Cristobal Galilea
Co-founder, Carz
Cristobal builds Carz alongside the operators who use it — fleet software for independent car-rental businesses leasing weekly to gig drivers in Australia.
Local Car Rental in Townsville
Cristobal Galilea · 1 November 2026 · 5 min read
- car rental businesses compared in Greater Townsville
- 4
- have a Google rating. 1 have none.
- 3
- have 15+ ratings and at least 4.3★
- 2
- Australian average across 677 independents
- 4.43★
Castle Hill above the houses of Townsville at dusk. Photo: Paul Pulimoottil, Pexels
We compared four car rental businesses in Greater Townsville, and MYUTE & CAR Rentals is the one on the list. Below is what its own site says about bond, minimum age, overseas licences and kilometres. The international brands at Townsville Airport are not on the list; see who rents at the airport. To ask it for a quote, send one request.
The short answer
MYUTE & CAR Rentals is the only operator on Carz’s Townsville list. It publishes no weekly rate.
Only true independents: Australian-owned, Townsville-local, no international franchises and no networks of three or more branches. Built for anyone renting by the week or the month.
The list, by Carz score
The Carz score is the Google rating, weighted by how many people gave it. We add 50 ratings at the Australian average (4.43★) to every business, so a few perfect ratings cannot beat hundreds of near-perfect ones.
Bar: Carz score. Dashed line: Australian average.
The one on the list
- Place 1
MYUTE & CAR Rentals
4.8★ from 256 Google ratingsCarz score 4.740Garbutt
Highest Carz score in Townsville, chains included. Family-run since 1990.
Weekly from
Not published
- Bond
- $200 to $500, by driver age
- Min age
- 21 (higher deposit to 24)
- Kilometres
- 250 km a day, then 28c/km
Read the full review
A family business at 368 Ingham Road in Garbutt, next to the RAAF base and a few minutes from the airport. The Nannestad family started it in 1990 hiring utes, and it now rents cars, utes, vans and trailers. The car fleet runs from an MG3 hatch and a Toyota Camry to compact SUVs, a Toyota Yaris Cross hybrid and an eight-seat Kia Carnival. It picks up and drops off at the airport during business hours.
The FAQ sets the minimum age at 21 on a full licence; learner and provisional licences are refused. Drivers aged 21 to 24 pay a higher deposit and insurance, and drivers of 75 or over need a medical certificate. A licence must be in English with a photo, or come with an approved translation such as an International Driving Permit.
The deposit is $200 to $500, depending on the driver’s age, on a physical Visa, Mastercard or American Express credit card in the hirer’s name. The booking itself can be paid by debit card or EFTPOS. Cars include 250 km a day, with extra kilometres at 28 cents. The cars stay within 400 km of Townsville and on sealed roads, and there are no one-way hires. No weekly price, minimum hire or rideshare rule is published.
Who it’s for: a renter over 21 on a full licence who flies in and wants a lift from the airport to the depot, or a car and a ute from the same counter. Who it’s not for: a P-plater, anyone without a credit card for the deposit, or a trip that goes past 400 km from Townsville.
Just outside the list
Townsville and Magnetic Island Vehicle Hires in the city centre (4.3★ over 61 ratings) passed the floor and is not listed. Its booking page shows cars as one category next to scooter, camper, bicycle and kiteboarding hire. Its rating covers all of that hire, not its cars alone.
MYUTE’s Carz score is the highest of every listing Google files under car rental in Greater Townsville, so nobody was left out for scoring too low. The four vehicle hire businesses with the next highest scores were left out under the methodology. 1300 Meteor Rentals (4.8★ over 182 ratings) has branches in Cairns, Townsville and Mount Isa, and is left off the Cairns list for the same reason. The SIXT airport branch (4.7★ over 102) and Europcar’s Townsville City branch (4.6★ over 102) belong to international brands, and Mobile Truck Rental (4.7★ over 33) hires trucks.
Quick comparison
Six things decide whether you can rent: what a week costs, how long you must commit, what you have to put down, how far you can drive, how old you must be, and whether an overseas licence works.
- Published
- Partly published
- Not published
| Operator | Weekly from | Min term | Bond | Kilometres | Min age | Overseas licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1MYUTE & CAR Rentals | Not published (quote on request) | Not published | $200 to $500, by driver age | 250 km a day, then 28c/km | 21 (higher deposit to 24) | IDP if not in English |
| Publish it | 0 of 1 | 0 of 1 | 1 of 1 | 1 of 1 | 1 of 1 | 1 of 1 |
MYUTE publishes four of the six. Bond, age, kilometres and the licence rule are on its site. A weekly price and a minimum hire are not.
How the Carz score treats a rating
Hollow is the Google rating, solid is the Carz score. The fewer ratings a business has, the further its score drops towards the Australian average.
How we ranked these operators
The Carz score starts from the Google rating and counts how many ratings stand behind it, so a 5.0 from 15 people cannot beat a 4.8 from 256. We took the car rental businesses Google Maps lists in the Townsville urban area, from Deeragun to Wulguru, plus text searches, on 1 November 2026 and scored them this way. Magnetic Island is outside that area, and its hire firms were not compared.
The technical name is a Bayesian average, the method IMDb uses for its Top 250. Every business starts with 50 notional ratings at the Australian average, and its real ratings are added to those. The Australian average is 4.432★, measured across the 677 rated independent car rental operators in our national census. The Carz score is printed beside every entry, on the same star scale, so the order can be checked without trusting us.
The floor is at least 15 ratings and 4.3★. We excluded international brands, networks with three or more branches, accident-replacement fleets and businesses that do not rent cars. 4 car rental businesses in Greater Townsville were compared; 3 have a Google rating and 1 has none, so that 1 was classified but never scored; 2 passed the floor; 1 of those hires scooters, campers, bikes and kiteboarding gear alongside cars, so its rating is not a car rental rating; 1 was published.
Some listings Google files under car rental are something else, and their own sites say so. Bubs2Bratz hires prams and baby car seats. Holiday Hosting lets holiday apartments. We2care provides disability support. Accidental Car Rental supplies accident-replacement cars, and 13cabs is a taxi company.
Prices, bonds, ages, kilometre allowances and licence rules were read from the operator’s own website on 1 November 2026, never from a directory, an aggregator or a booking site. Where an operator publishes nothing, the table says Not published; it never says “no”.
Compiled by the team at Carz, which also builds the software some of these operators run on. We say it here rather than bury it. Nothing on this page is paid for, and no operator can buy a position on it.
Townsville operators can read about Carz’s car rental software. Using it has no bearing on the order above.
What you need to rent weekly in Townsville
Age
21, on a full licence. MYUTE charges a higher deposit and insurance from 21 to 24, and asks drivers of 75 or over for a medical certificate.
Overseas licence
Accepted in English with a photo. A licence in another language needs an approved translation such as an International Driving Permit, carried with the licence.
Bond
$200 to $500, by driver age. MYUTE takes it on a credit card and releases it when the car comes back; its FAQ says your bank can take up to 7 business days to free it.
Debit card
Fine for the booking, not for the deposit. The deposit needs a physical Visa, Mastercard or American Express credit card in the hirer’s name. EFTPOS, gift and travel cards are refused for it.
P-plates
Not accepted. MYUTE requires a full licence and refuses learner and provisional licences.
Rideshare
No rule published. MYUTE says nothing either way about Uber or DiDi. Ask before you book.
Weekly vs daily in Townsville
MYUTE says it has daily and weekly rates but prints neither, so a week in Townsville is priced on request.
Ask for a quote on the car and dates you need. Check the 250 km daily allowance against your trip, and remember that the car cannot go more than 400 km from Townsville.
What the list says about Townsville’s rental market
Our census found 31 places Google files under car rental in the Townsville urban area. Most are chain branches at the airport and in Garbutt. The rest include a taxi company, two accident-replacement fleets, a baby equipment shop and a holiday letting agency. Four are independent car rental businesses, and one passed every check.
MYUTE’s Carz score beats every chain branch in the city. Only Bargain Car Rentals at the airport has more ratings, 291 against MYUTE’s 256, at 4.5★. Compare with Cairns, the nearest city on these lists, or see every city on the rankings hub.
Frequently asked questions
How much is weekly car rental in Townsville?
The operator on this list does not publish a weekly price. MYUTE & CAR Rentals says it offers daily and weekly rates, but its car page prints no figure. Quotes come by phone or through its enquiry form.
Can I rent a car in Townsville under 25?
Yes, from 21 at MYUTE & CAR Rentals, on a full licence. Drivers aged 21 to 24 pay a higher deposit and insurance. It does not rent to anyone under 21, and it does not accept learner or provisional licences.
Can I rent a car in Townsville on an overseas licence?
Yes at MYUTE & CAR Rentals, if the licence is in English and has a photo. A licence in another language needs an approved translation such as an International Driving Permit, carried with the licence itself.
What bond do Townsville car rental companies ask for?
MYUTE & CAR Rentals takes a deposit of $200 to $500, depending on the driver’s age. It goes on a physical Visa, Mastercard or American Express credit card in the hirer’s name. EFTPOS, gift and travel cards are not accepted for the deposit.
Why is there only one operator on this list?
Our census found four independent car rental businesses in Townsville, and two passed the floor. Townsville and Magnetic Island Vehicle Hires (4.3★ over 61 ratings) is not listed: its booking page shows cars as one category next to scooters, campers, bikes and kiteboarding gear, so its rating covers more than car hire. 1300 Meteor Rentals is a network with branches in Cairns, Townsville and Mount Isa, the same reason it is left off the Cairns list. SIXT, Europcar, Redspot and Bargain Car Rentals are chains. Hire firms on Magnetic Island were not compared.
How was this ranking calculated?
We took the car rental businesses Google Maps lists in the Townsville urban area, from Deeragun to Wulguru, plus text searches, on 1 November 2026 and scored them on a Bayesian average, the method IMDb uses for its Top 250. Every business starts with 50 notional ratings at the Australian average, which is 4.432★ across the 677 rated independent car rental operators in our national census, and its own ratings are added to those. We required at least 15 ratings and 4.3★, and excluded international brands, networks with three or more branches, accident-replacement fleets and businesses that do not rent cars. Prices and rules were read from the operator’s own website on 1 November 2026.