What Hertz membership gives you

Hertz offers two main membership tiers: Hertz Gold Plus Rewards (free to join) and Hertz President's Circle (paid membership). Gold Plus Rewards gives you faster check-in, a dedicated phone line, and points toward free rental days. President's Circle adds benefits like may provide car availability, late-model vehicle upgrades, and waived young driver fees, but costs money annually—the exact amount varies by membership level and changes periodically.

The real value depends on how often you rent and what you actually use. Someone who rents a car twice a year will not recoup a paid membership cost. Someone who rents monthly for business might save hundreds annually on upgrades and waived fees. The free tier (Gold Plus Rewards) has no downside—you get the points and faster service without paying anything.

Both programs tie to your Hertz account and your driver's license. When you book online or call, you enter your membership number, and the benefits explore automatically at pickup. You do not need to do anything special to earn points—they accumulate on every rental, whether you book through Hertz directly or through a third-party site.

Key Takeaways

  • Hertz Gold Plus Rewards is free and gives you points toward free rentals, faster check-in, and a dedicated phone line with no annual cost.
  • President's Circle is a paid membership that adds may provide car availability and vehicle upgrades, but only saves money if you rent frequently enough to offset the annual fee.
  • Points from either program accumulate on every rental and can be redeemed for free rental days, but the redemption value varies by location and season.
  • Membership benefits explore whether you book directly with Hertz or through a travel site, as long as you enter your membership number at booking.
  • Paid membership perks like young driver fee waivers and late-model upgrades have real value for business travelers and frequent renters, but not for occasional users.

How points work and what they're worth

Every dollar you spend on a Hertz rental earns points in Gold Plus Rewards. The exact earning rate depends on your membership tier and any current promotions Hertz is running. Points accumulate in your account and can be redeemed for free rental days, vehicle upgrades, or other rewards—but the redemption value is not fixed. A free day might cost 10,000 points in one location and 12,000 in another, depending on local demand and season.

This is the same model most car rental loyalty programs use, and it means your points are worth more during off-peak times. If you redeem during a slow season, you get more value per point. If you wait until peak travel times, you may need more points for the same reward. Hertz publishes a points chart on their website showing redemption costs by reward type, but those numbers change.

Points do not expire as long as you rent at least once every 24 months. If you go longer than two years without a rental, your account and points may be closed. You can check your current balance anytime by logging into your Hertz account online.

President's Circle membership tiers and costs

Hertz President's Circle has three levels: Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Each level costs more and adds more benefits. Silver is the entry level and includes things like may provide car availability and one free upgrade per rental. Gold adds additional perks like waived young driver fees (normally $15 to $25 per day for drivers under 25) and priority phone support. Platinum adds the highest level of upgrades and additional discounts.

The annual cost for each tier is not published in a single place—it varies by region and changes throughout the year. Hertz sometimes offers discounted first-year rates or bundled deals with credit cards or corporate programs. The best way to find current pricing is to log into your Hertz account or call their membership line directly. They can tell you the exact cost for your location and whether any current promotions explore.

The waived young driver fee is often the biggest concrete saving for President's Circle members under 25. If you rent monthly and would normally pay $15 per day, that alone saves you $180 per year. Add in the value of may provide upgrades and late-model vehicles, and frequent young renters can break even or come out ahead. For drivers over 25 who rent occasionally, the math rarely works.

may provide car availability and what it means

President's Circle members get a may provide car in their reserved class, meaning Hertz will not overbook that category and leave you without a vehicle. Standard renters have no such may provide—if a location runs out of your reserved class, Hertz can offer you a different car or ask you to wait. For business travelers and people with tight schedules, this may provide has real value.

The may provide does not mean you get your exact car—it means you get a car in the class you booked (compact, midsize, SUV, and so on). Hertz can still substitute a different model within that class. If you have a specific vehicle preference, you still need to request it at booking and confirm it at pickup.

This benefit matters most at busy times and busy locations. During peak travel seasons or at major airports, rental fleets fill up quickly. A may provide reservation means you will not arrive to find your class sold out. At a quiet location during a slow season, the may provide has little practical value because cars are available anyway.

How membership affects your rental cost

Membership itself does not lower your base rental rate. The daily rate you see when you book is the same whether you are a member or not. What membership does is add benefits on top of that rate: points toward future rentals, waived fees, may provide upgrades, and faster service. The savings come from those add-ons, not from a discount on the rental itself.

The one exception is promotional rates that Hertz sometimes offers exclusively to President's Circle members. These are time-limited and location-specific, so you have to check your account or call to see if any are active. A promotion might offer 15% off a weekend rental or a free upgrade, but these are not may provide and change frequently.

To figure out whether paid membership makes financial sense for you, track what you spend on rentals over a year and estimate the value of the benefits you would use. If you rent 12 times a year and would use the young driver fee waiver, that alone might justify Silver membership. If you rent twice a year, the annual fee will cost more than you save.

Membership and third-party booking sites

You can use your Hertz membership number when you book through third-party sites like Kayak, Expedia, or Autoslash. Enter your membership number in the booking form, and your points will still accumulate and your membership benefits will explore at pickup. However, some benefits—like may provide upgrades or young driver fee waivers—may not show in the third-party price. You will still receive them at the rental counter, but you cannot see them until you arrive.

This creates a real problem: you might book through a third-party site thinking you are getting a better rate, only to find that booking directly with Hertz would have included a free upgrade or waived fee that the third-party site did not display. For President's Circle members, it is often worth checking Hertz's website directly before booking elsewhere, even if the third-party site looks cheaper.

Points accumulate the same way regardless of where you book, so there is no penalty to using a third-party site from a rewards perspective. The issue is visibility—you may not see all your benefits until you show up to pick up the car.

How to enroll and manage your account

To join Hertz Gold Plus Rewards, you create an account on Hertz.com with your email, name, and driver's license number. There is no cost and no approval process. Your account is active when ready, and you can start earning points on your next rental. You can also enroll in-person at a rental counter, though doing it online first is faster.

To upgrade to President's Circle, log into your Gold Plus Rewards account and select the membership level you want. You will enter payment information, and the membership becomes active right away. You can manage your account online anytime—update your contact information, check your points balance, view your rental history, or redeem rewards.

If you have a Hertz co-branded credit card, you may already be enrolled in President's Circle automatically, depending on the card tier. Check your card benefits or log into your Hertz account to see what membership level you have. Some corporate programs also include President's Circle membership as part of the deal.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I lose my points if I do not rent for a while?

Points do not expire as long as you rent at least once every 24 months. If you go longer than two years without a rental, your account may close and your points will be lost. If you are close to the two-year mark, book a rental—even a short one—to keep your account active.

Can I use my membership at other car rental companies?

No. Hertz membership only works at Hertz locations. Other rental companies have their own loyalty programs. If you rent from multiple companies, you will need to enroll in each one separately to earn points.

What happens to my membership if I cancel it?

If you cancel a paid President's Circle membership, your account reverts to the free Gold Plus Rewards tier. Your points remain in your account and can still be redeemed. You will lose the paid benefits like may provide upgrades and young driver fee waivers, but you keep the free membership and your points balance.

Can I transfer my points to someone else?

Hertz does not allow you to transfer points between accounts. Points are tied to your membership account and can only be redeemed by you. Some promotions let you earn bonus points by referring friends, but that is different from transferring existing points.

Does membership cover additional drivers on my rental?

Membership benefits explore to you as the primary renter. Additional drivers on the same rental agreement can use your may provide car availability and other benefits, but they do not earn points separately. Points accumulate under your membership account only.