I’ve been wanting to try a Transfercar for years out of sheer curiosity. I couldn’t really tell if it was a travel hack I’d been sleeping on, too good to be true, or a low key scam full of hidden fees. But the stakes were pretty low, so I finally decided it was time to test it.
This post may contain affiliate links. Booking through these links generates a small commission for me at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support!
Is Transfercar legit?
Yes, Transfercar is totally legit — I tried it myself! I will say the “free” or “$1” framing is definitely a little optimistic, but it’s still a budget-friendly excuse for a little New Zealand road trip.
Have you ever wondered how tf car rental companies get their vehicles back when someone books a one-way trip? If everyone flew into Auckland and flew out of Wellington, there would be way too many cars in Wellington.
Transfercars is one of those ways. It’s a third-party that connects you with rental companies that need their cars relocated. The rental company wins because they don’t have to pay staff on the clock to relocate the vehicle, and you win because it’s free (ish).
How Transfercar works
You usually pay $0 or $1 for a max of 1-5 travel days, and sometimes the option to extend the booking at an additional cost. (I’ve seen everything from $40-200 per extra day.)
The long drives — especially those that cross the Cook Straight between the North and South Islands — usually give you 4-5 days. And some include the cost of the ferry, which is super expensive otherwise, so make sure you check.
The pick-up/drop-off locations are always major cities and busy tourist hubs, at the airport or central city rental offices. Auckland, Wellington, Queenstown, and Christchurch are all very popular locations. But I’ve also seen Rotorua, Tauranga, Napier, Picton, Nelson, Greymouth, and Wanaka.
Most are regular rental cars from small hatchbacks to large SUVs, but you can also find the occasional campervan, 12-seater mini buses, and, randomly, even furniture moving trucks.
Transfercar is available in several other countries (Canada, US, UK, Australia) but I’ve only tried it in New Zealand.
Travel essentials for New Zealand
📶 eSIM
Stay connected with internet access everywhere you travel.
💸 TravelSpend
Track your budget easily (ft. a colourful doughnut chart with stats).
✈️ Seats.aero
Find and book flights with your points for Aeroplan, Qantas, Delta & more.
💳 Wise or Revolut
Compare the best multicurrency cards for spending when you're overseas.
My experience booking a Transfercar
I organized my Transfercar two weeks in advance, but there are relocation options popping up all the time. You can usually book a month in advance at most.
I found a route going from the Wellington Airport to Auckland City, which was absolutely perfect for me. I live in Auckland and had to fly to Wellington to get the car anyway, so an airport pickup was ideal. The car came with 3 free days and unlimited kilometers, so gas was my only essential car-related expense.
Transfercars are never instant book — you always have to put in a request. I got confirmation just two hours later. I guess if they get multiple requests, they’ll choose the “best” driver, maybe considering things like your age and the dates you requested.
Total cost of my Transfercar adventure
So the car is free — or almost free in most cases — but it’s still a road trip. You have to consider the additional expenses like gas, road snacks, meals out (let’s be honest, you’re not going to cook), a flight, and accommodation.
Part of the fun for me was seeing how cheaply I could do it all for, so I went very basic on the accom. I stayed in three budget-friendly Airbnbs along my route, but hostels might have been cheaper:
- Levin: Just an hour outside Wellington in a single-bed room in a house for $40.
- Napier: A single-bed room in a house for $70.
- Hamilton: A single-bed room in a house for $45.
Gas was my biggest expense at $170, and I spent about $160 on meals, drinks, road snacks, etc. over 4 days. I definitely could have done that cheaper. But I’m a treat yo’ self kinda person.
My one-way flight was just $50 with Jetstar from Auckland to Wellington. I had to Uber to the airport which cost almost as much as the darn flight: $47.
So the total cost? Just under 600 NZD, or 150 NZD per day.
So, is Transfercar a great travel hack or too good to be true?
My experience went really smoothly, so I think it’s a great travel hack for a cheap getaway. If you’re happy to do a lot of driving over a short period. It’s a fun novelty for people with a ton of time in New Zealand and booking flexibility. And it may even take you to parts of New Zealand you wouldn’t otherwise visit. (Like, I probably wouldn’t have ever stopped in Levin or Palmerston North.)
I wouldn’t recommend it for those with just a couple of weeks to explore or who have a detailed itinerary. In that case, you’re better off getting a normal rental car. The time constraint is always too tight to let you stop and enjoy all the things to do along your route. Aotearoa is a country where you don’t want to be rushed!
Transfercar booking tips
Here are some things to double check or consider before you lock in your Transfercar:
- Review add-ons and conditions. Unlimited kms, inclusions like gas or the ferry, and how many days you have/the cost of additional days. (Sometimes it’s $1 sometimes it’s $100, so this is important.)
- Check the age limit and driver’s license requirements. Some companies won’t let people under 25 or under 18 do the relocation. Most require a full license class, and all will require an official English translation if your license is in another language.
- If you need to take a flight, see if prices are reasonable before you book the car. They can fluctuate and often go up as the date approaches. But don’t book the flight until the car is confirmed! It’s a fine balance.
- Consider the rental operator rating. I’m not totally sure this matters because you’re just doing a relocation. But I’ve seen a couple listed with a 1-star rating, and that’s definitely off-putting. It’s data pulled from reviews written by people who have rented, not people who have done a relocation.
- Make sure you have enough for the deposit/bond. Even though you’re not paying for the car, you’ll still have to put down a bond or put up a credit card as collateral in case there’s any damage.
Don't forget insurance
My Amex credit card usually gives me basic automatic trip insurance. However, because the car I relocated was $0, my credit card wasn’t involved and insurance didn’t apply. You can pay for insurance directly with the rental company when you pick up the car.
It was about $45/day — I didn’t take it, which was super stupid. Fortunately nothing happened, but I was stressed about it the whole time, lol. Make sure you get insurance.
Getting the timing right
This was a bit tricky because you have to request the car and wait for a response before you book flights or accommodation. But depending on when you get a response (no more than 24 hours) the accom you were looking at might be gone or the price of the flight may have gone up.
I found a Transfercar with a date range that worked for me and looked at flights to make sure there were options in my price range. Even though they confirmed within a couple hours, the price of the flight I was looking at had gone up from $79 to $200. (Unless I wanted to travel at 6 AM, and I didn’t.)
I managed to find a $49 flight two days later, so I called the rental company directly (not Transfercar) to see if I could bump the booking. It was still within the range of dates they’d offered, so they said no problem and updated the booking for me.
So you may need to do a bit of fancy footwork, but it’s totally possible to line everything up.
Transfercar alternative: Imoova
Someone in the comments pointed out another relocation site called Imoova. It’s another source to compare when you’re looking for a relocation adventure and connects you to rental companies, just like TransferCar.
What caught my eye about this one is the wider range of vehicle types. I found a relocation from Auckland to Christchurch with a fun rooftop tent so you can camp along the way. Super fun, and a good way to keep the costs down. This example gives you four nights to cover the 1,000+ kilometre journey from Auckland to Christchurch with the option to add up to three extra nights… but at a whopping $220 per night!
The page also doesn’t mention anything about covering the cost of the ferry crossing. So you’d want to do a little digging before booking this, but it’s definitely a good example of the fun options Imoova has to explore.
Related/unrelated: I did a fun rooftop tent camping trip on Great Barrier Island, which I highly recommend if you get the chance to visit — it’s just a short flight from Auckland.
Transfercar's long-term rental options
If you’re looking for more than just a quick getaway in a one-way transfer, you can book a long-term rental. These are far from free, but they can be competitive during peak periods and offer much more flexibility than the typical Transfercar relocation system.
Here’s a quick comparison between the results that came up when I searched a month-long rental with Transfercar vs. DiscoverCars for the same date range. April 1-30, 2025:
Transfercar
Don’t ask me why those little icons are showing up like that, I don’t know. Lol.
DiscoverCars
So the options on DiscoverCars are still cheaper. However, the cheapest TransferCar is a pretty swish — an electric BYD ATTO 3 for $1,240. The closest equivalent on DiscoverCars, an electric Kia Niro, runs $2,790.
But if you don’t care much about what type of car you’re renting, you can get a Toyota Rav4 for $1,025 or a Mazda Demio for $670.
The takeaway? It’s worth checking both Transfercar and DiscoverCars if you’re renting for an extended period.
Stay connected across New Zealand
Getting an eSIM is a great way to access the local data network when you’re traveling. If you download it in advance, you can activate it as soon as you touch down. No need to find a cellular store and swap out your physical SIM card.
There are tons of options on the market. I’ve tried Saily, Holafly, ETravelSim, Roamless, and Jetpac. Every Holafly plan offers unlimited data, which is great if you use a lot of data.
Saily is the most affordable and comes with added features like ad blockers. It also has some cool promos on, like a 10% discount and free NordVPN with an eSIM subscription.
Naomi Lai
Naomi is a Canadian travel editor and writer with 13 years of international travel across Southeast Asia, Europe, South America, New Zealand, and beyond. She covers everything from budget backpacking to luxury travel — always from personal experience.
More about Naomi →
wpDiscuz