I made the mistake of not booking enterprise or National (my company's preferred vendor) ahead of time. So Budget was all that was available. Budget and Avis work in conjunction, though there are separate lines. I waited almost an hour to get to the counter to check in. I then waited 15-20 minutes to get my car. The employees were nice. It isn't their fault the lines were so long. When I book with enterprise, I never wait and go straight to a car. The car was pretty clean and had low miles, but I would never wait that long again. read more

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CHECK YOUR CONTRACTOR FOR THE FUEL SURCHARGE. I denied it and they still put it on my contract that I accepted it. Since I signed it they said it was a valid charge. After arguing for 20 mins they refunded me. Budget trying to get shifty and charge numerous customers for this hoping no one would notice. CHECK YOUR CONTRACT!!! This pic was when I dropped off and they didn't even ask if I fuel but I told them anyways that I did. Not cool budget. Read the other reviews. read more

Budget Car Rental - This was the car when I dropped it back off at the airport. - Car Rental Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

These guys are terrible. We had pre-paid reservations, showed up, and they said they had no more cars available. There was a line of people, just like us, all with prepaid reservations, and we all got shafted. It was 2AM, and the desk employees said it was corporate's fault for booking reservations without cars and that there was nothing that they could do. They had us put our names down on a waitlist. We were number 23. They were so incompetent it was actually kind of funny. read more

I don't know what people expect out of a car rental agency. I suspect that traveling just makes for irritability. But I got a good rate thanks to Costco. The airport has a lengthy but easy way to get to the car rental desk. The car check out personnel themselves were friendly. I had very little wait to get into the actual car itself. And the car we had was nice, clean, and got the job done. read more

Longest line for a reservation that I'd already completed online that I've seen in any airport. Line at check-in desk, then a line *inside* the parking garage to get assigned a vehicle. Returned the car with a full tank at O'Hare Oasis directly outside the airport. Charged me $65 and told me I returned it empty. Absolutely insane to provide such awful service then try to sneak in a charge when I have a bank statement for the gas station charge. AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE. read more

I rented a vehicle here. For the first time in my life I had trouble with the vehicle I rented and had to turn around and drive 30 min back to return it. The "add oil" light came on. The coin, I heard it a nonchalant. The person didn't look up from her computer. She just said " here isle 25b". I asked is it right out here? She said starkly " you found the other one didn't you?" When I walked out to the parking deck. The vehicle was worse than the previous vehicle, with less equipment. It's the first time I had a rental car company down grade me when they made a mistake. I was already an hour late for my business meeting and the young lady didn't even apologize for the inconvenience. Terrible experience. Will not rent from them again. read more

I was kind of disappointed with the rental here at O'Hare. It's one of the largest airports in the country and they had limited selection of vehicles to choose from. I wish it was like SeaTac airport where you can choose your vehicle. Since Chicago is full of toll roads (I didn't know at the time), you will be asked if you want to purchase a toll pass. If you are not sure if you need one, you can always pay your tolls on the Illinois tollway website https://www.illinoistollway.com/ after the fact using the license plate. It will take a week or so to post on the website. read more

Budget Car Rental - Car Rental Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

They really really want to charge you $60 for gas. Know what your total charge should be, and fight for it. I noticed the gas charge and asked them to take it off when I picked up the car. They said they would remove it when I returned the car. When I returned the car they put the $60 charge on without even looking at the gas gauge. I asked them to take it off. They asked me where I got gas. The needle was showing above full. I'm from Chicago, I filled it up the day before where it was cheap, and topped it off at the expensive station on Manheim less than a mile away. I had to tell them this. I only remember the street names because I used to drive around there in the days of maps. I asked to talk to the manager. I'm from Chicago, I don't take crap from people. Never again Budget. Also the car they gave me was flashing warning lights and had a bunch of someone else's junk under the seat. read more

Smoke smell? More like smoke screen. I rented a car from Budget at O'Hare Airport and returned it the same day, clean and in great shape. The desk agent even said everything was good when I handed back the keys. A few days later--surprise!--I get slapped with a $450 cleaning fee for a "heavy smoke smell." I don't smoke. No one in the car smokes. No smoke, no smell, no problem... or so I thought. Budget, apparently, has supernatural scent detection that kicks in days after you return the car. Their inspection was done two days later, and they sent no time-stamped proof--just a vague report and some random photos. And it doesn't stop there: I booked a 7-seater, got downgraded, still paid the same. I was overcharged for fuel, and had to complain just to get that refunded. Tried resolving this multiple times through customer service, but got the usual "we reviewed your case and found nothing wrong." If you're renting from Budget, prepare to document everything, and maybe light a scented candle that says "Please don't make up charges." I'll be disputing the charge and filing complaints with every consumer protection agency I can find. Until then, I'll just be here practicing my deep breathing--ironically, the only smoke-free air involved in this entire rental. read more

Terrible customer service couldn't as much as change the driver and left us stranded at the airport for hours at night

If there was an ability to give negative stars, I would give them at least one. They are happy to take peoples' money (mine and about a dozen others), take a reservation and have zero integrity to make sure that the reservation is held. This is like an episode straight out of Seinfeld read more

If I could give less cars I would. I had both an email and text message saying to go to zone 3 and pick my car and go. When arrived 15 or more people were waiting for their "fast break" cars. When I finally did pick my car the rudest staff I have ever dealt with proceeded to tell me I then could not take that car. I had already scanned the plate and checked the car into the app. After finally being told I could take the car things were smooth til I returned the car. That was 5 days ago, the car has still not been checked in and I have received no receipt. I originally had a reservation for through Friday but returned the car on Thursday. It is now Monday. I'm sure they will charge me for through Friday as well and I'll have to call corporate to get that corrected. Absolutely 0 stars for budget read more

Worst experience renting a car ever. First it took me about an hour waiting in line to pick up the car. Car was dirty and beat up when I picked it up. Then when I returned it with a full tank of gas they tried to charge me an additional $90 for gas even though the gas was full when I returned it. Then when I called about it they made me give them the location and name of the gas station I filled up with and asked me for proof of purchase of gas, like MFer the proof is the full gas tank, go take a look! Total BS experience from the beginning to the end. I'll never rent from this company again. F'ing SCAM! read more

The single worst experience of my life was choosing this rental car agency. The incompetent staff could not send me to a car with a correct key fab to leave the airport. I tried 3 different cars and it took an extra hour of my day because no one could figure out how to start a damn car. In the confusion, I left behind an unopened Christmas gift of Garret's popcorn in the back seat of one of the cars that wouldn't start. Of course, there is no way to speak to a person at O'hare when you call the Budget phone number... so I call the National hotline number. I explain the situation and the guy tells me to turn around and go back. I responded that the incompetent staff put me an hour behind schedule and I needed to pick up my children and that I was on my way to Michigan and would not be turning around. The operator then told me I had to file a loss claim. He told me to do it online. I explained that I am driving and it would be dangerous to do so. After my hubby began to lose his temper the guy filled it out for us. He filled it out wrong. I will never get that popcorn back. But wait, there's more. I didn't see charges on my credit card for this car that I had booked through Expedia for $166.92. I got a big surprise on my credit card 3 days later for $252.32! I filled up the gas to full before returning, I didn't trash the car or get into an accident. So WTF?!?!?Not only did I get the worst service of my life. I got overcharged by this f*cking company. I will NEVER recommend this company to anyone. I should be PAID $252 after dealing with this pathetic company. Avoid at all costs. Trust me, it's not within your budget. read more

Budget Car Rental - Expedia receipt versus my actual account charge. Almost $100 more than quoted!!!!!!!! - Car Rental Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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It is a Saturday, holiday season, 2 people working the counter...wth Waiting in line over an hour so far with at least 15 ahead - this is a nightmare! read more

This was my worst rental car experience in the last 20 years in the US and additionally, I was defrauded by the Budget personnel at the ORD airport. FYI I travel 3 to 4 times a year to Miami and Chicago always renting cars. Budget deserves minus 10 stars not even a single positive one. I am from Germany/Europe and I have rented the car - as always- through a German provider, paying all duties, taxes and ordering all options and received a European rental agreement, for 10 days of rental at ORD in July 2024. My German prepaid rental agreement states: pick-up full tank, return full tank. I filled the tank a few miles prior the return, and when in the airport building (at the airport gate to Europe) I found in a mail that Budget was charging me for a full fuel tank 118,00 US$. By the way they do not give you anything in writing on pick-up as years ago, the same on return, everything goes per e-mail so you do not know if something is possibly wrong!!!!!!!. When I called the service center I was told that I had opted for that solution on rental car pick up; I have not asked for that option because I have on my rental agreement a "full-full option" and I have prior car return filled the tank close to the airport. Why should I do that if I would have opted for a return of an empty tank? I was NOT informed that I have made any changes to the contract stipulated through the German portal and I have not asked for any additional options or changes!!!. The service center employee told me on the phone "Reading helps" meaning I should read what I sign!!! Meanwhile, you do not get anything in written on pick-up , just signing 20 times on the display. By the way, the first car was not clear for the rental because several maintenance warnings indications were on (three different) and the car door -the passenger side- was damaged - by the way the side you do not see on pick-up unless you inspect the car. One of Budget employees on site told me "we can't do anything, we can't service it here" so I received the substitution after 20 minutes, the second car was badly smelling  (heavy cigarette/cigar smell) despite - Budget- is so proud of delivering only smoke-free cars. The exchange - the 3rd car- received another 30 minutes later, the seats were dirty and disgusting - especially the front passenger seat. The seat was greasy and dirty. This car was not only dirty but was actually technically not in good shape; the front left wheel was losing air pressure - I had to fill the air 3 times in 9 days and the wiper blades were worn out. The pinnacle of my bad experience was the fact that, when registered for the I-toll in Illinois, I discovered that I-toll was charging me for weeks of unpaid tools before my rental period. The Budget personnel at ORD was unfriendly and let me wait on arrival for pick-up for almost 2 hours. All this after a 20-hour journey. This is not kind, it is theft my dear Budget. I will never ever rent from Budget a car at ORD. read more

Have been in a line to get the reserved car for TWO hours. The have one rep checking people out. And I'm not yet near the front of the line!!! One star rating - not sure if I can give the zero star rating they deserve. read more

I really wish this location was like the Atlanta airport where you can go to the lot and choice your own vehicle based on the class you rented. O'Hare is an 1st class airport like Hartsfield Jackson so I would figure Ohare would offer the same service with regard to rental cars. Nevertheless, the lady ( an agent at Avis helped me because the Budget line was backed up) did her best to accommodate me with a vehicle to my liking. I actually hated the truck (she upgraded me to a SUV because they didn't have a full size on the lot and I didn't take her up on her offer to have her call to the off site lot to find out what full size cars they were bring). Jeep products suck period. I rented a Renegade and it felt like I was in a box on four wheels. The airport terminal driver was a cantankerous old chap. I didn't expect him to help me with my bags like the other people..I know the play. However , I didn't expect him to blow out hot air and roll his eyes( I didn't know men rolled their eyes) when I asked him what terminal American flew out of. Anyway this wasn't a bad rental, it was average. I would rent from the again, but I will make sure I get the car I feel comfortable in next time . read more

rented a car to drive 4 hours to a remote area in Wisconsin. When we got to the destination we saw that the car was leaking a massive amount of oil. Called Budget to problem solve in which they told me it was up to me despite the fact that the car was unsafe to drive. First they told me to drive it to a shop that was 80 miles away- knowing the car had no oil and the engine would most likely seize leaving me stranded in remote Wisconsin. I finally demanded they tow the car - would not get me a rental- told me I had to drive 187 miles to the nearest location to pick up to then charge me a one way fee because I did not return the car to the original location. I was unable to use the car for more than 70% of my rental, had to find a way back to Chicago, and they offered no refund. read more

Upon returning my vehicle FULL OF GAS, I was charged for a full tank of gas ($55). I called Budget, and they can refund me if I send them "proof of purchase" for a full tank of gas. Why: (1) can't they look at the gauge and see is it full, and (2) ask me at time of check-in for a receipt of gas purchase (which was in my pocket). I will never rent from Budget again. I travel 2-3x / month, and prefer to trust companies to look out for my best interests. Back to Hertz or National. read more

Please be aware that this Budget location has a track record of fraudulently charging unsuspecting renters $ 250 for smoking in the car. I am a marathoner runner and have never smoked a cigarette in my life. Avoid yourself the trouble I'm going through right now contacting customer service (there is nothing they can do), the credit card company etc. read more

I really wish I could give this location a better rating but the way they handled my situation as well as the customer service at their corporate leaves me no other option. Here's my full story: I rented a premium SUV for 6 days almost two months in advance and when I went to pick it up, the gentleman who assisted me with the pick up misled me and tacked on Damage Waiver line item to my rental. When I confronted to him about the Damage Waiver line item showing as Accepted on the screen (before I signed the contract), his response was "...just go ahead and sign it". As if I ever accepted or told him that I need this. Not knowing something like this could happen to me, I went ahead and signed it (foolish me). This resulted in additional charges that I was not anticipating and I learned about it when I went through my credit card transactions. The fee was never brought to my attention (close to $300) during the entire rental pick up process. I called total of three times within a week. The first time I called was during the middle of my trip. The lady I spoke with advised me that this fee was temporary hold and that I will be refunded when I drop off the vehicle. After dropping off the vehicle, I came back home and called the corporate and the person I spoke with told me that it's a valid charge since I signed the contract and there is nothing they can do on their end but refund me 50% at most. I insisted that they refund me back as I never asked for this to begin with and he advised me to speak to the local office directly. Upon calling the local office, I was told the same thing that their system shows that I accepted the damage waiver and there is nothing that they can do. As for the vehicle itself, it was in mint condition and only had thousand miles on it. It was a fun to drive and the interior was clean as well. I have now placed a dispute on this charge with my credit card company and will be providing all the proof related to this case and will reach out to local attorney general. Be very careful what you sign everyone! read more

Had a wonderful experience with the Budget at this location. Car had some issues among other things. Thanks to Mike B's (manager) professionalism and prompt service. He remedied it and went above and beyond. I really wished the other Budget location's would follow Mike's proactive attitude as customer service is the key which sets itself apart from the rest of the competition. I'll be renting more from Budget from now on. thank you read more

my nephew rented a car i took him to get could not find location called customer service they could not connect us to location don't waste your time you really have to be desperate to rent from them read more

1 worker on Saturday and self checkin computers are all out of service. It's a major airport. Common Alamo!

The car & the people at this Budget location were great, very convenient shuttle bus, no lines, they gave me a free upgrade from full to premium, and after declining a zillion "optional" coverages & fuel services I paid exactly what the computer reservation said I would. Car was clean, only 6k miles, even an ice scraper inside which we happily didn't need. But the 80% tax thanks to the city of Chicago is just brutal, I paid $42 in fees on a $52 rental lol. read more

Budget Car Rental - Catch this bus! - Car Rental Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Chun, I have to disagree wholeheartedly with your review of O'Hare Budget Rental. This was by far one of the worst customer service experiences of my life. And my boyfriend's. Hands down, awful. Let's start at the very beginning. We had a car rental reservation for Friday night - unfortunately, my flight was delayed 5 hours, and my boyfriend's was cancelled straight out (thunderstorms in Chicago, major bummer). Even though my boyfriend had provided Budget with his flight info in case of some event like this, they still charged him from that day. He tried contesting on Saturday, when he finally did arrive, and the people we spoke to at Budget (actually at the car rental place, not on the phone) were not helpful, not understanding, and not accepting of the fact that they had some level of accountability in this. Anyway... When my bf did arrive Saturday (the reservation was under his name, and I'm under 25, so...), we picked up our car...after waiting a good 1/2 hour in line at the office. There were TOO many people in line waiting to have their reservations fulfilled and too little people working (one...two at some point). When we got our car, getting out of the lot was a trial as well, with probably ten cars waiting to leave and one (rather incompetent) person operating the exit booth thingy. Sigh. When we returned our car on Sunday, we were RUDELY yelled at by some crotchety old man ("Move your car up HERE, no no MORE!" etc etc) - we watched and listened as he yelled at other carloads of people as well. The checkout process was slooooow. The car we had rented had some major ding on the hubcap, which we didn't even notice until after we left the lot. Fortunately, we didn't get charged for that damage, but apparently car renters have to give a thorough once-over to the car before leaving the lot. As virgin car renters, we did not know this, but renters beware of this fact in case you choose to rent from here! Budget is cheap, yes, but the horrendous customer service makes me think...it's probably better to go somewhere else. read more

The Good: - Rates: $40.00 / day for rental & $18.00 / day for insurance. - Selection: From Toyota Corollas to Mustang GTRs - Quality: Relatively new. Our rental had 948 miles to start - Customer Service: Bonnie was remarkable in providing details, and car assignment. The Bad: - The wait!!! 40 minutes on line in order to speak to an attendant. Not much needs to be said regarding the operations of Budget Rent-A-Car. The service was efficient and excellent. Our customer service representative (Bonnie) was great to discuss with us the terms of insurance and coverage, number of drivers, rates, and car assigned. Since Bonnie noted that Rachel and I are more extrovert than introvert, she assigned us with a Yellow Chevrolet Colbat. Granted, it wasn't a Yellow Chevrolet Camaro (ie: Bumblebee) but the car drove well and looked remarkable. The return service was also quick and efficient. We dropped off the car in the lot. The car was inspected, and we were handed a receipt in less than 3 minutes upon arrival. Ultimately, the remarkable customer service and efficiency is what makes Budget stand out amongst all others. Of course, the wait time could be a bit more efficient. I can only imagine how much longer it would've been if we showed up 10 minutes later than we did. read more

I will never be renting another car from Budget. At the airport I called around at the kiosk in baggage claim to multiple agencies to get quotes. Advantage and Budget offered the two cheapest, with Budget offering me the lowest quote at $118. I even got the name of the sales guy, Lee, that I spoke with. I get there and not only is Lee unavailable, but they try to charge me $175. I tell them what I was quoted and it becomes a back and forth with some backroom manager via the counter help saying "oh they must have been looking at the internet rate" or "they must have forgotten to add on a day" and then "they forgot the tax and fees". When i threatened to walk out and walk to Advantage for the $143 rate they offered me, they knocked it down to $153, and I just paid the extra ten to stay out of the rain. Coming back on Sunday I get dinged for another $14 in gas fees despite having spent $10 to fill it up because even though the odometer check showed I'd driven it under 75 miles and the fuel gage is past full, I didn't have a receipt to show I'd bought gas. I understand my rental contract required a receipt, and I forgot out of habit, but come on. On top of everything else that was just an unnecessary money grab. This goes beyond bad customer service and into outright fraud on a customer. read more

I used Priceline.com to rent a car from AVIS/Budget at O'Hare airport. The original plan was to pick up the car on a Wednesday at 3pm and return the car by Friday at 3pm. However, my holiday plans changed. I no longer needed to wait until three to pick up the car. I went to the airport, this morning, thinking that AVIS/Budget rental would allow me to adjust my reservation to Wednesday 10am to Friday 10am. At the counter, I was told by two employees that I would have to pay an extra fee, since my actually priceline reservation didn't start until 3pm. I thought AVIS/Budget had the same policy as HERTZ. Had I gone to HERTZ, I would have been able to adjust my reservation free of charge.** (I called HERTZ, this afternoon and confirmed this policy.) **as long as there are enough cars available. read more

The staff here is a terrible representation of the company. I generally have fairly decent experiences at Budget, but this was an exception. The guy behind the counter didn't know his own policies. No one should have to deal with this level of incompetency. They were also all out of all sedans and only had SUV's, despite me preparing for a sedan. The inability to manage their own inventory is laughable. read more

This is my second worse experience with Budget, but I don't understand why I am still renting from them. Maybe because they have reasonable renting fee on Thursdays and Sundays (20% discount). Anyway, I am standing in one of the Budget's office at 2090 N Mannheim Rd, Melrose Park, IL, and the time is 4:27pm. However, I reserved a truck online, and I was supposed to pick it up at 3:30pm. Unfortunately, no one is taking care of me. I don't see anyone at the Budget's help desk. It really sucks! I am just wasting my time. At least I would like to know whether someone is coming to help me or not. WTF is that! The worse customer service. I hope I won't get charged for this one even if I didn't get the truck. read more

Budget Car Rental - Budget Rent a truck office 2090 N Mannheim Rd, Melrose Park, IL. F....ng no one works here! - Car Rental Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

This place was a mess. They ask if I was okay with an suv they gave me a pick up truck. Then I walked back downstairs and asked for another. They said they didn't have any vehicles. Then they gave me a car with cigarettes holes and smelled like cigarettes. Never again will I use budget at o'hare. read more

I booked a Standard car through Costco Travel for $146.30. My flight was delayed, so when I arrived at 1a, I was tired and just wanted to grab the car and go. After being in line for 20 min, the attendant told me to give her a credit card and sign. I noticed that the total was $229.58, so I asked her why there was a discrepancy, and she responded that it was for incidentals and would be returned to me if the car was not damaged. When I asked her what the actual total was, she responded "whatever you booked through Costco." When I returned the car, I noticed that the receipt said $229.58, so I went into customer service. They said that I had agreed to an upgrade, and that I should have noticed that I signed for that amount. tldr; they overcharged me by 50% by giving me an upgrade that I didn't want, and got me to sign for it by saying the extra charge was a refundable incidental deposit. read more

This is a fantastic option if you have 2 hours to spare waiting in line. Pure insanity. Avoid it at all costs.

Budget service at Logan airport is poor at best. Location of fast break kiosk is marked AVIS. Fast break service guy on 7/21 @2:30 pm est was dismissive,cocky, and appeared annoyed at us being first time users. He was NEVER helpful. He identified a $100 charge as incidentals and again was annoyed we asked what it was for. Our car was in space D1 which was under numerous Avis signs and no very obvious.Terruble branding decision. Called for supervisor. on hold for 15 min to talk to supv ,and they hung on me. called back and they advised supv will call back in 24 to 49 hrs. everyone explained what procedure was after I explained it was not disclosed at time of purchase. read more

I am so grateful for the wonderful employees at this Budget. My credit card was compromised and Rosa and Andrew went above and beyond to help me out. Thank you both so much for your excellent customer service! read more

After being given an unsafe care and wanting to charge ME for the roadside assistance, they now have the nerve to charge an "administrative fee" for using their IPass to pay a toll. The charge is about 15 times the cost of the toll. DO NOT RENT A CAR FROM BUDGET. I have contacted them directly, through surveys and now on social media and they have yet to respond. I can only conclude that they just don't make customer service a priority. read more

Slow as hell, might as well walk to your destination you'll find it a shorter wait than waiting for your rental. Severely understaffed and the workers look like they're off drugs. Skip this one! Never renting here again. read more

This is the worst rental car company I have ever dealt with. Their customer service is absolutely horrible. I was hung up on... Transferred several times... Told "I don't know". I was charged $154 over a month after I returned the vehicle and was told it was a cleaning service. They said there was dirt in the car. I am extremely disappointed with this company. read more