Feb. 23, 2026. Maui car rental prices appear to have peaked in mid-February and they are now on their way down to a high season level that they will hold through March until after Spring Break. This is a repeatable seasonal pattern of price movement that we see every year. The difference this year is the peak prices in Mid-February were more elevated than last year or any previous year on record. The record-setting high prices were due to a severe shortage in rental vehicles, caused by safety recalls on two popular rental car categories, minivans and Jeeps, that had to be put out of service until repairs were completed - or an exemption was granted, not sure which. But there are signs that the shortage is beginning to be alleviated with some recalled vehicles being put back into service. In fact the lowest price rental vehicle available this week is the minivan - prices for these vehicles have dropped as they are added back into the rental fleet, causing a temporary - and likely short-lived - flood of supply. We are seeing other signs that the shortage situation is moderating: for example the gap between last-minute prices and advance prices is closing. Prices are no longer ratcheting up dramatically in the days before the rental date. Are things getting back to normal? Things are never normal in this market. Availability off-airport remains very limited, and one of the main off-airport discounters, Ace rentacar, appears to have been de-listed from the Online Travel Agent {OTA) systems, putting extra pressure on the remaining off-airport discounters NU and Fox, and jacking up the prices for what they have available. Keep reading for details.

Fig. 1. Prices for Maui car rental at Kahului Airport (OGG) from December 2024 to now.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO RENT A CAR IN MAUI ON FEBRUARY 23, 2026?

Every week, we list the lowest advertised prices for a one-week car rental from Maui's Kahului Airport (OGG), for a selection of vehicle categories, with the change from the previous week, and the company offering the best price. This is our overview of Maui car rental prices for the week of February 23, 2026.

Category Price Company

Economy $1,157 Thrifty

Midsize $1,261 Thrifty

Jeep $1,601 Thrifty

Convertbl $1,980 Payless

SUV $1,899 Payless

7 St SUV $2,019 Budget

Minivan $1,066 Thrifty

The prices quoted here include all applicable taxes and fees. Prices for these vehicle types charted week-to-week for the last 14 months are illustrated in Figure 1.

These are the lowest prices in every car category: The lowest price for a compact car from Kahului Airport (OGG) was $1,157/week, from Thrifty. Mid-size cars started at $1,261/week, from Thrifty. Jeeps were $1,601/week, also at Thrifty. Convertibles were starting at $1,980/week, from Payless. the cheapest standard SUV's were $1,899/week at Payless, and 7-seat SUV's started at $2,019/week from Budget. Minivans were the vehicles with the lowest price, "only" $1,066/week, from Thrifty.

The main good news this week is that availability is restored for all car categories - last week many categories were sold out or close to selling out.

Other good news is the returning availability of minivans. These vehicles are being put back into service after being sidelined for an extended period due to a safety recall. With fresh minivans re-entering the rental pool, the cost to rent a minivan has dropped, and is now the lowest of all rental categories, for the second week in a row.

But prices remain high - how high? Continue reading to find out.

Fig. 2. Maui Car Rental Price Comparison: Dramatic Increases Noted Across All Categories from Last Year.

HOW DO PRICES COMPARE TO ONE YEAR AGO?

We previously, reported that average prices over the first week of February this year were about double what they were one year ago in many categories, and significantly higher overall. This was after prices had been in the range of 30% to 45% higher year-over-year for the month of January.

In the two weeks that followed that report, complete sell-outs in multiple vehicle categories made it difficult to conduct meaningful year-to-year comparisons.

This week, with availability restored for all categories, this is how prices compare with prices one year ago:

Vehicle Now Last Year Change
Economy $1,157 $493 +135%

Midsize $1,261 $506 +149%

Jeep $1,601 $676 +137%

Convertbl $1,980 $1,068 +85%

SUV $1,899 $795 +139%

7 st SUV $2,019 $795 +154%

Minivan $1,066 $902 +18%

These numbers are charted in Figure 2.

In this final week of February 2026, prices are more than double what they were in the same week last year for most categories. Economy/compact cars are up 135%, midsize cars are up 149%, Jeeps are up 137%, standard SUV's are up 139%, and 7-seat SUV's are up 154%. The smallest increases were for convertibles, up only 85% year-over-year, and minivans, up just 18% - for reasons that we just discussed.

These numbers far exceed anything related to inflation or general rise in prices. They point to a systemic imbalance in the dynamics of the Maui car rental market in 2026.

A rental car is considered a necessity for a vacation trip to Maui. Prices at this level have an impact on the overall affordability of a trip. Even if this price shock is temporary, it will have a lasting effect, due to the well known psychological effect of "negativity bias." People will be more likely to remember Maui's rental car shortage of 2026 and its astronomical prices than any previous experience with affordable rates, and this may affect their preference for Maui as a choice destination for future vacations - especially when the increased rental car costs are conflated with ballooning prices for accommodations.

Is this problem unique to Maui? How does it compare to the other Hawaiian islands? Continue reading to find out.

HOW DOES COST OF CAR RENTAL IN MAUI COMPARE TO OTHER ISLANDS IN HAWAII?

Figure 3. Cost of one week car rental at major Hawaii airports, from February 2025 until this week.

Here's a quick survey of the cheapest one-week rental cost from each of the five major Hawaii airports, for a rental beginning on Monday, February 23, 2026. For each airport, we report the lowest price being offered this week, the lower price last week, and the percentage change.

2/23 2/16 CHANGE AIRPORT

$291 $411 -29% Honolulu

$1,154 $2,015 -43% Maui

$413 $836 -51% Kauai

$619 $3,155 -80% Kona

$701 $701 0 Hilo

The lowest price week by week at each airport, from February 2025 until this week, or for a full year, is illustrated in Figure 3.

Compared to last week, the price of the cheapest rental car at most of the major airports in Hawaii has come down by a significant percentage. In Honolulu, it is down 29%, from $411/week to $291. Maui came down from $2,015/week to $1,154, 435. Kauai dropped from $836 to $413/week, down 51%. Kona fell a dramatic 80% from $3,155/week to $619. the only airport bucking the general trend was Hilo, unchanged from last week, at $701/week.

It is easy to see from the chart that for most of the last 11 months, prices for car rental in Maui were often the very lowest and if not the lowest then near the lower end of car rental prices in the Hawaiian islands.

However this price pattern changed dramatically with this year's holidays, and Maui's prices shot up higher than any of the other islands.

This week, Maui has the highest prices across the islands, 65% more than the second highest, Hilo.

This gives confirmation to an impression of a dynamic of feast of famine in Maui, switching from the most affordable for rental cars to the least affordable, just with the change of seasons. The particular factors that might be causing this dynamic are not known. The big question is will Maui return to affordability, as it did after spring break of last year, or will it remain in the extreme regime where it soared after Thanksgiving.

HOW DO WE GET OUR MAUI CAR RENTAL PRICE DATA?

Prices for Maui car rentals vary from week to week, and the company offering the lowest price also changes from week to week. Furthermore, one company may be offering the lowest price in one vehicle category, for example mid-size cars, while a different company has a better price on another category, for example mini-vans.

Beginning in July 2024, we've tracked the prices on seven vehicle categories - compact, mid-size, Jeep, convertible, SUV, 7-seat SUV, and minivan - from 10 different companies at Maui's Kahului Airport (OGG): Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Hertz, National, Payless, SiXT, and Thrifty. Each week, for every vehicle type, we noted which company offered the lowest price. Our weekly price-tracking for the lowest price economy car category goes back to July 2023 - more than one year. These are the data for the charts we post every week.

Figure 4. Week-by-week variation of Maui car rental prices averaged over five years, from 2013 to 2018.

Previously we conducted a five-year price-tracking study for the lowest price economy car category beginning in February 2013 and continuing to February 2018. A sample of these results is in Figure 4, that shows the five-year average of the price over a one-year duration. For details of this massive price-tracking undertaking, and the most important findings on how and when to rent a car, see our blog post of July 14, 2024 titled "When is the best time to rent a car in Maui? "

HOW TO CHECK RATES AND AVAILABILITY FOR MAUI CAR RENTAL

Either click through to to our Cars & Rates section, or check our booking site at rentals.mauicarrental.biz. This site gives you access to all vehicles from eight different companies - Ace, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Dollar, Enterprise, Payless, and Thrifty - at all their Maui locations, that include the Airport rentacar center, Kahului town locations nearby the airport, and resort locations in Kihei/Wailea, and Ka'anapali. With so many options to choose from, you are assured to find the rental car that matches your preferences and your budget for your Maui trip - and there is never a cancellation penalty if you have to change plans.

ABOUT THIS BLOG

Frank Saab is the editor of this blog published by Frank's Friendly Cars Maui Car Rental LLC, an independent car rental company operating in Maui, Hawaii, since 2006. Frank's offers low prices on used local cars and discount prices on new cars, with a "Lowest Price Guarantee" that assures you of getting the best deal on your rental. Visit our website at www.mauicarrental.biz, or call us at 808-280-1196.

Price Data Sources: rentalcars.com, rentals.mauicarrental.biz