Ultimate Guide to Earning Money With Getaround [2024]

What is Getaround?

You’ve likely seen platforms that help you rent your stuff for cash, but did you know you could rent your car, too? Getaround is a peer-to-peer car-sharing company that lets you do just that. While you must maintain and clean your vehicle, you would do that if you were driving it, so I see this as passive income.

I know it might seem scary to rent a stranger your car, but Getaround offers many protections to make it safe for both you and your renter. Getaround offers ample insurance, including up to $1,000,000 in liability coverage, personal injury and uninsured/underinsured coverage, and comprehensive insurance. It can also be cheaper and more flexible for the renter than traditional rental car companies due to hourly or daily rental options.

Currently, Getaround has over 1.5 million users in eight countries, with a B rating from the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Most complaints are due to refund and cancellation issues, problems filing insurance claims, and frustrating customer service interactions.

How does Getaround work?

Getaround makes it easy for owners to rent out their vehicles.

Listing your car (owners)

Here are the rental options:

• Getaround Connect: Getaround installs a Getaround Connect device in your car so renters can access your vehicle via the app. Renters book your vehicle and locate/unlock it using the app after identifying themselves via an identity check. (This is great for renters, in theory, but I’ve read a lot of complaints about the app not working.)
• Key exchange: If you only rent your vehicle occasionally or are uncomfortable letting renters access your vehicle without you there, you can do the traditional key exchange and meet renters at pick-up and drop-off locations.

Whether you choose Getaround Connect or Key Exchange, you must sign up for a Getaround account. Once approved, a representative will install the Getaround Connect device in your car (if you choose that type of account). But you’ll still be able to use your car when it’s not rented.

Getting paid

Car owners are paid at the beginning of each month for earnings for the prior month by check or PayPal. You can also opt for daily payments, but they typically only come three to five days after the rental ends. Getaround pays itself a 40% commission for its service that helps pay for insurance and other overhead charges, such as 24/7 roadside assistance.

Renting a car (renters)

Prospective renters can search for available cars in the Getaround mobile app and pay with their credit card. You have the right to cancel their request, but you’ll need to do so at least 24 hours before pick-up to avoid a cancellation fee. The best thing to do is to keep your car’s availability calendar up to date and block out any personal usage times.

The company performs a screening to identify a driver’s identity, driving record, and credit history. It looks at sources of information like the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), Facebook, and others. And, of course, it ensures all drivers have a valid driver's license.

Vehicle requirements

To be eligible, your car must meet the following requirements:

• Be no older than a model year 2007.
• Have fewer than 200,000 miles.
• Seat less than or equal to 10 passengers.
• Have power door locks in both front sides.
• Be worth less than or equal to $150,000.

Vehicles should also be in good condition and drivable, with only minor cosmetic issues. Cars older than 10 years and cars with more than 125,000 miles may qualify but will require an inspection.

Accessing the vehicle

The Getaround Connect device allows a renter to unlock your car from their smartphone. You just leave your keys in the car. The Getaround Connect device prevents theft through an engine lock, GPS tracking, and tamper detection. You can also list instructions for the renter in the app, including where its parking spot is located, where to return your car, and how to operate it.

The downside is that if a renter doesn’t have internet access, they cannot access the keys, leading to a canceled rental and headaches dealing with customer service.

You’ll be responsible for making sure there’s fuel in the tank. Getaround recommends that the tank is full and you document the fuel level with a photo before the renter picks your car up. The renter must return your car with the same fuel level. If not, they’ll need to reimburse you.

Getaround pricing

Getaround Connect has a one-time fee of $99 to $225 to install the device, depending on your market. You’ll also pay a monthly subscription fee determined by the number of cars you list:

• One car: $20 a month per car
• Two to nine cars: $18 a month per car
• 10 to 49 cars: $15 a month per car
• 50 to 99 cars: $12 a month per car
• $100+ cars: $10 a month per car

The nice thing is that Getaround offers new hosts a 90-day free trial. I think this is useful because it gives you a chance to see how Getaround works and decide if it’s worth it.

How much can you earn with Getaround?

Your earnings with Getaround depend on your location, the demand for rental cars in your area, and how often your car is available for rent. According to Getaround, you can earn up to $1,000 or more per month renting your car, and some “power hosts” earn as much as $42,000 to $126,000 per year.

In most parts of the U.S., Getaround sets prices for your car using an algorithm, and you won’t be able to customize this.

In Georgia, Colorado, and Florida, you can set prices for your car yourself. You can set different daily rates and put these in your calendar, and Getaround applies a base rate relative to your daily rate. Here’s what that looks like for bookings of less than, equal to, or more than a day.

• If someone rents your car for less than 24 hours, Getaround uses a base rate that’s a portion of the daily rate.
• If someone rents your car for 24 hours, Getaround uses your daily rate as the base rate.
• If someone rents your car for more than 24.5 hours, Getaround applies the daily rates for as many days as the rental spans and applies long-term booking discounts

Example

According to Getaround’s calculator, your net earnings will be equal to:

Base Rate - Service Fee + Extra Costs Paid by Driver

Getaround currently offers guaranteed earnings if you live in an eligible area and drive a model 2016 or newer. However, the exact guarantee changes frequently. Here’s an example:

Maximizing your earnings with Getaround

The more your car is available, the more likely someone will rent it. Aside from that and the incentives mentioned above, here's how to make money with Getaround:

• Provide instructions on parking and operating your vehicle to keep it in good shape.
• Stay on top of maintenance or repairs on your car.
• Watch for promotions.
• Set a strict schedule to avoid cancelled bookings.

Tips for car owners

Dealing with late returns and vehicle issues

If a renter returns a vehicle more than 30 minutes late without extending the rental, they must pay $10 per hour that they are late, plus additional rental fees. The maximum late fee is $90, and Getaround rounds up to the nearest hour.

The good news is that Getaround also charges fees to drivers if your vehicle is returned in a less-than-desirable condition. You can submit a claim to the Getaround claims team and get reimbursed once you provide evidence that repairs have been completed, such as a receipt and photos of your car.

Here are some of the reasons you could be reimbursed:

• Your car was returned excessively dirty.
• Your car was returned damaged.
• Someone smoked in your car.
• The renter incurred a traffic or parking ticket.

Reviewing your renters

Drivers are vetted before they’re allowed to rent cars through Getaround, which would give me peace of mind. But that doesn’t mean every renter will give you a great experience, and you should always leave reviews. Renter reviews aren’t displayed on a renter’s profile. However, giving honest reviews helps Getaround ensure its members are held to high standards.

Once a trip is completed, you can review the renter from your owner dashboard. You have three choices — that you trust the renter, that you’re not sure, or that you don’t trust the renter to rent your car again. If you give positive feedback, you can send a private message to the renter.

If you submit neutral feedback, you’ll be asked for feedback again if that renter completes another trip with you. For negative feedback, there will be a dialogue box where you can recount in detail why you don’t trust that person. An internal report will then be sent to Getaround to review the incident, and Getaround will decide whether to take action.

FAQs

Other side hustles to consider

If Getaround doesn’t sound like a good fit but you want to rent out your car, there are other car-sharing services like Turo and Zipcar. If you don’t want to share your car, check out these flexible side hustles.

Pet sitting

You can get paid to walk dogs if you're a pet lover. Services like Rover let you set up a profile to offer dog-walking or pet-sitting services. This is an easy side hustle to fit into your schedule, as you can choose your hours and the types of clients or pets you want to work with. It can even be somewhat passive like car rentals, especially if you provide overnight boarding. Rover provides 24/7 support, including vet assistance.

Virtual assistant

If you’d rather earn extra money from the comfort of your home and are tech-savvy, becoming a virtual assistant might be worth it. A virtual assistant provides online administrative support. Tasks can range from answering emails to setting up blog posts to creating graphics. You can start your own website and reach out to business owners yourself, or you can try working for a virtual assistant company like Belay.

Bottom line

Getaround was designed to help renters save money and owners earn some, and I think the idea could be a good one. However, the potential for low-quality customer support might be enough reason to consider other services or, at the very least, tread carefully with this platform.