How to Search for Available Rental Cars
The Search Rentals endpoint returns a paginated list of available vehicles for a given location and date range. This is the core search call that powers your rental car results page.
Endpoint
GET /cars/api/v2/rentals
Request Parameters
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
country | string | Yes | Two-letter ISO country code (e.g., US, GB). |
pickupdate | string | Yes | Pickup date and time in ISO 8601 format (e.g., 2026-06-15T10:00:00). |
returndate | string | Yes | Return date and time in ISO 8601 format (e.g., 2026-06-20T10:00:00). |
pickuptype | string | Yes | Location type for pickup. Use "geo" for coordinate-based search. |
returntype | string | Yes | Location type for return. Use "geo" for coordinate-based search. |
pickupcode | string | Yes | Pickup coordinates as "lat,lon" (from the autocomplete endpoint). |
returncode | string | Yes | Return coordinates as "lat,lon" (from the autocomplete endpoint). |
currency | string | Yes | Three-letter currency code (e.g., USD, EUR, GBP). |
pickupgeo | string | No | Additional geographic context for the pickup location. |
driverage | number | No | Age of the primary driver. Affects availability and pricing for young/senior drivers. |
sort | string | No | Sort order: "distance" (nearest first) or "price" (lowest first). |
page | number | No | Page number for pagination (starts at 1). |
limit | number | No | Number of results per page. |
filter | string | No | Filter expression. See How to Use Car Rental Search Filters. |
language | string | No | Language code for localized content (e.g., en, es). |
Date Format
Dates must include a time component in ISO 8601 format. The time determines the pickup and return hour at the rental location.
2026-06-15T10:00:00 ← Pickup at 10:00 AM on June 15
2026-06-20T14:30:00 ← Return at 2:30 PM on June 20
Rental duration and pricing are calculated based on both the date and time. A 5-day rental returned one hour late may incur an extra day charge, depending on the vendor's rate rules.
Example Request
HTTP
GET /cars/api/v2/rentals?country=US&pickupdate=2026-06-15T10:00:00&returndate=2026-06-20T10:00:00&pickuptype=geo&returntype=geo&pickupcode=40.7128,-74.006&returncode=40.7128,-74.006¤cy=USD&sort=price&page=1&limit=20
x-api-key: YOURAPIKEY
x-correlation-id: 550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_SIGNATURE
Example Response
JSON
{
"data": {
"pickupdate_time": "2026-06-15T10:00:00",
"returndatetime": "2026-06-20T10:00:00",
"avails": [
{
"id": "avl_abc123",
"token": "eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6...",
"status": "available",
"rentalcarbrand": "Hertz",
"vehicle": {
"air_conditioning": true,
"transmission_type": "Automatic",
"fuel_type": "Petrol",
"drive_type": "2WD",
"passenger_quantity": 5,
"baggage_quantity": 2,
"vehicle_size": "Standard",
"vehicle_type": "Sedan",
"sipp_code": "CCAR",
"name": "Toyota Camry or similar",
"door_count": 4,
"picture_url": "https://images.example.com/camry.png"
},
"rental_rate": {
"rate_distance": "Unlimited",
"vehicle_charges": [
{
"currency_code": "USD",
"base_price": 245,
"total_price": 289.75,
"tax_inclusive": true,
"purpose": "rental"
}
],
"rate_restrictions": {
"minimum_age": 21,
"maximum_age": 75
}
},
"fees": [],
"pickup_location": {
"name": "Hertz - Manhattan Midtown",
"coordinates": {
"lat": 40.7549,
"lon": -73.984
}
},
"dropoff_location": {
"name": "Hertz - Manhattan Midtown",
"coordinates": {
"lat": 40.7549,
"lon": -73.984
}
},
"distance": 4.8,
"coverages": [],
"payment_rules": []
}
]
}
}Key Response Fields
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
token | Availability token. Pass this to the Details and Booking endpoints. |
rentalcarbrand | Name of the rental company (e.g., Hertz, Enterprise). |
vehicle | Object containing car specifications (type, size, SIPP code, capacity, etc.). |
rentalrate | Pricing breakdown including base price, total price, and any age restrictions. |
distance | Distance in kilometers from the search coordinates to the pickup location. |
pickuplocation | Name and coordinates of the pickup branch. |
dropoff_location | Name and coordinates of the drop-off branch. |
Pagination
Use the page and limit parameters to paginate through results:
page=1&limit=20 ← First 20 results
page=2&limit=20 ← Results 21-40
One-Way Rentals
To search for a one-way rental (different drop-off location), pass different coordinates for pickupcode and returncode:
pickupcode=40.7128,-74.006&returncode=42.3601,-71.0589
One-way rentals may have additional fees that appear in the fees array of the response.
Tips
- Always include a time in
pickupdateandreturndate. Omitting the time component will result in an error. - Use the
sortparameter to present results in the most useful order for your users."price"is best for budget-focused travelers;"distance"is best when proximity to the pickup location matters. - Store the
tokenfor each result. You will need it when calling the Details endpoint or creating a booking.