There are plenty of benefits to renting your next vacation stay through Airbnb, but that's not the only peer-to-peer service that makes rentals easy.
You can use these Airbnb-like alternatives for renting cars, office space, boats, and much more.
Airbnb for Cars
ZipCar requires a monthly membership fee. Car2Go's selection is limited. And standard car rental services are often inconvenient.
With peer-to-peer sharing sites that operate like Airbnb, you only pay for the car rental when you need it, and they also have a wide variety of car types and makes.
Two of the larger sites---GetAround and Turo---cover insurace, and GetAround provides 24/7 roadside assistance. Turo provides roadside assistance only with select trips.
GetAround
GetAround listings include information on etiquette (Is the car pet-friendly for example?), and of course the typical Airbnb type features that you'll find in the car.
Where is it available? Get Around is available in only six US cities: San Francisco, Berkley, Chicago, Oakland, Portland, and Washington D.C.
What are the rental options? You can rent cars for as little as $5 per hour. The longer you rent a car, the cheaper the hourly price is.
What types of cars are available? You can rent SUVs, coupes, sedans, minivans, convertibles, hatchbacks, pickup trucks, and cargo vans. GetAround also offers electric cars including Teslas.
How does search work? The primary search function on GetAround relies on location. You can search for cars available in your location and then filter results by price range, car make, car category, car class, and, transmission.
What are the limitations? While you can rent by the hour or the day, some cars have a minimum number of hours for a rental (e.g. two or four hours), but there are cars available to rent for just one hour if that's all you need.
Turo
Turo listings are accompanied by info about the cars' features and extras. You can also see info on the car owner's response rate.
It's also worth noting that Turo will check your auto insurance score before granting you access to the site.
Where is it available? Turo is available in far more places than GetAround, serving 5,500 cities and 300+ airports across the US, Canada, Germany, and the UK.
What are the rental options? Turo rentals start at $10 per hour and up. The longer you rent the car, the cheaper the per hour rate becomes. For an added $10 fee, Turo car owners can bring the car to you.
What types of cars are available? You can rent sedans, SUVs, minivans, trucks, and vans.
How does search work? You can search cars by location, after which you can use a filter to narrow results by price range, features, vehicle type, make, year, number of seats, categories (elite, upscale, fuel sippers etc.), colors, and transmission.
What are the limitations? Some cars have a mileage limitation. If you exceed that mileage, you'll be charged per mile at a rate determined by the car owner.
Airbnb for Boats
Airbnb itself does have listings for houseboats, but if you want a wider selection, you might want to check out boat-specific sites.
These sites aren't just for swanky yachts. You can also use them to rent jet skis, kayaks, and of course, houseboats.
BoatSetter
BoatSetter listings include features for each boat, reviews, and how many people are viewing the vessel. Features include capacity, boat rules, response rate, and response time.
And if you have no boating experience---not to worry. BoatSetter rentals can also come with a captain who will manage the sailing, while you enjoy your day out on the water.
Where is it available? BoatSetter is available in 2,100+ cities worldwide.
What are the rental options? You can rent boats for half a day (which can run about four hours), for a full day, or for several days.
How does search work? When searching for a boat on BoatSetter, you'll start by entering your location, party size, and trip date. You can filter your search results by specific activities: fishing, sailing, water sports, cruising, and celebrating.
You can also filter by power vs. sail. And that's not all---you can narrow search results by price, size, features, and categories (jet ski, schooner, catamaran etc.).
GetMyBoat
GetMyBoat also offers the option of booking your rental with a captain.
Where is it available? GetMyBoat is available in 184 countries worldwide.
What are the rental options? You can rent a vessel per hour or per day. In addition to a rental fee, you'll also have to pay a service fee.
How does search work? Search begins with location, and then you can filter your search results by minimum and maximum prices, minimum and maximum capacity, availability of a captain, listing type (e.g. pontoon, jet ski, day sailer etc.), features, and if you're knowledgeable, you can even narrow your results by make and model.
Airbnb for Office Space
Coworking spaces are quite common across the United States, and beyond. Some companies offer office space nationwide, but you should also look into your own local options. Coworking search engines like Coworker can take the hard work out of it.
There are popular options like WeWork which is available across the US and in over 20 other countries worldwide, but you have to pay a hefty monthly fee. Instead, why not find a desk in an office space that you can use whenever you need to, without having to pay a membership fee?
LiquidSpace
LiquidSpace is a membership free option for finding working space to rent for your ad-hoc use.
Where is it available? LiquidSpace is available in 1,150 cities in the United States, Canada, and Australia.
What are the rental options? You can rent spaces by the hour or by the day. If you rent for a full day, the hourly price goes down. (Some locations are available only by the day.)
How does search work? As with most of these sites, a search begins with location. You can then filter your search results by dates and times, neighborhood, space type (desk, office, suite), price range, capacity, environment, and amenities.
ShareDesk
ShareDesk allows you to rent just a desk in a working hub or a private office. They also offer options for meeting rooms,
Listings include features and amenities, but there are no reviews on the listings.
Where is it available? ShareDesk is available at over 4,500 locations in 4,500 venues in 440 cities across 70 countries. Some cities (like New York for example) have far more options than other cities (like Washington DC).
What are the rental options? You can rent a desk in a public working space or hub, conference space, and in some locations, can find rentals suitable for executive level meetings.
How does search work? You begin a search by location and office type (meeting spaces or working spaces). You can then filter your search results by term (hourly, daily, or monthly), price range, dates, and venue category (shared, hub, pro, and exec.)
Croissant is another option for working spaces, but does include a membership fee, albeit at a much cheaper rate than WeWork. And PivotDesk also makes it easy to find office space, but the rentals are only available on a monthly basis.
Airbnb for Parking and Storage
There are other Airbnb like sites popping up for all kinds of services. If you're looking for an Airbnb for parking, there are a few sites that are beginning to fill that space.
Pavemint is available as an iOS app to help you find parking spaces in the Los Angeles area.
Parqex is available as an iOS and Android app, and features parking listings in several US cities including Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Miami, and Washington D.C.
If you're looking for storage space, rather than pay around $100 a month for a small space, you can look for peer-to-peer options using sites like Neighbor and Spacer [No Longer Available] (which also includes parking spaces).
Other Peer-to-Peer Rental Services
There are plenty more peer-to-peer rentals worth considering. Sites like Zilok are a rental marketplace for just about anything you might be looking for including computers, cameras, and gaming consoles. To rent an item through Zilok, you'll have to pay a security deposit you'll get back once the item is returned to its owner.
If you're looking for a "rental" for your furry friend while you go out of town, Rover makes it easy to find welcoming homes for your dogs.
If you're looking for photographic equipment, FatLama is an option worth considering---or if you prefer to rent from a company, take a look at BorrowLenses. Indeed, all photographers should consider renting before buying.