Car Rental vs. Ridesharing

With the explosive growth of ridesharing apps such as Grab and Angkas in the Philippines, you might wonder if renting a car in Manila is still worth it. After all, you’re already familiar with using ridesharing apps to order food and deliveries, so they seem more convenient for booking a ride.

However, there are many other factors to consider aside from this. Is it worth renting your own car instead? What are the pros and cons? Let’s take a look and see which choice comes out on top.

Is car rental cheaper than booking a shared ride?

Rideshare apps often raise their fare prices in reaction to traffic conditions, number of users trying to book a ride, and the number of available drivers. A trip going to the mall can cost a certain amount and the trip home at dinnertime can cost nearly double while being incredibly hard to even book.

This means that if you’re trying to get home after buying groceries at a busy mall right at dinnertime, you can expect to pay up to double the usual fare. This can really add up, especially if you’re booking more than one trip a day. 

In contrast, can rental is a one-time fee. Here at CF Car Rentals, we offer a range of vehicles in top condition, all at reasonable rates. Since car rental fees are upfront and not variable, car rental can often prove to be the better choice, especially if you need to drive to busy areas such as Taguig, Makati, or Quezon City during rush hour. 

Is renting a car more convenient than booking through a rideshare app?

When you rent a car for a certain period of time, be it by hour, day, or even week, you will have full control over the vehicle. You can drive at any time, choose to pick up friends and family at any location, and drop them off wherever you wish. 

With ridesharing, you are constrained by the limits imposed by the company: for Grab, any additional drop offs are charged extra, you cannot add more than one extra stop to your trip. This means that if you want to pick up your parents at one location and your hubby at another, you will need to book them another separate ride as it just isn’t allowed. This can ultimately be more costly, frustrating, and inconvenient than just renting your own car for the day.

When booking a shared ride, you only need to tap the app and input your start and drop off points. However, a ride isn’t necessarily guaranteed. Who among us hasn’t been stuck during rush hour, angrily refreshing the booking screen in hopes of an available driver? This is a common sight near the entrances of malls, office buildings, and any other busy spot. 

With a car rental, you are the boss. There’s no need to wait, because the vehicle is available for your use whenever you need, ready to take you wherever you need to go with whomever you want.