automatic transmission accounts for about 4 in 10 vehicles in the Argentine rental fleet, and availability gets thinner outside Buenos Aires. If automatic transmission is a priority for you, book early. An SUV also solves the luggage problem on multi-day Patagonian trips, where smaller cars often can't carry enough gear for the long stretches between towns.
Where you drive in Argentina determines the right vehicle more than anything else. Here is a quick overview by region.
Buenos Aires and surroundings: Economy or compact car. City traffic and tight parking make smaller vehicles the practical choice. Manual or automatic both work fine here.
Mendoza and wine country: Economy or compact car. Paved roads throughout; a small car handles Uco Valley routes easily.
Bariloche and the Lake District: SUV recommended. Many scenic routes are unpaved, and ground clearance helps on gravel passes.
Northwest Argentina (Salta, Jujuy, Cafayate): SUV or 4x4. Ripio roads are common, and stretches of Route 40 in this region are deeply rutted after rain.
Patagonia (El Calafate, El Chaltén): SUV or 4x4. Long distances between fuel stops and frequent gravel roads make ground clearance and trunk space both important.
Tierra del Fuego: SUV recommended, and check ferry authorization with your provider before booking.
Discover the most popular rental cars in Argentina right now. We compare trusted rental brands and update prices nonstop. Easily find the best-value option for your trip, from compact city cars to spacious SUVs.
Most travelers begin in Buenos Aires, where both Ezeiza International Airport (EZE) and Jorge Newbery Airport (AEP) have rental desks. Ezeiza handles the bulk of international arrivals and is the more common pickup point. Newbery serves domestic routes and sits much closer to the city center, making it a practical choice if you're flying in from another Argentine city to kick off a road trip.
Beyond the capital, rental offices are well placed across Argentina's main tourist hubs: Mendoza for wine country and Andes crossings, Bariloche for the Lake District, and El Calafate as the jumping-off point for the Perito Moreno glacier and southern Patagonia. Picking up at a regional airport means you skip the long drive from Buenos Aires and start exploring straight away.
Road Trip Car compares offers across 39 pickup locations nationwide, spanning airports, city-center offices, and smaller regional desks. Use the interactive map below to find the most convenient spot for your itinerary.
Below are the airports and cities travellers book most. Browse the rest of Argentina from the link below, or use the map to find pickup points near your destination.
Lowest average rates: November from €45.49 / day
What are the costs of a rental car in Argentina? Prices strongly depend on the time of year. In November average daily prices for rental cars start around €45.49. The prices are higher in the peak season (July), with a lowest average price of €58.08 per day. The absolute lowest price we observed in market data during the full year, was €19.11 per day.
The chart below shows the lowest average daily price for each month of the year, so you can directly see at what time of year the prices for rental cars in Argentina are affordable.
Renting a car in Argentina comes with its own set of requirements: driver age rules, deposit holds, and what to bring to the counter. The cards below link to dedicated pages covering each topic in detail.
Argentina has a few rental specifics that are worth understanding before you book. Deposit holds can exceed $8,000, cross-border trips into Chile or Brazil require permits arranged in advance, and reaching Tierra del Fuego involves a ferry crossing through Chilean territory. Each card below covers one of these areas, so you arrive at the counter with a clear picture of what to expect.
Rental offers in Argentina are available from age 18, but most providers set 21 as the practical minimum for a full vehicle selection. At 18 to 20, your choice is moderate and nearly all available offers carry a surcharge. From 21, the full range opens up. Drivers under 25 typically pay a young-driver surcharge where one applies; the fee varies by provider and is shown in search results for your age. Read more about age limits, fees, and how they affect your options.
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Third-party liability is included in every rental, but the standard excess on damage can vary significantly depending on the provider and pickup location. Zero-excess coverage is not available in Argentina, so picking the right CDW level at checkout is the main decision. Coverage levels and excess amounts are shown side by side when you book.
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A credit card in the main driver's name is required at pickup for the deposit hold, which most travelers encounter in the range of $292 to $4,000, though it can be double as high at some locations. You will need to enter your PIN at the terminal. About 1 in 5 vehicles has a zero-deposit option available. Read more about accepted cards and how the deposit works.
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Bring your physical driver's license and passport to the desk. US license holders are strongly encouraged to carry an International Driving Permit, as rental agencies and police checkpoints may require it. Find out exactly what paperwork you need.
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From inspecting the car before you drive off to understanding fuel policies, small preparation steps save time and money. Read our practical tips for pickup, return, and everything in between.
Learn more
Because exploring Argentina should feel like freedom, not logistics. At Road Trip Car, we make renting a car easy, transparent, and worry-free, with trusted local partners and 24/7 support wherever your journey takes you.
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Argentine roads range from smooth autopistas near Buenos Aires to deeply rutted ripio gravel routes in Patagonia and the Andean northwest, where mobile signal can drop for hours and roaming livestock cross without warning. Download offline maps for your full route before leaving any major city; once you're out on the Patagonian steppe or deep into the Andes, you may drive for hours without a signal. Book your rental early if you need an automatic transmission: only about 4 in 10 fleet vehicles are automatics, and they go quickly in peak season. Full-to-full is the standard fuel policy nationwide, so plan your last fill-up carefully since petrol stations near drop-off points can be sparse on southern routes.
Rockformations Quebrada de las Flechas
Bring your driver's license, passport or national ID, the credit card in the main driver's name, and your booking voucher. Missing any one of them means the provider treats it as a no-show: the reservation is cancelled with no refund. You will also need your credit card PIN to process the deposit hold at the terminal. The documents card in the Know Before You Rent section above covers IDP guidance and what US license holders specifically need to know.
Every search result for Argentina on Road Trip Car shows the details that matter most side by side: insurance coverage level, excess amount, deposit hold, and mileage policy. With excess figures ranging from $800 to $8,000 depending on the provider and pickup location, that comparison does real work before you commit. Compare rental cars in Argentina to see which offer fits your route and budget. Always review the full rental terms shown at checkout to confirm the specifics of your chosen offer.
Traveling as a young driver? Applicable surcharges are flagged directly in the search results for your age group, so the price you see reflects what you will actually pay. You can book, pay, and manage your reservation entirely on the platform. Cancellation conditions are shown during booking, which is worth noting in Argentina, where availability can be tight and travel plans sometimes change.
Route 40 is the Argentine road trip. It runs the full length of the country along the Andean foothills, and the landscapes shift so dramatically that you can feel like you've crossed several countries in a single day. The stretch near Cafayate is what most drivers remember longest: a bumpy gravel road through red-rock canyon country, every bend opening onto something new.
Beyond Route 40, each region has its own personality. The northern provinces offer desert salt flats and colonial villages. Mendoza is wine country framed by snowcapped peaks. Patagonia delivers glaciers, open steppe, and a scale of silence that stays with you. Tierra del Fuego sits at the very end of the world. None of these are well connected by public transport, which is exactly why a rental car transforms the trip.
Route 73, scenic drive, Argentina
Quick answers to the most frequently asked questions about renting a car in Argentina.
Car rental prices in Argentina vary by season. Average daily rates range from €45.49 in November to €58.08 in July. The lowest daily rate we've recorded is €19.11.
The cheapest time to rent a car in Argentina is currently November, with an average price of €45.49 per day.
Car hire prices in Argentina are currently at their highest in July, with an average price of €58.08 per day. If you are looking to rent a car during that period, we advise to check our prices frequently, or to book now and cancel and re-book when prices have potentially dropped.
Availability is currently best in October and there is a low supply of rental cars in June.
Via Road Trip Car you have access to 43 car rental locations in Argentina, with multiple offices per location, covering all major airports, train stations, and city centers.
Driving in Argentina is generally safe for tourists on major highways, but Buenos Aires traffic is dense and fast-moving, with loose lane discipline. Outside cities, watch for gravel roads and roaming livestock, especially in Patagonia and the Northwest. Check local conditions after rain, as some routes can become impassable.
Crossing into Chile or Brazil with a rental car is often possible but requires a special permit from the provider, typically arranged at least a week before departure, with an added fee. After booking, contact the rental office using the details on your voucher to confirm permission. If the crossing is not allowed, you can cancel free of charge within the cancellation period and book with another provider.
Most rental agencies in Argentina do not accept debit cards for the security deposit. A physical credit card in the main driver's name is required at pickup, even if you paid for the booking online with a debit card. Check the credit card and payment page for full details on deposit holds.
Yes, one-way rentals between major cities are generally available, though Argentina's size means drop-off fees are common. A one-way from Buenos Aires to Bariloche or Mendoza, for example, will typically carry a surcharge that varies by provider and distance. The applicable fee is shown in the offer details when you search on Road Trip Car.
We compare leading global and local car rental providers in Argentina to help you find the right deal for your travels, such as:
Street Rent A Car
Enterprise
Avis
Localiza Argentina
ACE Rent A Car
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