Car hire prices at Brussels Zaventem Airport

Brussels Zaventem Airport car hire in October 2026 starts at around £28 a day for an Economy, £35 a day for a Compact car like an Opel Astra, and £46 for an Intermediate. Waiting until the last 2 weeks drops that Compact price to £27 a day. Across the year, prices range from £31 a day for a Mini like a Volkswagen Up in February 2027 to £101 a day for an executive car like a Mercedes E Class in June 2027. The price checker prices your exact dates.

At Brussels Zaventem Airport booking late saves about 72%: across the year a Compact costs £50 a day 9 months out against £29 2 weeks before pickup. For October 2026, waiting until the last 2 weeks drops the Compact price from £35 to £27 a day. Across the 395 airports we track car hire prices for, 48% of our customers book within 2 weeks of travel. If you have not booked yet, you have not missed the saving.

Thrifty and Keddy by Europcar are the cheapest companies at Brussels Zaventem Airport for a Compact, averaging £39 a day over the last 12 months. Keddy requires a credit card and holds a £685 deposit, while Thrifty accepts a debit card but holds £642. For £3 more a day, Europcar averages £42 from 648 prices and scores 82/100 from 66 reviews with a 16-minute desk wait. All 10 suppliers have desks inside the terminal.

The cheapest company can cost you a longer queue or a bigger deposit, so check the review score and desk wait beside each car in the results before you book.

Hertz and Thrifty are the best-reviewed companies at Brussels Zaventem Airport, each scoring 87/100 from 56 and 52 reviews respectively. Hertz averages a 22-minute desk wait and costs £42 a day for a Compact, while Thrifty takes 18 minutes and is among the cheapest at £39. Europcar scores 82/100 with a 16-minute wait at £42 a day. Flizzr has only 9 reviews and does not yet have enough reviews for a score.

Review scores are CarTrawler customers' own, from the last five months; the score and the desk wait sit beside each car in the results.

At Brussels Zaventem Airport deposits held on your card range from £171 with Avis and Budget to £685 with Keddy by Europcar, and 4 of the 10 desks accept a debit card. The other 6 counters require a credit card in the lead driver's name. Filter for debit cards in the price checker before comparing offers to avoid counters you cannot use. The card rules and exact hold amounts appear beside each car.

If you bring your own child seat, check your airline's rules first: most carry one free, some charge.

Two things catch drivers out at Brussels Zaventem Airport: landing with only a debit card when 6 of the 10 desks demand a credit card, and slow queues at Avis. Avis averages a 28-minute wait at the counter, which hurts when heading straight into morning corridor traffic. All 10 suppliers operate in the terminal, meaning you bypass shuttle buses entirely. The main surprise once you leave the ring road is priorité à droite, where traffic legally darts out from side streets on your right unless signs explicitly tell them not to.

Only 84% of prices at Brussels Zaventem Airport are full tank out, full tank back, so read the fuel line under the car before you book.

For business travel pick a Compact car like an Opel Astra at Brussels Zaventem Airport, priced around £35 a day in October 2026, which seats 5 with room for 3 bags. Solo travellers carrying only cabin baggage can step down to an Economy Opel Corsa at £28 a day, which seats 5 but takes only 2 bags. 60% of cars offered are automatic and cost £48 a day against £44 for a manual, which is worth paying if you hit the ring road in heavy traffic. Electric cars are 6% of what is offered, so do not rely on picking one up unreserved.