We analyzed 49,273 reviews, a year of booking data, and what Reddit and Facebook travel groups say to rank 37 car rental companies in Iceland on one scale. The ranking tells you which companies to book, what each one charges by season, and what to check before you reach the desk.
Between 83% and 100% of pickups at the companies we have data for happen at Keflavik International Airport, where more than 40 rental companies compete for the same arrivals. Several share a building, and some share most of a name, such as Reykjavik Cars and Reykjavik Rent a Car, which sit a full star apart in the ratings.
Our study sorts them out for the questions renters ask before booking. It shows which companies have the best record with renters who paid and drove, and which charge least in the season you travel. It also shows which ones hand over keys at 2 AM, and what most often goes wrong at the desk.
Guide to Iceland is the largest car rental marketplace in Iceland, and the companies that sell through our site pay us a commission on bookings. Commission played no part in the ranking.
Every company is scored on the same review data with the same formula. Each verified Guide to Iceland review counts as three Google reviews, because only renters who paid and drove can write one.
Why You Can Trust Our Content
Guide to Iceland is the most trusted travel platform in Iceland, helping millions of visitors each year. All our content is written and reviewed by local experts who are deeply familiar with Iceland. You can count on us for accurate, up-to-date, and trustworthy travel advice.
Key Findings
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Star Car Rental is the best-rated car rental company in Iceland, with an adjusted rating of 4.77 from 4.98 across 1,551 reviews.
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MYCAR (4.66) and Lotus Car Rental (4.64) follow, and both pair large review pools with ratings of 4.79 and 4.70 before adjustment.
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Blue Car Rental is the most popular company by bookings, review count, and Reddit mentions, and ranks eleventh on rating at 4.49.
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Cars Iceland, Reykjavik Cars, and Zero Car Rental rank fourth, sixth, and ninth with little name recognition abroad, on Google reviews alone.
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The best and worst companies sit 1.04 stars apart after adjustment, from Star Car Rental at 4.77 to Budget at 3.73.
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No international brand at Keflavik Airport rates as high on Google as the median Icelandic company, which scores 4.7.
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A standard SUV costs about twice as much per day in July as in February at every company we have prices for.
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Eight companies list 24-hour pickup at Keflavik Airport on their booking pages, and four global brands (Avis, Europcar, Hertz, and Sixt) run the rental desks inside the terminal.
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Waiting for a shuttle or for staff appears in 42% of one- and two-star reviews, ahead of car condition at 36% and insurance pressure at the desk at 30%.
Cite This Study
The charts and data in this study are free to use under CC BY 4.0. Credit Guide to Iceland and link to this page. Every chart has an Embed button underneath it with ready-to-paste code.
Star Car Rental Is the Best-Rated Car Rental Company in Iceland
A plain review average flatters a small car rental company. A company with 150 five-star reviews looks better than one with 6,000 reviews and a few hundred angry ones. The ranking corrects for that in two steps.
First, each company's verified Guide to Iceland reviews and Google reviews are pooled into one average, with each verified review counted as three Google reviews. Only renters who paid and drove can write a verified review.
Second, every score is pulled toward the market average of 4.32 across all 37 companies, and the pull is stronger for companies with fewer reviews. The same volume adjustment runs through our study of the best tours in Iceland by satisfaction rate.
Star Car Rental still comes first after the adjustment, by a smaller margin. MYCAR and Lotus Car Rental, with 1,270 and 4,182 reviews, move into second and third.
Google reviews run higher than verified reviews of the same companies. Anyone can post a Google review, while a verified Guide to Iceland review comes only from a renter who paid and drove. Companies with both kinds of review average 0.15 of a star higher on Google.
For three large companies, the gap is wide. Go Car Rental scores 4.7 on Google against 4.37 from verified renters. Lava Car Rental scores 4.6 against 4.30, and Blue Car Rental scores 4.6 against 4.35.
Counted at face value, Google volume would carry Go Car Rental to fourth place. Weighted toward what verified renters said, it lands fifth, behind Cars Iceland.
The spread between companies is wide. Star Car Rental at 4.77 and Budget at 3.73 sit 1.04 stars apart after adjustment, and 2.38 stars apart before it.
Our study of what type of car to rent in Iceland used the same reviews, joined to every vehicle booked. It found a gap of a tenth of a star between a budget 2WD car and a premium SUV. Once the rental company is held constant, no vehicle model rates measurably better than another.
The company a renter books with explains more than ten times as much of their rating as the car they drive.
That is also why Blue Car Rental, the best-known name in Icelandic car rental, sits eleventh. Reddit and Facebook recommend it most often, and it is the most-booked company in our data. Its 4.51 across 6,727 reviews is a respectable score, and ten companies still rank higher.
Blue's verified renters give it 4.35 against 4.6 from Google reviewers, and one in seven of its recent verified renters left one or two stars. The volume adjustment cannot lift a company that already has one of the largest review pools in the study. Popularity and rating are different measures, and Blue wins the first comfortably while landing mid-table on the second.
Three companies with little name recognition abroad outscore every household name except Star, MYCAR, and Lotus. Cars Iceland ranks fourth at 4.62 on 888 Google reviews, followed by Reykjavik Cars in sixth and Zero Car Rental in ninth.
Their scores are Google only, and Google runs higher than verified reviews for every company where we have both. Cars Iceland's 4.9 on Google would most likely be a 4.6 or 4.7 on verified reviews, which still places it in the top group.
Recent verified reviews sharpen the picture. Over the last two years, Foss Car Rental, A Car Rental, and Star Car Rental have not received a single one- or two-star review. Only 6% of MYCAR's recent reviews are one or two stars.
At the other end sit Ring Car Rental (25%), Lava (21%), Auto Car Rental (20%), and Konvin Car Rental (19%). Those are the highest shares of unhappy renters among companies with at least 25 recent reviews.
Northern Lights Car Rental and Icerental 4x4 have too few recent verified reviews to measure.
Blue Car Rental Is the Most Popular Car Rental Company in Iceland
Popularity and rating produce different league tables, so we measured popularity three ways and averaged the ranks. The three measures are bookings through Guide to Iceland, reviews collected on Guide to Iceland and Google together, and mentions on Reddit.
Blue Car Rental wins outright. It is first on bookings, first on Reddit, and second only to Icerental 4x4 on review volume.
MYCAR follows in third place on both bookings and Reddit. Lava Car Rental is third on review volume with 5,309 reviews. Lotus Car Rental is second on Reddit and fourth on reviews, though only tenth on bookings, and Go Car Rental completes the top five.
The three measures disagree in telling ways. Icerental 4x4 has more reviews than any company in the study, 7,104, yet ranks eleventh on bookings. That is the mark of a long-established fleet that many people rent directly.
Auto Car Rental is second on bookings but has a single Reddit mention, so it sells on price through marketplaces rather than word of mouth. Lotus Car Rental is the reverse, a Reddit favorite that most people book directly.
The top three by bookings take just over half of all car rental bookings on the site. Blue and Lotus together take 68% of every company mention on Reddit.
Rating and popularity rarely line up. Star Car Rental, first on rating, is twelfth on popularity among the companies with booking data, with a fleet of nine models. Foss Car Rental, sixth on rating, is fourteenth.
The fleets explain the popularity. Blue Car Rental lists 38 models with an average model year of 2025, the newest fleet in the study.
Fifteen budget cars start at the Toyota Aygo and Kia Rio. Eleven standard 4x4s include the Dacia Duster, Suzuki Vitara, and Toyota RAV4. Ten premium SUVs include three Land Cruiser variants and a Defender, and five electric or hybrid options include the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y.
MYCAR is a Toyota house with 36 models, 32 of them automatic. The range runs from the Aygo and Yaris through RAV4 and Corolla Cross hybrids to the Land Cruiser 150 and 250. Modified Land Cruisers and Hiluxes on 33- and 35-inch tires serve the Highlands.
Auto Car Rental, second on bookings, has the opposite shape. Sixteen of its 20 models are standard SUVs such as the Duster, Vitara, and RAV4, with almost nothing premium. That shape is how it sells the cheapest budget cars in the study.
Key Car Rental has the widest catalog of all at 44 models, and the most unusual. Fifteen are vans and nine-seaters, and six are campers and roof-tent cars. A BYD Seal U and Kia plug-ins sit beside the Dusters and Land Cruisers.
Go Car Rental lists 39 models and the most electric cars, 10 of them, alongside a premium shelf of Discovery, GLE, XC90, and Wrangler.
Lotus Car Rental runs 23 SUVs out of 30 models, with Teslas, a Lexus hybrid, and a 35-inch super jeep.
Lava Car Rental covers 31 models from the Aygo X to a Ford Bronco and a Defender, with Teslas and MGs for electric drivers.
The small companies rent small fleets. A Car Rental lists five models and Foss lists eight. Star and Northern Lights list nine each. Their ratings therefore come from hundreds of reviews rather than thousands.
A standard 4x4 covers most Iceland itineraries, and 4x4s and SUVs for rent in Iceland are the largest class at every company above. Hybrid and electric rental cars in Iceland appear in the Blue, MYCAR, Go, Lotus, Lava, and Key fleets above. Campervans and vans for rent in Iceland combine the car and the bed in one booking.
Reddit Recommends Blue and Lotus Most but Rates Go and Lava Highest
Reddit threads about renting a car in Iceland name two companies far more than the rest. We analyzed 1,529 threads from r/VisitingIceland and r/Iceland and read the 60 most-discussed of them comment by comment. We kept the 1,412 comments that name a company or talk about renting.
Blue Car Rental draws 238 mentions, or 38% of all company mentions, and Lotus Car Rental draws 191.
When a Redditor asks which local company to use, the answer is almost always one of those two. The Facebook travel groups say the same.
Sentiment tells a different story. Each mention was coded as positive, negative, or neutral.
The best-liked companies with a meaningful number of mentions are Go Car Rental at +91% net, Lava Car Rental at +88%, and Lotus at +86%. Icerental 4x4 has the weakest net sentiment at +45%.
Most Reddit negativity concerns insurance and deposits rather than the cars, which matches the one- and two-star Guide to Iceland reviews further down.
Facebook groups (Iceland Travel Tips, Reykjavik ICELAND Travel & Vacation, VISIT ICELAND) add little volume, five to seven posts per company name.
The shortlists people post there recur, with Blue, Lotus, Lava, Go, and MYCAR named again and again. Star Car Rental draws warm trip reports for its campervans. Nobody on Facebook or Reddit recommends the international brands over the local companies.
Car Rental Prices in Iceland Fall Into Three Bands by Company
Rental prices in Iceland move with the season more than with the company, so the prices here are ranges rather than quotes. Across the 15 companies with booking data, a standard SUV costs roughly twice as much per day in July as in February. Our study of the cheapest time to visit Iceland measured that seasonal swing in detail.
Within a season, the companies sort into three bands by the median summer price of a standard SUV. The budget band, under 17,000 ISK (about 139 USD) a day, holds Icerental 4x4, Northern Lights Car Rental, Foss Car Rental, Geysir Car Rental, and Auto Car Rental.
The mid-range band, 17,000 to 23,000 ISK (about 139 to 189 USD), holds Key Car Rental, Project Car Rental, Star Car Rental, Go Car Rental, Blue Car Rental, Konvin Car Rental, and Lotus Car Rental. The premium band, over 23,000 ISK (about 189 USD), holds Lava Car Rental, MYCAR, and A Car Rental.
Cheap and well-rated rarely go together. The two cheapest companies by summer SUV median, Icerental 4x4 and Northern Lights Car Rental, are also the two lowest-rated of the 15. A Car Rental and MYCAR sit at the premium end with ratings in the top ten.
Two exceptions are worth knowing. Foss Car Rental is budget-priced with a rating of 4.97 across 345 reviews, and Key Car Rental has the cheapest winter SUVs after Foss.
How much it costs to rent a car in Iceland depends on insurance, fuel, and extras as much as on the daily rate. Small and cheap cars are the entry-level fleet at every company.
Eight Car Rental Companies Offer 24-Hour Pickup at Keflavik Airport
Every company we have pickup data for serves Keflavik International Airport, and for most of them, the airport is the only pickup point that matters. The airport accounts for 83% to 100% of each company's Guide to Iceland pickups.
The hours and pickup instructions below are the ones each company shows customers on its Guide to Iceland booking pages. Its staff work to that version, and several companies publish different hours on Google.
Eight companies list 24-hour pickup. They are MYCAR, Foss Car Rental, Lava Car Rental, A Car Rental, Blue Car Rental, Key Car Rental, Auto Car Rental, and Geysir Car Rental.
The rest open between 4 AM and 6 AM and close between 6 PM and 1 AM. That covers the morning transatlantic arrivals but not every late flight.
Avis, Europcar, Hertz, and Sixt are the only brands with rental desks inside the terminal, according to Keflavik Airport.
Three companies sit a four-minute walk away on Blikavollur and Arnarvellir, the rental cluster beside the terminal. Blue Car Rental, Key Car Rental, and Geysir all keep a key box for arrivals outside office hours. Blue requires online check-in and its full coverage for that.
Everyone else runs a free shuttle. The offices on Flugvellir and Idavellir in Keflavik are three to six minutes away.
A Car Rental's shuttle takes 3 minutes. Lava's takes 4, MYCAR's and Star Car Rental's take 5, and Auto's, Go Car Rental's, and Lotus Car Rental's take 6.
The old NATO base at Asbru is ten to eleven minutes away. Icerental 4x4 and Northern Lights Car Rental share an office there at Bogatrod 2, and Konvin Car Rental and Foss are nearby.
How the shuttle runs matters more than the distance. MYCAR's shuttle leaves at 20 past every hour. Go's runs every 20 to 30 minutes, around the clock from mid-May to September. Lava's runs every 30 minutes, and Northern Lights' runs every 20.
Project Car Rental, Auto, and Lotus send a car on request after 6 PM, and Project quotes a 10 to 20 minute wait. The shuttle is also where most complaints start, as the complaints section below shows.
Late arrivals have options. Lava, Blue, Key, Geysir, and Foss keep a key box.
Foss charges 35 EUR after hours, and its shuttle runs only 9 AM to 5 PM. Outside those hours a taxi takes you to the office.
Star and Go arrange after-hours pickup on request, and Lotus states plainly that pickup outside opening hours is not available.
For the shuttle companies among the eight, 24-hour pickup means a driver on call, so add your flight number to the booking. Self-check-in customers get the key box instructions by email before they land.
Reykjavik pickup is a smaller market. Blue, Go, MYCAR, Foss, and Star handle the most Reykjavik pickups on Guide to Iceland.
Lotus delivers free to any Reykjavik address, and Geysir has a city branch. Renting a car in Reykjavik suits travelers who spend their first days in the city without a car and collect one on the way out.
Shuttle Waits and Car Condition Are the Most Common Car Rental Complaints in Iceland
Every one- and two-star Guide to Iceland car rental review from the last two years was coded by theme. Waiting for the airport shuttle or for staff who did not answer the phone appears in 42% of them, the most common theme.
The condition of the car follows at 36%. Reviewers describe worn wipers, warning lights, bald tires, scratches not recorded at pickup, and tanks that were not full.
Insurance pressure at the desk and deposit or debit-card disputes come third at 30%, and damage claims after return come fourth at 20%. Almost no one complains about having booked the wrong size or type of car, which matches our study of rental car types in Iceland.
Insurance is sometimes sold at the desk by the rental company rather than through the booking. The desk, rather than the website, is therefore where the pressure shows up. Insurance is also the single most discussed car rental topic on Reddit, mentioned more often than wind, gravel, and F-roads combined.
The themes are not evenly spread. Shuttle waits dominate the negative reviews of Project, Konvin, and Northern Lights. Car condition dominates those of Auto, Icerental 4x4, and Northern Lights, and insurance pressure dominates those of Icerental 4x4 and Auto.
The companies with the fewest complaints of any kind are Foss, A Car Rental, Star, and MYCAR. Their reviewers mention being met promptly and handed a clean, new car.
Photograph every panel and the fuel gauge at pickup regardless of who you book with. The best tips for renting a car in Iceland start with that walk-around and with knowing which insurance you hold before you reach the desk.
Icelandic Car Rental Companies Outscore Every Global Brand at Keflavik Airport
Put the global brands and the Icelandic companies on the same Google scale, read on the same days, and the result is lopsided. The median Icelandic company in this study rates 4.7 on Google, and every Icelandic company in the top ten rates 4.6 or better. Not one of the eleven international brands at Keflavik Airport reaches either mark.
The best of them are Enterprise at 4.2, twenty-second overall, and Alamo at 4.0, which land between Iceland Car Rental and Auto Car Rental.
Thrifty and Avis sit in the mid-twenties, and Europcar and Hertz sit around thirtieth. Sixt, Green Motion, and Budget are the three lowest-rated companies in the study. Budget at 2.6 is the lowest-rated car rental listing at the airport.
Three things explain the gap. The internationals run the in-terminal desks (Hertz, Avis, Europcar, Thrifty, Budget), so their renters queue at peak arrival times rather than wait for a shuttle.
Their reviews are dominated by damage-charge and deposit disputes, the same insurance theme that troubles the weakest Icelandic companies. Their fleets are specified for a global network rather than for Icelandic roads. The 4x4 share and gravel protection that Icelandic companies build in come as extras.
Enterprise is the exception worth naming. Its Keflavik office at Flugvellir 31 runs like the Icelandic shuttle companies.
Reddit and the Facebook groups reach the same conclusion unprompted. Book Icelandic, and if you book a global brand, read its Icelandic reviews rather than its worldwide ones.
Many of Iceland's Car Rental Brands Share an Owner or a Building
Analyzing the websites of more than 40 companies turned up something the ratings do not show. Many of the brands are the same company or share the same building.
Five brands operate from Blue Car Rental's offices at Blikavollur 3 by the airport and Fiskislod 22 in Reykjavik. They are Blue Car Rental itself, Zero Car Rental (a no-counter brand), Cars Iceland, Reykjavik Rent a Car, and Iceland Car Rental. Iceland Car Rental describes itself as a marketing brand in partnership with Blue. A sixth, Lagoon Car Rental, gives the same addresses.
They are rated very differently, from Cars Iceland at 4.9 to Reykjavik Rent a Car at 3.8. The gap suggests the brands run their own fleets and desks even where the walls are shared.
The internationals are mostly franchises held by a few Icelandic firms. Hertz, Thrifty, Dollar, and Firefly are all Bílaleiga Flugleiða at Flugvellir 11. Europcar is Höldur, Iceland's largest rental company, which also runs the Rás brand.
Avis and Budget are one firm, ALP hf. Enterprise sits at Flugvellir 31, the address of MYCAR. Sixt is Bílaleigan Berg.
Saga Car Rental at Fuglavik 43 says it is operated by Go Car Rental and the Brimborg group. Green Motion gives the same Fuglavik 43 address.
Cheap Jeep and Nordic Car Rental are both Now Car Rental ehf. at Bogatrod 1, next door to the Bogatrod 2 office that Icerental 4x4 and Northern Lights Car Rental share.
A brand's rating is still the best guide to the experience at its own desk. When two brands share an office and a shuttle, though, the pickup logistics are the same. A complaint about a long shuttle wait at one often applies to the other.
Shared buildings also explain why advertised starting prices can differ so much for what may be a similar car from the same car park. You are paying for the desk, the insurance bundle, and the brand, and the reviews tell you which of those is worth it.
All 37 Car Rental Companies in Iceland, Ranked
The list below ranks every company with at least 150 reviews, in order of adjusted rating. Each rating pools verified Guide to Iceland and Google reviews where both exist, read between 30 September and 6 November 2026.
Price bands come from what renters paid in the last twelve months, and pickup facts come from each company's own pickup instructions or website. Company names link to their cars and prices.
1. Star Car Rental: Best Overall Rating
Star Car Rental ranks first with an adjusted rating of 4.77, from 4.98 across 1,551 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 19,000 to 24,000 ISK (about 156 to 197 USD) a day in summer.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle, 5 minutes, with staff holding a name board. Open 6 AM to 10 PM; after-hours pickup costs extra.
The family-run company has not received a single one- or two-star review from a verified renter in two years. Renters praise the shuttle, the office staff, and fair pricing. One review that called the car old still gave five stars for the service.
Star also rents campervans, which draw much of its praise in the Facebook groups.
The fleet is small, so choice is thinner than at the big three. The office closes at 10 PM, and its 2026 summer SUV prices sit mid-table rather than at the bargain end.
Star Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
2. MYCAR: Best New-Car Fleet
MYCAR ranks second with an adjusted rating of 4.66, from 4.79 across 1,270 reviews.
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Price band: Premium. A standard SUV costs about 20,000 to 30,000 ISK (about 164 to 246 USD) a day in summer, and about 13,000 to 18,000 ISK (about 107 to 148 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Free shuttle, 5 minutes, leaving at 20 past every hour. Open 24 hours.
The Toyota partner runs a new, low-mileage fleet and has the study's best combination of review volume and rating. Only one recent verified renter in twenty left one or two stars. Reviewers name brand-new Land Cruisers and RAV4s.
Staff help with luggage, and a 24-hour emergency line is available.
Pricing is premium. Its summer SUV median of about 28,000 ISK (about 230 USD) a day is the second highest in the study. About half its Guide to Iceland bookings arrive inside self-drive packages, so compare the standalone price.
MYCAR cars and prices · Google reviews
3. Lotus Car Rental: Best-Reviewed Large Fleet
Lotus Car Rental ranks third with an adjusted rating of 4.64, from 4.70 across 4,182 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 17,000 to 27,000 ISK (about 139 to 221 USD) a day in summer, and about 14,000 to 18,000 ISK (about 115 to 148 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle, 6 minutes, scheduled 5 AM to 6 PM and on request after that. Open 5 AM to 10 PM; no pickup outside opening hours.
Lotus has the best-reviewed large fleet in the study. Reviewers repeatedly mention not being pressured into extra insurance. Free delivery to any address in Reykjavik or Keflavik sets it apart from the other large companies.
Facebook shortlists call it the most expensive of the local names, and the booking data agrees. It has the priciest budget-class cars in the study, and its premium SUV median passes 40,000 ISK (about 328 USD) a day in summer.
The shuttle runs on request after 6 PM, and pickup outside the 5 AM to 10 PM opening hours is not offered, so it does not suit a late-night arrival.
Lotus Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
4. Cars Iceland
Cars Iceland ranks fourth with an adjusted rating of 4.62, from 4.90 across 888 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Walk, 5 minutes, or shuttle to Blikavollur 3, the building it shares with Blue Car Rental. Pickup available 24 hours. Reykjavik office at Fiskislod 22, open 8 AM to 6 PM.
The family-run company has operated since 2013 and is the best-rated car rental company in Iceland before the volume adjustment. Its website advertises economy cars from about 6,500 ISK (about 53 USD) and 4x4s from about 7,900 ISK (about 65 USD) a day. No season is stated, so treat those as low-season rates.
The reviews mention almost nothing negative beyond confusion at pickup in the shared building. Look for the Cars Iceland sign rather than the Blue one.
5. Go Car Rental: Best for Reykjavik Pickup
Go Car Rental ranks fifth with an adjusted rating of 4.56, from 4.61 across 3,916 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 15,000 to 29,000 ISK (about 123 to 238 USD) a day in summer, and about 7,000 to 12,000 ISK (about 57 to 98 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle, 6 minutes, every 20 to 30 minutes, and around the clock from mid-May to September. Open 5 AM to 6 PM; key box if arranged in advance.
Go has two offices, one at the airport and one in downtown Reykjavik. That makes it the strongest choice for travelers who want to skip the car during their Reykjavik days. Its small cars rate well with budget travelers heading only to the South Coast.
About one in six recent verified renters left one or two stars, mostly about waits. The gap between its Google reviewers (4.7) and its verified Guide to Iceland renters (4.37) is the widest of any company in the top ten, which is why the verified-weighted score lands fifth.
From October to mid-May the office and shuttle stop at 6 PM, the earliest close among the airport-based companies. A key box is available if you arrange it in advance.
Go Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
6. Reykjavik Cars
Reykjavik Cars ranks sixth with an adjusted rating of 4.56, from 4.80 across 847 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Orange information desk inside the arrivals hall, then a shuttle every 15 minutes. Open 5 AM to 2 AM. Reykjavik office open 8 AM to 6 PM.
Scandinavian Travel Services has run the company since 2013. Advertised prices are in dollars, from about 34 USD a day for an economy car and 47 USD a day for a Duster.
Dollar pricing means your card provider sets the exchange rate. Check whether the quoted price includes gravel and sand-and-ash cover, which the local companies usually bundle.
Reykjavik Cars cars and prices
7. Foss Car Rental: Best Winter Value
Foss Car Rental ranks seventh with an adjusted rating of 4.56, from 4.97 across 345 reviews.
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Price band: Budget. A standard SUV costs about 13,000 to 21,000 ISK (about 107 to 172 USD) a day in summer, and about 6,000 to 12,000 ISK (about 49 to 98 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle, 11 minutes, running 9 AM to 5 PM. Key box after hours for 35 EUR. Open 24 hours.
Foss is a newer company with a near-perfect record so far, and no verified renter has left a one- or two-star review in two years. Its winter SUV median of about 7,000 ISK (about 57 USD) a day is the cheapest in the study. Reviewers describe contactless pickup that took minutes.
The office is the furthest from the terminal, an 11-minute shuttle ride, and the shuttle runs only 9 AM to 5 PM. Outside those hours a taxi takes you to a key box and the 35 EUR fee applies. The review pool is still small, which is why the adjusted rating sits below its raw 4.97.
Foss Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
8. Lava Car Rental
Lava Car Rental ranks eighth with an adjusted rating of 4.53, from 4.56 across 5,309 reviews.
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Price band: Premium. A standard SUV costs about 20,000 to 30,000 ISK (about 164 to 246 USD) a day in summer, and about 13,000 to 16,000 ISK (about 107 to 131 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle, 4 minutes, every 30 minutes (the BUS4U bus by day, its own nine-seater after 6 PM). Key box after hours once online check-in is done. Open 24 hours.
Lava has the second-largest review pool in the study. Its fleet runs from economy cars to electric vehicles, campervans, and luxury models. Reviewers praise the drop-off flow and the price next to the big international brands.
One in five recent verified renters left one or two stars, a higher share than its headline average suggests. Summer SUV prices sit toward the premium end, with a median of about 24,000 ISK (about 197 USD) a day.
Lava Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
9. Zero Car Rental
Zero Car Rental ranks ninth with an adjusted rating of 4.52, from 4.80 across 608 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Walk, 3 to 4 minutes, to a key box at Blue Car Rental's Blikavollur 3 office, 24 hours a day. Staff reachable 6 AM to 2 AM. Key box return at Fiskislod 22 in Reykjavik.
Zero is a no-counter brand. Its advertised prices include full zero-excess insurance, so they are the most complete on this list: an Aygo from about 11,700 ISK (about 96 USD) and a Duster from about 14,400 ISK (about 118 USD) a day.
Those all-in prices look expensive next to the starting prices of companies that sell insurance at the desk. Compare like with like.
Zero Car Rental cars and prices
10. A Car Rental
A Car Rental ranks tenth with an adjusted rating of 4.50, from 4.94 across 156 reviews.
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Price band: Premium. A standard SUV costs about 23,000 to 30,000 ISK (about 189 to 246 USD) a day in summer, and about 15,000 to 18,000 ISK (about 123 to 148 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Free shuttle, 3 minutes, with staff meeting you. Open 24 hours.
The owner meets you at the airport, delivers to hotels, and walks you through the car. Reviewers describe personal service from a small company, and no verified renter has left a one- or two-star review in two years.
The operation is small, with one of the smallest review pools in the study and a fleet of five models. Summer SUV prices sit at the top of the table, with a median of about 28,000 ISK (about 230 USD) a day from few bookings. Its generic name makes it impossible to track on Reddit.
A Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
11. Blue Car Rental: Most Popular, a Four-Minute Walk From the Terminal
Blue Car Rental ranks eleventh with an adjusted rating of 4.49, from 4.51 across 6,727 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 16,000 to 29,000 ISK (about 131 to 238 USD) a day in summer, and about 10,000 to 18,000 ISK (about 82 to 148 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Walk, 4 minutes, to Blikavollur 3. Key box after hours with online check-in and full coverage. Open 24 hours.
Blue is Iceland's best-known local rental company and the one with the most bookings on Guide to Iceland. It carries the largest review pool in the study after Icerental 4x4, and it runs a Reykjavik office too. On Reddit and in the Facebook groups it is the default recommendation.
Volume shows in the reviews. One in seven recent verified renters left one or two stars, with complaints about worn cars (wipers, brakes) and slow desks in peak weeks. Pricing sits in the mid-to-upper range.
Blue Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
12. Ring Road Cars
Ring Road Cars ranks twelfth with an adjusted rating of 4.47, from 4.60 across 345 reviews.
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Airport pickup: Office at Bogatrod 1, a few minutes from the terminal. Phone and WhatsApp answered 24 hours.
The small Keflavik company has a loyal following, and almost every one of its verified reviews is five stars. Renters describe a breakdown-replacement promise that larger fleets do not make: towing and a replacement car at no charge for faults they did not cause. Five models are listed, all 4x4s or small automatics.
Its pool is verified reviews only, with no public Google profile to cross-check. Half of its recent verified reviews (five of ten) were one or two stars, a sharp turn from its long-run record. Few cars means availability in summer is the limit.
Ring Road Cars cars and prices
13. Golden Circle Car Rental
Golden Circle Car Rental ranks thirteenth with an adjusted rating of 4.45, from 4.63 across 313 reviews.
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Airport pickup: Free shuttle, 6 AM to 11 PM. Hotel delivery in Reykjavik.
The family-run Keflavik company lists eight vehicle types, mostly 4x4s including the Duster. It publishes no starting price.
The fleet is small, so book early for summer. The shuttle stops at 11 PM, and the website lists no after-hours process.
Golden Circle Car Rental cars and prices
14. Just Drive Car Rental
Just Drive Car Rental ranks fourteenth with an adjusted rating of 4.45, from 5.00 across 199 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Office at Flugvallarbraut 734 at Asbru, open for every flight arrival. The website does not say how you reach the office.
Just Drive is the Iceland branch of the Faroese group Rent Your Car and has operated here since 2017. Its perfect 5.0 on Google is pulled down to 4.45 by the volume adjustment.
A pool of 199 reviews is thin for a 5.0. Expect good service rather than a guarantee.
Just Drive Car Rental cars and prices
15. Project Car Rental
Project Car Rental ranks fifteenth with an adjusted rating of 4.45, from 4.60 across 353 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 16,000 to 25,000 ISK (about 131 to 205 USD) a day in summer, and about 8,000 to 14,000 ISK (about 66 to 115 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle on demand by phone or WhatsApp, with a 10 to 20 minute wait. Open 5 AM to 1 AM.
Project was the fourth most-booked company on Guide to Iceland in the last year. Standard SUVs make up most of its bookings, at sensible mid-range prices, and the office stays open until 1 AM.
Almost every negative review is about the airport shuttle: waits of 40 minutes or more when the driver is late, and slow replies on WhatsApp at drop-off. A few renters dispute damage charges.
Project Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
16. Key Car Rental: Key Box Pickup, Cheap Winter SUVs
Key Car Rental ranks sixteenth with an adjusted rating of 4.42, from 4.54 across 553 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 14,000 to 23,000 ISK (about 115 to 189 USD) a day in summer, and about 6,000 to 12,000 ISK (about 49 to 98 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Walk, 4 minutes, to Blikavollur 2. Key box after hours. Open 24 hours.
Two Guide to Iceland listings are merged here. The key box is why a third of its Guide to Iceland pickups happen before 8 AM or after 8 PM without anyone waiting for a shuttle. Winter SUVs are cheap, with a median under 10,000 ISK (about 82 USD) a day, and its nine-seaters fit large groups with luggage.
Google lists the office as open 9 AM to 5 PM, while the booking pages say 24 hours by key box. The booking page is the one its staff work to. Insurance and deposit terms come up in the negative reviews.
Key Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
17. Auro ICE Car Rental
Auro ICE Car Rental ranks seventeenth with an adjusted rating of 4.41, from 4.90 across 167 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Keflavik pickup open midnight to 11 PM. Hotel delivery in Reykjavik for 20 EUR.
Auro ICE is based at Fiskislod 30 in Reykjavik and takes no deposit, which is rare in Iceland. It publishes no starting price.
Its website was largely unreachable during our checks, so confirm the pickup method with the company before you fly.
Auro ICE Car Rental cars and prices
18. Rás Car Rental
Rás Car Rental ranks eighteenth with an adjusted rating of 4.39, from 4.47 across 420 reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk and car park at Keflavik Airport. A dozen models from small automatics to 4x4s.
Rás is one of the older names at the airport and belongs to the Höldur group, which also runs the Europcar franchise. Its ratings run a step above that sister brand, at 4.5 on both verified and Google reviews. Reviewers mention quick desk service and tidy, recent cars.
Only one verified review has arrived in the last two years, so its score reflects history rather than current form. Expect airline-style desk pricing on insurance.
Rás Car Rental cars and prices
19. Ring Car Rental: Insurance Included, Rents From Age 18
Ring Car Rental ranks nineteenth with an adjusted rating of 4.37, from 4.40 across 633 reviews.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle to the Bogatrod 2 office at Asbru. Open until 8 PM; after-hours pickup by prior arrangement.
Ring trades as Ring Rental and bundles SCDW, gravel protection, an extra driver, and unlimited mileage into the headline price, with no security deposit. That is why its booking volume is high for a company of its size. It rents economy cars, 4x4s, nine-seaters, and motorhomes.
One in four recent verified renters (24 of 96) left one or two stars, among the highest shares in the study. The complaints cover shuttle waits, high-mileage cars, and disputes over damage noted at return.
Ring Car Rental cars and prices
20. Konvin Car Rental
Konvin Car Rental ranks twentieth with an adjusted rating of 4.36, from 4.43 across 369 reviews.
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Price band: Mid-range. A standard SUV costs about 19,000 to 29,000 ISK (about 156 to 238 USD) a day in summer, and about 9,000 to 15,000 ISK (about 74 to 123 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Free shuttle, 10 minutes, to Asbru. Open 6 AM to 1 AM.
Konvin trades as Volcano Car Rental by Konvin. Its fleet of 25 mostly new models includes roof-tent cars and campers, and reviewers who had a smooth pickup describe clean, new cars.
The negative reviews describe two-hour waits for a shuttle that did not come, a no-show at drop-off, and insurance that did not cover what renters expected. About one in six recent verified renters left one or two stars.
Konvin Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
21. Iceland Car Rental
Iceland Car Rental ranks twenty-first with an adjusted rating of 4.31, from 4.30 across 543 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Walk, 4 minutes, to Blikavollur 3, or shuttle until 5:45 PM. Pickup 24 hours from June to October and 5 AM to 2 AM in winter. Key drop and a Reykjavik desk at Fiskislod 22.
Iceland Car Rental is a marketing brand run in partnership with Blue Car Rental from the same office. An extra driver is included. Its 4.3 sits half a star below Cars Iceland and Zero, which operate from the same building.
The lower score comes from the same desk-and-damage themes as the weaker companies. Read its recent Google reviews before booking on price.
Iceland Car Rental cars and prices
22. Enterprise: Best-Rated Global Brand
Enterprise ranks twenty-second with an adjusted rating of 4.26, from 4.20 across 754 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle to Flugvellir 31, a short ride from the terminal.
Enterprise is the international brand that most resembles the Icelandic shuttle companies, with an off-airport office and a short shuttle. Its 4.2 on Google would sit mid-table among the local companies. Reviewers mention clean cars and a fast return.
Damage-charge and deposit disputes dominate the negative reviews, as at every global brand. The fleet is specified for a worldwide network, so gravel protection and 4x4 options are extras rather than defaults.
Enterprise cars and prices · Google reviews
23. Alamo
Alamo ranks twenty-third with an adjusted rating of 4.23, from 4.00 across 312 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk at the terminal, with cars in the airport car park.
Alamo shares ownership and fleet with Enterprise and National in Iceland. Its 4.0 on Google puts it level with the better global desks.
Peak-hour queues at the desk and the usual insurance upsell come up in reviews. A pool of 312 reviews is modest for a brand of this size.
Alamo cars and prices · Google reviews
24. Auto Car Rental: Cheapest Budget Cars
Auto Car Rental ranks twenty-fourth with an adjusted rating of 4.23, from 4.16 across 798 reviews.
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Price band: Budget. A standard SUV costs about 12,000 to 20,000 ISK (about 98 to 164 USD) a day in summer, and about 5,000 to 12,000 ISK (about 41 to 98 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Free shuttle, 6 minutes, requested in advance. Open 24 hours.
Auto was the second most-booked company on Guide to Iceland in the last year and has the cheapest budget-class cars in the study. Its summer median is about 16,000 ISK (about 131 USD) a day, and winter SUVs run around 8,000 ISK (about 66 USD).
About one in six recent verified renters left one or two stars. Older high-mileage cars, unreachable staff at arrival, and insurance pressure at the desk come up repeatedly.
Auto Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
25. Reykjavik Rent a Car
Reykjavik Rent a Car ranks twenty-fifth with an adjusted rating of 4.21, from 3.80 across 225 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Free key box pickup at Blue Car Rental's Blikavollur 3 office, and at Fiskislod 22 in Reykjavik.
Reykjavik Rent a Car is another brand operating from Blue Car Rental's addresses. Its website advertises the lowest starting prices we found anywhere, from 33 EUR a day: an Aygo at about 4,900 ISK (about 40 USD) and a Duster at about 7,000 ISK (about 57 USD).
Do not confuse it with Reykjavik Cars, a different company rated a full star higher. The cheap headline prices come with one of the lower ratings of any Icelandic company in the combined table, a shade below Auto Car Rental. Cars Iceland and Zero, operating from the same building, score a full star higher.
Reykjavik Rent a Car cars and prices
26. Thrifty: Cheap Dusters From a Global Brand
Thrifty ranks twenty-sixth with an adjusted rating of 4.20, from 4.00 across 484 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: A driver meets you in the arrivals hall and takes you to the office at Flugvellir 22.
Thrifty belongs to the Bílaleiga Flugleiða group with Hertz, Dollar, and Firefly, and it is the best-rated of the four at 4.0 on Google. Its advertised Duster rates from about 6,700 ISK (about 55 USD) a day in the low season are among the lowest published prices in the market.
Reviews describe long waits at the shared desk in summer and deposit holds that take weeks to release. The headline price excludes gravel and sand-and-ash cover.
Thrifty cars and prices · Google reviews
27. Avis
Avis ranks twenty-seventh with an adjusted rating of 4.19, from 4.10 across 1,099 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk in the arrivals hall. Run by ALP hf., which also holds the Budget franchise.
Avis has one of the largest fleets at the airport. Its 4.1 on more than a thousand Google reviews sits a full star and a half above its sister brand Budget, run by the same company.
Queues at arrival peaks and insurance pressure at the desk are the recurring complaints. Renters who declined cover report damage claims after return.
Avis cars and prices · Google reviews
28. Icerentalcars
Icerentalcars ranks twenty-eighth with an adjusted rating of 4.18, from 4.00 across 658 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle from the terminal to Arnarvellir 4b, opening at 6 AM. Reykjavik office as well.
Icerentalcars is an independent company. Its website could not be read on the day, so after-hours rules could not be checked.
Do not confuse it with Icerental 4x4, which has 7,104 reviews. The names are one letter apart and the ratings are similar.
29. Round Car Rental
Round Car Rental ranks twenty-ninth with an adjusted rating of 4.16, from 4.04 across 351 reviews.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle to the Asbru office. Open until late.
Round trades as Go Iceland Car Rental on its own site. Verified renters mention free upgrades when the booked class is out, long opening hours, and quick drop-offs. Its 4.07 across 351 verified reviews puts it level with Geysir.
Its pool is verified reviews only, with no usable Google profile to cross-check. One in five verified reviews over its history is one or two stars, with car condition and shuttle waits as the themes. Three of its 26 recent verified reviews were one or two stars.
Round Car Rental cars and prices
30. Geysir Car Rental
Geysir Car Rental ranks thirtieth with an adjusted rating of 4.15, from 4.07 across 1,550 reviews.
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Price band: Budget. A standard SUV costs about 15,000 to 21,000 ISK (about 123 to 172 USD) a day in summer.
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Airport pickup: Walk, 4 minutes, to Arnarvellir 4, or shuttle 5 AM to 6 PM. Key box. Open 24 hours.
Geysir runs a large, long-established fleet of 33 models. Its office a four-minute walk from the terminal has a key box, and it keeps a Reykjavik branch and 24/7 roadside assistance. It photographs its actual cars rather than showing 'or similar'.
Few recent verified renters have reviewed it through Guide to Iceland, and those who did were mostly unhappy, so treat its position with caution. Too few recent bookings exist to quote a winter price range.
Geysir Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
31. Icerental 4x4: Cheapest Summer 4x4s
Icerental 4x4 ranks thirty-first with an adjusted rating of 4.07, from 4.04 across 7,104 reviews.
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Price band: Budget. A standard SUV costs about 12,000 to 18,000 ISK (about 98 to 148 USD) a day in summer, and about 5,000 to 16,000 ISK (about 41 to 131 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Free shuttle, 10 minutes, to Asbru, with an agent waiting by the ATMs. Open 4 AM to 10 PM.
Icerental 4x4 rents 4x4s only and has the biggest review pool in the study. It has the cheapest SUVs in summer and the shoulder season, with a summer median of about 14,000 ISK (about 115 USD) and a winter median of about 8,000 ISK (about 66 USD), where only Foss undercuts it. It shares the Asbru office at Bogatrod 2 with Northern Lights, a ten-minute shuttle from the terminal.
Of its recent verified renters, 47% left one or two stars. The reviews describe hard insurance upselling at the desk, scratched cars, and part-full tanks. You pay less, and you should photograph everything.
Icerental 4x4 cars and prices · Google reviews
32. Europcar: Largest Rental Company in Iceland
Europcar ranks thirty-second with an adjusted rating of 4.07, from 3.60 across 453 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk in the arrivals hall. The Höldur group also runs Rás Car Rental.
Höldur is the biggest car rental company in the country and the only global brand here with a nationwide network of offices. That matters for one-way rentals to Akureyri or the east.
Its 3.6 on Google is the fourth-lowest raw rating in the study, ahead of only Sixt, Green Motion, and Budget. Reviewers cite slow desks, older cars than the brand suggests, and damage disputes.
33. Hertz: Widest Office Network After Europcar
Hertz ranks thirty-third with an adjusted rating of 4.05, from 3.80 across 883 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk inside the terminal, open 5:30 AM to 2 AM, shared with Firefly.
Hertz Iceland has offices in Reykjavik, Akureyri, Egilsstadir, and Hofn as well as the airport. No local company matches that for one-way trips.
Its 3.8 on Google across nearly 900 reviews carries the same themes as the other franchises in its group: long desk waits, deposit holds, and disputed damage charges.
Hertz cars and prices · Google reviews
34. Northern Lights Car Rental
Northern Lights Car Rental ranks thirty-fourth with an adjusted rating of 4.00, from 3.87 across 1,351 reviews.
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Price band: Budget. A standard SUV costs about 13,000 to 19,000 ISK (about 107 to 156 USD) a day in summer, and about 7,000 to 11,000 ISK (about 57 to 90 USD) in winter.
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Airport pickup: Shuttle to Asbru every 20 minutes, with an agent holding a sign. Open 4 AM to 10 PM.
Northern Lights runs from the Asbru office at Bogatrod 2 it shares with Icerental 4x4. It has some of the lowest SUV prices in the study, with a summer median of about 15,000 ISK (about 123 USD) and a winter median of about 8,000 ISK (about 66 USD).
Its 3.87 is the lowest rating of any Icelandic company in the study, and 38% of its recent verified renters left one or two stars. The complaints cover very high-mileage cars, long shuttle waits, and debit-card insurance disputes.
Northern Lights Car Rental cars and prices · Google reviews
35. Sixt
Sixt ranks thirty-fifth with an adjusted rating of 3.80, from 3.50 across 1,450 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk inside the terminal, open 6 AM to 1 AM.
Bílaleigan Berg runs the Sixt franchise, with the premium German fleet the brand is known for.
Its 3.5 on Google across 1,450 reviews is the lowest of the large brands apart from Budget. Complaints about surprise charges, deposit holds, and desk waits are frequent.
Sixt cars and prices · Google reviews
36. Green Motion
Green Motion ranks thirty-sixth with an adjusted rating of 3.77, from 3.50 across 1,669 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Office at Fuglavik 43, shared with Saga Car Rental.
Green Motion advertises from about 20 USD a day, the lowest headline rate of any brand at the airport, and runs a large fleet.
Its 3.5 rating comes with a review pool that reads like a catalog of post-rental damage claims. The low headline price is the start of the bill rather than the end.
Green Motion cars and prices · Google reviews
37. Budget
Budget ranks thirty-seventh with an adjusted rating of 3.73, from 2.60 across 438 Google reviews.
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Airport pickup: Desk in the arrivals hall. Run by ALP hf. with Avis.
Budget shares a desk, fleet, and owner with Avis.
Its 2.6 on Google is the lowest rating of any car rental listing at Keflavik Airport. Renters describe damage claims after return, deposit holds, and unresponsive customer service. Book its sister brand instead if you want this desk.
Budget cars and prices · Google reviews
Nine more companies sit below the 150-review floor and are listed here without a rank. They are Viking Wheels Car Rental (5.0 on 58 reviews), National (4.9 on 73), Esja Car Rental (5.0 on 42), Goldcar (4.0 on 5), Saga Car Rental (4.3 on 139), SurPrice Car Rentals (4.0 on 44), Street Rent a Car (2.5 on 16), ACE Rent A Car (3.5 on 101), and Firefly (3.4 on 105).
KEFCAR (4.3 on 35 reviews), Lagoon, Route 1, Átak, Cheap Jeep, Nordic, Dollar, Payless, Ice Rovers, and Procar were found but could not be rated on the day.
Advertised Starting Prices Are Lower Than What Renters Pay
Few car rental companies in Iceland publish a starting price at all. A starting price is a marketing number, the cheapest car on the cheapest day with the least insurance, rather than the median a renter pays. The price chart earlier in this study shows the middle 50% of what people actually booked, which is a different thing.
With that caveat, the published starting prices on 30 September 2026 were as follows.
| Company | Smallest car, daily rate from (30 Sept 2026) | 4x4 or Duster, daily rate from (30 Sept 2026) | Insurance included in the rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjavik Rent a Car | about 4,900 ISK (about 40 USD) | about 7,000 ISK (about 57 USD) | basic |
| Cars Iceland | about 6,500 ISK (about 53 USD) | about 7,900 ISK (about 65 USD) | basic |
| Reykjavik Cars | about 34 USD | about 47 USD | basic |
| Zero Car Rental | about 11,700 ISK (about 96 USD) | about 14,400 ISK (about 118 USD) | full, zero excess |
| Thrifty | not stated | about 6,700 ISK (about 55 USD) | basic |
| Firefly | about 55 USD | about 65 USD | basic |
| Green Motion | from about 20 USD | not stated | basic |
For comparison, the median standard SUV booked through Guide to Iceland in summer 2026 cost between about 14,000 ISK (about 115 USD) at Icerental 4x4 and 28,000 ISK (about 230 USD) a day, depending on the company. In winter the range ran from about 7,000 to 16,500 ISK (about 57 to 135 USD).
Zero's all-in Duster price lands inside the booked range once insurance is counted. The Duster rates under 8,000 ISK from Reykjavik Rent a Car and Cars Iceland are base rates before any cover, almost certainly for the low season. Insurance is the main reason a rental car in Iceland costs more than its starting price.
How We Ranked Iceland's Car Rental Companies
This study is built on verified reviews, Google ratings, a year of booking data, and what travelers wrote on Reddit and Facebook about 37 car rental companies in Iceland. The sections below say what went in, which companies are included, and how the ratings were adjusted.
What We Measured
Five kinds of data went into the study, collected between 30 September and 6 November 2026.
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Verified Guide to Iceland car rental reviews from 2015 to 6 November 2026, with deleted and unrated reviews removed, and Google Business Profile ratings read between 30 September and 6 November 2026.
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Confirmed standalone Guide to Iceland bookings with pickups between September 2025 and September 2026, for prices per rental day, pickup shares, and off-hours pickups (before 8 AM or after 8 PM).
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Opening hours, addresses, walk and shuttle times, shuttle frequencies, and key box rules, taken from the pickup instructions each company shows customers, read on 30 September 2026, or from the company's own website where that is the only source.
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1,529 Reddit threads from r/VisitingIceland and r/Iceland matching car rental terms, with the comments of the 60 most-discussed threads (1,412 comments) coded by company name and by positive and negative keywords.
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Facebook group search results for each company name, read for corroboration only, because Facebook search returns a handful of posts per query.
Which Companies Are Included
The company set is every car rental company we could find operating at Keflavik Airport or in Reykjavik. We located them through Google Maps, the airport rental listings, Reddit, our own catalog, and the companies' websites, and excluded campervan-only rentals.
Of those companies, 37 have at least 150 reviews and are ranked, and the rest are listed without a rank. Two Key Car Rental listings were merged. A Car Rental could not be measured on Reddit because its name is a generic phrase.
How We Adjusted the Ratings
Each company's verified reviews and Google reviews are pooled into one raw average. A verified review carries three times the weight of a Google review. Verified reviews come only from renters who paid and drove, while Google reviews are open to anyone and run about 0.15 of a star higher for the same companies.
The raw average is then pulled toward the mean rating of all 37 ranked companies, 4.32, with the pull weighted by the size of each company's review pool. Statisticians call this Bayesian shrinkage, and the median weighted pool of 847 reviews sets its strength. Where a company has no verified reviews, Google alone is used.
How We Counted Prices, Pickups, and Complaints
Prices and complaints come from Guide to Iceland's own booking and review records.
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Prices are per rental day, classified into budget, standard SUV, and premium SUV tiers by model, and reported as the middle 50% and the median per company and season. Cells with fewer than five bookings are omitted, and the advertised starting price stands in where we have no booked prices.
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US dollar figures are converted at 122 ISK to the dollar, the rate in October 2026.
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Complaint themes come from every one- and two-star Guide to Iceland review from 6 November 2024 onward, keyword-coded into six themes. Recent-review figures use the same two-year window.
What This Study Does Not Tell You
Four limits apply to the figures above.
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Google ratings are not verified purchases and run higher than Guide to Iceland ratings, so companies rated on Google alone are flattered by that.
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Small companies have thin review pools, which is exactly what the volume adjustment corrects for.
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Price bands reflect what Guide to Iceland customers booked, not each company's full rate card.
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The keyword coding of complaints and forum sentiment is approximate.
Conclusion: Which Car Rental Company To Book in Iceland
Start with your arrival time. If you land outside 7 AM to 10 PM, choose a company with 24-hour pickup, such as MYCAR, Foss Car Rental, Lava Car Rental, or A Car Rental, or one with a written after-hours process.
Then decide how much you will pay to avoid risk. Star Car Rental, Lotus Car Rental, MYCAR, and Foss have almost no unhappy recent renters. The cheapest 4x4s, at Icerental 4x4 and Northern Lights Car Rental, save real money and carry a two- to three-times higher share of one- and two-star reviews.
In winter, a 4x4 is the sensible choice for most itineraries. In February, 84% of pickups on Guide to Iceland are 4x4s, against 57% in August. The budget-priced companies with good reviews, Foss and Key Car Rental, are where the winter value is.
Whoever you book with, take photos at pickup, check the fuel gauge, and know which insurance you hold before you reach the desk. Gravel and river crossings on the F-roads in Iceland are the reason that decision matters.
Every company's live prices and availability sit in one search of rental cars in Iceland. Travelers who would rather not plan the route can book self-drive tours in Iceland, which pair the car with hotels, and travelers unsure about driving can weigh tours against a rental car in Iceland before they book.
What Our Other Studies Say About Renting a Car in Iceland
The company is the decision that matters most, and the car type matters far less. Our study of which rental car type to choose in Iceland found a tenth of a star between a budget 2WD car and a premium SUV on the same reviews. Pick the company first and the car second.
The month matters as much as the company for price. A standard SUV costs about twice as much in July as in February, and our study of the cheapest time to visit Iceland found the same seasonal swing across flights, hotels, and tours. Travelers with flexible dates save most by renting in the shoulder months.
The same volume adjustment used here ranks tour companies in our study of the best tours in Iceland by satisfaction rate. There, rating gaps track review volume and how a company asks for reviews more than they track price or quality. The same holds for car rental, which is why Blue Car Rental's 6,727 reviews cap how far its score can move.
Car rental companies are one chapter in Guide to Iceland's studies of the companies travelers book with. The series also ranks the best tour companies in Iceland, the best Golden Circle tour operators, the best glacier hiking tour operators, the best whale watching companies, the best northern lights tour operators, and the best food tour companies in Iceland.
About this study: rankings are based on verified Guide to Iceland reviews and Google reviews of 37 car rental companies operating at Keflavik Airport or in Reykjavik, with Guide to Iceland booking data for prices and pickups and Reddit and Facebook posts for sentiment, collected between 30 September and 6 November 2026. Guide to Iceland is a marketplace and earns a commission on bookings, but commissions play no part in how companies are ranked. Ratings are adjusted for review volume so that companies are not rewarded or penalized purely for scale. Booking counts and traveler cancellation rates are not published.
Guide to Iceland Editorials is the shared byline for our content team. We use it on pieces several people worked on together, where no single writer owns the article, and on anything rewritten often enough that a personal byline would be misleading. We also publish our original data studies under this profile. Each study answers a question travelers ask about Iceland, using primary sources such as booking records, traveler reviews and public datasets, and every study is quality checked by human experts before it's published. Everything under this byline is researched and reviewed by people who live and work in Iceland. If you spot something out of date or want to suggest a correction, message us and it reaches the whole team.
