Rate difference SFO vs OAK
 

I'm planning a trip to the San Francisco area this fall. When I look at the rental car rates for SUVs using my BCD, there is a huge difference in the rates for the ~10 day rental. Renting from SFO it's about $820, but from OAK its $360. Of course I'm flying into SFO. Anyone have any good ideas on getting a better rate from Budget at SFO? Or somewhat convenient transportation/shuttle options between SFO and OAK?
Thanks,
-Brian

You can of course take BART from SFO to OAK (via Oakland Colosseum and free shuttle), for $8.80 each way.

Try hotwire or priceline
Try a one-way rental
Maybe rent at OAK and return to SFO?
bart is convenient from SFO but to OAK you stop at the coloseum station then you transfer to a bus to OAK Airport, then you transfer to another bus at the terminal to take you to the Rental Car center.
There is a possibility of yet another bus transfer if you rent from Payless or Advantage at OAK.

wow thats a huge huge dif...must..for that much I would probably search around or do the shuttle....how much could a taxi ride be?

Bart is the way to go from SFO to OAK. BART is in the terminal at SFO and you connect via a bus at the Oakland Coliseum station. For that price difference, it makes sense to get the car in OAK.

Might there be a non-airport vendor somewhat closer to SFO? I wonder if the city itself, if not South SF or Daly City, would have a more convenient option for a decent price.

You don't need to go to OAK for a cheaper rate. Just take BART to one of the city Budget offices. They usually have the same cheaper rates.

There are several Budget locations within San Francisco itself and I'd encourage you to look into one of those. Another thing about renting from SFO is they have a massive user fee (11.11%) plus a fixed $20 charge for airport pick-up.

Alternatively, you could also use one of the locations near the airport (I see one in San Bruno, Belmont and Palo Alto, all taxi distance) that must be cheaper.

I'll add that picking up in San Francisco could also save you a night or more parking in a hotel which could be good. If you have days where you know you're just going to be in the city and won't need it, that's a great way to save some $$. Overnight hotel parking can be north of $35 per night.

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This thread was started in August, 2011.

With the current promotional BCD of D454300, very reasonable rates can be found at both SFO and OAK for weekend, weekly, and longer rentals.

This may be an old thread, but the SFO surcharges and fees are still there.

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Yes, but with the BCD, I'm getting exactly the same total price from either SFO or OAK.

I'm sure that non-airport locations will have a lower total price, but then you have the factor in the expense of getting to/from the off-airport location, as well as the fact that the off-airport location might not be open when you want to pick up or return the car.